The Lost Castlevania Legend

I added 2 new pieces of fan art by Clara E. Leet (Sonia Belmont done in PrismaColors and Farewell) and a piece of fan art by akumajou master (Alucard and Sonia). Enjoy!

12/21/06 - 1:05 AM

I fixed the script, so the page isn't centered. I'm sorry about that.

12/21/06 - 12:21 AM

I haven't made a decision yet on whether this site will move or not. Please let me know your thoughts on this!

I added a script to display a random quote and added 4 new quotes: 2 from Nintendo Power, Volume 106, and 2 from Next Generation (September 1999).

I added a link to scans of a 2-page article in the December, 2006, issue of "Game Informer". It's significant for its Castlevania timeline - and Legends being included in it!

I added 2 pieces of Sonia fan art by quinqui!

I have created a new forum for this site! The link is near the top.

I fixed a typo in the continuity subsection.

11/27/06 - 1:07 AM

I forgot to mention this in my previous update, but I moved back to Florida in March. Therefore, all time stamps for April 17 onward are in Eastern Time.

I am letting you know ahead of time that this site might move. I have received an offer for it to be hosted somewhere else without ads. The only catch is that I won't be able to update the site directly; I'd have to e-mail my updates to someone. Please let me know your thoughts on this by e-mailing me at the address in the Copyrights and Permissions subsection!

I would like to take this opportunity to wish Ms. Sonia Belmont a Happy 9th Anniversary! Yay!

I updated my copyright of this site.

I fixed the titles of various games.

I added Japanese and U.S. release dates for the game and some info about the Super Game Boy compatability in the "What is Castlevania Legends?" subsection.

I removed the quotes from and links to the Legends and Sonia Wikipedia articles, since they're no longer in the articles - and the Sonia article has been deleted. She's been reduced to a paragraph in another article. Whoever did that is a dickhead.

I added an off-site link to scans of the entire "Akumajo Dracula Shikkoku Taru Zensokyoku" manual!

I added a scan of a not-so-flattering review of Legends from EGM, Vol. 106 (May 1998).

I removed the The American Story subsection. I want this site to be as much about the Japanese series as possible.

I added a scan of an article about the death of Resurrection from an unknown issue of EGM (please let me know which one).

I added issue numbers and dates for some magazine scans.

I updated the links to the Legends MIDIs and MP3s and condensed them into one link. MP3s of fan-made music are there, too.

I updated the link to the Resurrection MP3s.

I added links to 4 fanfics by Clara E. Leet in the Fan Fiction subsection.

04/17/06 - 11:31 PM
I added a Fan Art subsection in the Fan Material section and added 5 pieces of fan artwork: 3 by Clara E. Leet and 2 by Gabriel D. Villalobos. My thanks go to both of them for giving me permission to add their artwork to my site!

I added a lot of double-spaces that were missing in the Daily Life subsection. It looks neater now.

12/18/05 - 8:03 PM
I added a new sprite comic that I've created, called "Cattlevania: Legends", in the continuity subsection. Comments are welcome!

10/31/05 - 2:22 AM
I moved to Chicago on Saturday, October 1. Therefore, all time stamps from today onward are in Central Time.

I added a quote from the prologue of "Castlevania: Legends".

I corrected Legends' full Japanese title and English translation in the What is Castlevania: Legends? subsection.

I have recently come across translations of many of the original Japanese instruction manuals. This has led to a profound revelation on my part: Castlevania actually has a good story - or rather Akumajo Dracula has a good story. Castlevania's "story" sucks. Basically, back in the 1980s and early 1990s, Konami of America censored a lot of stuff or just plain didn't care. The writer(s) of the U.S. Castlevania instruction manuals made up some crappy stories (and I use the word loosely). Did you know that the original Castlevania occurs on Easter? Did you know that Simon got his whip from his father? Did you know that the Belmont family's cemetary is located near a place called Angel Hill? Did you know that Simon was suffering from a back wound in Simon's Quest? Did you know that the Poltergiest King that's mentioned in the Dracula's Curse instruction manual doesn't exist at all? So, what does all of this newfound information do for this site? Well, quite a lot, actually:

I deleted most of the English Dracula's Curse information from the Where does Legends fall in the Castlevania timeline? section, except where it's used to show the difference from the Japanese information. I also corrected how many years after Castlevania III that Legends really came out: 7 years later (in Japan), not 8.

I corrected a typo in the continuity subsection, added more examples of IGA's sexism, and moved most of my arguments regarding the supposed conflicts to the explanations in the Daily Life subsection.

I changed my comment regarding IGA's comment about Castlevania III in the Religion subsection, addressed the Eastern Orthodox Church / Pope controversy in Castlevania III, and added links to Wikipedia articles about the 2 Popes from Sonia's birth to her holy mission.

I replaced all of the U.S. Dracula's Curse story in the Daily Life subsection with the Japanese story and worked it together with Legends' story, which I've been told was translated accurately from Japanese. I also removed my original Note and added detailed explanations/arguments.

I added a subsection under Apocrypha called The American Story and moved my mixing of Legends' and Dracula's Curse's stories there just to keep the information on the site for those that are interested. I also corrected a typo in the Legends storyline (as I did in the Daily Life subsection).

07/12/05 - 1:00 AM
I added a quote (actually 2 quotes) from Volume 106 of "Nintendo Power". Neat, huh?

I removed the notice at the top of the page that said "Sections with an asterick (*) by them indicate that those sections have been updated since the previous release." It's from my Betty Cooper FAQ. I'm not sure if I intended to use this method on this page or not, but this page doesn't have nearly as many sections as my Betty Cooper FAQ, so I got rid of it.

I feel like an idiot. Shortly after I uploaded this page during its last update, I realized something. You know how I've been adding information for both Transylvania and Walachia, because I didn't know which country that Sonia lived in? Well, it was right in the instruction manual, which I quoted in the Daily Life subsection: "It was the Middle Ages in Transylvania. ... However, at about the same time a baby girl possessing special powers was born to a family living in a remote area of the country." So, there you have it. Sonia lived in Transylvania. In fact, she was born in Transylvania. Accordingly, I have removed all Walachia information from the page. I also removed all "Regarding Transylvania," notices, which are now redundant, so...yeah.

I deleted some text in the Ethnicity subsection, now that I know that Sonia was born in Transylvania and did not move there.

