Bran Castle (; ; ), situated near
Bran and in the immediate vicinity of
Brasov, is a national monument and landmark in
Romania. The
fortress is situated on the border between
Transylvania and
Wallachia, on DN73. Commonly known as "Dracula's Castle" (although it is one among several locations linked to the
Dracula legend, including
Poenari Castle and
Hunyad Castle), it is the home of the titular character in
Bram Stoker's
Dracula. There is, however, no evidence that Stoker knew anything about this castle, which has only tangential associations with
Vlad III,
voivode of
Wallachia, the putative inspiration for Dracula. As discovered by the Dutch author Hans Corneel de Roos, the location Bram Stoker actually had in mind for Castle Dracula while writing his novel was an empty mountain top, Mount Izvorul Calimanului, high, located in the Transylvanian
Calimani Alps near the former border with
Moldavia.