The Lady Dracula- Countess Elizabeth Bathory.

“The lady who ate and drunk the blood of 650 virgins and infants” — Countess Elizabeth Bathory of Hungary.

It was her wedding day, Elizabeth Bathory was worried about leaving her family behind. She belonged to a noble family of Hungary. She was bold, confident, young and had a high spirited soul. She had talked to Ference she would never change her family name, even after the marriage. And Ference gave her a lovely kiss on the forehead saying “Whatever your name is, you belong with me, dear Elizabeth”. They were inseparable.

Hungary declared war against the Ottoman Empire, Ference was the chief commander of Hungarian troops. He had to go. He fixed his eyes upon his lovely wife, and their five children. He was worried. Elizabeth comforted him and said she would take care of the land, it’s 17 villages and their children.

The war lasted for ten long years, Ference was still at the war front. Even then, he managed to write letters about his health, conveying his love and how the Hungarian troops tortured their enemies. Elizabeth eagerly waited for the letters, she loved the way how people were hurt and killed.

Young Elizabeth was working very hard for the land, it’s people and her children. She was suffering from hypertension, always worried about Ference and she was tired of all the responsibilities.

One day, when Elizabeth was looking into the mirror, she was startled. She couldn’t recognise the woman who stood in front of her. She has turned into an old woman. She started having wrinkles, she is almost hairless now, her beautiful eyes started losing their charm and her once rosy lips are now grey.

She was in her early thirties, but she looked like an old woman in her sixties. She started ripping off her skin with nails, she yelled at her workers and threw the golden lamp by her bedside on to the mirror and it shattered.

When Ference, came back after the war he could barely recognise his wife. Their life as a couple was getting worse every day. Elizabeth understood her husband wasn’t happy with her and went into depression. Ference died at the young age of 48, a few months after the war.

Elizabeth was alone. She searched for ways to get her youth back. She started visiting witches and gipsies for solutions. And one day, when her young maid was brushing Elizbeth’s hair she accidentally pulled it too hard that the countess rose from her chair and struck the girl with the back of her hand. The strike was so powerful that the girl was bleeding and blood gushed out falling on Elizabeth’s hand.

Elizabeth was lying on her bed, looking at the wrinkles on her skin, she noticed something interesting this time. She noticed that the skin on her hand where the blood gushed, is looking more youthful than it was many years ago. “ I have found the cure. I have found the secret to everlasting youth. Blood. A virgin’s blood.” She exclaimed.

One by one she killed her virgin workers and started bathing in their blood. She looked in the mirror, changes weren’t that visible. She wanted a faster way. She then thought of drinking blood. She started ordering for more young girls. Her attenders lured young women giving them hopes of money and employment. A lot of young women rushed to the palace with hopes in their eyes.

Elizabeth ate fried fingers, cooked human flesh and warm blood (which was served fresh either by beheading a girl or cutting off their arms, legs or ears) for lunch.

Sometimes when the girls cried, she used to sew their mouth shut. She burned their genitals. She filled their mouths with burning charcoal and burned them in fireplaces. Whenever she got bored she called them near and ate their flesh. It is said that she had once made a girl slice her own fingers, cook and eat it herself.

Soon Elizabeth started running out of young virgin girls. She got addicted to young blood by this time, she couldn’t survive without it.

She thought “Bathing in and drinking the villagers’ blood, is not showing impressive results, I should get some royal blood now”. But that was a hard task. But she found a way. She started adopting the children who were born from the noble gentlemen, who used to meet prostitutes and other helpless ladies. She offers help, adopts the children and eats all of them.

Hundreds of helpless villagers started reporting about their missing daughters and young children to King Matthias. Investigations started all around Hungary. After the successful murder and blood shower of one noble girl in 1609, the authorities were crucially alarmed. As a part of the night raid, officials reached Elizabeth’s castle and were startled to discover the dead bodies of young girls everywhere around the palace. Some had no arms, no eyes or fingers. One body was in the fireplace, half-burnt.

Elizabeth Bathory has killed more than 650 young women and children. The details of all the women she killed was found from the castle registers. Elizabeth Bathory was locked up in a tiny room of her own castle, where she died after 3 years. Laws were not harsh for her, because she was a Countess.

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Elizabeth Bathory is described to be the most evil women to ever walk on earth by the Guinness World Records. She is called as the Bloody Countess and Lady Dracula.

The book Dracula, which is one of the most popular books in the world, was written by Bram Stoker, drawing inspiration from the life of Elizabeth Bathory. There are people who say the inspiration was from ruler Vlad II Dracul, but it was just the name. Vlad never drunk blood.

Love,

Dona