Infamous Lady: The True Story of Countess Erzsébet Báthory

by Craft, Kimberly

  Count György Thurzó of Bethlenfalva, Palatine of the Kingdom of Hungary, Judge of Kumans and Arva, and perpetual governor of the same county (Arva), and councilor of the current Prince and Lord, Lord Mátyás, by the grace of God King of Hungary, Dalmatia, Croatia, Slovakia, etc., appointed King of Bohemia, Archduke of Austria, Duke of Burgundy, etc., and governor of Hungary.

  To the honorable Master, Mózes Cziráky, our Deputy Notary, with gracious greetings. You know how, both in the past and the present time, several serious complaints have come to us regarding the noble and glorious Lady Erzsébet Báthory, the widow of the late, noble and glorious Lord Ferenc Nádasdy, etc.; namely, that this same Lady Erzsébet Báthory, through some sort of evil spirit, has set aside her reverence for God and man, and has killed in cruel and various ways many girls and virgins and other women who lived in her Gynaecaeum; also that we, both by the will of said Royal Majesty and by virtue of the laws and regulations of the Kingdom of Hungary, said Palatine of the same Kingdom of Hungary shall be responsible in fulfilling our duties and we are entitled under Palatinal authority, in accordance with the customs of the Kingdom, to punish said unbearable and serious crimes which have been committed. Thus, we can legitimately and duly proceed in the aforementioned matter; and, thus, regarding said Lady Erzsébet Báthory, once a proper verdict - if it should be necessary – is spoken and can be achieved, we begin by ordering you in this matter to collect and make inquiries of witnesses, as the law of the Kingdom requires. Therefore, we exhort you earnestly and instruct and authorize you, by virtue of our Palatinal authority that, as soon as you receive this letter, to question every member of both the ecclesiastical state as well as the nobility and other honorable people of all classes and of both sexes in the counties of Györ, Sopron, Vas, Zala and Veszprém, concerning the above-mentioned killings of girls and women by the said Lady Erzsébet Báthory; by members of the spiritual state, may they answer in the purity of their conscience; by the upper and lower nobility, and those of other classes of both sexes, out of respectable secular ethos in their God, and with due reverence and loyalty to the said Royal Majesty and the sacred Crown; the whole, pure truth is to be fully explored, and you should bring your experience to the inquiry (we add our Palatinal authority by virtue of the seriousness of the matter and strictly impose a penalty of 16 marks -- such as this is available in a general decree – a heavy weight imposed immediately thereafter upon those whom it affects, as we are adamant that only the pure truth be given on the issue points without having the slightest sacrifice of the oath). After implementation of these interviews and witness interrogations, you are obliged to faithfully report and to make announcements to us. This matter calls for justice. Anything else shall not proceed. Given at Bratislava, on the 5th day of the month of March, the year of the Lord 1610.

  LAST WILL AND TESTAMENT OF ERZSÉBET BÁTHORY

  SEPTEMBER 3, 1610

  I, noble and gracious Erzsébet Báthory, the widow of the former noble and gracious Ferenc Nádasdy, covered by God’s grace, now in old age and without strength, in an ailing state, am obliged to tend to matters that cause me excruciating suffering due to the passing of my blessed and beloved husband, weakening me from day to day. Many restless concerns came over me as to my three beloved children, when my two unmarried daughters and my un-tutored son came into the care and custody of my widowed hands. Until now, I have supplied them, with God's gracious help, by assiduous care and motherly love, despite my widowed standing, not only for their good and their physical nourishment relating to their benefit; especially also, as the almighty God in His gracious goodness with my two daughters Anna and Kata Nádasdy therein showed luck, praised and blessed be His holy name, for all the orphans and widows to whom He graciously provides. I have provided decently for them at appropriate times, through their father’s house, and their parents bore the appropriate costs of marriage—my older daughter Anna to the highly well-born and gracious Miklós Zrínyi, Kata to the most high-born and gracious György Homonnay, where I paid the expenses and took care of the major concerns. I cared, thanks to the gracious help of God, praised and blessed be His holy name, also for the education of my son Pál Nádasdy, such that he, as the almighty God declared the time to have come, at twelve years of age took the oath of office of County Chief at the county of Vas in a proper manner and with corresponding costs paid. And because for all these things I zealously bore these concerns, my awareness now dwindling, thanks to the strength and holy grace of God, from day to day without ceasing I am still able to think about the end of my earthly life with all my heart, and have decided that to the end of my life, I shall think only of the holy, gracious God, the Savior and Creator, and prove to Him my gratitude. For this reason, I renounce earthly concerns and clarify hereby by this Testament that I have renounced the care and possession of the father’s portion for my children, including all of his movable and immovable goods, and, as of this day, wish to be carefee of worries about such desires, save for all the managers, assistants, and other faithful servants of my beloved husband’s blessed memory who have been entrusted to me for their care and custody.

