Vlad tepes:  Dracula in art

In the 1500’s, Vlad Tepes, also known as Vlad Dracula, ruled as Prince of Wallachia, a state in what is now Romania.  In the West, Vlad is best known only for the legends of the cruel punishments he imposed during his reign and as serving as the primary inspiration for the vampire main character in Bram Stoker's popular Dracula novel.  However, as Prince, Vlad Dracula was a defender of Wallachia against Ottoman expansionism and is remembered throughout Romania as a national hero who resisted the Turkish conquerors and asserted Romanian national sovereignty.