As we are now heading into, if not already fully into, the Halloween season, I bring to you a few books on the infamous Elizabeth Bathory (or Erzsébet as She was known), who, in 1610, was sentenced to life long imprisonment in a room in a tower in her castle, charged with the death of 650 young women, supposedly using their blood to help "keep her young". Though the number is thought to be much lower, and some historians suspect there's a possiblity she may have been the victim of a conspiracy among certain factions of her family in order to gain her land, the legend of the notorious "blood countess" lives on...
Accused of having murdered hundreds of her servants, Countess Elizabeth Báthory was walled alive in her castle until she died. Years later, desperate to know the truth behind his infamous mother's crimes, young Count Paul seeks out the only man still alive who can tell her story: Countess Báthory's court master and confidante, Benedict Deseö. However, revealing the truth could destroy the old man's sanity and, very possibly, ruin the family reputation which the count so desperately wishes to preserve. Using real names and places, this historic novella tells the behind-the-scenes story of what happened to Countess Báthory, including her own personal torture, the rage and fear that drove her to murder her servant girls, and a gothic tale of undying love.
In 1611, Countess Erzsébet Báthory, a powerful Hungarian noblewoman, stood helpless as masons walled her inside her castle tower, dooming her to spend her final years in solitary confinement. Her crime: the gruesome murders of dozens of female servants, mostly young girls tortured to death for displeasing their ruthless mistress. Her opponents painted her as a bloodthirsty škrata—a witch—a portrayal that would expand to grotesque proportions through the centuries.
In this riveting dramatization of Erzsébet Báthory’s life, the countess tells her story in her own words, writing to her only son—a final reckoning from his mother in an attempt to reveal the truth behind her downfall. Countess Báthory describes her upbringing in one of the most powerful noble houses in Hungary, recounting in loving detail her devotion to her parents and siblings as well as the heartbreak of losing her father at a young age. She soon discovers the price of being a woman in sixteenth-century Hungary as her mother arranges her marriage to Ferenc Nádasdy, a union made with the cold calculation of a financial transaction. Young Erzsébet knows she has no choice but to accept this marriage even as she laments its loveless nature and ultimately turns to the illicit affections of another man.
Seemingly resigned to a marriage of convenience and a life of surreptitious pleasure, the countess surprises even herself as she ignites a marital spark with Ferenc through the most unromantic of acts: the violent punishment of an insolent female servant. The event shows Ferenc that his wife is no trophy but a strong, determined woman more than capable of managing their vast estates during Ferenc’s extensive military campaigns against the Turks. Her naked assertion of power accomplishes what her famed beauty could not: capturing the love of her husband.
The countess embraces this new role of loving wife and mother, doing everything she can to expand her husband’s power and secure her family’s future. But a darker side surfaces as Countess Báthory’s demand for virtue, obedience, and, above all, respect from her servants takes a sinister turn. What emerges is not only a disturbing, unflinching portrait of the deeds that gave Báthory the moniker “Blood Countess,” but an intimate look at the woman who became a monster.
Drawn from the true story of a seventeenth-century countess who bathed herself in human blood to preserve her looks forever, this chilling novel, combining gothic horror and romance, follows beautiful Erzebet, as she tells the story of her life while waiting to be sentenced for murder.
Born under the omen of a falling star, Erzebet Bizecka is a child of prophecy. The only heir of a powerful Hungarian count, she was predicted to die young or to live forever. Determined to survive despite the grim prophecy, Erzebet becomes obsessed with preserving her youth and beauty. Not even her closest friend, Marianna, can understand her crippling fear of growing older. Only the beautiful stranger, Sinestra, understands Erzebet's mania. He assures her that there are ways to determine her own destiny, pulling her into a dark world of blood rituals and promising eternal youth in return. Luring her victims to her tower room, Erzebet is determined to thwart God's plan for her life and create her own. How far will she be willing to go to protect herself?
In sixteenth-century Hungary, Anna Darvulia has just begun working as a scullery maid for the young and glamorous Countess Elizabeth Báthory. When Elizabeth takes a liking to Anna, she’s vaulted to the dream role of chambermaid, a far cry from the filthy servants’ quarters below. She receives wages generous enough to provide for her family, and the Countess begins to groom Anna as her friend, confident and lover. It’s not long before Anna falls completely under the Countess’s spell—and the Countess takes full advantage. Isolated from her former friends, family, and fiancé, Anna realizes she’s not a friend but a prisoner of the increasingly cruel Elizabeth. Then come the murders, and Anna knows it’s only a matter of time before the Blood Countess turns on her, too.
Turmoil reigns in post-Soviet Hungary when journalist Drake Bathory-Kereshtur returns from America to grapple with his family history. He’s haunted by the legacy of his ancestor, the notorious sixteenth-century Countess Elizabeth Bathory, who is said to have murdered more than 650 young virgins and bathed in their blood to preserve her youth. Interweaving past and present, The Blood Countess tells the stories of Elizabeth’s debauched and murderous reign and Drake’s fascination with the eternal clashes of faith and power, violence and beauty. Codrescu traces the captivating origins of the countess’s obsessions in tandem with the emerging political fervor of the reporter, building the narratives into an unforgettable, bloody crescendo.
