| “ | The strength of the vampire is that people will not believe in him. | „ |
| ~ Professor Abraham van Helsing (Dracula 1931). |
| “ | We've all become God's madmen. All of us. | „ |
| ~ Professor Abraham van Helsing's final line. |
Professor Abraham Van Helsing is the tritagonist of the novel Dracula by Bram Stoker. He was an elderly Dutch scholar who had delved into occult matters sufficiently to offer some assistance when the affliction of vampirism first appeared in England in the late 19th century. He was no action hero, and was reliant on the young wooers of Lucy Weston (Dr. Seward, Arthur Hamilton, and Quincey P. Morris) as well as the recovered Jonathan Harker, to carry out the more demanding physical tasks of vampire-hunting.
Biography[]
Early Life[]
Van Helsing was born into a Catholic Dutch family in the mid-1800s. As he came into adulthood, he married and settled down to start a family as he studied several fields of science, medicine, physics, and psychology. His family was wracked with tragedy when Van Helsing's only son passed away. The passing drove his wife mad to the point that she became dead to Van Helsing, yet his status as a devout Catholic prevented him from divorcing her. Van Helsing continued his academic studies to receive degrees and doctorates in several fields, including medicine, philosophy, and scientific study. In the course of his career, Van Helsing became a professor and took on students. Among these students is Jack Seward, who would one day become a doctor himself. During an incident involving a knife that had come into contact with gangrene, Van Helsing was cut and poisoned by it. Thinking quickly, Seward sucked the poison out and saved Van Helsing, a favor he wouldn't soon forget.
Dracula[]
On September 2nd in Amsterdam, Abraham Van Helsing receives a letter from his former student, Dr. John Seward from London, asking him to come over and examine his ex-fiancée Lucy Westenra, who has fallen ill unexpectedly during her visit to Whitby, such as losing blood and turning pale. Seward also mentions Lucy’s fiancé, Arthur Holmwood, and he even wrote to Holmwood that his old mentor is a respected philosopher, doctor and scientist who is an expert in strange diseases.
Van Helsing later writes back to Seward, telling him he is already on his way to England when he received his letter and hopes he will arrive soon. He even recalls the time Seward saved his life by sucking poison from his wound and wants him to tell Holmwood about it. He is looking forward to seeing Lucy and wants to meet her tomorrow night as he will have to return to Amsterdam later that evening. He hopes to return to England in three days and stay longer than possible.
The next day, Van Helsing meets Seward, and they meet Lucy, whose mother, Mrs. Westenra, is out for the day, and the men are alone with Lucy.
During the visit, Lucy is cheerful as usual and is slightly better. Her breathing is normal, and she is delighted to see Van Helsing. He converses with her to lift her spirits before telling her he has been informed about her pale appearance. He points out to Seward that he knows nothing about young women and will send him outside so they can be alone together. While Seward is out in the garden, Van Helsing examines Lucy and calls Seward in from the window. He tells Seward that he couldn’t make an immediate diagnosis but agrees that she has lost much blood but is certain there is a cause. He interviews some questions to Lucy’s maid and says he will return home to think. In the meantime, Seward will still send him telegrams daily, and when he figures out a cause, he will return to England.
Van Helsing wants Seward to inform Holmwood about the examination. However, he doesn’t give Seward further information and returns to Amsterdam while Seward closely monitors Lucy. Seward writes telegrams to Van Helsing for the next two days, saying Lucy is slightly improving. But on the third day, Seward writes to Van Helsing that Lucy’s condition has worsened and begs Van Helsing to come over immediately.
On September 7th, Van Helsing returns to London and meets Seward at the Liverpool Street train station. Van Helsing asks Seward if he has told Holmwood about Lucy’s condition and has delayed sending him another telegram until he returns. Seward says he wrote a simple letter to Holmwood that Van Helsing was returning.
Van Helsing hopes Holmwood won’t know about this until later. He warns Seward not to bring this up with his asylum patients; this must be kept between them. Van Helsing says he has figured out the cause but will tell him later. Seward asks why he can tell him now, and Van Helsing recites that when the corn has fully grown, he will know the truth and playfully pulls Seward’s ear, just like he always did during their lectures. He then explains the importance of knowledge and how they learn from their mistakes.
