Thursday, December 30, 2021

Prince Charles is a descendant of Dracula and owns properties in Transylvania

The Prince of Wales is the heir to Vlad the Impaler's bloodline


By Charlotte Becquart
Senior reporter
 2 MAY 2021
Prince Charles, Prince of Wales (Image: Chris Jackson - WPA Pool / Getty Images)

The Royal Family has links to several countries across Europe, including Romania, and it turns out that Prince Charles is the descendant of the real-life Dracula.

The Prince of Wales, who actually owns several properties in Transylvania, is the heir to Vlad the Impaler's bloodline.

The ruthless prince, also known as Vlad Tepes and Vlad III Dracula, is known for his cruelty towards his enemies and impaling them on stakes. He lived in the 15th century and is said to have inspired Bram Stoker for his famous Count Dracula.

In 1462, following a battle, Vlad left a field filled with thousands of impaled victims.

More than 530 years later, in 1998, Prince Charles found out about his links to the Romanian ruler.

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He is, in fact, his great-grandson 16 times removed, through the consort of George V, Queen Mary, Romania Tour Store reports.

A genealogical tree in The British Chronicles written by David Hughes supports this claim.

The website adds: "It’s also no secret that Prince Charles is very fond of Romania, especially of the Transylvania region. It was after his first visit to Transylvania in 1998 that he found out about his connection to Vlad the Impaler, a connection that he is apparently very proud of.

"Through the Prince of Wales Foundation, Prince Charles has done plenty of charity work in Transylvania, especially in the fields of sustainable development, conservation, and farming systems. Because of his strong involvement in the region, the mayor of the city of Alba Iulia has proposed to grant Prince Charles the title of Prince of Transylvania as recognition for being a prominent ambassador of the Transylvania region all over the world."

A great-great grandmother of Prince Charles' mother Queen Elizabeth II, Hungarian Countess Klaudia Rhedey, was also born and raised in Transylvania in the 19th century.

(Image: Romain Chassagne / Getty Images)

Prince Charles now owns several properties in the Romanian region - in Viscri, in the Zalanului Valley, in Malancrav and in Breb.

These villages have now become popular with tourists.

Viscri is known for its pastel-coloured houses and its UNESCO World Heritage fortified church.

It is said that Zalán Valley used to belong to one of Charles' ancestors.

"The tiny hamlet of Zalán Valley (Zalánpatak in Hungarian, Valea Zălanului in Romanian) was first documented in the 16th century as belonging to Bálint (Valentin) Kálnoky of Kőröspatak, one of the Transylvanian ancestors of H.R.H. The Prince of Wales.


"The family had originally founded a glass factory in this part of the hills, which has since ceased to exist. Today, around 120 inhabitants live in the village.

"Prince Charles owns the property that had been built for the former ‘judge’ who was overseeing the glassworks and the village. It is composed of several buildings, and has a patch of forest and extensive flower meadows, with mineral springs and small brooks belonging to it."

The properties are now holiday cottages and can be booked by tourists.

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