Romanian Castles

Castles in Romania are the stuff of fairytales and horror legends! The castles are alluring, not only for their haunting beauty but for all the legends and history that surround them.  We visited three on our recent jaunt through the country.  

First Castle Peles which was constructed at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century for King Carol I of Romania.  The castle was used by Romanian royalty until the end of the monarchy and the beginning of Communism. In the 1950s, it was transformed into a museum. 

Castle Peles

The inside is super luxurious with lots of wood paneling and intricate carvings.

The entryway is definitely fit for a king!

If you have been to Neuschwanstein Castle in Germany the interior may look slightly familiar. That's because the royal family was originally German.  If you watched the totally inane Christmas movie, "A Christmas Prince" the outdoor scenes were filmed here.  And if you did watch it, don't feel bad, I watched it too! 

The most famous castle is Bran Castle, which is popularly known as Dracula's Castle even though  the 'real' Dracula, Vlad Tepes, never lived here. And in fact, Stoker's description of Dracula's crumbling castle in his novel Dracula bears no resemblance to Bran Castle. Michael Wilcox says that it is funny that people want to see the real Dracula's castle, sort of like people who go to Verona, Italy to see Romeo and Juliet's balcony!  These are fictional characters!  There is no REAL Dracula's Castle or Juliet balcony.  Still it is fun to walk through and imagine the castle as home to the royal family or withstanding a siege or housing the undead! Because the building was started in the 14th century, it has a totally different look from Peles Castle.  

Bran Castle

This area of Romania has been under both Romanian and Hungarian control.  During WW II,  Princess Ileana of Romania ran a hospital here.  

The castle and surrounding countryside are quite beautiful but the castle did have a brutal medieval past.  Also there are Romanian legends about undead souls that haunt the villagers at night. 

 And yes there are secret passages!

Last Romanian castle on our itinerary was Corvin Castle, also known as Hunyadi Castle or Hunedoara Castle.  They call it a Gothic-Renaissance Castle.  Construction started in 1446 and additions and renovations continued into the 17th century, plus according to the guidebooks:

The current castle is the result of a fanciful restoration campaign undertaken after a disastrous fire and many decades of total neglect. It has been noted that modern "architects projected to it their own wistful interpretations of how a great Gothic castle should look"

Corvin Castle

Inside I could just picture the King and Queen eating a meal in the Great Hall while all the intrigue of a great court swirled around them.

I imagine the courtiers in their small bedrooms as they plotted.  Maybe I've been watching too many movies about King Henry the 8th and his court!

Anyway, it is an impressive place!

One interesting legend concerns the 30 meter deep well in the courtyard.  Supposedly the well was dug by 3 Turkish prisoners (from the Ottoman Empire) to whom liberty was promised if they reached water.  After 15 years they completed the well, but their captors did not keep their promise.  It was said that the inscription on a wall of the well means "you have water but not soul".  Specialist, however have translated. the inscription as "he who wrote this inscription is Hasan, who lives as a slave of the giaours (infidels), in the fortress near the church."

It is fascinating to take a stroll through history.