I corrected some misquotes regarding Dracula's Curse in the continuity and Religion subsections.

I added part on the text from the prologue of "Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse" in the Daily Life subsection to provide context. Please see my note there for an explanation.

I added scans of pages 84-91 of Volume 106 of "Nintendo Power" to the Legends Artwork subsection. It's a complete walkthrough of the game done in 8 pages.

I added a link to Legends' page on GameFAQs in the Emulation subsection.

I added a scan of a page from Volume 131 of "Gamepro" to the Resurrection Artwork subsection. It's the E3 preview of the game.

I renamed the mistakenly labelled Music subsection to Castlevania: Resurrection Music to reflect the contents listing.

I added Legends' full Japanese title in the What is Castlevania: Legends? subsection.

07/06/05 - 12:16 AM
I added a new subsection under Fan Material called Fan Music. In this section, I will attempt to link to every fan rendition of "Castlevania: Legends" music possible. Feel free to submit your own music! It currently has 1 link. It's to a page with flute renditions of various Castlevania, Final Fantasy, and Legend of Zelda tunes performed on a flute by a Castlevania fan - and major Sonia supporter - named Clara E. Leet. She performs 2 Legends tunes. Please check them out!

I added quotes from and a link to a Wikipedia article on Transylvania in the Politics subsection.

06/25/05 - 12:56 AM
I renamed Section A "The Site". "The FAQ" was a leftover from using my Betty Cooper FAQ as the basis for this site. :P

I added quotes from and links to Wikipedia articles on "Castlevania: Legends" and Sonia Belmont in the continuity subsection.

I added a button that I made at the bottom of the page (in a new section called, surprisingly enough, Link to this site). If you want Sonia Belmont to be recognized as part of the official Castlevania continuity again, then please put this button on your site and use it to link to this site! Sonia fans, unite!

I changed the link from a specific message thread on the Castlevania Dungeon Forums to the General Castlevania Discussion section on that forum, since the link to the specific thread doesn't seem to work anymore (if it ever did).

I changed my e-mail address to match the one on my main Supergirl site. Please feel free to e-mail me. The link is in the Copyrights and Permissions subsection.

I added a new section called Fan Material and a subsection called Fan Fiction. In this section, I will attempt to link to every Sonia Belmont fanfic possible. Feel free to submit your own fanfics! It currently has 1 link. It's "Castlevania Legends" by John Morey. It's a humorous fanfic about Sonia becoming a vampire hunter. It's not entirely accurate to the game, and it seems to be unfinished, but it's hilarious! Please read it!

03/27/05 - 1:45 AM
I changed the ROMs link to the Emulation page at The CastleVania Dungeon, since I can't seem to upload the ZIP file.

I added a new section called Apocrypha, dedicated to the unreleased "Castlevania: Resurrection" game.

I make the site public on Easter Sunday. How appropriate a day to begin the resurrection of "Castlevania: Legends" and Sonia Belmont!

03/11/05 - 11:57 PM
I put the site online on the 7th anniversary of the release of "Castlevania: Legends".

Copyrights and Permissions

All characters mentioned in this work are copyrighted by Konami.

This site is copyrighted � 2005-2006 by Mark Moore (spiritofsupergirl@hotmail.com).

Now, please enjoy this site.

Introduction

Hello, readers. This site is devoted to Sonia Belmont, the main character in "Castlevania Legends" for the Nintendo Game Boy.

I started working on this site on Sunday, January 9, 2005, at 11:00 PM.

B. General Information

What is "Castlevania Legends"?

"Castlevania Legends" is the American translation of "Akumajo Dracula Shikkoku Taru Zensokyoku" ("Demon Castle Dracula: Dark Night Prelude"), an entry in the long-running, Japanese video game series, "Akumajo Dracula" ("Demon Castle Dracula"; "Castlevania" in the U.S.), created by Konami. Most of the Akumajo Dracula games have musical connotations. "Note that the kanji can be translated either as "prelude" or "overture" - "prelude" was chosen because it more quickly identifies the storyline of the game - the beginning of the Castlevania saga (at least on the timeline.) Musically, a prelude is a movement or section of a work that comes before another movement or section of a work, although the word also has been used for short independent pieces that may stand alone. Similarly, an overture is an introductory piece, often designed to initiate an opera or other dramatic work."

[Source: The CastleVania Dungeon]

The Castlevania series (I'll refer to it as that from now on) is about the Belmont family. Every once in a while, the evil Count Dracula rises from the dead, and a Belmont must set out to his castle to defeat him. That's the basic plot of most of the games but not all of them. Each new game in the series can take place before or after previous games in the series. Most of the games feature a new Belmont (if only by relation, not always by name).

The series started in 1986. Prior to the release of "Castlevania Legends" in 1998, there were 3 games released for the Nintendo Entertainment System, 2 for the Nintendo Game Boy (Legends was the third), 1 for the MSX home computer (available only in Japan and Europe), 1 for the PC Engine, 1 for the X68000 (a Japanese console), 2 for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, and 1 for the Sega Genesis.

"Akumajo Dracula Shikkoku Taru Zensokyoku" was released on the Game Boy in Japan on November 27, 1997. "Castlevania Legends" was released on the Game Boy in the United States on March 11, 1998.

Legends was notable for three things: it was the first game in the series, chronologically, it was the first Game Boy Castlevania title to use color (through the Super Game Boy accessory, allowing you to play the game on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System), and it was the first game to star a female Belmont. Her name was Sonia Belmont.

Where does Legends fall in the Castlevania timeline?

Dates aren't mentioned in many of the games - including Legends. According to Konami of Japan's official timeline, which has been removed from its website, Legends occurs in 1450. Since it was the first game in the series, chronologically, it must occur prior to every game published before it. However, there is confusion as to how Sonia is related to the other Belmonts in the series - and how they're all related to each other for that matter! Two problems caused this mess: a lack of descriptions in the games themselves and faulty English translations.

For example, the official Japanese timeline places the first NES Castlevania game ["Akumajo Dracula" ("Demon Castle Dracula") in Japan], featuring Simon Belmont, in 1691; "Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse" ["Akumajo Densetsu" ("Demon Castle Legend") in Japan], featuring Trevor Belmont (Ralph in Japan) and also for the NES, in 1476; and the first two Castlevania games for the original Nintendo Game Boy portable system in 1576 and 1591, respectively. So, by the Japanese timeline, there is a 215 year gap between Trevor's adventure and Simon's first adventure.

