Before and After Sigismund

Vlad II Dracul is better known as the father of Vlad III Dracula. He was however a figure in his own right. Vlad II won Sigismund of Luxemburg’s trust (who made him knight of the Order of the Dragon) and John Hunyadi’s hatred (who beheaded Vlad and took his throne). Sigismund’s dream was Church union. Hunyadi was a champion of the Florentine union. Raising the issue of Vlad II’s stand towards ecclesiastical union therefore comes naturally. Yet, as it was already noted, his Wallachia was not represented at the Council of Ferrara-Florence, while Vlad’s “agenda” seemed to draw him towards the rival Council of Basel. A review of the topic is enabled by a handful of sources that, interestingly enough, originate in the politics of the South. The explanation for it can be found at the end of Sigismund’s rule when Vlad II was still only a claimant.