The murder of Constantin Brancoveanu
The anti-Ottoman policies of Constantin Brancoveanu were denounced to the Porte. Brâncoveanu was deposed from his throne by Sultan Ahmed III and brought under arrest to Constantinople, where he was imprisoned at the fortress of Yedikule (the Seven Towers) in 1714.
There, he was tortured by the Ottomans, who hoped to locate the immense fortune he had supposedly amassed. He and his four sons were beheaded in August on the same day, together with Prince Constantin's faithful friend, grand treasurer Enache Văcărescu.
According to his secretary, Anton Maria Del Chiaro, their heads were then carried on poles through the streets of Constantinople, an episode which caused a great unrest in the city. Fearing a rebellion, including that of the Muslim population which was outraged by the injustice done to the Prince, his sons and his close friend ordered for the bodies to be thrown into the Bosporus.
This year, the Romanians commemorate 300 years since the martyrdom of Constantin Brancoveanu and his sons. On August 16, 2014, the Romanian Orthodox Church also celebrates the Brancoveanu Saints Martyrs: Prince Constantine with his four sons – Constantine, Stefan, Radu, Matei – and his counsellor Enache Văcărescu. On this occasion, the church of “Saint George” of Bucharest founded by prince Brancoveanu was festively decorated.
The statue of Constantin Brancoveanu
The Statue of C. Brâncoveanu, in bronze, made by sculptor Oscar Han in 1939, is in the churchyard of St. Gheorghe Bucharest, where he is interred.