  Since the father’s portion has not yet been divided amongst my children, and while also my two daughters currently live distantly away with their husbands, since Pál Nádasdy my son lives with me, I have left him in possession of the goods, and he shall let it remain so until God allows my three children to come together and divide the goods with the help of their pious, God-fearing relatives and friends of the most important neighboring men with whom in loving kinship this agreement has been made.

  Hereby, I have asked both my daughters and sons-in-law to wait for their brother to come of age before distributing the goods acquired from Sárvár, Kapuvár, and Leka and not to cause any harm to come to them. May they among one another find an equitable manner in which to share, such that the rights of a child living after the death of another child be not diminished. The remaining goods, both the father’s portion as well as the mother’s portion, that have come to be located everywhere in this country, no matter which county they are located, are to be divided in three portions. As for my bridal gown, which I shall wear until my death, what a reward it would be for me to allow my three children, from their share of goods, both to me, not as their mother, as well as other relatives to pay nothing; because I have them and because I have them naturally and also frequently equally permit, that they in the future never need to pay for the goods coming into their hands.

  As far as inherited property and legacies that came to me by my father and my mother are concerned, everything I've previously owned, and everything in the future that would go to me after my due share of inheritance and, whether by virtue of blood, whether by virtue of a Testament, blessed by my parents or brethren, as I could or would have had a claim—I have transferred all of this with full inheritance rights to my three children, Anna Nádasdy, Kata Nádasdy and Pál Nádasdy, and I also pass into their hands all my castles, together with their revenues. I also have included all of my property owned since childhood into their respective shares of ownership; I have also put into their hands all of the deeds, titles, and letters, as the decree so provides, and for which the law provides. The gold works, I have bequeathed to Pál Nádasdy because my two daughters have already received their shares; i.e., rings, hangers, etc. I have also bequeathed all my moveable goods, silver works, gems and however they may be called, to my three children in equal shares, except for the horse harness and weapons, since I had already bequeathed that to my son, Pál Nádasdy.

  These are my orders and my Last Testament, shown by their own free will that I did call as witnesses certain important nobles, so that they could witness my orders and my Last Testament, from my mouth were words that were put in writing here, present together with me with their original seals and reaffirming their names as thus follows:

  first: Bálint Récsey from Gátosháza

  second: Kristóf Cicheo from Gulács

  third: Már
ton Szopory from Fölsö-Szopor

  fourth: István Döry from Jobaháza

  fifth: István Tompa from Bódogfalva

  sixth: János Bácsmegyei from Simaháza

  seventh: Gergely Piterius, a preacher from Keresztúr

  eighth: Benedek Deseö from Haraszt

  ninth: Gergely Pásztori from Bozd

  tenth: Vid Andy de And

  eleventh: Miklós Madarász.

  This testament is given at Keresztúr, 3 Sept. 1610.

