One of the most infamous characters from the Middle Ages was Vlad III Dracula, the prince of Wallachia. Here is the story of how he gained the nickname of ‘the Impaler’.
The Histories, by Laonikos Chalkokondyles, which has been recently translated by Anthony Kaldellis, describes the fall of the Byzantine empire and rise of the Ottomans. Written sometime between 1464 and 1468, it centres around the capture of Constantinople in 1453. However, it also covers many events that were happening in Eastern Europe, where the Ottomans, Hungarians and other states were vying with each other.
