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One of the earliest people believed to have been a Vampire known by name is one Jure Grando, a Croatian man who lived in the 16th century in the Istrian peninsula.
Born in 1578, Jure worked as a stonemason throughout his life in the village of Kringa. A reclusive man, Grando nonetheless married a woman named Ivana in 1654, whom he is said to have been dedicated.
One night not long after their marriage the Grandos suffered a break in by a band of rogue monks who, lusting after the beautiful Ivana, attempted to abduct her.
Jure fended them off with his hammer, striking one hard enough in the face to knock a tooth loose, forcing the monks to flee the home screaming with rage.
The local officials, once the crime was reported, spent hours searching for the monks to no avail.
For a few days things returned to normal for Jure and Ivana but the monks hadn't forgotten him.
Sometime in 1656, while Jure was out in the village at night, the monks jumped him, beating the man senseless and dragging him off into the woods where, having dug a shallow grave, they threw him in semi conscious and buried him alive.
Ivana reported Jure missing but, despite their efforts, the authorities never found him or the monks, these men melting back into the recesses of history never to be heard from again.
But Jure's story didn't end in the shallow grave. Ivana would be startled from sleep several weeks later by a man who matched with Jure's description, his skin grey and clothing filthy, standing at the foot of her bed at night with a wicked grin on his face.
Jure started making rasping sounds, like he struggled to breath, reaching out for her. She screamed, infuriating the revenant who attacked her viciously. She managed to escape by some miracle, running to the home of Kringa's priest, Giorgio, who let her inside and comforted her as best he could.
This was the first attack of many, continuing for the next sixteen years. Weekly Grando rose from his grave and tormented the people of Kringa, knocking on doors in the dead of night, appearing at the foot of his former neighbours' beds, always carrying that wicked smile Ivana saw. Every home he 'visited' lost a family member, whether through some disease or by Grando stealing their life essence.
Unable to locate the Vampire's grave, the folk of Kringa were forced to endure this torment.
When the sixteenth year rolled around Kringa received a new Prefect, Miho Radetić, who made the brave choice of forming a militia of sorts in alliance with Father Giorgio.
One night when the Vampire struck Radetić and his band followed him back to the shallow grave where they watched the creature lay down and cover himself with dirt. They waited until morning and dug Grando up, the Vampire smiling up at them.
One member of the militia, Stipan Milašić, wielding a stake made of hawthorne wood, drove it into Grando's chest, the undead creature unleashing a hellish howl. Another unnamed militiaman brought down the saw he brought, able to cut Grando's head off, slaying the Vampire, fresh blood spewing from his neck.