  Erzsébet Báthory

  REPORT OF ANDRÁS OF KERESZTÚR

  (34 WITNESS STATEMENTS/DEPOSITIONS)

  SEPTEMBER 19, 1610

  After he received and faithfully and dutifully handed over this letter, the notary of record handled such in the following manner. According to the demands and orders of the said royal Palatine, he summoned on the below-listed days the following witnesses in accordance with the foregoing provisions of said Palatine, under heavy penalty of 16 marks (given under general decree) for those who refused to respond to the questions from the notary of record, according to the content of the decree to be summoned and assembled, monitored and interrogated separately, so that each would speak the pure truth of what he knew, experienced, and was interrogated upon, including the clergy in the purity of their conscience, and the people in their faith in God and their loyalty towards our royal Majesty and our holy Hungarian royal crown.

  The first was the noble Mátyás Muraközy, 46 years old, residing on his property in Apaj and Alsócheppen who personally appeared, was sworn and interrogated; he said that he heard from the nobles Melchior and Pál Nagyvathy that their own sister had been entrusted to and passed on to the Gynaecaeum of said Mrs. Erzsébet Báthory, and that their sister was killed there at the court in this Gynaecaeum of Mrs. Erzsébet Báthory. Melchior and Pál Nagyvathy further reported that they had undertaken extensive and thorough inquiries regarding said sister, but could not find out anything about her whereabouts or what came of her; they were certain, however, that she had been killed by Mrs. Erzsébet Báthory.

  Eventually, on the 30th day of the month of March, in the market town of Újhely, the venerable István Raczyczenus, provost of the Church of the aforementioned Újhely, 55 years old, as second witness, was interrogated under the purity of his conscience and testified in a similar way to the next. He said that he had heard much about the cruelty of the aforementioned Ms. Erzsébet Báthory from all sides and that many said that this Lady Widow Nádasdy had killed or allowed to be killed approximately 200 virgins and women at her Court or Gynaecaeum.

  The third witness was the honorable György Predmerczky, 45 years old, subject of Lord Dániel Pongrácz, a resident of the market town of Újhely, sworn and interrogated; he said he knew nothing more, except that this year after the wedding ceremony of the daughter of said Mrs. Erzsébet Báthory and her son-in-law György Homonnay, the judges and jurors of the market towns of Csejthe and Újhely and the Russo property met in order to hold Judgment Day. From Csejthe, three jurors took part, one of whom called was Mattheus Foglar. These three jurors reported to the court that during the wedding celebration of Lady Widow Nádasdy, two virgins were so severely tormented and tortured that they died. Then Lady Widow Nádasdy caused the dead to be brought to the market town of Kostolány, as the same witness had heard before, to be buried among other virgins, also killed by this same woman, the Widow Nádasdy.

  The fourth witness was the honorable Georgius Casparowych, subject of the illustrious Franciscus Magochy, residing in the borough of Újhely, about 70 years old, sworn and interrogated; he said that the cruelties of which the Lady Widow Nádasdy was accused had been rumors that were in general circulation for a long time; however, whether these were true, he does not know; however, regarding the two girls who died during the said wedding ceremony and were buried in Kosztolány, he said the same as the previous witness, Goergius Predmerczky.

  The fifth witness was the honorable Mátyás Chad, about 45 years old, subject of the illustrious Peter Rattkay, residing in Újhely, sworn and interrogated; he said that recently, during the wedding ceremony of the daughter of the said Mrs. Nádasdy, he was at the court in Csejthe and heard from local officials and servants that two virgins had died due to excessive beatings and cruel tortures from said Mrs. Nádasdy, and that after they died, they were taken in the night to Kosztolány to be buried there. The same witness also said that the pastor of Csejthe named Janós had told him that he had heard from the preacher of Sárvár that said Widow Nádasdy had killed over 100 virgins and women by her outrageous and cruel torturing.

  The sixth witness was the honorable Nicolaus Kokhanowsky, about 30 years old, subject of the aforementioned Dániel Pongrácz, residing in the said Újhely, sworn and interrogated; he testified in all ways like György Predmerczky, the third witness.

