Vlad the Impaler vs. Count Dracula The being that is Vlad the Impaler and the storybook character Count Dracula have similarities beyond coincidence. To begin to understand how Vlad the Impaler and Count Dracula are so similar, one must first understand that Count Dracula was based on the historical being Vlad the Impaler. You can compare and contrast these two legends by simply picking up a book on the subject or even simply going to a website that has information on the two. Vlad the Impaler became the fearsome ruler who was used as a reference to create the book character Count Dracula. Vlad the Impaler's date of birth is November or December 1431, in the Transylvanian city of Sighisoara. Vlad's siblings included an older brother, Mircea, and a younger brother, Radu the Handsome. Vlad's father ruled Wallachia from 1436 to 1447 and became the fearsome ruler who would push his son to follow in his footsteps. But Vlad's father would only fight if he knew he would win. He would immediately switch sides if the team he was supporting started losing. Family meant nothing to Vlad's father; and in the end he would have given up his two sons without a second thought if it meant victory for the side he was on. Vlad was 12 or 13 years old when he was given hostage by his father. All the things that had happened to him as a child would eventually contribute to the demented personality that Vlad the Impaler had developed as he grew up. As he grew up, all he knew became war. Everything Vlad's father knew became war because all he wanted to gain was power. There is no peace in his mind and fighting is the only way Vlad's father knew how to get what he wanted so badly. Candies. As an adult, Vlad the Impaler took his...... middle of paper... they're not ready to know yet, or maybe it turns out they're just people sensitive to sunlight. While the hypothesis remains, Bram Stoker and all the other vampire writers got their ideas from something. That something could have been a lesser version of what is thought to be a vampire. “Figure 2” Vlad the Impaler Works Cited Goldberg, Enid A., and Norman Itzkowitz. Vlad the Impaler: the real Count Dracula. NEW YORK: Franklin Watts, 2007. Print."VLAD TEPES - The historical Dracula." Don Linke--Home. Np, nd Web. March 13, 2014. "Vlad Tepes/Dracula Page 2." Vlad Tepes/Dracula Page 2. Np, nd Web. March 11, 2014."Vlad the Impaler (1431-1476)." Vlad the Impaler. Np, January 2003. Web. March 7, 2014. "Vlad the Impaler vs. Dracula." Vlad the Impaler. Np, 7 February 2003. Web. 7 March 2014. Wilkinson, Kathryn, ed. Signs and symbols. New York: DK, nd Print.