After Seward describes Lucy’s symptoms, Van Helsing reacts gravely but says nothing. He brought his bag containing many instruments and drugs that he once called “ghastly paraphernalia of our beneficial trade” from one of his lectures.
Mrs. Westenra greets the men and lets them inside, with Seward telling her she shouldn't be with Lucy or think about her illness since she has a weak heart. Mrs. Westenra agrees and shows them to Lucy's room. The men are horrified to see Lucy ghastly and pale and she is struggling to breathe while trying to speak. The men are silent until Van Helsing beckons Seward out of the room. When he closes the door, Van Helsing tells Seward Lucy that she must have a blood transfusion to live, and one must transfuse their blood to her body. Seward decides to do it, and Van Helsing urges him to get ready. When they go downstairs, there is a knock on the door. A maid opens it, and Holmwood rushes inside. He tells Seward he has been worried about Lucy from reading his letter, but since his father is better, he has come to see her.
Van Helsing is initially annoyed by Holmwood's interruption, but seeing how young he is, he persuades him that he must help her immediately. He has become so pale that he nearly faints when he sits in a chair. Holmwood asks what he can do, and Van Helsing replies that Lucy needs blood or she will die. He and Holmwood had volunteered to give her a transfusion, but he tells Holmwood he must give one to her now that he is here. Holmwood meekly obeys to provide Lucy with his blood, and Van Helsing praises him. He instructs Holmwood to quietly give the transfusion and leave immediately without informing Mrs. Westenra.
The men arrive in Lucy's room, where she is too weak to sleep or speak. Van Helsing takes some things out of his bag out of her sight. He mixes a narcotic and asks her to drink it. She lifts her head to drink the narcotic and then falls into a deep sleep. Then, Van Helsing calls Holmwood into the room and has him remove his coat. After Holmwood kisses Lucy, Van Helsing performs the transfusion, and colour starts showing on Lucy's cheeks. However, Holmwood becomes pale, and Van Helsing orders him to stop. Seward tends to Holmwood's wounds, and Van Helsing adjusts Lucy's head onto the pillow, where they notice the bite marks on her neck that a velvet band had covered.
Van Helsing tells Seward to take Holmwood downstairs, give him some wine, and let him rest for a while. He thanks Holmwood for saving Lucy's life and tells him he will go home and get some rest to recover from the transfusion. After Holmwood leaves, Van Helsing and Seward notice Lucy is sleeping gently, and her breathing is normal again. Van Helsing asks Seward about the marks on her neck, and Seward replies that he hasn't examined it yet. Seward removes the band, and they see the tiny puncture marks. Seward says he doesn't know what to make of it, and Van Helsing thinks he will return to Amsterdam tonight for more research. He instructs Seward to stay with Lucy all night and not let her out of his sight. He also tells Seward he must not sleep throughout the entire night, as he and Van Helsing will get some sleep later.
During Van Helsing's absence, Seward sits up with Lucy for two nights in a row and is already exhausted. Meanwhile, Lucy is doing better since Seward is close by with her. The next day, Van Helsing wakes him up and asks about Lucy before they go into her room. Seward opens the blinds, and Van Helsing is horrified to see Lucy pale and thin again. He is about to lose his temper but ushers Seward to bring her some brandy. Seward brings it back, and Van Helsing uses it to wet Lucy’s lips and rub her palm, wrist, and chest. He sees that her heart is still faintly beating. She will need another transfusion, and he calls Seward to do it. Van Helsing pulls out his instruments for the transfusion. He warns Seward not to stir and will give her some morphine.
Van Helsing performs the second transfusion and notices Seward gave more blood than Holmwood. After Seward lies down to rest, Van Helsing tends to Lucy before bandaging Seward’s wound and telling him to have some wine. He also warns him not to inform Holmwood about the transfusion. Seward has some wine, and Van Helsing tells him to rest in his room, have some breakfast and then he will come to see him.
Seward falls asleep on the sofa, and Lucy sleeps throughout the day and wakes up healthy and strong. Again, Van Helsing orders Seward to watch Lucy while he finds a telegraph office. A couple of hours later, he returns and instructs Seward to go home to rest, and he will stay up late with Lucy, reminding him that nobody else must know about their case.
