A real 1610 trial that grew into the blood-countess legend
The ruined castle above Cachtice in Slovakia belonged to Elizabeth Bathory, the noblewoman convicted in 1610 of torturing and killing servant girls, whose case grew over centuries into the legend of a countess bathing in blood to stay young. Historians still argue how much was crime and how much a land-grab by her accusers; the trial records are real, the blood-bathing is later embroidery. The ruin stands open on its hill.
Cachtice Castle (Slovakia)
See it on the map
Other places on the map within a couple of hours of here.
