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{{Spell infobox
 
{{Spell infobox
|name=Killing Curse
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|name = Killing Curse
|image=[[File:Avadakedavra.png|250px]]
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|image = Avada-Kedavra.gif
|incantation=''Avada Kedavra''<br />(a-VAH-dah ke-DAH-vra)<ref name="GOF">{{GOF}}</ref>
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|incantation = ''Avada Kedavra''<ref name="GOF14">{{GOF|B|14}}</ref><br />(a-VAH-dah ke-DAH-vra)<ref name="GOFF1">{{GOF|F}} - Chapter 1 (''The Riddle House'')</ref><ref name="GOFF7">{{GOF|F}} - Chapter 7 (''The Unforgivable Curses'')</ref>
|light=Green<ref name="DHpt2">{{DHF2}}</ref>
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|type = [[Curse]]<ref name="GOF14"/>
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|hand = [[File:Killing-curse.png]]
|type=[[Curse]], [[Dark Arts]]
 
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|light = Green<ref name="GOF14"/>
|hand=[[File:Killing-curse.png]]
 
|effect=Instantaneous, painless death<ref name="GOF"/>
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|effect = Instantaneous [[death]]<ref name="GOF14"/>
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|creator =
 
}}
 
}}
{{Quote|There was a flash of blinding green light and a rushing sound, as though a vast, invisible something was soaring through the air -- instantaneously the spider rolled over onto its back, unmarked, but unmistakably dead|Description of the Killing Curse being used by [[Bartemius Crouch Jr.|Barty Crouch Jr.]] disguised as [[Alastor Moody]]|Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire}}
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{{Quote|There was a flash of blinding green light and a rushing sound, as though a vast, invisible something was soaring through the air instantaneously the spider rolled over onto its back, unmarked, but unmistakably dead.|Description of the Killing Curse|Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire}}
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The '''Killing Curse''' (''Avada Kedavra'') was a tool of the [[Dark Arts]] and was one of the three [[Unforgivable Curses]].<ref name="GOF14"/> When cast successfully on a living [[Human|person]] or [[creature]], the curse caused instantaneous and painless [[death]], without causing any injury to the body, and without any trace of violence.<ref name="GOF14" /><ref name="GOF1" /><ref name="HBP17"/> The Killing Curse was accompanied by a blinding flash or jet of green light and a distinctive rushing sound when being cast.<ref name="GOF14"/>
The '''Killing Curse''' (also known as the '''Avada Kedavra Curse'''<ref>{{HBP}}, ch.3</ref>) is a [[spell]] that causes instantaneous [[death]] and is one of the three [[Unforgivable Curses]]. Its incantation is ''Avada Kedavra''.
 
   
The only known [[counter-spell]] is [[sacrificial protection]], which uses the [[magic]] of [[love]]. However, one may dodge the green bolt or block it with a physical barrier. The Killing Curse, as an "unblockable" Curse, cannot be stopped by another spell, except in circumstances of Priori Incantatem, where the caster and his opponent's wands and spells are locked together. An explosion or green fire may result if the spell hits something other than a living target.
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The only known [[counter-spell]] to this curse was [[sacrificial protection]], which used the power of [[love]].<ref name="OOTP37">{{OOTP|B|37}}</ref> The Killing Curse was a conventionally unblockable curse; therefore [[Shield Charm|shield charms]] would not be able to defend against it.<ref name="GOF14" /> However, one could dodge the green bolt,<ref name="GOF34"/> block it with a physical barrier<ref name="OOTP36"/> by the use of [[Reverse Spell|''Priori Incantatem'']],<ref name="GOF34" /><ref name="GOF36"/> or [[Apparition|Disapparate]] if they wanted to quickly get away before the curse hit them. An explosion or [[fire]] could result if the spell hit something other than a living target.<ref name="OOTP36" /> In addition, [[phoenix]]es, being [[Immortality|immortal]], were able to survive a direct hit from the Killing Curse.<ref name="OOTP36" />
 
Only two wizards are known to have survived blows from this deadly curse: [[Harry Potter]] and [[Tom Riddle]]. Harry survived two direct attacks: once in [[1981]] after [[Lily Evans|his mother's]] self-sacrificing love protected him from Lord Voldemort, and once in [[1998]] after the curse, cast again by Voldemort, failed to kill Harry, as he was tethered to life by Voldemort himself, due to Lily's blood protection which he took inside himself during his rebirth. Lord Voldemort remained alive after the aforementioned curse from [[1981]] rebounded and struck him because of his [[Horcrux]]es. [[Tom Riddle|Voldemort]] was notorious for using this curse regularly and indiscriminately.
 
   
 
==History==
 
==History==
===Creation===
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===Middle Ages===
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{{Quote|The Cruciatus, Imperius, and Killing Curses were first classified as Unforgivable in [[1717]], with the strictest penalties attached to their use.|[[Albus Dumbledore|Dumbledore]]'s notes from {{TBB}}|The Tales of Beedle the Bard (real)}}
The Killing Curse was invented during the early middle ages, by Dark witches or wizards. The curse was created primarily as a means of quickly and efficiently slaying one's opponent in a duel.<ref name="TOBTB">''[[The Tales of Beedle the Bard (real)|The Tales of Beedle the Bard]]''</ref>
 
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The Killing Curse was [[Spell creation|invented]] during the early [[Middle Ages]].<ref name="TBB">{{TBB|B}}</ref>
   
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[[File:B4C30M1 Wizengamot trial Pensieve memory.png|250px|thumb|left|Death Eaters facing the Council of Magical Law for their use of the Unforgivable Curses]]
===Legal status===
 
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After the [[Wizards' Council]] was reformed into the [[British Ministry of Magic|Ministry of Magic]], tighter restrictions were placed on the use of certain kinds of magic. The Killing Curse was deemed by the Ministry to be [[Dark Arts|Dark Magic]] and, along with the [[Cruciatus Curse|Cruciatus]] and [[Imperius Curse]]s, were declared "''[[Unforgivable Curses|Unforgivable]]''" throughout [[Great Britain]] in [[1717]].<ref name="TBB" />
{{Quote|The Cruciatus, Imperius and Avada Kedavra Curses were not made "unforgivable" until 1717.|[[Albus Dumbledore]]|The Tales of Beedle the Bard}}
 
   
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The use of any Unforgivable Curse on a human would carry the punishment of a life sentence without parole in [[Azkaban]].<ref name="GOF14" />
[[File:Avada Kedavra Curse - Spider.JPG|thumb|250px|Avada Kedavra being cast on a spider]]Along with the [[Cruciatus Curse|Cruciatus]] and [[Imperius Curse|Imperius]] curses, the Killing Curse is known as one of the most terrible curses in the wizarding world. After the [[Wizards' Council]] was reformed into the [[British Ministry of Magic|Ministry of Magic]] tighter restrictions were placed on the use of certain kinds of magic. The Killing Curse was deemed by the Ministry to be [[Dark Arts|Dark magic]], and, along with the [[Cruciatus Curse|Cruciatus]] and [[Imperius Curse|Imperius]] curses, were declared "unforgivable" in [[1710s|1717]], with the Killing Curse considered to be the most deadly of the three. Cursing another human with the Killing Curse would carry the punishment of a life sentence in [[Azkaban]].
 
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===Global wizarding war===
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The Killing Curse was also used in [[1927]] by the [[Magical Congress of the United States of America]] on magical [[beast]]s considered dangerous.<ref name="FB2017">{{FB|2017}}</ref>
   
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This curse was used during the [[global wizarding war]], both by [[Auror]]s and [[Alliance|supporters]] of the [[Dark wizard]] [[Gellert Grindelwald]].<ref name="COGS" /> At one point during the height of the global wizarding war, Auror [[Cassius Bell]] used this curse to kill a [[red-haired young witch]] in the [[Lestrange Mausoleum]].<ref name="COGS" />
However, the [[First Wizarding War]], when [[Bartemius Crouch Sr.|Barty Crouch Sr.]] was in charge of the [[Department of Magical Law Enforcement]], he fought violence with violence, legalising the three Unforgivable Curses for [[Auror]]s against the [[Death Eaters]] in order to win the war. This was repealed once the war was over as it was no longer necessary, though, in the [[1994–1995 school year]], [[Bartemius Crouch Jr.|Barty Crouch Jr.]] (under the [[Polyjuice Potion|disguise]] of [[Alastor Moody]]) showed these three curses to his [[fourth year]] classes on [[Alastor Moody's spiders|spiders]] despite the Ministry's disapproval.
 
   
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===First Wizarding War===
When [[Tom Riddle|Lord Voldemort]] [[Fall of the Ministry of Magic|took over]] the Ministry, the three curses were once again legalised: this time every wizard and witch had the right to use them as they please. In fact, they were practised in [[Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry|Hogwarts]] as part of the curriculum of [[Defence Against the Dark Arts|Dark Arts class]] under the tutelage of [[Professor]] [[Amycus Carrow]]. After Voldemort's death and the revolutionising of the Ministry under [[Minister for Magic|Minister]] [[Kingsley Shacklebolt]], the three curses were once again forbidden.
 
