Advancing along the valley of the Prahova River, he delivered his first blows in the vicinity of Braşov, where he burned villages, forts, and towns, burned the crops to deprive the population of food, and killed men, women, and children as he progressed.
Braşov lies 106 miles north of Bucharest via Highway 1, which generally parallels the Prahova River north of the capital, following it as it flows off the slopes of the Carpathians.
Geographically, the Prahova River separates the Eastern Carpathians from the Southern range and, historically, the valley was an important passageway between the principalities of Wallachia and Transylvania.