The English instruction manual for "Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse" says that the time is 100 years before the birth of Simon Belmont. Simon's age was never given, but it isn't necessary in order to see the difference in these two sources. The game came out in 1990 (before the World Wide Web), so the official Japanese timeline hadn't been created yet. The Japanese game and instruction manual are more detailed in plot but don't narrow the time period down anymore specifically than the 15th century.

The product description on Amazon.com claims that Sonia is Simon's sister. It claims that it's the manufacturer's description, but, since it also spells Sonia's name "Sonja", we can probably dismiss the entire thing as a translation goof or plain bad information.

Keep in mind that Legends wouldn't come out for another 7 years, so Dracula's Curse was likely meant to be the first game in the series, chronologically, at this point. I'll discuss how it might be possible to reconcile the stories of Legends and Dracula's Curse in a later section.

Let's just go with the Japanese timeline in this case and say that Legends occurs in 1450. The English instruction manual stated that she was "in her seventeenth year" at the time (meaning 16 years old but not yet 17), which would mean that Sonia Belmont was born in 1433 or 1434. However, the manual then says that she's "17 years old", which would mean that Sonia Belmont was born in 1432 or 1433. Given the looseness with which people generally use the former versus the firmness of the latter, it's more likely that Sonia Belmont was born in 1432 or 1433.

What's this about Legends being taken out of continuity?

It's true. Koji Igarashi, the frontman for the Castlevania series, declared "Castlevania Legends" to be noncanonical and had it removed from the official Castlevania timeline. That means that Sonia Belmont never existed.

I found out about this early in 2005. In 2003, a new game called "Castlevania: Lament of Innocence" came out for the Sony PlayStation 2. It starred Leon Belmont, a knight in the 1000s, that defeats a vampire named Walter, who had kidnapped his girlfriend. She had been bitten, so, after Leon killed her, she infused his whip with her spirit, and so the Vampire Killer (the whip that all Belmonts use to defeat vampires) was created. I realized upon reading about the plot that this meant that Sonia was no longer the first Belmont to fight vampires, and Legends was no longer the first game in the series, chronologically, but I had no idea that Legends had been removed from the series!

Really, there was no reason that the two games couldn't both be canonical. So, why did Igarashi remove it? According to the person that told me about it, it was because Igarashi felt that video gamers were not ready to accept a strong female as the main character of a video game.

Here is an excerpt from an interview that was conducted with Koji Igarashi in 2003:

"EGM: Would you make a Castlevania with a female main character?

IGA: Hm, there are difficult problems with that. As a gamer, I think that you become one with the character, and since Castlevania has a lot of male players, it's natural to have male characters. In Rondo of Blood, Maria was a silly, cute aside, but you still had Richter to make it serious. Plus, Mr. Hagihara (the director) had a playful sense of humor. He worked on Symphony as well, and he made the telescope part where, if you pan over to the left you can see a little mouse, and also where Alucard can sit down on the chair and prop his feet up.

EGM: After Tomb Raider, don't you think a female character is more acceptable?

IGA: It's possible I guess. Although, I purposefully left the Sonia Belmont character (from Castlevania Legends for GBC) out of the official Castlevania chronology. (laughs) Usually, the vampire storyline motifs, females tend to be sacrificed. It's easier to come up with weak, feminine characters. I'll think about it more in the future, though. It's tough to fit a female hero into the early history of Castlevania, but as you move into the modern day, females can then more easily become a hero."

I guess IGA forgot about a girl named Jeanne d'Arc, who predated Sonia Belmont.

Not only does IGA live in a fantasy world; he feels the need to laugh about removing Sonia and Legends from continuity.

This is incredibly sexist and stupid! Did Igarashi think that Japanese video gamers had forgotten about Samus Aran, the heroine of the successful Metroid video game series? There are plenty of strong, female characters in video games - even in Japan.

Not only was Legends removed, but the two games for the Nintendo 64, "Castlevania 64" and "Castlevania: Legacy of Darkness", were also removed, probably for similar reasons (strong female characters, even though they weren't the stars of the games). In addition, "Castlevania: Circle of the Moon" for the Game Boy Advance was also removed.

Let's take a closer look at what this means. Not counting the "Castlevania: Chronicles" remake for the Sony PlayStation, Igarashi has removed four Castlevania games in a row from official continuity. Not only did Sonia Belmont never exist, but neither did Reinhardt Schneider, Carrie Fernandez, Cornell, Ada, Henry Oldrey, Nathan Graves, Hugh Baldwin, or Morris Baldwin. At least 9 Castlevania characters have been lost under Koji Igarashi's leadership.

While many Castlevania games and characters have been given the shaft by Igarashi, I have chosen "Castlevania Legends" and Sonia Belmont as the representatives of all of them for this site. I have chosen them for a few reasons. I'm drawn more to female characters than male characters. The fact that a game with a female lead was replaced with a game with a male lead makes Sonia Belmont the obvious choice to represent all of the female characters that have been affected. Legends may not be the best game of all of those affected, but it has a strenth in its raw, colorless, unembellished, straight-forward tale of the courage and strength of one girl to seek and defeat and evil being. It's not in color. It doesn't have the best graphics. So, what? It's beautiful, and it's been betrayed.

You can read Koji Igarashi's opinions on Legends in this interview.

Some fans point to Igarashi's later terming of the affected games as "other stories" and his consideration of having a lead female character in "Castlevania: Curse of Darkness" for the PS2 as proof that he's not completely against having female lead characters. Other fans dismiss the "another story" label as a half-assed attempt to placate scorned Sonia fans and something still less than true acceptance of the character. They also point to Igarashi's reason for ultimately deciding not to include a female lead character in Curse of Darkness: a female would be much less likely to take revenge than a male. Also, keep in mind that this is the same man that dismissed Maria's role in "Dracula X: Rondo of Blood" as "a silly, cute aside", and Maria's inclusion as a playable character in the Japanese-exclusive Sega Saturn port of "Castlevania: Symphony of the Night" is noncanonical; she has no storyline.

