A Truly Interesting Piece of Non-Fiction

A piece of non-fiction that really caught my eye (for once) was the story of Elizabeth Bathory - a high ranking Hungarian noble that lived in the late 1500's, early 1600's. Elizabeth was a troubled child from birth; born into a family who inbred to keep noble blood, noble. At the age of 4, she began suffering from epileptic seizures and extreme mood swings. Absent parents led to a total lack of discipline, which in turn led to reckless behavior later on in life. At 14, she married Count Ferenc Nadasdy, a lesser Hungarian noble. The couple were both sadistic and a little insane, more so on Elizabeth's part. The noblewoman's favorite past time was torturing the young women who served as her maids, them being too weak and lacking in nobility to fight back. An example of her sadistic tendencies could be spreading honey on her female servants' naked bodies and tying them to trees. As time grew on, Elizabeth started to realize that she was looking older and older. Because of her rampant mood swings, she recklessly struck one of her servants, her long sharp nails scratching the side of the servants cheek. When Elizabeth looked down to wipe the blood off of her hand, she realized the skin underneath looked young and radiant. Ideas swirled in her head, and she began to wonder if she had stumbled upon the metaphorical fountain of youth. Elizabeth decided then and there that she needed more - more blood, that is. She opened a school years later, a school for the daughters of the noble families. Instead of teaching the young girls deportment and manners, she ruthlessly murdered them for their blood; their youth. Eventually, word got out to the king of Hungary and an investigation began right away. A raid on the castle was ordered, revealing the horrible and grizzly secret. The bodies of the dead girls were found under the floor boards, in cupboards, and pretty much any possible hiding place that there was throughout the castle. Elizabeth was found guilty and arrested for her crimes. But instead of serving jail time, her family had her walled up in a very small room with no ventilation. She died at the age of 54.

Source:
http://scandalouswoman.blogspot.com/2009/10/elizabeth-bathory-blood-countess.html

An artist rendition of Elizabeth Bathory in virgin's blood:
http://evilladies.com/http://evilladies.com/wp-content/uploads/Elizabeth-Bathory-bathed-in-blood.jpg