The world's most expensive homes

[Nanuq]

Good lord... Vlad the Impaler put his place up for sale? I sure didn't see THAT one coming.

World's Most Expensive Homes

[Victoria]

Good lord... Vlad the Impaler put his place up for sale? I sure didn't see THAT one coming.

World's Most Expensive Homes

I just clicked on the link, so I'm not sure this is to what is referred in the article, Nanuq. But I THINK you are talking of Castelul Bran (Castle Bran)? Okay, yes, just saw it.

It's an interesting story, and it allows me to name-drop again.

I have a History degree with a concentration in Nazi Era Film/Eastern European history. So, when I was working on my thesis, I interviewed the current owner of Castle Bran, Archduke Dominic of Austria-Hungary (of the cadet, Toscana branch). His mother inherited the castle from her mother, the vivacious Queen Marie of Romania.

When the Iron Curtain came down, the Archduke successfully sued to have his mother's Castle returned to the family, and the Romanian government acquiesced (part of which was the reason for the interview). They even gave the ex-King, still living in Switzerland, a quasi-official ceremonial position, very laudably. He is the lone survivor of ALL the Heads of States during WWII. Churchill, Roosevelt, Stalin, Horthy, De Gaulle -- all dead, only he remains.

But unfortunately, this Castle, though not huge, is very difficult to keep up without enormous amounts of money which the family do not have anymore. The Archduke himself has a rundown home in Venice, which he is reconstructing with his own hands. A very expensive endeavour in and of itself.

So I went there there, got the tour from the chap himself (very nice, BTW, speaks perfect English since he was brought up near Boston, in exile), and found it creepy, but not as much as I anticipated considering the Vlad connexion.

Now it's up for sale as you can see, but I think the Romanian government should buy it back and turn it into what it was, a museum.

Not sure that is going to happen, since the moneys simply aren't there.

The other royal Palace returned to the Royal Family (there are several), Cotroceni, was inhabited for years by the ex-Soviet puppets, including of course, the Ceauşescus. It's reverted to the King himself. I'm sure that won't be on the market any time soon, though.

P.S.: The other two interesting links are the Pierre Penthouse, and that home in Cap Ferrat. Curiously, they were at one point both inhabited by Aristotle Onassis and Jacqueline Kennedy (though it doesn't say that on the link, but it doesn't have to. I know).