The next day, Van Helsing arrives at Hillingham with a package from abroad. He unwraps it and shows off a bunch of white flowers for Lucy, which delights her. He reminds her that the flowers are not something to play with, as they are medicinal flowers, but he doesn’t explain why. He also tells her not to mind the flowers’ strange smell, and he will place the flowers around the window, and Lucy will wear a garland of them around her neck so that she will sleep well. While he is talking, Lucy examines and smells the flowers but throws them to the floor in disgust, saying they are common garlic. He sternly reprimands her until she gets scared and then says in a gentle tone not to be afraid of him. He reminds her about the importance of the flowers and asks Seward to help him place the flowers in his room. He reveals that he got the flowers from a friend back home who grew herbs and telegraphed him to send them to him.
They go into Van Helsing’s room, where Van Helsing fastens and latches the windows, then rubs the garlic flowers around the window sashes, door and fireplace and makes the flower wreath for Lucy. Seward is confused about why the garlic flowers are important. After he finishes the wreath and places it around Lucy’s neck, he instructs her not to take them off and that she must not keep her door and window open tonight. She promises and thanks Van Helsing for his kindness. As Seward and Van Helsing leave the house, Van Helsing is relieved he can finally rest after two days of travelling and research. He asks Seward to accompany him tomorrow to see how Lucy is doing with the flowers. Seward is again confused, but Van Helsing doesn’t give him an explanation.
On September 13th, Van Helsing and Seward meet at the Berkeley Hotel at 8 o’clock in the morning, and they take a coach to Hillingham. Van Helsing now always brings his bag with him. Mrs. Westenra greets them as usual and says Lucy is well but still asleep. Van Helsing smiles and thinks his treatment has worked. However, Mrs. Westernra says that when she went into Lucy's room last night, she found Lucy sound asleep but found the room too stuffy and smelly from the garlic flowers. She thought the odour would be too much for Lucy, so she removed the flowers and opened the window.
As soon as Mrs. Westenra leaves, Van Helsing is shocked and then breaks down sobbing. He then says they must not warn Mrs. Westenra about Lucy's condition, even though she had removed the flowers and made Lucy more vulnerable. He grabs his bag, and the men rush upstairs to her room. Seward draws the blind, and Van Helsing sees Lucy pale and haggard again. He locks the door and takes out the instruments for another transfusion. Seward takes off his coat, but Van Helsing tells him he is still weak and will perform the operation as Van Helsing provides his blood. After the operation, Lucy is relieved as Seward tends to her, and Van Helsing rests. He informs Mrs. Westenra not to remove anything from Lucy's room without his consent, and the garlic flowers are used for medicinal value and to keep Lucy safe. He decides to sit up with Lucy throughout the night and will send Seward any news about her the next day. Lucy wakes up an hour later, refreshed and healthy. She sleeps well for the next four days with the garlic flowers, and Van Helsing returns to Amsterdam for a day. Later, he telegrams Seward, reminding him to stay up all night with Lucy and to check if the flowers are still in place. The telegram was delayed, and Seward received it within 22 hours after Van Helsing sent it.
On September 18th, the Pall Mall Gazette published an article about an escaped wolf. The journalist interviewed the Zoological Garden's keeper, Thomas Bilder, who has a thick Cockney accent and lives in a cottage behind the elephant enclosure. Bilder explains that the escaped wolf is named Berserker, and he bought him from another zoo a few years ago. Berserker was a sweet, well-behaved wolf who didn't cause any trouble. After Bilder fed the animals yesterday, he heard a strange noise. He heard howling and yelping while cleaning up the monkey enclosure and tending to a sick puma. He found Berserker trying to break open his cage. Nobody was at the zoo that day except for a strange, tall man with a crooked nose, red eyes, and a pointed beard. The man told Bilder something was wrong with the animals, and Bilder warned him not to mess with the wolf. The man said he was used to dealing with animals and scratched the wolf's ears. That night, Bilder was awakened by the wolves howling. While investigating the noise, he found Berserker's empty cage, with the rails broken and twisted. One of the gardeners reported seeing a large grey dog running through the garden's hedges, and they spent the entire night searching for it. During the interview, Berserker returns to his owner.
