“Forensic evidence revealed 26 perimortem injuries, suggesting a coordinated, premeditated assassination involving at least three assailants.”
Skeletal remains discovered on Budapest’s Margaret Island in 1915 have been confirmed as Duke Bela of Macso, grandson of a Hungarian king and descendant of the Rurikid princes of Kievan Rus. DNA matched both the Arpad dynasty and documented Rurikid relatives. Forensic analysis revealed a tall 24-year-old with likely dark curly hair who was hacked to death by multiple attackers in November 1272. Medieval chronicles blamed Ban Henrik Koszegi during a royal family power struggle. Besides King Bela III, this is the only confirmed Arpad dynasty skeleton still preserved.