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{{Quote|How Voldemort had killed Harry's father first. How James Potter had tried to hold him off, while he shouted at his wife to take Harry and run... Voldemort had advanced on Lily Potter, told her to move aside so that he could kill Harry... how she had begged him to kill her instead, refused to stop shielding her son... and so Voldemort had murdered her too, before turning his wand on Harry.|Harry Potter reflecting on the murder of his parents|Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire}}
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During the [[First Wizarding War]], when [[Bartemius Crouch Senior|Barty Crouch Snr]] was in charge of the [[Department of Magical Law Enforcement]], he [[Curse-to-kill|fought violence with violence]], legalising the three [[Unforgivable Curses]] for [[Auror]]s against the [[Death Eaters]] in order to win the war.<ref name="GOF27">{{GOF|B|27}}</ref> This was repealed once the war was over, as it was no longer necessary.
   
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[[File:Potter family murder.gif|thumb|250px|Voldemort murdering Lily Potter before trying to murder infant Harry Potter]]
It should be noted that despite the curse being illegal, references have been made to [[Auror]]s using deadly force against opponents, though whether this means they were authorised to use the killing curse specifically is unclear. Despite the circumstances, it is unknown whether the Killing Curse was used by anyone but Voldemort and his Death Eaters during the Battle of Hogwarts. It is also known that use of this curse may go unpunished if there is sufficient evidence that the caster did so under the influence of the [[Imperius Curse]].
 
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One of the most infamous events involving this curse happened on [[Hallowe'en]] ([[31 October]]) in [[1981]].<ref name="PS4" /> [[Tom Riddle|Voldemort]] arrived at the [[Potter cottage]] in [[Godric's Hollow]],<ref name="DH17" /> after being told of its location by [[Peter Pettigrew]], the [[Secret Keeper|Secret-Keeper]] of its [[Fidelius Charm]],<ref name="POA19">{{POA|B|19}}</ref> and murdered [[James and Lily Potter]] while they attempted to protect their infant son [[Harry Potter|Harry]].<ref name="DH17" /> He cast the Killing Curse on Harry as well, but it backfired, therefore destroying Voldemort's body.<ref name="GOF33" /> This event led to Voldemort's first downfall, the end of the First Wizarding War, and Harry's fate being sealed as "The Boy Who Lived".<ref name="PS1">{{PS|B|1}}</ref><ref name="PS4" />
   
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It should be noted that despite the curse being illegal, Aurors were allowed to use deadly force and the Unforgivable Curses against opponents during the [[First Wizarding War]] in order to win.<ref name="GOF27" />
==Nature==
 
The Avada Kedavra curse is recognisable by the flash of green light and the rushing noise emitted from the caster's wand. When the curse hits a living, organic target it invariably kills them without injury. However, when this curse hits an inanimate target the effect varies: it can produce small fires,<ref>{{OOTP}}, ch. 36</ref> small greenish explosions,<ref>{{GOFF}} and {{OOTPF}}</ref> or explosions of such intensity that can blow up an entire story of a cottage.<ref>{{DH}}, ch. 17</ref> It is known by most wizards as [[Tom Riddle|Lord Voldemort]]'s signature spell. Presumably, it kills its target by tearing the victim's soul from their body, as Voldemort describes his soul being "ripped from his body" when his backfiring curse struck him. It is possible to intercept the curse with other spells, but this is extremely difficult as it requires the energy jets of the two spells to collide. As the energy jets of virtually all spells are very small and fast, this has only ever been recorded as occurring by accident.
 
   
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Shortly before their imprisonment in [[Azkaban]] for being Death Eaters, [[Merula Snyde]]'s [[Merula Snyde's mother|mother]] and [[Merula Snyde's father|father]] taught her the Killing Curse, in order to teach her the necessary self-defence she would need without them around to protect her.<ref name="HM528">{{HM|5|28}}</ref>
However, certain objects, such as the [[centaur]] statue of the [[Fountain of Magical Brethren]], managed to block the curse without any visible damage to itself.<ref name="OTP"/>It should be noted that curse did not terminate the animation of (i.e. "kill") the statue, however, the statue was only animated by magic and so presumably had no real life in him for the curse to take away.
 
   
===Performance===
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===Between the wars===
{{Quote|Avada Kedavra's a curse that needs a powerful bit of magic behind it - you could all get your wands out and point them at me and say the words, and I doubt I'd get so much as a nosebleed.|[[Bartemius Crouch Jr.|Barty Crouch, Jr.]] as [[Alastor Moody]]|Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire}}
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{{Quote|So that was how his parents had died... exactly like that spider. Had they been unblemished and unmarked too? Had they simply seen the flash of green light and heard the rush of speeding death, before life was wiped from their bodies?|Harry Potter contemplating the Killing Curse after witnessing its use on a spider|Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire}}
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[[File:Frank Bryce murder.gif|250px|thumb|left|Voldemort murdering [[Frank Bryce]] with the Killing Curse in 1994]]
The curse requires a great deal of magical talent to perform correctly. In [[1994]], [[Bartemius Crouch Jr.|Barty Crouch, Jr.]], disguised as [[Alastor Moody]], claimed that, if all of the students before him were to get out their wands and perform it on him at one time, he would likely be completely unaffected. However, as his loyalties were with [[Tom Riddle|Lord Voldemort]], it is unknown to what extent his words were accurate. It is possible to cast the curse [[Nonverbal spell|non-verbally]], as [[Bellatrix Lestrange|Bellatrix]] killed a fox without incantation. However, the lack of the incantation may have been for suspense. Whether this is true or not in Bellatrix's case is unknown.<ref name="HBP"/> However, during his duel with Dumbledore, Voldemort used this spell several times without an incantation. Intense concentration is likely required to cast the Killing Curse, which is probably why Death Eaters don't use it as their primary offensive spell (although [[Thorfinn Rowle]] did launch the curse repeatedly all over the place during the [[Battle of the Astronomy Tower]]).
 
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When disguised as [[Alastor Moody]] using [[Polyjuice Potion]] during the [[1994–1995 school year]], [[Bartemius Crouch Junior]] performed each Unforgivable Curse on a [[Alastor Moody's spiders|spider]] in front of his fourth-year [[Defence Against the Dark Arts|Defence Against the Dark Arts class]] in [[September]] [[1994]]. He told his class the penalty for using an Unforgivable Curse on another [[human|human being]] was life imprisonment in [[Azkaban]]. The Ministry did not approve of this because "Professor Moody" was showing these curses to those who did not truly need to see it (i.e., a class of 14-15-year-olds), but it did not appear to have been illegal. [[Harry Potter]] had always wondered how his parents have died, and witnessing the curse that killed them was very clearly unpleasant.<ref name="GOF14" />
   
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Lord Voldemort also used the curse in 1994 to murder [[Frank Bryce]], the [[Non-magic people|Muggle]] caretaker who looked after [[Riddle House]], after secretly eavesdropping on his plan to kill [[Harry Potter]] with Pettigrew.<ref name="GOF1" />
===Signs===
 
[[File:Avada Kedavra Curse.JPG|thumb|right|200px|[[Peter Pettigrew]] casting the killing curse on [[Cedric Diggory]]]]
 
   
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===Second Wizarding War===
The Killing Curse is described as a jet or flash of blinding green light that "illuminates every corner of the room"<ref>[[Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows]]</ref> followed by a rushing sound, which causes the victim instant death. Victims of the Killing Curse are identified by the fact that they simply appear to have dropped dead for no biological reason. Indeed, victims seem "perfectly healthy" apart from the fact that they are dead.<ref name="HBP">{{HBP}}</ref> This lack of visible injuries is one that had confused Muggles throughout the years of its use, requiring many [[British Ministry of Magic|Ministry of Magic]] officials to modify memories.
 
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{{Quote|The Elder Wand slashed through the air and green light erupted through the room; the kneeling goblin rolled over, dead; the watching wizards scattered before him, terrified: Bellatrix and Lucius Malfoy threw others behind them in their race for the door, and again and again his wand fell, and those who were left were slain, all of them, for bringing him this news, for hearing about the golden cup — |Voldemort ruthlessly massacring goblins with the Killing Curse|Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows}}
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The Killing Curse was known throughout most of the wizarding world to be Voldemort's [[signature spell]]. Lord Voldemort was a prolific user of the Killing Curse throughout his life. He used the curse excessively throughout the [[First Wizarding War|First]] and [[Second Wizarding War]]s. He also used the curse outside of warfare, having killed [[Charity Burbage]], an outspoken Muggle supporter, simply to satisfy the [[pure-blood supremacy]] of both himself and his [[Death Eaters|supporters]].<ref name="DH1">{{DH|B|1}}</ref> His first known usage of the curse was at age 16, [[Murder of the Riddle family|murdering]] his [[Tom Riddle Senior|father]], [[Thomas Riddle|paternal grandfather]] and [[Mary Riddle|paternal grandmother]].<ref name="HBP17" /> He used it to murder the famous [[wandmaker]] [[Mykew Gregorovitch]]<ref name="DH12" /> and notorious Dark wizard [[Gellert Grindelwald]], while searching abroad for the [[Elder Wand]].<ref name="DH23" />
   
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[[File:The Killing Curse.gif|250px|thumb|Voldemort [[Massacre at Malfoy Manor|murdering]] several goblins and Gringotts employees at [[Malfoy Manor]] during the Second Wizarding War]]
===Sensation===
 
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When he learned of Harry Potter's successful [[Gringotts Wizarding Bank|Gringotts]] [[Break-in of Gringotts Wizarding Bank (1998)|break-in]] and retrieval of [[Hufflepuff's Cup]], he [[Massacre at Malfoy Manor|murdered several goblins and other Gringotts employees]] in a fit of rage.<ref name="DH27" /> Ironically, the Killing Curse, Voldemort's signature spell, was ultimately the very spell that led to his [[Voldemort's Last Stand|own defeat]]. On 2 May, during the [[Battle of Hogwarts]], Harry willingly let Voldemort hit him with the Killing Curse, in order to be rid of the piece of Voldemort's [[soul]] he harboured at the time.<ref name="DH34" /> In his final duel against [[Harry Potter]], Voldemort would not realise that the curse would backfire (because the [[Elder Wand]] would not kill its true master), thereby finally putting an end to the [[Dark Lord]]. Harry thought surviving the Killing Curse for a second time felt like an "[[iron]]-clad punch".<ref name="DH36" />
Presumably, the Killing Curse does not inflict any pain on its target, since it causes instantaneous death. However, Harry Potter, awaking after a Killing Curse cast by Lord Voldemort hit him, describes the sensation as an "iron-clad punch."
 