On the night of September 17th, Lucy felt weak and couldn't sleep. Mrs. Westena came in to check on her, and Lucy invited her to sleep with her for a while. They heard howling, and strange flapping sounds at the window. The window then crashes, and a large grey wolf pokes its head inside. Mrs. Westenra screamed and tore the garlic flower wreath off Lucy's neck before dying of a heart attack. The sounds woke the maids, and they rushed into Lucy's bedroom, where they found Mrs. Westenra's body and placed it on Lucy's bed. The maids were terrified, so Lucy told them to have some wine to calm their nerves. But the maids fell unconscious when the wine they drank was filled with laudanum, so Lucy was alone in the house with her dead mother and four unconscious maids.
The next morning, Van Helsing returns to London and finds Seward trying to get inside Hillingham.Seward tells him he didn't get his telegram until a day later, and Van Helsing fears they may be too late, and they must figure out how to get into the locked house. They go to the back of the house, where they find a kitchen window. Van Helsing takes a small surgical saw and gives it to Seward, instructing him to cut the iron bars. After Seward saws off three bars, they open the window and go inside. Nobody is in the kitchen or the servants' rooms. They searched everywhere until they found the maids passed out in the dining room, filled with the scent of the laudanum. Van Helsing says they will tend to them later and ascend to Lucy's room. They pause outside her bedroom door, but they go inside when they don't hear anything. They find Mrs. Westenra's body on Lucy's bed, covered in a white sheet. Lucy sits by the body, her face pale again, and the bite marks are visible on her neck, but they are more mangled and white. Her garlic flower garland lay on Mrs. Westenra's chest.
Van Helsing knows it's not too late and orders Seward to fetch the brandy. Seward quickly returns with some brandy, and Van Helsing rubs it on Lucy’s face and hands. Then, he instructs Seward to revive the maids and prepare a warm bath for Lucy. After three maids were revived and Seward gave them orders to save Lucy’s life, they made a hot bath. Lucy is carried and placed into the bathtub when there is a knock on the door. One of the maids answers it, and then she says a gentleman has come with a message from Holmwood. Seward tells her that he is too busy attending to Lucy and has to wait, so the maid passes the message to the guest at the door. Van Helsing works desperately hard to save Lucy’s life, and at one point, he mentions to Seward that they should let Lucy die peacefully if she shows no signs of life. However, he is relieved when he hears Lucy’s heartbeat with his stethoscope, and the men carry her into another room. They place her in a bed, and Seward pours brandy down her throat while Van Helsing ties a silk handkerchief around her neck. She is still unconscious but worse than before. Van Helsing calls in a maid and orders her to watch over Lucy until he returns, and he beckons Seward out of the room.
The men descend the stairs, and Van Helsing decides something must be done. They enter the dining room, which is dimly lit with the blinds drawn down, and Van Helsing shuts the door behind him. He decides that Lucy needs another transfusion, but he and Seward are already exhausted, and the maids are too scared to do it. As he wonders who will carry out a transfusion, Quincey arrives and gives a telegram from Holmwood to Seward. In the telegram, Holmwood wrote that he hadn’t heard from Seward in three days but couldn’t leave his ailing father. He also hopes Lucy is alright. Quincey also overhears everything Van Helsing says, and Van Helsing urges him to perform a blood transfusion on Lucy.
Quincey transfuses his blood into Lucy, but her condition doesn’t improve. Her breathing and heartbeat are normal, and Van Helsing injects her with some morphine that puts her to sleep. While Quincey goes downstairs with Seward to have some wine and rest, Van Helsing finds a piece of paper that had fallen from Lucy’s breast when she was carried to the bath, and he shows it to Seward when he returns. Seward reads it and is puzzled, but Van Helsing says they will worry about it later, and they decide to write Mrs. Westenra’s death certificate, certifying that she died of heart disease and avoid an inquest that could hurt Lucy. While Seward goes out, Van Helsing stays by Lucy’s side while she sleeps. Later, when she wakes up in the afternoon, she finds the piece of paper on her breast that Van Helsing and Seward read earlier and starts crying over her mother’s death while the men try to comfort her.