  The seventh witness was the honorable Georgius Blavar (also Blanar), about 50 years old, subject to the aforementioned Dániel Pongrácz, sworn and interrogated; he testified in all ways like the previous witness, Nicolaus Kokhanowsky.

  The eighth witness was the honorable Jacobus Hromady, about 40 years old, subject to the aforementioned Franciscus Magochy, sworn and interrogated; he testified in all ways like the previous witness.

  The ninth witness was the honorable Nicolaus Kuzkleba, about 50 years old, subject to the aforementioned Dániel Pongrácz, sworn and interrogated; he said that he had heard for the first time from a certain Potoczky, a former servant of István Illésházy, that the Lady Widow Nádasdy took into her Gynaecaeum two noble virgins from Liptov (county), upon whom this Lady Widow inflicted various tortures and outrageous beatings. He also said that his son György Pellio had told him that he had seen how, shortly after the end of winter, when the Lady Widow Nádasdy came to the city of Trencsén, a girl was bound and was very violently beaten and lashed, and then submerged into ice cold water in her clothes, and then not permitted to remove the wet clothes.

  The tenth witness, the honorable Petrus Hamerda, clerk in the said market town of Újhely, about 40 years old, subject to the aforementioned Dániel Pongrácz, was sworn and interrogated; he said that he himself was once in Kosztolány and heard from the inhabitants of this same market town of Kosztolány that Lady Widow Nádasdy, who no longer stayed over in Kosztolány, inflicted cruel and terrible blows upon a girl, whipping her with nettles, until she finally died after suffering various other tortures.

  The eleventh witness was the noble Nicolaus Mezarych, Tricesimator (a type of tax collector), about 40 years old, sworn and interrogated; he said that when at the house of the nobleman Janós Zluha, residing in the city of Verbo, it was recounted in Prandio that he had once received letters from the administrator of Csejthe, by which he was charged to go to the pharmacy in Tirnau to pick up a particular drug; this drug was denied to him, however, when the doctor, Martinus, was told which drug it was. Eventually, after Janós Zluha showed the doctor the letter from the administrator, the pharmacist handed him the medicine; however, Doctor Martinus told him that he should tell his mistress that one in possession of such a drug could kill a hundred people if he wanted to.

  The twelfth witness was the noble András Somogy, counterclerk (controller) of the Tricesima (tax office) in Újhely, about 35 years old, sworn and interrogated; he testified in all ways like the previous witness Nicolaus Mezarych and added that, after the death of Count István Báthory, the Widow Nádasdy traveled herself to the property of the former Count and, on the trip, while traveling through the town of Trencsén, this witness had seen two girls, both of whose hands were burned so badly that they could not touch anything with the hands; while climbing into the carriage they could not use their hands, but rather someone had to help them into the carriage, and definitely not the carriage in which the Lady Widow was riding. On the question to the witness of what had been done to the hands of the girls, he said that the Lady Widow Nádasdy had burned their hands.

  The thirteenth witness was the nobleman Peter Daynter, about 4
0 years old, residing in said Újhely, sworn and interrogated; he said that he knew nothing except what he had heard from rumors; for example, that after the wedding celebration of Lord György Homonnay some girls had been buried in Kosztolány without ceremony and funeral bells.

  The fourteenth witness was the noble Ladislaus Saary, residing here in Újhely, about 50 years old, sworn and interrogated; he said that once, Stephanus Pesti, servant of the Lord István Dóczy, told him he had heard the mistress, Lady Widow Nádasdy, once gave such a strong beating to a girl that it caused very heavy bleeding. After that, she rubbed the girl with nettles, then tied the outstretched hands of the nude girl to a pole and let cold water pour over her. She was made to stand there until the water froze. Furthermore, the same witness heard from people living in Kosztolány that in winter, around the time of the Sunday Invocation, she left Csejthe and traveled out to the other side of the Danube river where her property was located, staying over here in Kosztolány; a girl had angered her was taken and forced to completely disrobe and was submerged into the frozen stream that flows through the city, after a hole had been hewn into the ice.