Presumably, another motive of Igarashi's for removing Legends from continuity is that it conflicts with his personal version of the Castlevania timeline. The only two games that Legends could conceivably conflict with are "Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse" and "Castlevania: Lament of Innocence". I'll address these supposed conflicts in the Daily Life subsection.

Fans are divided over this issue. There are Sonia fans that hate it. There are Sonia haters that are okay with it. There are Castlevania fans that love the concept of Sonia but hate the way the story and/or the game were handled.

To discuss this issue with other people, you can join and participate in discussions at the CastleVania Dungeon Forums.

For a humorous look at this issue, check out this sprite comic, I-G-A Killed the 'Vania Star.

Also check out my own sprite comic, Cattlevania: Legends.

C. In Search of Sonia Belmont

Geography

In Bram Stoker's novel, "Dracula", Jonathan Harker notes "I find that the district he named is in the extreme east of the country, just on the borders of three states, Transylvania, Moldavia, and Bukovina, in the midst of the Carpathian mountains; one of the wildest and least known portions of Europe. I was not able to light on any map or work giving the exact locality of the Castle Dracula, as there are no maps of this country as yet to compare with our own Ordance Survey Maps; but I found that Bistritz, the post town named by Count Dracula, is a fairly well-known place."

"Transylvania, Rom. Transilvania or Ardeal, Hung. Erd�ly, Ger. Siebenb�rgen, historic region and province (21,292 sq mi/55,146 sq km), central Romania. A high plateau, Transylvania is separated in the S from Walachia by the Transylvanian Alps and in the E from Moldavia and Bukovina by the Carpathian Mts. (of which the Transylvanian Alps are a continuation). In the north and west Transylvania borders on Crisana-Maramures and in the SW on the Banat. The Transylvanian plateau, 1,000 to 1,600 ft (305-488 m) high, is drained by the Muresul River and other tributaries of the Danube."

[Source: Encyclopedia.com]

"Transylvania is situated in the south-eastern corner of the Carpathian Basin. Its area is roughly 100,000km2 (40,000 sq. miles). The Carpathian Mountains, reaching above 2,000 meters (6,600 feet) in places, form its boundary to the east and the south, separating it from the Romanian regions of Moldavia and Wallachia. Easy to cross hill country borders it to the north, while to the west its limits are defined by the Great Hungarian Plain."

[Source: A SHORT HISTORY OF TRANSYLVANIA]

Etymology

Belmont comes from the French surname, de Belmont, meaning "from the fair mount", the same as Bellamont-De Bello Monte.

Source: Last Name Meanings

However, a similar name, Belmonte, is of Spanish and Italian origin. It means "beautiful mountain".

Source: Behind the Name: the etymology and history of surnames

Sonia is Russian for "wisdom". The Scandinavian Sonja also means "wisdom". Both names probably derive from the Latin name, Sonya, meaning "wisdom".

Source: babynamesworld.com

Ethnicity

From her surname, we can guess that Sonia Belmont is of French, Spanish, or Italian descent. She may be of two of them. She may be of all three. Judging by her given name, she may be of Russian descent as well. None of these, of course, explain why she was living in Transylvania. Her family must have moved there at some point. Depending on when, Sonia may be of Transylvanian descent as well.

In Bram Stoker's novel, "Dracula", Jonathan Harker notes "In the population of Transylvania there are four distinct nationalities: Saxons in the South, and mixed with them the Wallachs, who are the descendants of the Dacians; Magyars in the West, and Szekelys in the East and North. I am going among the latter, who claim to be descended from Attila and the Huns. This may be so, for when the Magyars conquered the country in the eleventh century they found the Huns settled in it."

"The area now constituting Transylvania became part of the Roman Empire in AD 107. After the withdrawal (AD 271) of the Romans from the region it was overrun, between the 3d and 10th cent., by the Visigoths, the Huns, the Gepidae, the Avars, and the Slavs. The Magyar tribes first entered the region in the 5th cent., but they did not fully control it until 1003, when King Stephen I placed it under the Hungarian crown. The valleys in the east and southeast were settled by the Sz�kely, a people akin to the Magyars. It is not known, however, whether they came into Transylvania with or before the Magyars. In the 12th and 13th cent. the areas in the south and northeast were settled by German colonists called (then and now) Saxons. Siebenb�rgen, the German name for Transylvania, derives from the seven principal fortified towns founded there by the Saxons. The German influence became more marked when, early in the 13th cent., King Andrew II of Hungary called on the Teutonic Knights to protect Transylvania from the Cumans, who were followed (1241) by the Mongol invaders. Large numbers of Romanians, called Vlachs or Walachians, were in the region by 1222, although the exact date that their penetration began is disputed. Originally seminomadic shepherds, the Vlachs soon settled down to agriculture. The administration of Transylvania was in the hands of a royal governor, or voivode, who by the mid-13th cent. controlled the whole region. Society was divided into three privileged �nations,� the Magyars, the Sz�kely, and the Saxons. These �nations,� however, corresponded to social rather than strictly ethnic divisions. Although the nonprivileged class of serfs consisted mostly of Vlachs, it also included some people of Saxon, Sz�kely, and Magyar origin. A few Vlachs, notably John Hunyadi, hero of the Turkish wars, joined the ranks of the nobility. After the suppression (1437) of a peasant revolt the three �nations� solemnly renewed their union; the rebels were cruelly repressed, and serfdom became more firmly entrenched than ever."

[Source: Encyclopedia.com]

"The ancestors of the Romanians first appeared in the high mountains of South-Transylvania towards the end of the eleventh century. They were shepherds who migrated in from Wallachia and lived in scattered settlements in the mountains. They were distinguished from the roman Catholic Hungarians and Saxons by belonging to the Greek Orthodox religion. Towards the end of the fifteenth century, Transylvania had a population of about 800,000, of whom 65% were Hungarians, the rest split evenly between Saxons and Romanians."

[Source: A SHORT HISTORY OF TRANSYLVANIA]

Language

From her surname, we can guess that Sonia Belmont spoke French, Spanish, or Italian. She may have spoken two of them. She may have spoken all three. Judging by her given name, she may have spoken Russian. Based on the ethnic make-up of Transylvania at the time, she may have spoken German, Hungarian, or Romanian.

Politics

"The administration of Transylvania was in the hands of a royal governor, or voivode, who by the mid-13th cent. controlled the whole region."