Lucy falls asleep at dusk, and in her sleep, she tears the piece of paper in half. Van Helsing and Seward take turns watching over her throughout the night and don’t leave her out of sight while Quincey anxiously paces around the house. Lucy has become so weak in the morning that she cannot move her head. When she sleeps, Van Helsing and Seward notice her haggard appearance and shallow breathing, and her open mouth reveals long, sharp teeth. But when she’s awake, she is her normal self but close to death. She begs for Holmwood, and Quincey goes to the train station to pick him up.
It is dusk when Holmwood arrives and is overcome with emotion when he sees Lucy but is also relieved when she talks to him. The men start a 24-hour watch schedule, with Van Helsing and Seward sitting up with her at 1 o’clock in the morning, but Seward fears their watch won’t last until tomorrow.
On September 20th, Seward is exhausted from watching over Lucy. Van Helsing takes his place and urges Holmwood to get some rest. At six o’clock, Holmwood has fallen asleep, and Van Helsing returns to Lucy’s room and notices something isn’t right and orders Seward to open the blinds so he’ll have light. He examines her by removing the garlic flowers and handkerchief covering her neck and is shocked to see that the puncture wounds on her neck have completely disappeared. He tells Seward she’s dying and urges him to bring Holmwood in to be with her one last time.
When Seward and Holmwood return, Van Helsing makes Lucy comfortable in her final moments by brushing her hair and laying her on her pillow. Holmwood prepares to kiss her, but Van Helsing motions him to hold her hand before kissing her. She sleeps, and her breathing becomes shallow, but the men notice her long, sharp teeth when her mouth opens. She suddenly wakes up and begs Holmwood seductively to kiss her. Holmwood is about to kiss her, but Van Helsing, shocked at the sudden tone in her voice, quickly grabs Holmwood and drags him away from her, demanding that he must not kiss her now. Lucy closes her eyes again but wakes up briefly to kiss Van Helsing’s hand, begging him to guard Holmwood and give her peace. Van Helsing swears he will, and soon afterwards, Lucy dies.
Seward leads a grieving Holmwood out to the dining room, and Van Helsing watches over Lucy’s body, which looks beautiful and peaceful in death, but he is concerned. Seward returns and hopes Lucy is finally at peace, but Van Helsing warns him that Lucy’s death is only just the beginning, and they must wait and see what happens next.
Later, Van Helsing tries to convince Dr. Seward to cut her head off so she won’t become a Nosferatu but he says no. Then Lucy becomes a Nosferatu and bites a lot of children. When Van Helsing convinces Dr. Seward and his friends that this happened, they attack and kill Lucy. Van Helsing cuts her head off so she will stay dead. Van Helsing says since they killed her while the children she bit were alive, the children won’t become Nosferatu. Van Helsing also says that if they had killed the Nosferatu who bit her before she died, then Lucy would never have become a Nosferatu.
After meeting Jonathan and Mina Harker, Van Helsing finds out that the Nosferatu who bit Lucy is the same man who kidnapped Jonathan in Transylvania, whose name is Count Dracula. Van Helsing also thinks that Dracula is Vlad the Impalerand that he became a Nosferatu after he died because when he was alive, he went to the Scholomance and learned Magic from The Devil. Van Helsing looks up everything they need to know about vampires.
Dr. Seward’s patient R.M. Renfield begs him to let him go but Dr. Seward doesn’t so Renfield invites Dracula into Seward’s house and Dracula bites Mina without her knowing. When Dracula finds out that Van Helsing and the others are chasing him, he bites Mina in front of Jonathan and he kills Renfield. Van Helsing decides that they can’t trust Mina anymore because Dracula can use her to spy on them but then Mina convinces him that they can use her to spy on Dracula. Van Helsing and the others chase Dracula to Transylvania and three female Nosferatu attack Van Helsing and Mina so Van Helsing draws a circle around Mina and surrounds it with Wafers and Garlic so that they can’t get into it. Mina starts to turn into a Nosferatu. Then the Sun comes up so the three women teleport into their graves and fall asleep. Then Van Helsing stabs each one of them through the heart and cuts their heads off.