   
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When Voldemort [[Fall of the British Ministry of Magic|took over]] the Ministry, the three curses were once again legalised; this time every wizard and witch had the right to use them as they pleased. In fact, they were practised in [[Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry|Hogwarts]] as part of the curriculum of the [[Dark Arts (class)|Dark Arts class]] under the cruel tutelage of [[Professor]] [[Amycus Carrow]], a Death Eater.<ref name="DH29">{{DH|B|29}}</ref> After Voldemort's final death and the reform of the Ministry under the newly appointed [[Minister for Magic|Minister]] [[Kingsley Shacklebolt]], the three curses were made forbidden once again and their original penalties were restored.
==Survivability==
 
{{Quote|Not pleasant. And there's no countercurse. There's no blocking it. Only [[Harry Potter|one known person]] has ever survived it, and he's sitting right in front of me.|[[Bartemius Crouch Jr.|Barty Crouch Jr.]], disguised as [[Alastor Moody]], on the survivability of the Killing Curse (E.g-[[Harry Potter]]) |Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (film)}}
 
[[File:VoldemortmurdersLily.JPG|thumb|250px|left|[[Lily Evans]] being murdered by [[Tom Riddle|Lord Voldemort]].]]
 
The Killing Curse can be dodged or physically blocked by an object, such as [[Fountain of Magical Brethren|the statues Dumbledore animated]] to protect Harry Potter during his [[Duel in the Ministry Atrium|duel]] with Voldemort after the [[Battle of the Department of Mysteries]].
 
   
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==Nature==
The Killing Curse is known to be unblockable, as once it strikes the living victim, it almost always results in immediate death. There is "no counter-curse" since it is not possible to revive the dead. However there are some exceptions:
 
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{{Quote|The green light filled the cramped hallway, it lit the pram pushed against the wall, it made the banisters glow like lighting rods, and James Potter fell like a [[marionette]] whose strings were cut....|[[James Potter I|James Potter]] being murdered by Voldemort with this curse|Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows}}
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[[File:Godric flash.PNG|250px|thumb|The famous flash of green light that indicated the curse|left]]
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The Killing Curse was recognisable by the flash of green light and the rushing noise emitted from the caster's wand. When the curse hit a living, organic target it invariably killed them without causing any injury or pain.<ref name="GOF14" /> The method the curse kills the victim is unknown; however, [[Tom Riddle|Lord Voldemort]] described the curse as having ripped his [[soul]] from his body when he was originally struck with it, resulting in his biological death.<ref name="GOF33" /> It was known by most witches and wizards as Voldemort's [[signature spell]].<ref name="GOF14" />
   
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[[File:Snape killing Dumbledore.gif|250px|thumb|Snape killing Dumbledore, blasting him off the [[Astronomy Tower]]]]
===Sacrificial Protection===
 
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Also, while most victims would simply drop dead when struck by the curse,<ref name="GOF1" /><ref name="DH17">{{DH|B|17}}</ref> at other times it may carry a force of impact, such as when [[Severus Snape|Snape]]'s casting was able to blast [[Albus Dumbledore|Dumbledore]] off the [[Astronomy Tower]] ramparts.<ref name="HBP27" /> During the [[Battle of Hogwarts]] in the [[Forbidden Forest]], Harry described the impact of the curse as an "''[[iron]]-clad punch''",<ref name="DH36" /> as stated earlier.
The most effective method of surviving the Killing Curse is through [[Sacrificial Protection]]. The sacrifice of one's life for another, a manifestation of the powerful [[magic]] of [[love]], is the most potent defense against the "''unblockable''" Killing Curse. [[Harry Potter]], was saved by his mother, [[Lily Evans]], [[love|lovingly]] [[Sacrificial protection|sacrificed herself]] when she shielded her son with her body<ref name="PS">{{PS}}</ref>, making him the first known survivor of this Curse. [[Harry Potter]] was the only person known to have survived ''Avada Kedavra'' with no ill effects, aside from attaining a [[Harry Potter's scars|scar]].
 
   
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When the curse hit an inanimate target the effect varied: it could produce [[fire]]s,<ref name="OOTP36">{{OOTP|B|36}}</ref> large greenish explosions,<ref name="GOFF28">{{GOF|F}} - Chapter 28 (''Voldemort'')</ref> or explosions of such intensity that could blow up an entire cottage.<ref name="DH17" /> However, certain objects, such as the headless golden wizard statue of the [[Fountain of Magical Brethren]], managed to block the curse without any visible damage to itself.<ref name="OOTP36" /> It should be noted that the curse itself did not terminate the animation of (i.e. "kill") the statue, however, as the statue was only [[Animation Charm|animated]] by magic and so presumably had no real life in it for the curse to take away. However, later in the same duel, the centaur statue, also made of gold, broke into a hundred pieces when hit with the same curse.
===Horcruxes===
 
[[File:The Horcrux.jpg|thumb|220px|Lord Voldemort's Horcruxes.]]
 
Another defense employed against the Killing Curse is the creation of at least one [[Horcrux]]. The creation of Horcruxes is a preventive measure, created by a wizard long before he faces an actual Killing Curse attack. However, this is less effective than Sacrificial Protection, since it only allows a little more than the soul of the target to live, while the target's body still dies. If one has Horcruxes, they will not be dead, but they will barely be alive and will be reduced, as Voldemort was when the Killing Curse backfired with his attempt to kill Harry in [[1981]]: to [[Professor Quirrell|living off another]], drinking [[Unicorn Blood]], using the [[Philosopher's Stone]] (before it was destroyed), and creating a rudimentary body from Unicorn Blood and [[Nagini]]'s venom.
 
   
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It was also possible to intercept the curse with other spells, but this was extremely difficult as it required the energy jets of the two spells to collide.<ref name="GOF34" /> As the energy jets of virtually all spells were very small and fast, this had only ever been recorded as occurring by accident.
Voldemort's Horcruxes tethered his soul to life. The Curse drove his mangled soul from his body and split his unstable soul, leaving him to roam only as a shadowy spirit, unable to move on to death but is a less-than-alive life form. If possible, one can make a [[Regeneration potion]] to came back to life, but it requires the bone of the father, the flesh of the servant, and the blood of an enemy. Because Voldemort required a servant to perform the rites of his rebirth, he was forced to spend thirteen years in hiding as he had no one who would come to his aid for such time.
 
   
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===Performance===
Upon the destruction of all his Horcruxes, Voldemort had no more defence against death, and was finally killed by his own deflected Killing Curse.
 
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{{Quote|Avada Kedavra's a curse that needs a powerful bit of magic behind it — you could all get your wands out and point them at me and say the words, and I doubt I'd get so much as a nosebleed.|[[Bartemius Crouch Junior]] {{c|disguised as Alastor Moody}} on the skill required to cast the curse|Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire}}
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The curse required great skill, power, and intent in order to be performed correctly. On [[4 September]] [[1994]], [[Bartemius Crouch Junior]], disguised as [[Alastor Moody]], claimed that if all of the students before him were to get out their wands and perform it on him at one time, he would likely be completely unaffected as he believed they all lacked the necessary power needed to cast the spell.<ref name="GOF14" /> On [[30 June]] [[1997]], during the [[Battle of the Astronomy Tower]], [[Severus Snape]] also stated that to cast the [[Unforgivable Curses]], one needed both nerve and ability.<ref name="HBP28">{{HBP|B|28}}</ref> It was possible to cast the curse [[Nonverbal spell|nonverbally]], as [[Bellatrix Lestrange]] killed a [[Fox near Spinner's End|fox]] without an [[incantation]].<ref name="HBP2" /> During his [[Duel in the Ministry Atrium|duel]] with Dumbledore during the [[Battle of the Department of Mysteries]], Voldemort also used this curse several times without an incantation.<ref name="OOTP36" /> However, as [[Vincent Crabbe]] was capable of casting it (whose magical skills were often lacking),<ref name="DH31" /> the power and skill needed to perform it may have been somewhat overstated.
   
