The Teutonic Order built a wooden castle called Dietrichstein here in 1212, and royal troops destroyed it around 1225. On November 19, 1377, Louis I of Hungary granted the Saxons of Kronstadt, now Brașov, the privilege to build a stone castle at their own expense. This is the first documented mention of Bran Castle. It sits at 2,500 feet (760 m) on the Transylvanian side of the old border with Wallachia.
After 1920 it became a royal residence, and Queen Marie made it her favorite retreat. She ordered an extensive renovation by the Czech architect Karel Zdeněk Líman. The communists seized it in 1948, and it was returned to Princess Ileana's children on May 18, 2006. It opened as a private museum on June 1, 2009.
It is marketed as Dracula's Castle, but Stoker's novel does not mention it, and most historians agree Vlad III never lived there.
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