Abilities[]
Abraham is known to be the doctor who has knowledge about vampires and how to combat them and his former student is a friend of one of the victims, which in turn leads him into confrontation with Dracula. Likewise, he is the professor of medicine.
Many iterations of the character tend to be reimagined as a veteran monster hunter capable enough to deal supernatural threats as good as the likes of Blade, Winchester Brothers, Alucard, and Belmont Clan members. However, overall combat abilities of Van Helsing's original iteration is subpar at best as his conflict against Dracula and his dark forces happens to be his first time in confronting supernatural threats outright, necessitating him to enlist assistance from his younger and more capable allies. That being said, his wisdom proved crucial for protagonists in stopping the Count.
Personality[]
Abraham Van Helsing is a wise, eloquent Dutch professor and scientist with a little-known background, but he has incredible expertise in medicine, vampirism and mythology. When he first arrives in England to examine Lucy’s unexpected illness, and after careful analysis, he quickly comes up with the conclusion that something must be responsible for her illness and that vampirism might likely be involved. With his expertise in Western science and medicine, he quickly devised rational solutions to problems. The first is when Lucy loses blood after being mysteriously bitten, he urges Seward, Holmwood and Quincey to transfer their blood into Lucy to revive her quickly so they can buy her enough time to figure out a solution to her condition. Even Van Helsing resolves to perform a transfusion himself when her condition worsens. His knowledge of Western mythology and vampire lore often leaves Seward and his friends confused or horrified, with Seward thinking he’s gone insane. Van Helsing insists they should get the idea about what he’s talking about, and he usually doesn’t give them a direct answer about what will happen next. One example is shortly after Lucy’s death, Van Helsing warns that her death is only the beginning but doesn’t reveal it immediately, as he wants Seward to find out for himself when things escalate further. Another example is just before Lucy passes away, she begs Holmwood to kiss her, but Van Helsing quickly pulls him away and tells him he must not kiss her now but doesn’t explain why until later.
Being an older man in a group of young adults, Van Helsing is fiercely loyal to his allies and takes charge as their leader. He provides them with guidance and direction, using his knowledge and experience to be an efficient leader. Aside from being their leader and protector, Van Helsing grows to love and dote on his allies compassionately and even serves as their father figure. He cares deeply about Lucy's well-being and safety when she's suddenly ill, such as making Seward watch over her the entire night and bringing in some garlic-scented flowers to place in her room to keep her safe. However, when he learns that Mrs. Westenra removed the garlic flowers, he loses his composure and breaks down, sobbing hysterically. He knows that Lucy will be vulnerable to an even greater evil. Rather than confront or reprimand Mrs. Westenra, he takes extra measures to save Lucy's life, even offering her his blood during the transfusion. After Holmwood kills the Undead Lucy, Van Helsing lovingly comforts the heavily shaken Holmwood and allows him to finally kiss Lucy. He especially adores and praises Mina for being a shining light and a ray of hope since the journal entries written by her and Jonathan are vital clues to tracking down Count Dracula. While Van Helsing and the men initially exclude her from their tasks to find and destroy Dracula's boxes of earth, he realizes he will dedicate himself to protecting and saving her from Dracula's wrath when he touches her forehead with the wafer. She screams in pain after Count Dracula attacks her. Van Helsing doesn't fear Dracula or the Undead and is determined to accept the risk himself to fight against the Count's supernatural powers.
Van Helsing is not without his quirks. His thick Dutch accent sets him apart from the others, and his unexpected laughter in the face of grim situations adds an intriguing layer to his personality. This unconventional behaviour, coupled with his unorthodox beliefs, piques the reader's curiosity and invites further exploration of his character.