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The Killing Curse, in addition to requiring the caster to be a very powerful and skilled witch or wizard, also required a genuine willingness and at many times deep desire to commit murder. Bellatrix seemingly implied this was true of the Unforgivables, and it was true of the [[Cruciatus Curse]],<ref name="OOTP36">{{OOTP|B|36}}</ref> but not so much with the [[Imperius Curse]].<ref name="DH26">{{DH|B|26}}</ref>
===Other===
 
  +
[[File:Voldemort killing Charity Burbage.gif|left|thumb|250x250px|Voldemort smiling maliciously while casting the Killing Curse on Charity Burbage without any regret nor remorse]]
The following are speculations on why only the Horcrux inside Harry Potter, and not Harry himself, had been killed by the Killing Curse in the Forbidden Forest.
 
  +
One of the main reasons why Lord Voldemort demonstrated such an affinity for the curse was due to how exceptionally powerful and skilled he was magic-wise, along with his complete and utter lack of remorse or value for the lives of fellow humans. For example, Draco Malfoy, despite possessing many undesirable personality traits, found himself unable to [[Plot to assassinate Albus Dumbledore|murder]] [[Albus Dumbledore]] because he did not want to actually kill him.<ref name="HBP27" /> Voldemort, on the other hand, had no such restraint and murdered countless people without remorse in his pursuit of power and [[immortality]]; in fact, he was fully prepared to murder one-year old [[Harry Potter]] upon deducing him to be a potential threat.<ref name="PS4">{{PS|B|4}}</ref> He was intending to use this most heinous act to create his final [[Horcrux]]. He succeeded, during the act, a piece of Voldemort's soul entered Harry. This effectively turned him into a Horcrux.<ref name="DH35">{{DH|B|35}}</ref> However, it would lead to his downfall and death.<ref name="DH36" />
   
  +
===Signs===
====Blood within Lord Voldemort====
 
  +
{{Quote|A team of doctors had examined the bodies and had concluded that none of the Riddles had been poisoned, stabbed, shot, strangled, suffocated, or (as far as they could tell) harmed at all. In fact (the report continued, in a tone of unmistakable bewilderment), the Riddles all appeared to be in perfect health — apart from the fact that they were all dead.|The Killing Curse has no psychical signs and leaves no external marks|Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire}}
{{Dialogue a-b-a-b|Harry|But if Voldemort used the Killing Curse, and nobody died for me this time -- how can I be alive?|Dumbledore|I think you know. Think back. Remember what he did, in his ignorance, in his greed and cruelty.|He took my blood.|Precisely! He took your blood and rebuilt his living body with it! Your blood in his veins, Harry, Lily's protection inside both of you! He tethered you to life while he lives ''[...]'' He took your blood believing it would strengthen him. He took into his body a tiny part of the enchantment your mother laid upon you when she died for you. His body keeps her sacrifice alive, and while that enchantment survives, so do you and so does Voldemort's one last hope for himself.|Dumbledore explaining the bond of blood to Harry.|Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows}}
 
  +
[[File:Lily dead.png|250px|thumb|[[Lily J. Potter|Lily Potter]]'s corpse showed no outward signs of trauma, as the curse did not cause bodily harm]]
During his resurrection, Lord Voldemort used Harry's blood in reconstructing his body. According to Albus Dumbledore, since Harry's blood contained Lily's protection, and Voldemort took this blood for himself, Voldemort had unknowingly tethered Harry to life as long as he himself lives.
 
  +
The Killing Curse was described as a jet or flash of blinding green light that "''illuminates every corner of the room''"<ref name="DH1" /> followed by a rushing sound, which caused the victim instant death.<ref name="GOF14" /> Victims of the Killing Curse were identified by the fact that they simply appeared to have dropped dead for no biological reason. Indeed, victims seemed "''perfectly healthy''" apart from the fact that they were dead.<ref name="GOF1" />
   
  +
[[File:James Potter's dead body.png|250px|thumb|James Potter's corpse showed no outward signs of trauma either|left]]
[[File:Harryblood.png|thumb|292px|[[Peter Pettigrew|Wormtail]] cutting Harry's arm and using his blood to regrow Voldemort]]
 
  +
This lack of visible injuries was one that had confused Muggles throughout the years of its use, requiring many [[British Ministry of Magic|Ministry of Magic]] officials to modify memories. For example, Muggle authorities were stumped over the death of the [[Riddle family|Riddles]]. The only thing about the bodies the doctors noted (determined to find something wrong) was the look of horror on their faces, as though they had been frightened to death.<ref name="GOF1" /> [[Department of Magical Law Enforcement|Wizarding authorities]], on the other hand, could tell at once the cause of one's death, due to the curse's somewhat unique nature.<ref name="HBP17" />
   
  +
===Sensation===
As such, the Sacrificial Protection lingering in Harry's blood, which Voldemort took, is similar to but superior to that of a Horcrux's. While a Horcrux requires the preservation of a piece of the soul within an object, blood with Sacrificial Protection required the preservation of the blood within another living entity. While a Horcrux protects the soul from death, blood with Sacrificial Protection is almost as good as Sacrificial Protection; it had the little side effect of Harry feeling an "iron-clad punch" after awakening.
 
  +
Presumably, the Killing Curse did not inflict any pain on its target, since it caused instantaneous death.<ref name="GOF14" /> However, Harry Potter, who awoke after a Killing Curse cast by [[Tom Riddle|Lord Voldemort]] hit him, described the sensation as an "iron''-clad punch''",<ref name="DH36" /> though this may have been caused by the destruction of the fragment of Voldemort's [[soul]] contained within his body.<ref name="DH35" /> However, when he was initially struck by the curse, it apparently caused him no sensation at all.<ref name="DH34">{{DH|B|34}}</ref>
   
  +
When Voldemort was struck by his own rebounding Killing Curse after he attempted to kill Harry the first time, he described the sensation of his soul being ripped from his body as being "pain beyond pain".<ref name="GOF33" /> However, given the uniquely mutilated state of his [[soul]] at the time and that his soul had not gone to the [[afterlife]],<ref name="DH35" /> it seems likely that his reaction was atypical.
During a discussion with Severus Snape, Dumbledore had specified that it is essential to the plan that Voldemort himself must [kill Harry]. Whether this is because only Voldemort can kill his own Horcrux within Harry, or whether the blood protection would only work specifically with Voldemort (Voldemort being the one from whom Lily had been protecting Harry) is unknown.
 
   
  +
==Survivability==
====Mastery of the Elder Wand====
 
  +
{{Quote|Not nice, Not pleasant. And there's no countercurse. There's no blocking it. Only one known person has ever survived it, and he's sitting right in front of me.|Barty Crouch Jnr {{c|disguised as Alastor Moody}} regarding Harry Potter surviving the curse|Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire}}
[[File:Elder Wands.jpg|thumb|The Elder Wand]]
 
  +
The Killing Curse could be dodged or physically blocked by an object, such as the statues Dumbledore animated to protect Harry during [[Duel in the Ministry Atrium|his duel with Voldemort]] after the [[Battle of the Department of Mysteries]].<ref name="OOTP36" /> The Killing Curse was known to be unblockable, as once it struck the living victim, it almost always resulted in immediate death.<ref name="GOF14" /> There was "no [[counter-curse]]",<ref name="GOF14" /> since it was impossible to revive the dead.<ref name="GOF36">{{GOF|B|36}}</ref> However there were some exceptions:
Another thing that helped Harry survive when Voldemort tried to kill him in the Forbidden Forest was that Harry was the true master of the [[Elder Wand]], a wand fabled to be unbeatable. Despite Voldemort physically possessing the Elder Wand (having removed it from the tomb of its last master, Dumbledore), he never truly conquered the Elder Wand from its previous owner. Harry, however, ''did'' gain its loyalty much earlier: [[Draco Malfoy]] "won" the wand from Dumbledore unknowingly, so it was loyal to him, but Harry beat Draco at the [[Skirmish at Malfoy Manor]], so Harry was the true Owner of the wand despite both of them never touching it. The wand wouldn't kill its own master, so when Voldemort tried to murder Harry, the curse only destroyed the part of Voldemort's soul living in Harry and then, when Harry and Voldemort [[Duel in the Great Hall|duelled]] for the final time, the wand backfired and killed Voldemort himself.
 
   
  +
===Sacrificial protection===
==Blocking the Curse==
 
  +
[[File:Lily protecting Harry from Voldemort.gif|thumb|250px|Lily Potter's [[love]] for her son protects him from the curse]]
===Priori Incantatem===
 
  +
The most effective method of surviving the Killing Curse was through [[sacrificial protection]]; the willing sacrifice of one's life for another, a manifestation of [[love]], which was the most potent defence against the "unblockable" Killing Curse.<ref name="GOF33" /> Love was a powerful and mysterious branch of magic; it gave those who experienced it the ability to do very great things.<ref name="OOTP37">{{OOTP|B|37}}</ref>
[[File:Priori_Incantatem.jpg|thumb|Priori Incantantem occuring between [[Tom Riddle|Lord Voldemort]] and [[Harry Potter]]]]The [[Priori Incantatem]] effect is when two wands that share the same cores are put into battle against each other. One wand will then force the other wand to repeat its previously-cast spells.
 
