Drăgășani

Drăgășani lies beside the Olt, where the river leaves the hills of Oltenia for the Wallachian plain. Vineyards cover the slopes above the town, giving their name to a wine-growing district whose estates and villages have long cultivated the vine. For the people of the valley, the Olt provided a natural line of communication through the region, while the surrounding hills supported orchards and agriculture.

In June 1821 the town became the scene of a disastrous battle for the Greek revolutionary movement. The Sacred Band, a corps of young volunteers fighting under Alexander Ypsilantis, confronted Ottoman forces near Drăgășani. Its attack was unsupported and the corps was cut down; the defeat broke the campaign in the Danubian principalities, although the struggle for Greek independence continued elsewhere.