It's a fairly obscure chivalric order which pertains specifically to the tensions between European Christianity and the Ottoman Empire. The order diminished somewhat with the death of its founder, Sigismund of Hungary, but remained regionally active along the border between the Ottoman Empire and Christian Europe. Vlad II Dracul was a member of the somewhat less prestigious group of inductees to the order in 1431 and the honor passed to his son, Vlad III Dracula (of sanguinius fame). The major reason you don't hear more about the order is that it was always a pale imitation of more prestigious and politically important orders founded around the same time, typically having to do with crusades or other religious conflicts. Wikipedia has a decent list of members though the only names besides Vlad II Dracul and Vlad III Dracula that you are likely to recognize is Henry V of England, counted only as an unsworn "foreign ally." For more on Vlad and his delinquent son I recommend In Search of Dracula which isn't focused on Vlad specifically but does give a wonderful treatment of the historical foundations of the Vampire myth, Vlad included. More on reddit.com

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Much like the universal era, all ar basically freestanding More on reddit.com

I mean, you can watch whatever you want, but I wouldn't do it this way. Start with 1931 Dracula (try the 1931 Spanish version if you dare) Then watch the first two Christopher Lee films (1958, 1966) Then watch 1922 Nosferatu (or, if you prefer, the Herzog 1979) Then watch 1977 Dracula (Louis Jourdan) (this might be 'best') Then watch 1979 John Badham (the Frank Langella version) Then watch 1992 Coppola Dracula, because it's lush + visual Then watch 2000 Shadow of the Vampire, wonderfully meta Optional: 1968 Mystery + Imagination on YouTube (it's good) Optional: two or three seasons of Penny Dreadful (v. vampy) This will give a nice flavor for "the Wallachian past" and "the seafaring voyage." Both the Luke Evans + Corey Hawkins products are action-movie garbage. It's somewhat reminiscent of the Star Wars problem -- we (fans) like the Clone Wars better when they're left massive and mysterious off-screen, devoting a whole movie (or trilogy) to "here's what really happened then" can ruin the vast unspoken mythology. For alternate Halloween viewing, I strongly recommend the 1979 Salem's Lot adaptation. More on reddit.com