   
  +
Harry Potter was saved by his mother [[Lily J. Potter|Lily Potter]], when she lovingly sacrificed herself for him after she refused to stop shielding him from [[Tom Riddle|Lord Voldemort]], despite having been given the choice to live.<ref name="GOF33" /> Harry became the only known survivor of the Killing Curse with no ill effects,<ref name="GOF14" /> aside from attaining a [[Harry Potter's scars|lightning-shaped scar]] on his forehead.<ref name="PS4" />
Because of this, an Avada Kedavra Curse can be blocked if a wand that shares the killer's wand's core fires a spell at it: both spells will connect and thus the wizard has been spared by the Killing Curse. However, since wands with twin cores are extremely rare, this method cannot be employed "at will".
 
   
  +
===Horcruxes===
Priori Incantatem occurred in the [[Duel in Little Hangleton|duel between Harry and Voldemort in the graveyard]] during Harry's fourth year <ref name="GOF"/>. Voldemort cast the Killing Curse and Harry cast the [[Disarming Charm]], and because their wands had twin cores, Priori Incantantem occurred; Harry was not killed and was able to hold Voldemort off to give him time to escape.
 
  +
[[File:Seven Horcruxes.png|left|thumb|225x225px|Tom Riddle's horcruxes]]
  +
Another defence employed against the Killing Curse was the creation of at least one [[Horcrux]].<ref name="HBP23">{{HBP|B|23}}</ref> The creation of Horcruxes was a preventive measure, created by a wizard long before he faced an actual Killing Curse attack.<ref name="HBP23" /> However, this was less effective than [[sacrificial protection]], since it only allowed a little more than the soul of the target to live on, while the target's physical body still died. If one had Horcruxes, they would not be dead, but they would barely be alive and would be reduced, as Voldemort was when the Killing Curse backfired with his attempt to murder Harry in [[1981]], to living as a mutilated spirit.<ref name="GOF33" />
   
  +
Some of the methods Voldemort used, or planned to use, to survive in this state included living off another,<ref name="PS17" /> drinking [[unicorn blood]],<ref name="PS17" /> using the [[Philosopher's Stone]] (reduced to a wraith-like state and the stone destroyed soon after before he could),<ref name="PS17">{{PS|B|17}}</ref> and [[Rudimentary body potion|creating a rudimentary body]] using unicorn blood and [[Nagini]]'s [[Nagini's venom|venom]].<ref name="GOF33">{{GOF|B|33}}</ref>
[[File:Phoenix.jpg|thumb|[[Fawkes]] the [[Phoenix]] ate the Killing Curse meant for Dumbledore, bursting into flames and then regrowing from the ashes]]
 
   
  +
Voldemort's Horcruxes tethered his soul to the world. The Curse drove his mangled soul from his body, leaving him to roam only as a shadowy spirit, unable to move on to the afterlife but is a less-than-alive life form. If possible, one can make a [[Regeneration potion]] to return to human form, but it required the [[bone]] of the [[Tom Riddle Senior|father]], the [[flesh]] of the [[Peter Pettigrew|servant]], and the [[blood]] of an [[Harry Potter|enemy]].<ref name="GOF32">{{GOF|B|32}}</ref> Because Voldemort required [[Peter Pettigrew|a servant]] to perform the rites of his rebirth, he was forced to spend thirteen years in hiding as he had no one who would come to his aid for such time.<ref name="GOF33" />
===Phoenixes===
 
[[Phoenix]]es are semi-protected from the Killing Curse, due to them being immortal. In [[1996]], [[Fawkes]] swallowed one intended for [[Albus Dumbledore]], causing him to burst into [[Fire|flame]] and die instantly. However, he then was reborn from his ashes.<ref name="OTP">{{OOTP}}</ref>
 
   
  +
Upon the destruction of all his Horcruxes, Voldemort had no more defences against death, and was finally killed by his own deflected Killing Curse.<ref name="DH36" />
===Stunning Spell===
 
The spell can be directly countered using a [[Stunning Spell]], in which case red and green jets of light will meet and create multi-coloured sparks. Since neither spell is able to reach its intended target, neither will have any effect.
 
   
  +
==Curse interception==
===Other Targets and Dodging===
 
  +
{{Quote|Harry responded with further Stunning Spells: Red and green collided in midair in a shower of multicoloured sparks...|Harry Potter's Stunners blocking the Killing Curse|Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows}}
If another target is placed between the caster and the targeted individual, then the new target will take the hit of the Killing Curse, which may simply result in an object being destroyed or damaged. One can also avoid the effects simply by dodging or if the caster has poor aim, as with many attacking curses of this type, the spell must be directly targeted at the intended victim.
 
  +
[[File:Priori Incantatem Pottermore.png|250px|thumb|''Priori Incantatem'' occurring between Lord Voldemort and Harry Potter]]
  +
The [[Reverse Spell|''Priori Incantatem'']] effect was when two [[wand]]s that shared the same [[Wand core|cores]] were put into [[Duelling|battle]]against each other. One wand would then force the other wand to repeat its previously-cast spells. Because of this, a Killing Curse could be blocked if a wand that shared the killer's wand's core fired a spell at it: both spells would connect and thus the wizard had been spared by the Killing Curse.<ref name="GOF36" />
   
  +
''Priori Incantatem'' occurred in the duel between [[Harry Potter]] and [[Tom Riddle|Voldemort]] in the graveyard during Harry's fourth year.<ref name="GOF36" /> Voldemort cast the Killing Curse and Harry cast the [[Disarming Charm]], and because their wands had twin cores, ''Priori Incantatem'' occurred; Harry was not killed and was able to hold Voldemort off to give him time to escape.<ref name="GOF34">{{GOF|B|34}}</ref><ref name="GOF36" />
==Known practitioners==
 
[[File:Voldemort trying to force the Killing Curse on Dumbledore.jpg|thumb|right|300px|[[Tom Riddle|Lord Voldemort]] casts the Killing Curse in a [[Duel in the Ministry Atrium|duel]].]]
 
*[[Tom Riddle|Lord Voldemort]]
 
*[[Bellatrix Lestrange]]
 
*[[Bartemius Crouch Jr.]]
 
*[[Peter Pettigrew]]
 
*[[Severus Snape]]
 
*[[Thorfinn Rowle]]
 
*[[Vincent Crabbe]]
 
*[[Lucius Malfoy]]
 
*Other [[Death Eaters]] and [[Dark Wizard]]s
 
   
  +
[[Phoenix]]es were semi-protected from the Killing Curse, due to them being immortal. In [[1996]], [[Fawkes]] swallowed one intended for [[Albus Dumbledore]], causing him to burst into [[Fire|flame]] and die instantly. However, he then was reborn from his ashes.<ref name="OOTP36" />
==Known victims==
 
  +
<!-- Do not add that Bellatrix used this to kill Sirius. In the books, Sirius does not die instantaneously, and thus it cannot be this spell. -->
 
  +
The spell could be directly countered using a [[Stunning Spell]], in which case red and green jets of light would meet and create multi-coloured sparks. Since neither spell was able to reach its intended target, neither would have any effect, as the jets of light basically exploded on each other. However, this was particularly tricky, as it required both jets of light to collide with one another.<ref name="DH4" /> It is unknown whether this was limited to the Stunning Spell or if it was possible to reflect the Curse with other spells, although during [[Harry Potter|Harry]] and [[Tom Riddle|Voldemort]]'s [[Voldemort's Last Stand|final duel]] a similar thing happened when Harry's [[Disarming Charm]] collided with Voldemort's Killing Curse, although the [[Elder Wand]]'s allegiance to Harry had to be taken into consideration in this particular situation.<ref name="DH36">{{DH|B|36}}</ref>
{|width="60%" border="1" class="wikitable"
 
  +
|-bgcolor="#cccccc"
 
  +
If another target was placed between the caster and the targeted individual, then the new target would take the hit of the Killing Curse, which could simply result in an object being destroyed or damaged in an explosion of flames.<ref name="OOTP36" /> One could also avoid the effects simply by dodging or if the caster had poor aim,<ref name="DH31" /> as with many similar offensive curses, the spell had to be directly targeted at the intended victim.
!width="20%" align="center"|
 
  +
Victim(s)
 
  +
Should the caster have used the [[Elder Wand]]—or actually any wand—without winning its allegiance, to cast the Killing Curse onto its true master, the wand would refuse to kill its master and therefore the curse would backfire onto the caster, thus killing them instead, as when Voldemort's Killing Curse rebounded on him during his final duel with Harry Potter.<ref name="DH36" />
!width="20%" align="center"|Caster(s)
 