[Source: Encyclopedia.com]

"After the suppression of the Bob�lna peasant revolt in 1437, the political system was based on Unio Trium Natiorum (The Unity of the Three Nations). Society was divided into three privileged nations, the nobility (mostly Magyars), the Szeklers, and the Saxon burghers. These nations, however, corresponded more to social and religious rather than ethnic divisions. The Romanians were Orthodox, having the right to own land or access to nobility only through conversion to Catholicism, thus they were only tolerated by this system. Although the class of serfs consisted mostly of Romanians, it also included people of Saxon, Szekler, and Hungarian origin. On the other hand, a few Romanians succeeded in entering the ranks of the nobility after converting to Catholicism."

"A key figure to emerge in Transylvania in the first half of the 15th century was John Hunyadi, who was of Romanian and Hungarian origin. Hunyadi was awarded numerous estates and a seat in the royal council for his services to Sigismund, King of Hungary and Holy Roman Emperor. After supporting the candidature of Ladislaus III of Poland to the throne of Hungary, he was rewarded in 1440 with the captaincy of the fortress of N�ndorfeh�rv�rBelgrade and the voivodship of Transylvania. His subsequent military exploits against the Ottoman Turks brought him further status as the governor of Hungary in 1446 and papal recognition as the Prince of Transylvania in 1448. John Hunyadi was also the father of Matthias Corvinus of Hungary."

[Source: Wikipedia: Transylvania article]

Religion

From the crosses on her gloves in some of the artwork, we can reasonably assume that Sonia was a Christian. Which denomination did she belong to?

[Source: A SHORT HISTORY OF TRANSYLVANIA]

So, there's a 82.5% chance that Sonia was a Roman Catholic, and there's a 17.5% chance that Sonia was a Greek Orthodox.

The Japanese manual and in-game text for Castlevania III uses both "Pope" and "Eastern Orthodox Church". This is obviously an error due to the Japanese creative team's ignorance. I've read that the word used is specifically for that of the Pope, so it's not referring to the Patriarch of Constantinople. One fan even suggested that the Japanese creative team meant to include the Pope, because they wanted the world's most powerful Christian involved.

In this interview, Koji Igarashi says "Back in Castlevania III, in the beginning of the game, Trevor Belmont is the destined vampire hunter who has been instructed by the Greek Orthodox church to destroy Dracula." So, there's IGA's view on the matter, if you care.

We can say that both the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Pope were dealing with the matter, but that doesn't really work. In this case, I think it would be fair to ignore the manual's and the game's mention of the Eastern Orthodox Church (and IGA's) and say instead that the Roman Catholic Church was involved.

The Popes from the time of Sonia's birth to the time of her holy mission were Eugenius IV (3/3/1431 - 2/23/1447) and Nicholas V (3/6/1447 - 3/24/1455).

Daily Life

In Bram Stoker's novel, "Dracula", Jonathan Harker notes "I read that every known superstition in the world is gathered into the horseshoe of the Carpathians, as if it were the centre of some sort of imaginative whirlpool; if so my stay may be very interesting."

I apologize for the choppiness of this next part, since I'm quoting from two different sources:

"15th century Europe. During the Dark Ages, there was a man who was feared by all. A man who has stopped being human. His name was Count Vlad Tepes, otherwise known as Dracula. His territory was located at the outskirts of Transylvania, at the Wallachia territory, where he used a taboo art to resurrect an evil deity. The deity granted him power and in exchange, he summoned several apparitions from the spirit world in order to scorch and massacre the entire nation of Wallachia with darkness.

He felt he could extend his presence even further, and now he's plotting to take all over Europe."

[Source: "Akumajo Densetsu" instruction manual, translation at Castlevania Repertoire Forums]

"It was the Middle Ages in Transylvania. One man came into possession of an evil power, and the Prince of Darkness was born. Before long, this being had used his newfound supernatural powers and the magic powers of his followers to spread his plague of darkness and despair throughout the European continent. He was Count Dracula. Even the mention of the name of this Prince of Darkness was to cast fear into the hearts of the people of the land, who were powerless to do anything save voice their concern.

However, at about the same time, a baby girl possessing special powers was born to a family living in a remote area of the country."

"She was taught how to handle a whip by her grandfather and learned at an early age of her ability to sense the presence of beings physical and spiritual that cannot be seen by ordinary humans."

"'Your powers are meant for a higher purpose and not only yourself,' she was often reminded as she was growing up."

[Source: "Castlevania Legends" instruction manual, quoted in the Castlevania Legends FAQ by Robert Morrison]

"Those who tainted their hand once don't know when to stop. Count Dracula was not satisfied with the power he already had after selling his soul and body to the devil, and he wanted to have more. The contract he made with the devil was also applied to his own son.

The son opposed his father and still had a human heart even after getting rid of his soul, as his own body was no longer human as well, and it finally went to the point that he stopped reminding himself of his hate for his father. However, he could not challenge his own father, who was an evil spirit himself, all alone as the odds were against him. Although his relationship to Dracula is a burden for the Cross, nonetheless, Adrian Fahrenheit Tepes opted to fight anyway. He changed his name to Alucard and infiltrated Wallachia underground with the purpose of destroying his father and restoring the beauty of Wallachia. He began searching for a comrade that shared the same ideal."

[Source: "Akumajo Densetsu" instruction manual, translation at Castlevania Repertoire Forums]

"The plot of this girl's fate began to develop one night in her seventeenth year when she met up with the young enigmatic Alucard, who was on a journey to search for the father that had desserted him. The young girl's name was Sonia Belmont, and she was the first of the vampire hunters in the Belmont family to become legendary."

"This young lady was the first of the Belmont family to leave her name to posterity as a vampire hunter."

[Source: "Castlevania Legends" instruction manual, quoted in the Castlevania Legends FAQ by Robert Morrison]

During her journey, in addition to lesser monsters, Sonia fought the Creature Bat, Death Dragon, Flying Dragon, Grim Reaper, and Medusa. Sonia then meets with Alucard, Dracula's son, in the castle. The following conversation took place between the two of them:

Alucard: "Sonia! I didn't think it was true, but it's you!"

Sonia: "Alucard!! I could say the same. What are you doing here?"

Alucard: " Listen to me, Sonia. This is no place for someone like you."

Sonia: " But Alucard...."