Taut and intense, The Blood Countess is a riveting novel that deftly straddles the genres of historical fiction, thriller, horror, and family drama.
In the early 1600s, Elizabeth Báthory, the infamous Blood Countess, ruled Čachtice Castle in the hinterlands of Slovakia. During bizarre nightly rites, she tortured and killed the young women she had taken on as servants. A devil, a demon, the terror of Royal Hungary—she bathed in their blood to preserve her own youth.
400 years later, echoes of the Countess’s legendary brutality reach Aspen, Colorado. Betsy Path, a psychoanalyst of uncommon intuition, has a breakthrough with sullen teenager Daisy Hart. Together, they are haunted by the past, as they struggle to understand its imprint upon the present. Betsy and her troubled but perceptive patient learn the truth: the curse of the House of Bathory lives still and has the power to do evil even now.
The story, brimming with palace intrigue, memorable characters intimately realized, and a wealth of evocative detail, travels back and forth between the familiar, modern world and a seventeenth-century Eastern Europe brought startlingly to life.
Inspired by the actual crimes of Elizabeth Báthory, The House of Bathory is another thrilling historical fiction from Linda Lafferty (The Bloodletter’s Daughter and The Drowning Guard). The novel carries readers along with suspense and the sweep of historical events both repellent and fascinating.
Royal Blood podcast, episode 60
Nonfiction:
In this book, readers are given a rare glimpse into the life of Hungary's most controversial noblewoman, Countess Erzsébet (Elizabeth) Báthory. Over 40 letters and documents, many of which have been recently discovered and translated, are presented here for the first time in English. Read the private letters Lady Báthory sent in secret to fellow nobility, learn how she administered her estates, and experience life as she knew it. Historical background is provided as well as biographical material. This book is an excellent resource for the Báthory scholar and enthusiast who is looking for new and factual information on the so-called Infamous lady.
If so, Countess Elizabeth Bathory: The Life and Legacy of History's Most Prolific Female Serial Killer is the book for you. It explains the life and times of this powerful woman - and how she came to be accuses of so many heinous crimes. You’ll gain access to a variety of historical versions, perspectives, and accounts of her life - some of which paint her as a villain—and others as a victim!
Was Elizabeth a victim of her family’s abuse - and her husband? Can her foul acts be explained by the horrors she witnessed as a girl and experienced as a teenager?
No one can say for sure which tales are true and which were fabricated by her political opponents. Perhaps later storytellers have embellished this horrifying tale - which is still popular today! Whatever the truth of the story, Countess Elizabeth Bathory: The Life and Legacy of History's Most Prolific Female Serial Killer is an essential piece of the puzzle. Read this book and decide for yourself!
In this book, you’ll even discover a useful time line of Elizabeth’s life and fall from grace.
Happy Reading and Good Luck!
The legends of vampires like Dracula have generated massive interest throughout time. Indeed, the story of a man (in some versions a very handsome, dashing man), who feeds on the blood of virgins in order to survive, and who walks the earth only at night, has been revived throughout the centuries in different forms. However, one famous tale that has been lost among the legends is the story of a female Dracula, an educated woman from a well-known family of 16th century Hungary who was so afraid to lose her beauty and young looks that she engaged in dangerous practices, combining witchcraft with exsanguination.
Countess Elizabeth Báthory is this female Dracula. She is said to have drained the blood of approximately 600 young women, in order to drink it, spread it all over her body as a nurturing blend, or simply to bathe in it. Her preferences for such practices can be explained by several factors, including the practices of the time as far as torture was concerned, her genetic heritage, personal madness, and the fear of fading beauty.
Despite the general impression that Báthory was exsanguinating these girls and bathing in their blood, it appears that she did much more. Sources indicate that most of the girls had been beaten, tortured, and even forced into particular sexual activities. Regardless, her attempts to do anything to keep her beauty apparently went for naught, because upon her death, Báthory was no longer the beautiful and young woman she desired to be. In essence, it seems that all her criminal efforts had been in vain.
Based on her behavior and the reactions to it throughout time, it is virtually impossible to set Erzsébet Báthory in a character typology. On one hand, she could be considered a bored wife left alone by her husband for long periods of time, time that she used to develop passions for same-sex relations and an acute interest in inflicting pain on her victims. She might be seen as a mentally unstable person who found great joy in torturing others. Perhaps most disturbing of all, there’s a possibility that the countess was a common character within the nobility of the 16th century who was acting normally based on the customs and norms of her era.
Adding to the mystery of the story is that historical records are still mostly inaccessible because of the language barriers (most historical sources are in Hungarian). As a result, researchers interested in her life story and history usually rely on a limited number of available sources, such as biographies, articles, published letters said to have belonged to her, and scholarly articles on the topic.
Countess Elizabeth Bathory: The Life and Legacy of History’s Most Prolific Female Serial Killer details the mysterious and sordid history of one of the world’s first and worst serial killers. Along with pictures of important people, places, and events, you will learn about Countess Bathory like never before, in no time at all.
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