  +
!width="20%" align="center"|Dates
 
  +
==Known uses==
  +
{{Quote|He saw the mouth move and a flash of green light, and everything was gone.|Harry Potter being hit with the curse|Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows}}<!-- Please do not add that Bellatrix used the Killing Curse to kill Sirius Black! In the book, Sirius does not die instantaneously, and thus it cannot be this spell. Bellatrix instead causes him to fall into the Veil by hitting him with an unidentified red-coloured spell.
  +
In addition, please do not add that Lord Voldemort murdered Pius Thicknesse with this spell. In the book, it is unknown how Pius Thicknesse died in the Second Wizarding War, or if he even died at all, but we know Lord Voldemort did not kill him for interrupting his concentration on feeling the destruction of one of his Horcruxes Ravenclaw's Diadem. -->
  +
  +
===Successful===
  +
{| class="wikitable" border="1" width="100%"
  +
|- bgcolor="#cccccc"
  +
! align="center" width="20%" |'''Caster(s)'''
  +
! align="center" width="20%" |'''Victim(s)'''
  +
! align="center" width="20%" |'''Date'''
  +
! align="center" width="20%" |'''Note'''
  +
|-
  +
|[[San Bakar]]
  +
|[[Isidora Morganach]]
  +
|[[15th century]]
  +
|To stop her from weaponising [[ancient magic]] and using it on the students.<ref name="HL-SBT">{{HL}} - (San Bakar's Trial)</ref>[[File:Isidora Morganach's death (Avada Kedavra) HL.png|250px|thumb|left]]
  +
|-
  +
|[[Victor Rookwood]]
  +
|[[Victor Rookwood]] {{c|backfired}}
  +
| rowspan="2" |[[1891]]
  +
|Cast the Killing Curse on a [[Unidentified 19th-century Hogwarts student|Hogwarts student]] during an ambush. It rebounded on him, causing his death.<ref name="HL-WM">{{HL}} (Wand Mastery)</ref>[[File:Victor Rookwood boss battle HL.png|thumb|251x251px|left]]
  +
|-
  +
|[[Sebastian Sallow]]
  +
|[[Solomon Sallow]]
  +
| For destroying the relic that could have potentially saved [[Anne Sallow|his sister]] and his personal hatred of him.<ref name="HL-ISR">{{HL}} (In the Shadow of the Relic)</ref>[[File:Solomon Death.gif|thumb|250px|left]]
  +
|-
  +
| colspan="1" rowspan="2" |[[Gellert Grindelwald's acolytes]]
  +
|[[Unidentified Non-Magique mother|Non-Magique mother]]
  +
| colspan="1" rowspan="5" |[[September]] [[1927]]
  +
| colspan="1" rowspan="3" |Used it on Gellert Grindelwald's orders to take over a [[Paris]]ian [[Unidentified home used by Gellert Grindelwald|house]] that was owned by a family of [[Non-magic people|Non-Magiques]] by killing them all with the curse and use it as a temporary headquarters.<ref name="COGS" />[[File:Parisian Takeover.gif|left|thumb|250x250px]]
  +
|-
  +
|[[Unidentified Non-Magique father|Non-Magique father]]
  +
|-
  +
|[[Carrow (Acolyte)|Carrow]]
  +
|[[Unidentified Non-Magique toddler|Non-Magique toddler]]
  +
|-
  +
|[[Gunnar Grimmson]]
  +
|[[Irma Dugard]]
  +
|Used it on Gellert Grindelwald's orders to keep [[Credence Barebone]]'s identity as a secret.<ref name="COGS" />[[File:Grimmson kills Irma.gif|250x250px|thumb|left]]
  +
|-
  +
|[[Cassius Bell]]
  +
|[[Red-haired young witch]]
  +
|Used it in self-defence during [[Gellert Grindelwald's Paris rally]] in the [[Lestrange Mausoleum]], when she attacked him.<ref name="COGS">{{COG|S}}</ref>
  +
[[File:Auror kills Red Head Witch.gif|250x250px|thumb|left]]
 
|-
 
|-
|[[Tom Riddle Sr.]]
+
| rowspan="23" |[[Tom Riddle|Lord Voldemort]]
|rowspan="7"|[[Tom Riddle|Lord Voldemort]]
+
|[[Tom Riddle Senior|Tom Riddle Snr]]
|rowspan="3"|[[1940s|1943]]
+
| rowspan="3" |Summer [[1943]]
  +
|For abandoning him and his mother [[Merope Riddle|Merope]] and for being a Muggle.<ref name="HBP17" />
 
|-
 
|-
 
|[[Thomas Riddle]]
 
|[[Thomas Riddle]]
  +
| rowspan="2" |For being Muggles.<ref name="HBP17">{{HBP|B|17}}</ref>
 
|-
 
|-
 
|[[Mary Riddle]]
 
|[[Mary Riddle]]
 
|-
 
|-
 
|[[James Potter I|James Potter]]
 
|[[James Potter I|James Potter]]
|rowspan="2"|[[31 October]], [[1981]]
+
| rowspan="3" |[[31 October]] [[1981]]
  +
|For trying to stop him from killing Lily and Harry Potter.<ref name="DH17">{{DH|B|17}}</ref>
 
|-
 
|-
|[[Lily Evans|Lily Potter]]
+
|[[Lily J. Potter|Lily Potter]]
  +
|For refusing to stop shielding him from killing Harry Potter, despite Voldemort giving her the choice to live.<ref name="DH17" />
 
|-
 
|-
|[[Harry Potter ]]<br />(survived both)
+
| colspan="1" rowspan="2" |[[Harry Potter]] {{c|survived both}}
  +
| colspan="1" rowspan="2" |For being his enemy.<ref name="DH34" />
|[[31 October]], [[1981]]<br />[[2 May]], [[1998]]
 
  +
[[File:Harry's sacrifice.gif|245x245px|thumb|left]]
  +
|-
  +
|[[31 October]] [[1981]]; [[2 May]] [[1998]]
  +
|-
  +
|[[Bertha Jorkins]]
  +
|Summer [[1994]]
  +
|For being useless after he broke the [[Memory Charm]] on her.<ref name="GOF1">{{GOF|B|1}}</ref>
 
|-
 
|-
 
|[[Frank Bryce]]
 
|[[Frank Bryce]]
|[[August]], [[1994]]
+
|[[August]] [[1994]]
  +
|For overhearing his plan to kill [[Harry Potter]] and for being a Muggle.<ref name="GOF1" />
 
|-
 
|-
|A [[spider]]
+
|[[Fawkes]] (survived)
  +
|[[18 June]] [[1996]]
|[[Bartemius Crouch Jr.]] disguised as [[Alastor Moody]]
 
  +
|Used it to kill Dumbledore, but Fawkes took the curse on himself and burst into [[Fire|flames]]. As a [[phoenix]], Fawkes resurrected minutes later.<ref name="OOTP36">{{OOTP|B|36}}</ref>
|[[1994-1995 school year]]
 
 
|-
 
|-
|[[Cedric Diggory]]
+
|[[Charity Burbage]]
|[[Peter Pettigrew]]
+
|[[July]] [[1997]]
  +
|Used it for supporting [[Non-magic people|Muggle]] rights and being the [[Muggle Studies]] teacher.<ref name="DH1">{{DH|B|1}}</ref>[[File:Voldemort kills Burbage.gif|250x250px|thumb|left]]
|[[24 June]], [[1995]]
 
 
|-
 
|-
|[[Fawkes]]
+
|[[Alastor Moody]]
  +
|[[27 July]] [[1997]]
|[[Tom Riddle|Lord Voldemort]]<br />(curse meant for [[Albus Dumbledore]])
 
  +
|Used it for being the [[Order of the Phoenix]] leader after Albus Dumbledore's death and trying to transport [[Harry Potter]] to safety.<ref name="DH5">{{DH|B|5}}</ref>
|[[18 June]], [[1996]]<br />(burst into flames and reborn)
 
 
|-
 
|-
  +
|Unnamed German speaking Muggle family (a [[German-speaking woman|woman]] and [[German-speaking children|two children]])
|[[Fox near Spinner's End|A fox]]
 
  +
|[[1 September]] [[1997]]
|[[Bellatrix Lestrange]]
 
  +
|For not knowing where Gregorovitch was hiding.<ref name="DH12">{{DH|B|12}}</ref>
|Summer of [[1996]]
 
 
|-
 
|-
|[[Gibbon]]
+
|[[Mykew Gregorovitch]]
  +
|[[2 September]] [[1997]]
|[[Thorfinn Rowle]]<br />(curse meant for [[Remus Lupin]])
 
  +
|For not being clear on who [[Gellert Grindelwald|the thief]] was that stole the [[Elder Wand]].<ref name="DH14">{{DH|B|14}}</ref>[[File:Voldemort killing Gregorovitch.JPG|250x250px|thumb|left]]
|rowspan="2"|[[June]], [[1997]]
 
 
|-
 
|-
|[[Albus Dumbledore]]
+
|[[Gellert Grindelwald]]
  +
|[[March]] [[1998]]
|[[Severus Snape]]<br />(planned ahead of time by Dumbledore)
 
  +
|For hiding the [[Elder Wand]]'s location.<ref name="DH23">{{DH|B|23}}</ref>[[File:Voldemort and Grindelwald.JPG|250x250px|thumb|left]]
 
|-
 
|-
  +
|[[Unidentified goblin killed by Voldemort|Unnamed goblin]]
|[[Charity Burbage]]
 
|rowspan="2"|[[Tom Riddle|Lord Voldemort]]
+
| rowspan="5" |[[1 May]] [[1998]]
  +
| rowspan="5" |Used it in a fit of rage after hearing about [[Hufflepuff's Cup|Helga Hufflepuff's Cup]] robbery.<ref name="DH27">{{DH|B|27}}</ref>
|Summer of [[1997]]
 
 
|-
 
|-
|[[Alastor Moody]]
+
|[[Griphook]]
|rowspan="2"|[[27 July]], [[1997]]
 
 
|-
 
|-
|[[Hedwig]]
+
|[[Death Eaters]]
|[[Hedwig's Killer]]<br />(curse meant for [[Harry Potter]])
 
 
|-
 
|-
  +
|[[Gringotts Wizarding Bank|Gringotts]] guards
|
 
[[Gregorovitch]]
 
|rowspan="2"|[[Tom Riddle|Lord Voldemort]]
 
|[[2 September]], [[1997]]
 
 
|-
 
|-
  +
|[[Goblin]]s
|[[Gellert Grindelwald]]
 
|[[March]], [[1998]]
 
 
|-
 
|-
  +
|Unnamed Death Eater
|[[Tom Riddle|Lord Voldemort]]<br />(his own curse backfired)
 