Alucard: "This problem concerns only me and my father. I've come to fight the lord of this castle. I cannot let my father, Count Dracula, to get away with this. I must do this for my mother and the world she dearly loved. Please understand. I am the only one who can make amends for the sins commited by my father and there is no reason for you to get involved in this battle. Sonia, I could not bear to lose you. Now turn back!"

Sonia: "Thank you, Alucard, you-you're probably right. In fact you have always made the right decisions. But I have no intention of going back now. Just as your father was granted strength from the evil deity to conquer the world, I have been granted strength to fight your father. I will not run away. We all decide our own fate. It was you who taught me that, Alucard."

Alucard: "All right, Sonia, then show me this strength you believe so strongly in, for I too want to believe. Let us test this strength on me. Prepare yourself!"

Sonia then fought Alucard and won the battle. The following conversation took place between the two of them:

Alucard: "Ooww! I had no idea you had become this strong."

Sonia: "Oh, Alucard."

Alucard: "It looks like this time I learned a lesson."

Sonia: "Alucard, did you purposely..."

Alucard: "No, Sonia. You have made me believe in your strength."

Sonia: "Alucard, I'm so sorry."

Alucard: "Do not trouble yourself about it, Sonia. Now I must sleep. I fear I shall not meet you again. Farewell my beloved, my beautiful vampire slayer."

Sonia: "Alucard!! I will never forget you. Farewell, dear Alucard."

Sonia then fought the Jumping Lioness. Then Sonia faced Dracula. The following conversation took place between the two of them:

Dracula: "You have done well, my girl. In fact you are the first human to come this far. You have my praise."

Sonia: "You are the Prince of Darkness. Because of you many people have died, many people have suffered."

Dracula: "Oh no, my dear. I have merely done what you humans wished for. Fufilling your insatiable desires."

Sonia: " People must fufill their dreams with their own power. You have been consumed by the power of evil. You no longer have the strength to determine your own fate."

Dracula: "Silence! On the contrary, I am just the one to use this power, and I will be king who rules over the entire world! Give yourself to me, young lady. There may be merit in having your presence."

Sonia: "My strength will be used only to protect the entire world! Lord of dark, prepare to suffer with trifiling with so many lives!"

Dracula: "As you wish, girl! Then it is your fate to kneel before my power!"

Sonia then fought Dracula. After the first round of their battle, the following conversation took place between the two of them:

Dracula: "Well, well.. You are worthy of me. You have lasted me longer than most!"

Sonia: "Prepare yourself!"

Dracula: "I've just been toying with you so far. But now it's time to get serious."

After Sonia defeated Dracula, the following conversation took place between the two of them:

Dracula: "Oh no! This cannot be! Me losing to a human?"

Sonia: "You poor man. It must be difficult to understand why you, who possess eternal life, are about to perish. Humans are granted such a precious short life in comparison to yours, but in that short time we are able to love and to live for someone else. There must have been a time when you too cherished the bonds with the ones you loved. We humans are not so foolish as to throw away all of that in exchange for the power you received. There is no place in this world for the likes of you. You were already defeated when you accepted the power of darkness."

Dracula: "Heh heh heh heh...HA HAH HAH HAHH! Don't let it go to your head, girl. Do you really think that the likes of you can destroy me? You're a fool just as Alucard was. Listen to me. Darkness will never die out as long as there is light in the world. I am the ruler of that darkness and I will rise again and again, as long as people like you are alive. Again and again, I tell you. HAH HAH HAH!"

Sonia: "When that happens, someone will appear before you to take my place. If it is my fate to again be a vampire hunter, I will be ready! No, I will gladly accept that destiny. So, until your soul is saved, until all the evil desires in the world are exhausted, goodbye, ruler of evil. Good bye, o woeful Prince of Darkness."

[Source: "Castlevania Legends" in-game text, quoted in the Castlevania Legends FAQ by Robert Morrison]

After exiting the castle, Sonia stood on a cliff ledge and watched Dracula's castle crumble into the ground.

"Thus, the fear of darkness that continued to envelop the world was lifted single-handedly by a young girl. There are as many legends in the world that deserve retelling as there are stars in the night sky. But this story marks the beginning of the Belmont family legend that has been passed on through many ages. And there is not a single person now who knows when the next legendary fight between another Prince of Darkness and human will begin."

Presumably only if Sonia collected the 5 special items on her journey (since that's the only instance when the following text appears), "After some time, the young girl of our legend became a mother, whose child would carry on the fate and tragedy of the Belmont family, and the bloodline of dark ways. A child burdened with a cursed fate. And let this child, once content in the love of its mother, will also rise to fight courageously against the Prince of Darkness, who will return once again. This child who one day will be praised by all the people as a hero, but that legend must be told another time."

[Source: "Castlevania Legends" game epilogue, quoted in the Ending FAQ list for the multiple Castlevania games by ReyVGM]

Presumably after Sonia defeated Dracula, "The Belmont family, with their tenacious willpower and seemingly bottomless strength, were treated no differently from the actual vampires and were just as feared. Because of this, the Belmont family lived far away from common people, becoming almost folkloric."

[Source: "Akumajo Densetsu" instruction manual, translation at Castlevania Repertoire Forums]

"The Eastern Orthodox Church was so desperate to solve this situation that they immediately dispatched a powerful army to Wallachia, but they never came back.

As a last resort, the Pope made a request to a man from the underworld, a man who used a forbidden art and a pair of Vampire Hunters to end Wallachia's oppresion.

The first one that was entrusted by the Pope was Sypha Belnandez of the Eastern Orthodox Church, an apprentice monk in pursuit of becoming a priest. Sypha's ability was a powerful type of magic that harnessed its power from the atmosphere and could manipulate fire, ice and lightning bolts. Sypha's attacking strength was great, but he didn't use weapons and was most vulnerable to any damage received from an enemy's attack. Sypha lost his parents when he was young and was found wandering near the monastery, where he remained at the once-beautiful Wallachia. Sypha knew that the place in his memories was now tainted, and he accepted the Pope's request to liberate Wallachia.

Around the same time, within Wallachia, a group of rebels were covertly plotting to overthrow Count Dracula. However their human strength was no help, and they were no match for Dracula's dark powers. Some men were torn to pieces, others were senteced to be skewered, and some were transformed into hideous monsters. Grant Dinesti, carefree man from Wallachia, was among them."