In the late Victorian era, new scientific discoveries were made, and Van Helsing embodies these discoveries while still holding onto traditional beliefs in the battle against Dracula and the supernatural. He believes that modern science and technology aren't always necessary to acknowledge history and have a place in the modern world. While he gives a speech to the adults about Count Dracula and vampires, he admits that his belief in science initially made him skeptical about vampires' existence, but he now knows everything from research through historical accounts, mythology and folklore. One of the important weapons he uses against Dracula is his Catholic faith and the holy relics. He believes that when any vampire is destroyed or killed, they will finally be at peace with God, as evident when the men see Lucy's peaceful face after Holmwood drives a stake through her heart. The first relic is a golden crucifix, an important symbol in Christianity representing Christ's sacrifice and victory over sin and death. The second is a communion wafer that he uses to stick on the door of Lucy's tomb, also symbolizing Christ's sacrifice. After Mina slowly turns into a vampire and begs the men to destroy her if she fully transforms into one, Van Helsing praises her self-sacrifice and courage and justifies that it would be considered a holy death, even if Dracula will still live if Mina dies. Because of this, Van Helsing doesn't have much time left to protect her. He also tells her to endure the burnt mark on her forehead, just like how Christ endured the pain on the cross. Finally, when he and Mina reach Transylvania, he draws a "holy circle" around Mina and sprinkles some pieces of the wafers to protect her from the three vampire women. With his faith and dedication to God, Van Helsing is most likely the true hero of the story, as Count Dracula would likely not have been stopped without his support and leadership, and he is a strong opponent against the forces of evil.
Portrayals[]
- The late Edward van Sloan portrayed Van Helsing in the older Universal Dracula cycle, where his tendency to make grotesque demands upon the younger men working with him was somewhat toned down.
- The late Peter Cushing portrayed Van Helsing in the later Hammer cycle, and began to be more directly involved in the combat with the Undead, this taken to near-ridiculous lengths when he demonstrated a knowledge of Kung Fu in The Legend of the 7 Golden Vampires.
- Anthony Hopkins portrayed Van Helsing in the 1992 movie Bram Stoker's Dracula.
- The late Rutger Hauer portrayed Van Helsing in the movie Nadja.
- The late Christopher Plummer portrayed Van Helsing in Dracula 2000.
- The late David Warner portrayed Van Helsing in Penny Dreadful.
- The late Bruce Glover portrayed Van Helsing in Die Hard Dracula.
Other Media[]
Comics[]
In the Marvel Comics miniseries X-Men: Apocalypse vs. Dracula, a legendary Dutch monster hunter, Professor Abraham Van Helsing joins forces with the immortal mutant Apocalypse and his worshipers, Clan Akkaba, in order to destroy Dracula, their common enemy. It is noted that Van Helsing had encountered Apocalypse before and previously believed him to be a vampire. Eventually, Apocalypse faced Dracula in a confrontation, only to fall victim to the vampire bite, rendering him susceptible to his control, but Prof van Helsing intervened by throwing holy water in Dracula's face. Seizing the opportunity, Apocalypse exploited Dracula's vulnerability, impaling him through the heart and decapitating him. Despite this decisive victory, Apocalypse, asserting his own will, declined to follow van Helsing's instructions further. He left Dracula's body without a permanent stake in its heart or the customary burning of the remains. In his latest adventure, Professor Van Helsing then left Europe to head to the Americas, having heard of large, white furred, man-eating monsters in the north, also known as Wendigos.
He was eventually ambushed by Dracula and killed.
Radio & Audio[]
In the Big Finish Productions audio drama The Tangled Skein (adapted from the novella by David Stuart Davies) Van Helsing, acting alone, joins forces with Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson to investigate the presence of vampires in London. Although initially disbelieving of Van Helsing's convictions when they read about his lectures on vampires, the duo accept his word when they are confronted and nearly killed by a vampire in Hampstead Heath, joining Van Helsing in staking the vampire. While Van Helsing is forced to focus on his lectures over the next few days, he leaves his vampire-hunting equipment with Holmes and Watson, who track Dracula to Dartmoor, where he has hidden in Baskerville Hall, and are able to defeat him using Van Helsing's advice. After Dracula is defeated when trapped in the Grimpen Mire as the sun rises, Holmes gives Van Helsing Dracula's ring as a memento of their victory, concluding that Van Helsing's research is what enabled him to destroy Dracula.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- Abraham Van Helsing is one of the select few characters within the Bram Stoker's Dracula novel who is physically described in one place by Mina Harker.
- Van Helsing inspired the Ravenloft hero Rudolph Van Richten.