Vampires Of Old - By: Gen Wright

Vampires are incredible wretches and emerge throughout folklore. Here are four myths about vampires.

The Buckinghamshire Vampire

In 1196 a vampire prowled the Buckinghamshire district of England. The account is chronicled in Historia Rerum Anglicarum. The scribe of the account is an abbot named William of Newburgh. A vampire, which was the spook of a recently deceased man, assaulted his prey each evening. He was a customary vampire; one who slept during sunlit hours in a grave at the local golgotha. When the sun set the vampire would rise from the dead and assault his widow while she was asleep. It is commonplace in vampire folklore for vampires to assault their previous family members.

Even though the vampire did not slay his widow, each night he came back to her bed chamber and attacked and annoyed her. The widow sought out family members to stay with her and keep her from falling asleep after dark. The vampire began attacking other family members in the house. It wasn't long before the complete hamlet was terrified of going to sleep.

The vampire's burial grave was exhumed by the local villagers. The corpse hadn't decayed and was in a fresh condition. The townspeople buried the corpse again. On the chest of the body they set a holy scapula. The vampire never rose from the grave thenceforth.

The Folktale of the Vampire of Berwick

In another account of William of Newburgh's Historia Rerum Anglicarum, a wealthy man who lived in the town of Berwick died of plague close to the boundary of England and Scotland. After his death he was reported to be roving the streets every night. The dogs of the village would howl deep into the night while this vampire was roving. The villagers, who were spooked that plague might infect the village because of the vampire's presence, exhumed the corpse, dismembered it, and burned it. The vampire was never seen roving the village at night thenceforth. Nonetheless, plague still infected the village and it was blamed on the drifting spiritual presence of the vampire.

The Vampire Folktale of Arnold Paole

In this legendary Austrian myth, a Serbian fugitive named Arnold was the victim of a vampire assault during a nocturnal stroll in a graveyard. He found the vampire's grave site and decapitated the vampire with a spade. The vampire curse was a superstition that made the executioner of a vampire turn into a vampire themselves. In an effort to stop the curse, Arnold decided to eat some of the dirt around the grave site. Arnold lived an average life for many years.

Sometime after Arnold died resulting from a fall in which he broke his neck. Following his burial his spirit was discovered sneaking around the village late at night. Several townspeople were discovered dead after dawn, all drained of blood. The stark speculation was that Arnold had fallen victim to the vampire curse. The Austrian army was assigned to investigate the situation. They exhumed the body and were shocked by what they discovered. The body had not decayed and there was fresh blood frothing from the mouth, eyes, and nose. The nails had grown and new skin had grown as well.

The villagers hammered a stake into the heart of the carcass. The body started to bleed from the injury and the corpse began groaning in pain. The vampire then vanished forever.

The Vampire Folktale of Peter Plogojowitz

This example was one of the most amazing and well documented cases of vampire mania. The legend is written in Imperial Provisor Frombald, penned by an Austrian bureaucrat who witnessed the vampire stalkings of Peter Plogojowitz.

In 1725 Peter Plogojowitz, a Serbian farmer, lived in a village named Kisilova. Soon after Plogojowitz's death, at least nine additional townspeople died. They died very slowly and on their death beds they claimed that Plogojowitz was attacking and strangling them during the night.

The villagers exhumed the corpse and closely examined it for any sign of vampirism. They found out that the body had not decomposed, that the hair and nails had grown, and that a beard had grown. Blood was discovered in the mouth of the body. The townspeople staked the body through the heart. Blood began squirting from the ears and nose. Afraid that the vampire would rise again, the townspeople burned the body.

Conclusion

Vampire tales share very general themes. When a character dies and rises as a vampire, the creature oftentimes attacks former family members first. Before dawn the creature goes back to its coffin to seek shelter until the next night. When the carcass is exhumed it doesn't contain signs of decomposition. After the corpse is destroyed by fire or staked through the heart, the vampire is not witnessed again.

Vampires are capricious devils and turn up throughout history. Here are four tales of vampires.

Gen Wright is a contributor to the online community Vampire Rave, a social network with a vampire theme. He also contributes to the Dark Network, a network of paranormal, supernatural, and darker websites.