What is it about female killers that terrifies us? There’s something especially horrifying about an unapologetically bloodthirsty villainess reveling in her crimes. And when a female murderess meets bloodsucking female vampire, so much the scarier!
The Blood Countess
Countess Elizabeth Bathory was one of the first women to use what is now known as the ‘vampire defense’- claiming she possessed supernatural powers to excuse her horrific crimes. A member of the Hungarian royal family in the 16th and 17th centuries, her name is sometimes also written as Erzsébet Báthory. The Blood Countess tortured and murdered young girls who worked as servants in her estate. She also preyed on girls from the nearby village for years. She was only caught when she moved on to the daughters of other noble families!
Perhaps the most twisted part of Elizabeth’s campaign of terror against the girls of Hungary was how she found her victims- she ran a gynoecium. A gyneocium was a room reserved for only women. Countess Elizabeth promoted it as an early type of finishing school for young girls. Parents sent their daughters to the Countess to learn courtly manners. They trusted that the well-known gentlewoman would look after them with care. After all, how could a woman of such high class and esteem be dangerous?
The only care Countess Báthory showed was the care she took in torturing her victims. Some were doused in cold water and left outside to freeze. Others were burned with hot tongs. Witnesses reported seeing needles used in torture as well. The girls unlucky enough to find themselves in the Countess’ clutches were tortured mercilessly before they were killed.
She preyed on young girls
Many people have wondered why Elizabeth was so bloodthirsty – and why she chose young women specifically. Rumor was that she bathed in the blood of her victims. She was rumored to believe their blood would keep her young and beautiful.
All told, Elizabeth Bathory is estimated to have killed over 650 young women before her reign of terror ended in 1609. This bodycount makes her the most prolific female serial killer in history. Some even say that she was part of the inspiration for Bram Stoker’s iconic Dracula (along with Vlad the Impaler). Some of her evil deeds are remembered in other fictional depictions of vampires, eternal beauty, and immortality.
Was she falsely accused?
There is also speculation that the charges against the Blood Countess were trumped up. The Hungarian King Matthias II owed a large debt to Countess Bathory. After the death of her husband, the King realized that he could invalidate the debt if she were convicted of crimes. He decided to investigate the rumors of her occult perversions. His men found much of the “evidence” that was used against her, including confessions coerced via torture. While her family connections were able to spare her from being put to death, Countess Bathory was immured (walled up inside her castle) and died 4 years later.
Many of the crimes she is remembered for were embellished in the re-telling. She had been largely forgotten when Father László Turóczi (a Jesuit Scholar) revived her tale in 1720. Perhaps he turned her into a monster in the process. Or, perhaps George Thurzo – Palatine of Hungary, was to blame for her monstrous reputation.
Whatever her reasons, the Blood Countess will go down in history as one of the world’s most evil villains.
