Visiting An Impaler
Vlad III, famously known as “Vlad the Impaler,” had a reputation that revolved around revenge and ruthless actions. Everything associated with him seemed to be linked to acts of vengeance. One particular incident involved Turkish rulers who, upon visiting Vlad, refused to remove their turbans in his presence due to their custom. Whether this situation warranted revenge is open to interpretation, but Vlad believed it did. For the man who would inspire the legend of Dracula, there was only one way to address such defiance.
Vlad’s solution to the turbans issue was quite extreme. He decided that the Turkish delegates should permanently wear their turbans and, in a shocking display of cruelty, ordered that their turbans be nailed to their heads. This gruesome punishment demonstrated that failing to show respect to Vlad could have dire consequences. Instead of merely extending a courteous gesture, lifting one’s hat to the impaler became a matter of life and death.
