The private letters of countess erzsebet bathory by. Elizabeth bathory, anonymous portrait, 17th century. Where fact ends and fiction begins in her horrible story is now impossible to determine, but in her fame as a legendary vampire she is outrivalled. I would also recommend crafts other books on bathory. Hungarian countesses torturous escapades are exposed. But there are precious few that offer us as true account of lady erzsebet bathory. Over time, the facts of bathory s life have mingled with myth.
Bathory was born in 1560, the daughter of george and anna bathory. Bathory was born in transylvania in 1560 to a distinguished family that included kings, cardinals, knights, and judges. How and why women become monsters by peter vronsky. Since the two are nearly impossible to kill, they find themselves entrapped in a terrifying and intense battle. See more ideas about elizabeth bathory, serial killers and 30 days of night. Most prolific female murderer guinness world records. Her father was baron george vi bathory of the ecsed branch of the family, brother of andrew bonaventura bathory, who had been voivode of transylvania, while her mother was baroness anna bathory 15391570, daughter of stephen bathory of somlyo.
Elizabeth bathory by edward eaton, the blood countess by andrei codrescu, the progeny by tosca lee, in search of drac. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading the countess. She is reputed to have tortured and murdered young women in her charge during the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries. Elizabeth bathory project gutenberg selfpublishing. She tortured and killed over 650 people, believing the blood of young girls would maintain her youth. Here are facts about vampire, cannibal and serial killer, erzsebet bathory. Elizabeth bathory 16th century deranged serial killer or. The gruesome tale of elizabeth bathory has become part of national folklore and the subject of numerous plays, books, and movies. Though frequently cited as hungarian, due in large part to the shifting borders of the hungarian empire. Kim crafts book falls in to this last of categories.
Elizabeth bathory 15601614 was a countess who lived in transylvania, then a part of the kingdom of hungary. Elizabeth bathory, hungarian countess who purportedly tortured and murdered hundreds of young women in the 16th and 17th centuries. Historical fiction readers, you must reawd this book i just loved this book. Contrary to popular belief, elizabeth bathory was a modern renaissance woman who ultimately fell victim to mens. Wikimedia commons a late 16th century copy of the now lost sole portrait of elizabeth bathory, painted in 1585 when she was 25. Though widely debated, elizabeth bathory is rumored to have murdered anywhere between 36 and 650 individuals. Theres really not a whole lot to complain this is the best book on bathory out there and it has things like letters and testimonies that separate it from the rest, plus its hard to put down. Blood countess elizabeth bathory and her reign of terror. She is often compared with vlad iii the impaler of wallachia, on whom the fictional count dracula is partly based, and has become known as the blood countess. Fact based fictionalized account of the woman who murdered and drained of blood over six hundred young gir. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets.
Based on the life of elizabeth bathory, the transylvanian countess who inspired the dracula legend. Bathory, elizabeth 15601614 pop culture e lizabeth bathory, a slovakian countess who was said to have tortured and murdered numerous young women, became known as one of the true vampires in history. Securing her a place in the guinness book of records as the most prolific female serial killer ever documented. However, some believe the acts attributed to her were politically motivated slander that allowed relatives to appropriate her lands. Bathory, elizabeth article about bathory, elizabeth by. In the book, she tells her son, pal, the story of her life, explaining her behavior toward her servants as punishment for their disloyalty. The private letters of erzebet bathory and elizabeth bathory. In this site we will try to shed some light over who bathory was. According to the guinness book of records, hungarian countess elizabeth bathory was the most murderous woman in history.
Countess elizabeth bathory by charles river editors, 9781515188858, available at book depository with free delivery worldwide. She has been described as the most vicious female serial killer in all recorded history. Read this book for free on kindle unlimited order now. The hypothetical link between count dracula and countess elizabeth bathory 15601614 can be traced back to the early 1970s. It explains the life and times of this powerful woman and how she came to be accused of so many heinous crimes. Elizabeth was found guilty of killing 80 girls, the judge at her trial said that the lady. Blood countess by lana popovic is a really interesting take on elizabeth bathory. When elizabeth bathory discovers that the blood of maidens will keep her young, she sets off on a bloody killing spree that lasts for years and results in the.
World heritage encyclopedia, the aggregation of the largest online encyclopedias available, and. She was a sickly child, suffering from epilepsy for most of her life. Though she counted many luminaries among her relatives, her family tree also. The most prolific female murderer and the most prolific murderer of the western world, was elizabeth bathory, who practised vampirism on girls and young women. One crime associated with countess bathory that witnesses at the trial of her servants never accused her of, was a penchant for bathing in blood.
Based off of the evidence, there is a case to be made one which i believe to be true that elisabeth bathory is innocent. This serial killer was active in the following countries. A novel of elizabeth bathory kindle edition by johns, rebecca. Many of the elements of her life and crimes have no doubt been exaggerated and warped over time to make her out to be some kind of. In 1602, rumors began to circulate around the village of trencin in presentday slovakia. The life and legacy of historys most prolific female serial killer is the book for you. However, we actually know little about both her and her alleged crimes, and the general trend in modern history has been to conclude that her guilt may well have been overplayed, and that she was, perhaps, the victim of rival nobles who wished to. With anna friel, karel roden, vincent regan, hans matheson.
A screenplay about the most evil woman to ever walk the earth countess elizabeth bathory. The fact that it was written in erzsebet bathorys perspective was what. Bathory s legend certainly played a major role in the creation of the character of count dracula. While its not entirely impossible that some of the rumours were fabricated king matthias owed the bathory family a lot of money after the wars with the ottomans i cant see elizabeth being a wronged victim. Dont worry too much there are still scenes in the book that go into all the horrific details, pain, and suffering of elizabeth s victims. Buckle up, for i am about to dump the biggest bucket of cold water on all this malarky as i can possibly muster. Her family ruled transylvania as an independent region within the hungarian kingdom. Serial killer elizabeth bathory aka the blood countess, the cachtice countess, was active for 20 years between 15901609, known to have 80 confirmed 650 possible victims. Elizabeth bathory, also known as the blood countess is a 16th century hungarian aristocrat ranked in none other than the guinness book of records as the most murderous murderess of all time. Based off of the evidence, there is a case to be made one which i believe to be true that elisabeth bathory. The blood countess trial saw bathory s accomplices executed, yet bathory herself spared. We will try to present two alternatives of the blood countess story.
Elizabeth bathory by edward eaton book read online scribd. Bathory is based on the legends surrounding the life and deeds of countess elizabeth bathory known as the greatest murderess in the history of mankind. Elizabeth bathory was born on a family estate in nyirbator, kingdom of hungary, in 1560 or 1561, and spent her childhood at ecsed castle. Artistic stylization of the coat of arms of elizabeth bathory. She is alleged to have killed more than 600 virgins in order to drink their blood and bathe in it, ostensibly to preserve her youth. Countess elizabeth bathory of hungary 156016 was beautiful, well educated in the best traditions of the renaissance, and wealthy beyond measure. Upon assuming her seat of power at the age of sixteen, the countess set out upon a course of revelry and debauchery, aided by her spiritual adviser, darvulia, and by her faithful bevy of overwrought maids. A treatment back then was to rub the blood of a nonsufferer of the ailment onto the lips of a sufferer in order to help. For a long time, she was protected by her high social status.