Laura Wright 
Elizabeth Bathory is perhaps one of the most notorious women of history. We’ve all heard how she sacrificed 600 virgins to keep herself young, and a host of other claims. But, what is the truth behind this figure?
Wikipedia tells us:
Countess Elizabeth Báthory de Ecsed (Báthory Erzsébet in Hungarian, Alžbeta Bátoriová in Slovak; 7 August 1560 – 21 August 1614) was a countess from the renowned Báthory family of Hungarian nobility. Although in modern times she has been labelled the most prolific female serial killer in history, her guilt is debated. She is nevertheless remembered as the “Blood Countess” or “Blood Queen.”
For the record, it should be stated that:
- Bathory’s family was Protestant during Inquisition times. That alone was fodder for being burned at the stake, as with the Huguenots in France.
- Bathory’s family frequently printed pamphlets promoting Protestantism, her family owned a printing press.
- Bathory’s husband loaned the king a fortune to finance his wars. It is debated that she was targeted due to the king’s inability to pay what he borrowed.
- Her problems didn’t start until after her husband died.
- The “journal,” which allegedly had the names and information of her victims, has never existed. It was not used during court.
- She was charged solely on hearsay, which came from the excruciating torment of Inquisition torture.
- Those which charged her took so long to gather “evidence” via torture, that Bathory died before a trial ever began. She was however, “walled up” in her own castle to prevent escape. This simply means she was imprisoned.
- She had 5 children. Pretty hard to be a cold-blooded killer with not only 5 children, but their governesses in the home.
There were no corpses. There was no trail of terror in her wake. There was no proof at all. Yet, centuries of “facts” that have no basis in reality have been perpetuated as if they were factual. This is perhaps one of the greatest feats of the Inquisition as the charges continue today.
More information can be found here.
