Erzebet bathory factual biography

Elizabeth Bathory, Hungarian countess who purportedly tortured and murdered hundreds of young women in the 16th and 17th centuries.
Countess Elizabeth Báthory of Ecsed was a Hungarian noblewoman and alleged serial killer from the powerful House of Báthory, who owned land in the Kingdom.
Hungarian countess Elizabeth Bathory is thought to have murdered hundreds of young women in the early 17th century.

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Elizabeth Bathory

(1560-1614)

Who Was Elizabeth Bathory?

Countess Elizabeth Bathory, or Erzsébet Báthory, was a wealthy and powerful Hungarian noblewoman whose relations included an uncle who was king of Poland and a nephew who was prince of Transylvania. In 1610 she was accused of gruesome acts of serial murder and confined to her home of Castle Čachtice, where she remained until her death. Bathory is reputed to have killed at least six hundred victims, earning her a Guinness World Record for most prolific female murderer. Her actions resulted in a nickname of the "Blood Countess" and may have been a source of inspiration for Bram Stoker's Dracula. However, it's possible Bathory was not guilty of all the crimes that have been laid at her feet.

Early Life and Marriage

Bathory was born in Nyírbátor, Hungary, on August 7, 1560.

At the age of 11, Bathory, who was considered a beautiful and well-educated girl, became engaged to Count Ferenc Nadasdy. Some accounts of her life include her giving birth to an illegitimate child, fathered by another man, before her m

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The bloody legend of Hungary’s serial killer countess

Báthory’s violence peaked within another grand fortress. The crumbled remains of Čachtice Castle are now an eerie tourist attraction, looming above the town of Čachtice in western Slovakia, 50 miles northeast of the capital, Bratislava. Visitors can roam this lofty site, from which startling rumors tumbled down the hillside in the early 1600s.

Báthory moved to Čachtice in 1604 after her husband died. Tales of her malice toward staff became so widespread that local families hid their daughters from her service, says Tony Thorne, a linguist at King’s College London and author of the 1998 book Countess Dracula: The Life and Times of Elizabeth Bathory.

What finally undid the widow countess was extending her abuse to victims of a higher class, says Rachael Bledsaw, adjunct faculty in the history department at Washington State’s Highline College. “Killing serfs and servants, who indeed had fewer rights, was gauche but not really illegal for a noble,” says Bledsaw, who wrote a thesis on Báthory. “Killing your fellow nob

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Countess Elizabeth Báthory de Ecsed (1560-1614) was a Hungarian noblewoman and reputed serial killer of hundreds of young women in the 16th and 17th centuries.

Stories of her sadism and brutality quickly became part of national folklore, her infamy earning her the nickname “The Blood Countess” or “Countess Dracula”.

Here are 10 facts about the Countess.

1. She was born into prominent nobility

Elizabeth Báthory (born Ecsedi Báthory Erzsébet in Hungarian) came from the noble Protestant family Báthory, who owned land in the Kingdom of Hungary.

Her father was Baron George VI Báthory, brother of the voivode of Transylvania, Andrew Bonaventura Báthory. Her mother was Baroness Anna Báthory, daughter of another voivode of Transylvania. She was also the niece of Stephen Báthory, the king of Poland and the grand duke of Lithuania and the prince of Transylvania.

View of Ecsed Castle in 1688. Engraving by Gottfried Prixner (1746-1819)

Image Credit: Public Domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Elizabeth was born on a family estate in Nyírbátor and spent her childhood at Ecsed Castle. As a ch