While Dracula is accepted as the undisputed king of the vampires, he is not as original as most people think he is. There were three lesser known vampires who helped pave the way for him.
The first one is Lord Ruthven from "The Vampyre" by John Polidori. It was published in 1819 and was in fact the first vampire story. It would later become a play staged in London and Paris. The story was taken from a story written by Polidori's friend, the poet Lord Byron. In fact, Mr. "Mad, Bad, and Dangerous to Know" was the model for Ruthven. In the story, Ruthven is pale, aloof, loved by women, and enjoys corrupting people, especially gamblers.
The main character of "The Vampyre" is man named Aubrey who befriends Ruthven in London and accompanies him on a trip to Rome. While there, the two have a falling out when Ruthven tries to seduce the daughter of an acquaintance of Aubrey's.
Aubrey goes on to Greece, where he meets and falls in love with Ianthe, the daughter of the innkeeper where he is staying. She's the one who introduces him to the vampire legend. Ruthven arrives in Greece later. Shortly after that, Ianthe is killed by a vampire. Aubrey doesn't make the connection yet between Ruthven's arrival and the vampire attack and ends up traveling with him throughout Greece.
At one point, the two are attacked by bandits. Ruthven is killed, but before he dies he makes Aubrey swear to conceal the manner of his death and any crimes he might have committed for a year and a day. Aubrey agrees. He returns to London. On the way, he begins to realize just how destructive Ruthven was to the people in his life, especially the women he professed to love.
When Aubrey returns to London, Ruthven is waiting for him and promptly reminds him of his oath of silence. Aubrey has a nervous breakdown, and while he is recovering Ruthven becomes close with Aubrey's sister. The two get engaged, and because of his oath Aubrey feels unable to stop them. The marriage takes place the day his oath to Ruthven expires. However, Aubrey is too late. Ruthven kills his sister and then disappears.
As I already mentioned, the story of Lord Ruthven became a stage play in London and Paris. It would make its way to Germany in 1829 and would see its final performance in 1852. He would later be succeeded by Varney the Vampyre, Carmilla, and eventually, yes, Dracula.
Ruthven would be resdicvoered in 1945 and serve as the inspiration for the movie, The Vampire's Ghost. He would go on to make an appearance in Marvel comics Vampire Tales in 1973 and would later appear on BBC TV in 1992.
That's all for now. Next time -- Dracula's Influences - part 2: Varney the Vampyre.