"The Pope was in predicament once again. Sypha, the vampire hunter who was sent out to Wallachia, did not return after the promised period. The Pope assumed that, since Sypha didn't return, his mission was already a failure, and he was more likely dead by now.

This was when a genuine Vampire Hunter from the Belmont family appeared to fullfill the Pope's request. The Belmont family, with their tenacious willpower and seemingly bottomless strength, were treated no differently from the actual vampires and were just as feared. Because of this, the Belmont family lived far away from common people, becoming almost folkloric. The Pope searched in all directions until he met a man with Belmont bloodline - a long-haired young man who was Ralph C. Belmont.

Go back in time more than a hundred years before Simon Belmont's time, when the the battle between Dracula and mankind began."

[Source: "Akumajo Densetsu" instruction manual, translation at Castlevania Repertoire Forums]

Explanations:

At the time that it was made, Dracula's Curse (I'll call it that from now on) was obviously intended to be the first game in the series, chronologically. The manual and text both give the impression that Dracula had become a vampire recently. However, it's interesting to note that this game came out after "Dracula Densetsu" ["Dracula Legend"), known in the U.S. as "The Castlevania Adventure", for the Game Boy, and the manual for that game (which takes place between Castlevania I and III, according to the official Japanese timeline) also gives the impression that Dracula had only recently become a vampire. Furthermore, the Japanese instruction manual for the original Castlevania refers to Christopher Belmont (the hero of the first 2 Game Boy games) as a hero, yet no mention was made of Ralph C. Belmont until Castlevania III came out. It's interesting that Ralph has the middle initial "C". This has led to some fan speculation that Ralph/Trevor is Christopher - in other words, Ralph Christopher Belmont. The Japanese timeline makes this impossible, of course, since Ralph predates Christopher by a century. I guess, originally, Christopher was the earliest Belmont to fight Dracula, and later Ralph/Trevor became the earliest.

Of course, later, it was revealed that Sonia was the earliest Belmont to fight Dracula. The game/character has since been declared apocryphal, but it doesn't have to be. I'll go through all of the points that the anti-Legends fans bring up, one at a time:

A) Dracula's Curse and Ralph/Trevor came first and have greater history in the series than Legends, so Legends is out. Just like that? No attempt to keep it in?

B) Ralph/Trevor was meant to be the first Belmont to fight Dracula, and Sonia stole that honor from him, so Sonia had to go. That argument has two flaws:

1) It assumes that Ralph/Trevor was the first Belmont to fight Dracula. Neither the manual nor the game say this. The manual says "Go back in time more than a hundred years before Simon Belmont's time, when the the battle between Dracula and mankind began." The game's prologue says "More than a hundred years before Simon Belmont's era, the battle between Dracula and mankind began here." Both of these statements say "mankind", not "the Belmont family". Furthermore, both the manual and the game's prologue make it clear that other people went up against Dracula prior to Ralph/Trevor. Why couldn't Sonia be one of them? She could have gone on a mission into his castle and defeated him temporarily. According to the pre-Igarashi official timeline, Legends occurs 26 years before Dracula's Curse. Dracula's followers could have carried on his work for a period of time after Sonia defeated him and then revived him sometime before Dracula's Curse.

2) Christopher was first before Ralph/Trevor was first. Why aren't these same fans defending Christopher's right to be first and trashing Ralph/Trevor?

C) Legends has poor controls/graphics/music/levels. Not everyone thinks so, and, besides, other games in the series also have their bad points, let no one advocates that those games be removed from continuity.

D) Sonia didn't have a good motive to fight Dracula. Neither did Ralph or Christopher, really. Sonia had special powers that she was constantly told were meant for a higher purpose. Hey, if it's good enough for Superman, then it's good enough for Sonia.

E) Sonia and Alucard had sex, and so Trevor and every later Belmont to fight Dracula are fighting their blood relative. This has never been stated as fact. In one possible ending of the game, Sonia gives birth to a son some time later. Sonia/Alucard fans point to their conversations in the game as proof, but these could also be nothing more than terms of affection for a close student/teacher relationship. Besides, even if they were romantically involved, it doesn't mean they had sex; even if they did have sex, it doesn't mean Sonia got pregnant because of it, making Alucard the father of her child; and Sonia only has a child in one possible ending. None of this proves that the Belmonts are Dracula's blood relatives. Get over it already.

F) There was no indication in Castlevania III that Dracula had died previously. Including Legends in the timeline would make Castlevania III a premature resurrection, which would mean that Ralph/Trevor fought a Dracula that wasn't in top form. Sure, there was no indication that Dracula was defeated prior to Castlevania III, but there's no indication that he wasn't either. It doesn't matter if Ralph/Trevor defeated a Dracula in top form or not. Also, this talk about premature resurrections is a reason why some fans support IGA's removal of the Nintendo 64 games and Circle of the Moon from the official continuity. According to them, there are too many premature resurrections in such a short time period. Of course, "Castlevania: Symphony of the Night" for the original PlayStation is also a premature resurrection, and yet there seems to be no support to have that game removed from the official continuity.

Basically, the anti-Sonia fans' main argument for the removal of the game/character from official continuity is that "its creators didn't respect what came before". Well, that's like disrespecting Rick Berman and Brannon Braga for creating an older Enterprise than Pike's/Kirk's, except that Kirk's Enterprise was indirectly said to be first in TNG's "Relics": "There have been 5 ship with that name." I guess Picard's Enterprise wasn't counted. That could been seen as an "in" for Archer's Enterprise. If the computer mistakenly excluded Picard's, it could have also mistakenly excluded Archer's also. Still, my point is that, even in this case, there aren't as many "remove 'Enterprise' from the canon" fans as there are "Legends doesn't fit" fans, and the Legends creative team were far more respectful of what had come before than Berman or Braga were (not that that's hard to do), and they explicitly stated that Sonia was the first Belmont vampire hunter (something that the Adventure and Dracula's Curse creative teams didn't do for their characters). IGA is the disrespectful one here.

"Okay, so, if you're so smart, how does Legends fit in?", the anti-Sonia fans ask. Temporal Cold War, dude. Oh, wait, wrong series. I explained it above. Re-read it.

