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  • The Critic Magazine

    When in Romania…

    Oct 28, 2021 4 minutes
    Jessica Douglas-Home

    Children of the Night: The Strange and Epic Story of Modern Romania Paul Kenyon (Head of Zeus, £25)

    Jessica Douglas-Home is an author and founder of the Mihai Eminescu Trust, which helps preserve the heritage of Saxon Transylvania

    ALTHOUGH ROMANIANS TRACE their country’s foundation back to Ancient Rome, Paul Kenyon begins his account in 1431, with Prince Vlad III Dracul, son of Vlad II, who controlled Wallachia, the semi-independent vassal of the Ottoman Empire (sustained by Islam and ruled by the Turkish Sultan). The imprint of Vlad III Dracul — made famous in Bram Stoker’s novel Dracula — provides an interesting thread that weaves throughout the book.

    When Vlad II was murdered, his 15-year-old son was sent off

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