„History-Who is it?
Katharina Siegel and Vlad Tepes...A girl of modest condition and a bloody voivode.
A romantic, turbulent and passionate love story that has become a legend. Her perfume crosses the centuries and excites our imagination. Trying to unravel the mystery of an impossible relationship, which nevertheless lasted 20 years, despite all the obstacles, the painting brings back to the light of modern man her portrait discovered among the pages yellowed by time. Perhaps from her slender figure of a cod, from her blue eyes full of life, from her delicate creature, we will understand what was the key that opened the fortress of the soul of a voivode with the fame of a vampire.
She is known as one of the most important lovers of the ruler of Wallachia: Vlad Tepes
Who would have thought that the icy heart of the cruel Wallachian voivode Vlad Tepes was conquered? By the daughter of a Saxon weaver from Corona, the name of the Brasov fortress at that time.Katharina is the name of the woman who was overwhelmed with…much tenderness by the one who entered the collective memory under the name of "Dracula". This relationship lasted for over 20 years, from which five children resulted. It seems that this woman was the only being for whom "Dracula" had fits of jealousy…
It is said that from the moment he saw Katharina, Vlad Ţepeş completely forgot about his other gallant adventures, including Ursulla from Schassburg/Sighişoara, Erika from Bistriţa and Lize from Hermannstadt/Sibiu.According to some chronicles, it seems that many of the voivode's cruel acts were due to the frustrations, jealousy and anger that "Dracula" felt away from Katharina.
When they met, the beautiful Saxon woman was only 17 years old, and Ţepeş was 34. Near Christmas in 1465, several very young girls were struggling to pull a large sledge full of provisions up the hill through the snow for the soldiers in the Weavers’ Bastion, located near Vlad’s house. Being with his officers at the bottom of the hill, he jumped to help them. The voivode’s gallantry seemed strange to everyone, until they realized that he could no longer take his eyes off the blond, blue-eyed girl.
It was Katharina Siegel, who was distinguished by her extraordinary beauty. The daughter of the master (zunftmeister) of the weavers’ guild, Thomas Siegel, had grown up at the Franciscan Monastery in Mahlersdorf, after a terrible fire had left her parents poor and destitute.Poor, sick and homeless, the former leader of the weavers' guild lived with his family at the relatives of his wife, Susanna, née Fronius, in the so-called Tartler House.
(The building is still located today at 14 Poarta Şchei Street and belongs to the Evangelical Church. Until a few years ago, a kindergarten operated here. )
Cruelty and carnage
Şepeş ordered Katharina the most beautiful dresses, made of silks and lace brought from Venice and Flanders. The 18th-century Transylvanian chronicle shows that the idyll of Prince Vlad, military governor and Duke of Făgăraş and Amlaş, with the beautiful Katharina created a revolt among the suitors for the girl's hand, three of whom came from wealthy families of the Saxon community.
According to the chronicles, on April 2, 1459, angry at the high taxes imposed by the Saxons in Braşov and the intrigues of the leaders of the fortress, Vlad the Impaler destroyed all the grain harvests in the Land of Bârsei. He ordered the capture of hundreds of merchants and traders who were bringing goods to the fortress, whom he took near the slums of the city, in the area of today's Bartolomeu, and impaled them.
In the morning, the bloody ruler had breakfast among the dying people who were agonizingly impaled. After their death, he ordered the looting and burning of the Bartolomeu Church, as well as the burning of the village of Codlea. During the carnage, the ruler heard that the wives of the merchants in the fortress had attacked the house where Katharina lived. They beat her and put her on the Pillar of Infamy. Because they cut off his tails, the ruler threatened to set the entire city on fire... To save his beloved, he freed the other Saxon merchants who were about to be killed.
On a velvet cushion-(Legend)
Legend says that Șepeș managed to recover one of Katharine's braids, which he then kept on a velvet cushion. It is also said that, one day, he surprised his wife walking in the closet where she kept her braid, as if it were a sacred object. He got angry and beat her.
Vlad the Impaler wanted to marry Katharina, but the rigors of religion did not allow it, although he had several children with his mistress in Braşov. He even wrote twice to the Supreme Pontiff, Pope Pius II, asking for a letter of indulgence to annul his marriage to his first wife, Anastasia Holszanska, the niece of the Queen of Poland. In 1462, the fortress south of the Carpathians, where Ţepeş had taken refuge, was besieged by the Turks. The boyars betrayed him, siding with his brother, Radu the Handsome, who was supported by the Ottomans. Local legends relate that, in 1462, Anastasia committed suicide by throwing herself from a tower into the river surrounding the fortress, whether she was actually killed...it is not known exactly.
