 Main | The Torture Tools | History | Information | Ink and Blood | The Guestbook
Elizabeth was betrothed to Frank Nadasdy, of an important English family that ruled 17 feudal hamlets. Frank's father, Thomas, was royal governor of Hungary. Elizabeth (15) and Frank (25) were married in the spring ( May 8 ) of 1575. King Maximillian sent a gilded wine cup. and the couple tookup residence in the Castle of Caejthe, a mountaintop fortress,which lies in the north-western part of Hungary. Following 10 years of childless marriage, Elizabeth and Frank had four children, three girls and a boy. Frank spent his whole life as a soldier fighting the Turks. Earning him the reputation as the " Black Hero of Hungary". He died in 1604, at age 49.
After the death of her husband Elizabeth became more and more vain. She changed her dresses several times a day and redid her hair differently every few hours. Reportedly, she had a high forehead, blue eyes, a sharp nose and "thick lustful lips". Her age was getting to the best of her though. At the age of 40 Elizabeth tried to conceal the wrinkles through cosmetics. But this could not cover the fact, that she was getting old and close to losing her beauty. Then according to legend, a young chambermaid accidently pulled Elizabeth's hair while combing it. The infuriated countess slapped the girl's head so hard, that blood spurted from her nose, which splashed upon her own hand. When the blood had touched her skin, Elizabeth immediately thought it took on the freshness of her young chambermaid's skin. She then got Johannes Ujvary and Dorka to undress the girl and cut her arteries and bleed the young girls blood into a basin, after which the Countess stepped into the basin and took a bath in the blood.
Members of the castle staff were then ordered to procure more young maidens. Poverty ruled the Hungary of that day. Guillible girls were often forced to seek work at the castle. Once inside, their fate was sealed. Ujvary later testified he personally murdered 37 girls, all maidens,beating them and often cutting off their hands with scissors. The countess helped, he swore. She tore off the girl's flesh with her own hands. When her dress became bloodsoaked, she would hault the orgy until she got into fresh clothing. According to a local priest, the Rev. John Ponekinus, the countess forced the girls to eat their own flesh and that on at least one occasion the flesh of the victim was converted to hash and served to unsuspecting guests at the castle. When the countess traveled, she took girls with her. In Vienna, where the Nadasdys had a townhouse, neighbors complained of the victim's screaming. But the countess enjoyed immunity because of her family position.
Many of the cruelties the countess inflicted were under the guise of discipline. Once she pressed a glowing iron against the face of a girl who had clumsily burned madam's collar. A son-in-law, Count Nicholas Zrinyl, once arrived at the castle unannounced, and Elizabeth had to hurriedly stash fie corpses under a bed. The count was told not to enter that bedroom because diseased servants were in there. She had meals sent to the room all during the count's visit. However Zrinyl, suspected the worst when one corpse was unearthed in the courtyard by one of his dogs. Zrinyl pressed for the arrest of the countess, but he got nowhere. He feared for a nasty scandal. Word finally filtered to King Mathias, who saw an opportunity not only to punish the countess but also to confiscate the Bthory wealth, for the royal treasury had been depleated. But Elizabeth had powerful relatives. She was above the courts. Only the royal governor, Count Thurzo, had jurisdiction over her. And he was not only a friend, but a relative.
However, Thurzo was forced to act when the scandal became so bad that a revolt in the region was feared. He arrived at the castle with an armed retinue DEC. 13, 1610. When Thurzo arrived, according to testimony, one girl's body was found in the castle drained of blood. Another girl was dying of many wounds and a third girl was bleeding to death in the basement. Many others were locked behind strong doors awaiting their fate. Below the castle, they found the dead bodies of some 50 girls. Thurzo formed a court in 1611, of 14 from local officials and his own retinue. After testimony, Ujvary was sentenced to decapitation. Joo and Szentes had their fingers torn out, and then they were burned to death over a slow fire. Catherine Beniczky, who had shown sympathy for the victims, was given an indeterminate prison sentance. Elizabeth herself drew no formal sentence, although, a registar with the names of around 650 victims were found in her living quarters.
Elizabeth did not escape her punishment. The Hungarian Emperor demanded her to be condemed to lifelong imprisonment in her own castle. Stonemasons were brought in to the castle to wall up the windows and doors of her bedchamber, with the countess still inside, with only a small hole for feeding. Here she would spend the rest of her life in solitary confinment. No minister was allowed to console her. Four and a half years after she was walled in, on Aug. 21, 1614, one of her jailers found the food untouched. After peeking in the small opening, he saw her lying face down on the floor. Elizabeth Bathory the "Blood Countess" was dead at the age of 54 " without the cross and without light".
Elizabeth is infamously known for her favorite torture method ... The Iron Maiden. |