  +
|[[2 May]] [[1998]]
|both times by [[Tom Riddle|himself]]
 
  +
|[[Battle of Hogwarts]]
|[[31 October]], [[1981]]<br />(survived due to his horcruxes)<br />[[2 May]], [[1998]]<br />(did not survive)
 
  +
|-
  +
| colspan="1" rowspan="2" |[[Tom Riddle|Lord Voldemort]] {{c|backfired}}
  +
|[[31 October]] [[1981]] {{c|survived}}
  +
| colspan="1" rowspan="2" |
  +
|-
  +
|[[2 May]] [[1998]]
  +
|-
  +
|[[Patricia Rakepick]]
  +
|[[Rowan Khanna]]
  +
|[[1990]]
  +
|Aimed the curse at [[Ben Copper]], but Rowan jumped in the way, sacrificing their life in the process.<ref name="HM618">{{HM|6|18}}</ref> [[File:Rowan Death.gif|250x250px|thumb|left]]
  +
|-
  +
| rowspan="1" |[[Bartemius Crouch Junior]] {{c|[[Polyjuice Potion|disguised]] as [[Alastor Moody]]}}
  +
|[[Bartemius Crouch Junior's spiders|Spider]]
  +
|[[4 September]] [[1994]]
  +
|Used it to teach [[Fourth year|fourth-year]] [[Gryffindor]] students in [[Defence Against the Dark Arts]].<ref name="GOF14" />[[File:Barty Crouch Junior kills spider.gif|250x250px|thumb|left]]
  +
|-
  +
|[[Peter Pettigrew]]
  +
|[[Cedric Diggory]]
  +
|[[24 June]] [[1995]]
  +
|Used it on Lord Voldemort's orders to murder Cedric.<ref name="GOF32" />[[File:Cedric's Death.gif|250x250px|thumb|left]]
  +
|-
  +
|[[Bellatrix Lestrange]]
  +
|[[Fox near Spinner's End]]
  +
|[[July]] [[1996]]
  +
|Meant for a possible spy or [[Auror]].<ref name="HBP2">{{HBP|B|2}}</ref>
  +
|-
  +
|[[Thorfinn Rowle]]
  +
|[[Gibbon]]
  +
| rowspan="2" |[[30 June]] [[1997]]
  +
|Used it to kill [[Remus Lupin]], but he missed and killed his comrade instead.<ref name="HBP29">{{HBP|B|29}}</ref>
  +
|-
  +
|[[Severus Snape]]<ref name="HBP27">{{HBP|B|27}}</ref>
  +
|[[Albus Dumbledore]]<ref name="HBP27" />
  +
|Planned ahead of time by a slowly dying Dumbledore in order to fool Voldemort.<ref name="DH33">{{DH|B|33}}</ref>
  +
|-
  +
|[[Death Eaters|Death Eater]]
  +
|[[Hedwig]]
  +
|[[27 July]] [[1997]]
  +
|Meant for [[Harry Potter]], but missed and hit Hedwig instead.<ref name="DH4">{{DH|B|4}}</ref><!-- In the book, the curse strikes Hedwig when she is in her cage, while riding on Hagrid's motorbike, and thus this cannot be considered canon. -->[[File:Death Eater kills Hedwig.gif|245x245px|thumb|left]]
 
|-
 
|-
|
 
Several unknown during the:<br />[[Revolution]]<br />[[First Wizarding War]]<br />[[Second Wizarding War]]
 
 
|Numerous
 
|Numerous
  +
|Victims of the:<br />[[global wizarding war]],<br />[[First Wizarding War]], and<br />[[Second Wizarding War]]
 
|[[1940s]] to [[1998]]
 
|[[1940s]] to [[1998]]
  +
|Unknown reasons.
  +
|-
  +
|[[Delphini]]
  +
|[[Craig Bowker Junior]]
  +
|[[2020]]
  +
|For interrupting her at the [[Hogwarts Quidditch pitch]].<ref name="CC319">{{CC|B|3|19}}</ref>
  +
|}
  +
  +
===Unsuccessful===
  +
{{Quote|Crabbe wheeled around and screamed, ''AVADA KEDAVRA!'' again. Ron leaped out of sight to avoid the jet of green light.|Vincent Crabbe attempting to murder [[Ronald Weasley|Ron Weasley]]|Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows}}
  +
{| class="wikitable" border="1" width="100%"
  +
|- bgcolor="#cccccc"
  +
! align="center" width="20%" |'''Caster(s)'''
  +
! align="center" width="20%" |'''Victim(s)'''
  +
! align="center" width="20%" |'''Date'''
  +
|-
  +
| rowspan="3" |[[Theophilus Harlow]]<ref name="HL-WM" />
  +
|[[Highwing]]<ref name="HL">{{HL}}</ref>
  +
| rowspan="3" |[[1890]]<ref name="HL-WM" />
  +
|-
  +
|[[Natsai Onai]]<ref name="HL" />
  +
|-
  +
|[[Unidentified 19th-century Hogwarts student]]<ref name="HL" />
  +
|-
  +
| rowspan="2" |[[Victor Rookwood]]<ref name="HL-WM" />
  +
|[[Ranrok]]<ref name="LL">{{HL}} (Lodgok's Loyalty)</ref>
  +
| rowspan="2" |[[1891]]<ref name="HL-WM" />
  +
|-
  +
|[[Unidentified 19th-century Hogwarts student]]<ref name="HL-WM">{{HL}} (Wand Mastery)</ref>
  +
|-
  +
|Unidentified [[Death Eaters|Death Eater]]
  +
|[[Hermione Granger]]<ref name="OOTP35">{{OOTP|B|35}}</ref>
  +
  +
|[[18 June]] [[1996]]
  +
|-
  +
| colspan="1" |[[Tom Riddle|Lord Voldemort]]<ref name="OOTP36" />
  +
| colspan="1" |[[Harry Potter]]<ref name="OOTP36" />
  +
| rowspan="3" |[[27 July]] [[1997]]
  +
|-
  +
| rowspan="2" |[[Death Eaters|Death Eater]]
  +
|[[Rubeus Hagrid]]<ref name="DH4" />
  +
|-
  +
|[[Order of the Phoenix]]
  +
|-
  +
| rowspan="2" |[[Vincent Crabbe]]<ref name="DH31" />
  +
|[[Hermione Granger]]<ref name="DH31">{{DH|B|31}}</ref>
  +
| rowspan="3" |[[2 May]] [[1998]]
  +
|-
  +
|[[Ronald Weasley|Ron Weasley]]<ref name="DH31" />
  +
|-
  +
|[[Bellatrix Lestrange]]<ref name="DH36" />
  +
|[[Ginevra Weasley|Ginny Weasley]]<ref name="DH36" />
  +
|-
  +
|[[Delphini]]<ref name="CC411">{{CC|B|4|11}}</ref>
  +
|[[Albus Potter]]<ref name="CC411" />
  +
|[[31 October]] [[1981]] {{C|time-travelled}}
 
|}
 
|}
   
 
==Etymology==
 
==Etymology==
''Avada Kedavra'' is either based on the Aramaic עַבְדָא כְּדַברָא, ''avda kedavra'', meaning "what was said has been done", or on the Aramaic אַבַדָא כְּדַברָא, ''avada kedavra'', meaning "be destroyed at this word". [[J. K. Rowling]] seemed to support the second theory as the source, during an audience interview at the [[Wikipedia:Edinburgh Book Festival|Edinburgh Book Festival]] on [[15 April]], [[2004]], where she had this to say about the spell's etymology: "Does anyone know where ''avada kedavra'' came from? It is an ancient spell in Aramaic, and it is the original of ''abracadabra'', which means 'let the thing be destroyed.' Originally, it was used to cure illness and the 'thing' was the illness, but I decided to make it the 'thing' as in the person standing in front of me. I take a lot of liberties with things like that. I twist them round and make them mine."<ref>[http://www.jkrowling.com/textonly/en/news_view.cfm?id=80 Edinburgh Book Festival interview]</ref>
+
''Avada Kedavra'' is based on the Aramaic אַבַדָא כְּדַברָא, ''avada kedavra'', meaning "''let the thing be destroyed''". [[J. K. Rowling]] confirmed this during an audience interview at the {{w|Edinburgh Book Festival}} on [[15 April]], [[2004]], where she had this to say about the spell's etymology: "Does anyone know where ''avada kedavra'' came from? It is an ancient spell in Aramaic, and it is the original of ''abracadabra'', which means 'let the thing be destroyed'. Originally, it was used to cure illness and the 'thing' was the illness, but I decided to make it the 'thing' as in the person standing in front of me. I take a lot of liberties with things like that. I twist them round and make them mine."<ref>[http://web.archive.org/web/20110423060258/http://www.jkrowling.com/textonly/en/news_view.cfm?id=80 Edinburgh Book Festival interview]</ref>
This phrase is also the origin of ''[[Wikipedia:Abracadabra|abracadabra]]'', which, like ''[[Wikipedia:Hocus Pocus (magic)|hocus pocus]]'', is used by [[Wikipedia:Magic (illusion)|magicians]] as a [[Wikipedia:Magic word|magic word]] when they perform tricks.<ref>"[http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/abracadabra Abracadabra]" on Wiktionary</ref>
 
