Lady Bathory was a Capable Ruler
History remembers Elizabeth Bathory as a sadist. She was, however, also a real renaissance woman. Unlike many men and most women of her class, she could read and write. She was educated in mathematics and could speak and write in Latin and German as well as her native Hungarian. The Countess often wrote to other nobles with requests to borrow books. Her favorite subjects included biology, botany, anatomy, religion and the occult. She had a keen and inquisitive mind.
Elizabeth’s intellect and strength were to prove essential as she was left alone to run the Bathory- Nadasdy estates. Ferenc Nadasdy was away much of the time, carving out a military career. The Kingdom of Hungary was a war zone. Turkish satraps held northern portions of the country- and continued to attack the rest. Ferenc carved out quite a name for himself fighting the Turks. In 1578, he became chief commander of the Hungarian forces, ‘The Black Hero’ or ‘Black Bey’ of Hungary.
Elizabeth’s letters to the couple’s estate managers show the Countess kept a close eye on their affairs. Between them, she and Ferenc owned thousands of acres of land. On that land were farms, dozens of towns and 20 castles. It was, in effect, a mini kingdom- and Elizabeth ruled it capably. She issued directives on the most profitable sales of crops and livestock- and defense. For with Ferenc away, it fell to his wife to protect their lands from Turkish incursions-and after his death from unscrupulous neighbors.
When some of her lands were invaded by a neighboring noble, the recently widowed Lady Bathory wrote to him to warn him off in no uncertain terms: “so my good sir, you have done this thing. You have occupied my small possessions because you are poor, but I do not think that we will leave you to enjoy them in peace. You will find in me a man.”
The Countess also concerned herself with the well-being of her people. Her letters express concern for the hardships her serfs endured. There are also recorded instances when she intervened on behalf of destitute women- such as the wife of a Turkish captive whose daughter was left pregnant by rape. These could simply have been the dutiful actions of a noble landowner. But they provide a curious contrast with the woman later reviled for acts of cruelty.