What is certain is that..., Vlad the Impaler was finally free to marry Katharina, with whom he already had three children: Vladislav "Laszlo" (b. 1456), Catherina (b. 1459) and Christian (b. 1461). However, a plot by his former rivals ended with the Impaler's imprisonment in Buda, where Matthias Corvinus told him that he would release him on condition that he marry his aunt, Elisabeth Corvinus de Hunyadi. Thus, the Impaler missed out on formalizing his relationship with Katharina. However, he had two more children with her - Hanna (b. 1463) and Sigismund (b. 1468).
Katharina remained close to Dracula even after his fall from the throne in 1462, and the Impaler took care of all his descendants, as attested by the land books from 1850 of the Draguly, Laszlo or Siegel families. The assassination of the voivode in 1477 put an end to his second reign and the love between him and Katharina. And the beauty who conquered Dracula to death would have returned to the monastery. Why not admit it, a spectacular love story, commensurate with the fascinating personality of Vlad the Impaler."
I know a lot about this person and, in particular, about Dracula's life. The reason why I made this painting is not accidental, as it might seem at first glance. I told you above some details about Katharina Siegel and about this story, for those who were not familiar with it before. Next, I will explain in more detail about my painting itself.
Painting description:
This artwork was made based on a black and white woodcut, discovered by historians in a personal manuscript of Țepeș. This is the only known representative image, which helps us to outline a clearer picture of the appearance of this young lady. In order not to risk omitting important details, I tried to draw inspiration from this document, taking into account both the information from historical sources and the visual condition of the woodcut of the time. Thus, I wanted to offer a color interpretation as faithful as possible to reality.
I believe that this personality plays an important role in the history of our people, about whom too little is known, and what is presented to the public is often only in small doses, with great stinginess. Considering that these national values must be kept alive in the collective memory, I chose to address this subject, also because there is no painting, sculpture or other works immortalized in time that would remind those who will come about this fascinating and beautiful story.
Probably, if we were immortal, we would no longer need painters. However, in today’s reality, painters retain their social importance throughout time. Even in these strange times, it seems that art remains relevant. Perhaps for some, the subject of this work is not of great interest, especially for globalists, but for those who still feel part of a nation and who love the values, landmarks and traditions of their country, it is a significant subject. This is, to date, the only color painting in history dedicated to this subject, and my hope is that it will contribute, in the future, to a deeper understanding of Țepeș and the lives of the voivodes. In an era that seems to be heading towards perdition, perhaps this work will remain as a testimony for those who will seek to learn more about our past.
The story inspired me to find Katharina Siegel as a muse, deepening the documentation on this subject, to provide information about an image that originally existed only in the engraving. Realistically speaking, we have an image of most of the voivodes of the past, either from engravings of the time, or from minted coins or from paintings in Orthodox churches. But many of these were hidden or destroyed after the 90s, especially through the 'satanization' of the population, through the whitewashing of historical images found in old churches. Today, Satanist cults are largely covered under the illusion of "Divinity", mafia and money, nothing spiritual, simulations and that's it, as are the "parishioners" who become possessed when they cross their thresholds. All this cultural destruction, just to erase the past and cultural landmarks of the nation, making those of the present easier to manipulate.
I also remembered Tudor Vladimirescu, whose color image reached us only thanks to the painter Theodor Aman. Probably Aman, like me now, intensively documented the subject, in order to reproduce the character's features as faithfully as possible, using the chronicles of the time and other historical sources to create a correct image. In this context, his portrait is now an important imprint in the collective memory of the remembered character. In fact, only thanks to Aman do we have a clear idea of what he looked like, T.Vladimirescu.
I did not approach such a notable personality. Unfortunately, women have not had much place in history, except through the prism of some resonant figures. Maybe that is why Katharina Siegel has not been portrayed in a color work until now, or because her presence in history was not considered important or because of other strictly political and historical interests..., most artists today being more concerned with commerce than with promoting culture and addressing intellectual subjects, unfortunately. However, personally, I was fascinated by this character, her drama and story, but especially the contrast between a simple woman, a peasant, and a prince known for his cruelty and evil. The discrepancy between the two is astonishing, but the essence of the story remains a powerful example: love can tame even the "devil" and this motivated me to paint her, because we already know the "devil" ...
I hope that this painting, story and description will inspire other artists to approach this subject, to bring more information and perspectives on important figures of history, who deserve to be better known. It is essential that such figures, sometimes forgotten or too little explored, find their place in our visual culture and collective memory, to offer future generations a deeper understanding of the past and the values that define us as a nation.”