As for "Castlevania: Lament of Innocence", yes, introducing Leon Belmont in 1094 conflicts with the Legends instruction manual, which says in Sonia's bio, "This young lady was the first of the Belmont family to leave her name to posterity as a vampire hunter." However, the instruction manual also says "The young girl's name was Sonia Belmont, and she was the first of the vampire hunters in the Belmont family to become legendary." This quote, unlike the first one, doesn't explicitly say that Sonia was the first Belmont vampire hunter. However, Lament does indeed conflict with at least one statement in Legends' instruction manual (the statement in Sonia's bio). Until a new Castlevania game comes out that takes place between Leon Belmont's adventure and Sonia's adventure, that conflict could be be resolved by assuming that, in those 356 years, people forgot about Leon's adventure, much like people in 1492 had forgotten about the Viking expeditions to the New World. Therefore, Sonia "was the first of the Belmont family to leave her name to posterity as a vampire hunter".

Also, if you believe the theory that Mathias from Lament of Innocence is Dracula, then he had to have sold his body and soul to the devil in exchange for immortality far prior to Castlevania III.

The Legends instruction manual says that Sonia was the first Belmont vampire hunter ever. Later, Igarashi took that honor away from her and made Leon the first. Shouldn't he have respected Sonia's greater history in the series? Why aren't these same "Sonia stole Trevor's honor" (which she didn't, really) fans also complaining that Leon stole Sonia's honor (which he did)?

I, a Sonia fan, am willing to accept Leon Belmont as a canon character. I wish that IGA fans would likewise accept Sonia Belmont as a canon character.

D. Game

Artwork

You can download MIDIs (small sound files that fans have made) and find links to MP3s of the actual music and fan-made music from "Castlevania Legends" at The CastleVania Dungeon.

Emulation

If you're not convinced by this point that "Castlevania Legends" is a good game, then download the ROMs for "Akumajo Dracula Shikkoku Taru Zensokyoku" and "Castlevania Legends", play them on a Game Boy emulator, and try them for yourself!

If you need some help to get through the game, check out GameFAQs!

E. Apocrypha

What is "Castlevania: Resurrection"?

"Castlevania: Resurrection" was to be a launch title for the Sega Dreamcast console in North America on September 9, 1999. It was delayed until March of 2000 then delayed again until later that year. Finally, Konami cancelled the game.

"Early indicators point towards the fact that the game wasn't shaping out very well, and perhaps Konami didn't want to screw over the franchise like it has with Contra. Another possible reason had to do with the fact that the game was being designed in America. From what I've been told, as the project went on, there was some internal struggle between Konami of American and Konami of Japan over this game."

[Source: The CastleVania Dungeon]

The game would have been the second game to feature Sonia Belmont as a playable character. "A fully 3D game, the story was to be set in 1666 (the year of the great London fires, also convenient because of the triple sixes). The stars are Sonia Belmont, the "origin" of the Belmont power last seen in Castlevania Legends on the Gameboy, and Victor Belmont, a vampire killer from the 1800s that looks remarkably like Tim Curry. So how does that make sense? Simple - time travel. Apparently these two Belmonts were summoned to take care of the evil that a new Countess is trying to bring into the world. Unlike the Nintendo 64 incarnations, the focus was not to be on exploration or platforming - rather, it's intended to be fully action oriented. They're aiming for the classic old-school Castlevania game that manifested itself perfectly in the PC Engine version of Dracula X. Though its said to have only five or six stages, they are supposed to be fairly long. The camera controls and aiming system is also said to be completly revamped. While a playable version was apparently shown to the press, no one outside has played it and can comment on the Castlevania that never was."

[Source: The CastleVania Dungeon]

I have mixed feelings about this. On the one hand, I don't like time-travel, so maybe it's best that time-travel wasn't introduced into the Castlevania series. On the other hand, this was our only chance to have Sonia on our television sets and rendered in full 3-D glory, and we'll never have that with Igarashi in charge.

"Castlevania: Resurrection" Pictures

Here are some magazine scans, sketches, and screen captures from the game.

You can find links to MP3s of the actual music from "Castlevania: Resurrection" here.

F. Fan Material

Fan Fiction

In this section, I will attempt to link to every Sonia Belmont fanfic possible. Feel free to submit your own fanfics!

CastleVania Legends by John Morey
A humorous fanfic about Sonia becoming a vampire hunter. It's not entirely accurate to the game, and it seems to be unfinished, but it's hilarious! Please read it!

Through the Eyes of a Dhampire by Clara E. Leet
Legends prequel from Alucard's POV.

Blood of a Dhampire by Clara E. Leet
Legends sequel / CV3 prequel from Alucard's POV. Unfinished.

CastleVania: Resurrection by Clara E. Leet
Her version of the game. Unfinished.

The Demon Within Revised edition by Clara E. Leet
Sonia is resurrected as a vampire.

Farewell by Clara E. Leet
The events after Alucard's fight with Sonia through to the end of the game.

Fan Art

In this section, I will attempt to post every piece of Sonia Belmont fan artwork possible. Feel free to submit your own fan art!

Sonia Belmont done in realism by Clara E. Leet
Sonia Belmont doll with whip by Clara E. Leet
Sonia and Alucard under the castle mistletoe by Clara E. Leet
Sonia Belmont done in PrismaColors by Clara E. Leet
Farewell (Sonia and Alucard) by Clara E. Leet
Sonia Belmont by Gabriel D. Villalobos
Sonia Belmont in front of Castlevania by Gabriel D. Villalobos
Sonia Belmont by quinqui
Sonia Belmont pixeldoll by quinqui
Alucard and Sonia by akumajou master

Visit Clara E. Leet's deviantART page for more of her artwork, Castlevania and otherwise!

Visit quinqui's Castlevania Music site!

Fan Music

In this section, I will attempt to link to every fan rendition of "Castlevania Legends" music possible. Feel free to submit your own music!

Clara E. Leet
This page has flute renditions of various Castlevania, Final Fantasy, and Legend of Zelda tunes performed on a flute by a Castlevania fan - and major Sonia supporter - named Clara E. Leet. She performs 2 Legends tunes. Please check them out!

G. Link to this site

If you want Sonia Belmont to be recognized as part of the official Castlevania continuity again, then please put this button on your site and use it to link to this site! Sonia fans, unite!

The Lost Castlevania Legend Written By Mark Moore

Last Updated: 05/22/07

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The Lost Castlevania Legend
Written By Mark Moore