Hungarian countess Elizabeth Bathory is thought to have murdered hundreds of young women in the

early 17th century.

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 marriage.

A 15-year-old Bathory married Nadasdy on May 8, 1575. The couple's first child was born 10 years
later, in 1585. Bathory gave birth to five children. Two died as infants, but two daughters and a son
survived.

As her husband was a soldier who was often off fighting Ottoman Turks, the couple spent most of
their marriage apart. However, he may have schooled her in techniques of torture when they were
together. After Nadasdy died in January 1604, Bathory took control of her extensive estates.

Crimes

Bathory was accused of a haunting litany of crimes against both female servants and minor
noblewomen who'd come to her for training and education. Most of her alleged assaults and
murders took place after she was widowed in 1604.

Some of Bathory's victims were covered with honey and left outside for insects to devour. During
colder parts of the year young women might be stripped naked and forced into deadly ice baths.
Bathory sometimes tortured girls by driving needles into their fingers, cutting their noses or lips or
whipping them with stinging nettles. She would bite shoulders and breasts, as well as burning the
flesh, including the genitals, of some victims. The intimate nature of Bathory's attacks suggests a
sexual motivation, though it's impossible to know with certainty what compelled her to act.

Depictions of Bathory often mention her bathing in the blood of virgin victims in an attempt to
recapture her lost youth. However, this depraved action isn't backed up by contemporaneous
witness accounts (which otherwise didn't shy away from gore). The first mention of Bathory's blood
baths came 100 years after her death and thus seems to be an invention.