   
  +
This phrase is also the origin of ''{{w|abracadabra}}'', which, like ''[[Hocus Pocus]]'', is used by [[magician]]s as a [[Incantation|magic word]] when they perform tricks.<ref>{{wtlink|abracadabra}}</ref>
"Kedavra" also sounds very similar to the English word ''cadaver'', which means "corpse," and derives from the Latin ''cadere'', "to fall."<ref>"[http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?search=cadaver&searchmode=none Cadaver]" on The Online Etymology Dictionary"</ref>
 
  +
  +
"Kedavra" also sounds very similar to the English word ''cadaver'', which means "corpse", and derives from the Latin ''cadere'', "to fall".<ref>"[http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?search=cadaver&searchmode=none Cadaver]" on The Online Etymology Dictionary"</ref>
   
 
==Behind the scenes==
 
==Behind the scenes==
*The biological reasons for the victim's death have never been fully explained. It is possible that the victim's internal organs cease function, or that once the spell hits a person's body, it simply kills every living cell in the victim's body. It could also cause sudden brain death, simply stopping the progress of every electrical synapse in the brain simultaneously by draining all potential energy there. In addition to this, it is possible that it causes a person's soul to "pass on", and leave the body, similar to when the body dies naturally, and the soul passes on into whatever afterlife there may be. In any case, it is something that does not affect the health of the victims, as Muggle autopsy show that there is no change aside from outright death.
+
*The biological reasons for the victim's death have never been fully explained. In any case, it is something that does not affect the health of the victims, as Muggle autopsies show that there is no change aside from outright death. It may simply be that the Curse just causes every organ in the body to instantaneously shut down, causing the death.
  +
*It is likely that if a caster could successfully prove they only cast the Killing Curse under the influence of the [[Imperius Curse]], they would avoid imprisonment in [[Azkaban]].
*In [[Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (video game)|PC version]] of [[Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone]], Quirrell frequently shoots Harry with a green mist-like spell that may be Avada Kedavra though it doesn't kill instantly. Harry deflects the "Avada Kedavra" spells back to Voldemort later with the [[Mirror of Erised]], eventually killing him.
 
  +
*Out of the three Unforgivable Curses, the Killing Curse is the only one that Harry did not use.
[[File:AvadaLEGO.png|thumb]]
 
  +
*While the curse is noted to be unblockable, there are many exceptions listed: the seventh book shows jets of red and green light colliding and shooting off into multi-coloured sparks, much like fireworks, while the films show it being blocked with a [[Shield Charm]].
*In the [[Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (film)|film adaptation]] of ''[[Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets]]'', [[Lucius Malfoy]] says "''Avada''" at [[Harry Potter]] after he unwillingly frees [[Dobby]]. Dobby knocks Lucius backwards with magic to protect Harry, and he does not finish the incantation. The part of the incantation shown, for plot reasons, was not represented in the subtitles. However, on the DVD if the audio is set to Spanish, Lucius says what it sounds like "''Arara''" in a more of a shouting way than hissing. It should be noted that Lucius Malfoy saying "''Avada''" was an ad-lib by his actor Jason Isaacs, as the script did not specify which curse he was supposed to use in the scene, so he used the first curse that came to his mind.{{fact}}
 
  +
*This is the only known spell whose sole and primary application is death. However, it is not the only spell that can prove fatal; [[Fiendfyre]], ''[[Sectumsempra]]'', ''[[Blasting Curse|Confringo]]'', ''[[Severing Charm|Diffindo]]'' or even ''[[Stunning Spell|Stupefy]]'' in exceptional circumstances. [[Antonin Dolohov]] used an [[Antonin Dolohov's curse|unnamed curse]] that could also prove fatal and [[Molly Weasley]] also used an [[Molly Weasley's curse|unnamed curse]] on Bellatrix Lestrange that caused Bellatrix's death; it is unclear whether any of the other attack spells being used by non-Death Eaters during the battle at Hogwarts were intended to kill the target, or simply disable.
*In the [[Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (film)|film adaptation]] of ''[[Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix]]'', [[Bellatrix Lestrange]] is shown using the Killing Curse to murder [[Sirius Black]] in a scene fundamentally different from that of the novel, in which Sirius was pushed through the [[Veil]] by an unidentified curse cast by Bellatrix. The effect of the curse is also not shown to be instantaneous in the film.
 
  +
*The curse's incantation were Voldemort's last words in life in the novels.
*In ''[[Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban]]'', Sirius Black and Remus Lupin intended to kill [[Peter Pettigrew]] for his betrayal of James and Lily Potter. It is unknown how they wanted to do it, possibly by the use of this curse. If it would have been used, Peter would have died the same way as his former friends.
 
*Out of the three, the Killing Curse is the only Unforgivable Curse that Harry did not use.
+
*Worth noticing is the similarity between the hand movements for the Killing Curse and the shape of Harry's scar; both resemble lightning bolts.
  +
*This is the only one of the three Unforgivable Curses without a [[Latin]] incantation.
*After [[Harry Potter]] survived a second killing curse, he described it as having left a bruise that felt like an "iron-clad punch."
 
  +
*During the [[Encounter at the Shrieking Shack]], Sirius Black and Remus Lupin intended to kill [[Peter Pettigrew]] for his betrayal of James and Lily Potter.<ref name="POA18">{{POA|B|18}}</ref> It is unknown how they wanted to do it, but it was possibly by using this curse. If it would have been used, Peter would have died the same way as his former friends.
*In the [[Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (film)|film adaption]] of ''[[Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire]]'' Barty Crouch Jr. uses not [[Alastor Moody's spiders|three spiders]] but one special kind of spider, an [[Wikipedia:Amblypygi|Amblypygi]]
 
  +
*In the films the curse has been seen as a flash, jet, or burst of green or bluish turquoise light.
*In the [[LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1-4|Harry Potter LEGO game]], Frank Bryce is replaced by a [[Little Hangleton milkman|milkman]]. However, his death by this curse cannot be considered canon as no echo of him appeared during the [[Duel in Little Hangleton]].
 
  +
[[File:AvadaLEGO.png|220px|thumb|right|The Killing Curse as seen in {{LEGO|Y1}}]]
*In [[Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2|''Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2'']], Voldemort kills [[Pius Thicknesse]] with the Killing Curse after the latter interrupts the former's thoughts. It is unknown if Pius survived the Battle of Hogwarts in the book, but it is certain that Voldemort did not kill him.
 
  +
*In {{LEGO|Y1}}, Frank Bryce is replaced by a [[Little Hangleton milkman|milkman]]. However, his death by this curse cannot be considered canon as no echo of him appeared during the [[Duel in Little Hangleton]].
*While the curse is noted to be unblockable, in Part 2 of the final film [[Harry Potter|Harry]] is seen blocking it many times from [[Tom Riddle|Voldemort]], [[Ginevra Weasley|Ginny Weasley]] blocking it from [[Bellatrix Lestrange|Bellatrix]] and Bellatrix blocking it from [[Molly Weasley]] four times despite it being unblockable with a Shield Charm. Therefore the films portray it as blockable. Additionally, the seventh book describes a scenario in which jets of red and green light intersect and form multi-coloured sparks, suggesting that there was in fact a method of blocking. It is possible that the fake Moody was referring to specific defences, such as a Shield Charm or protecting one's mind. However, seen as those using it to which it is blocked are not using their own wands. [[Bellatrix Lestrange's first wand|Bellatrix's wand]] was stolen and she had to replace it with [[Bellatrix Lestrange's second wand|a new]], Voldemort threw away [[Tom Riddle's wand|his wand]] to use [[Elder Wand|a wand]] that was not yet in his power. This could be a sign to a weakened Killing Curse and therefore blockable.
 
  +
*In {{DH|GA1}}, [[Cadmus Peverell]] uses the Killing Curse to commit suicide.
*The Killing Curse is not the only spell that can cause death to a living creature. Other spells may cause grievous injury, such as [[Fiendfyre]], [[Sectumsempra]], [[Antonin Dolohov's curse]], the [[Blasting Curse]], or an overuse of the [[Stunning Spell]]. Furthermore, it's likely that many spells can potentially cause death under certain circumstances, such as [[Impediment Jinx|Impedimenta]] off a cliff, [[Diffindo]] across the throat, etc. Using the [[Imperius Curse]] on someone and ordering the person to commit suicide could also kill someone. However, this is the only spell whose sole and primary application is to cause death.
 
  +
*In {{HL}}, despite being an Unforgivable Curse, the [[Unidentified 19th-century Hogwarts student|player's character]] may freely use the Killing Curse on any enemy in combat, including other wizards, with no repercussions.
*In the [[Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 (video game)|video game]] of the [[Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1|first part film adaption]] of ''[[Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows]]'', [[Cadmus Peverell]] uses the Killing Curse to commit suicide.
 
  +
*In {{MA}} the [[Unidentified Muggle-born Hogwarts student|player]] may use this spell in multiplayer duels only, as like all dark arts cards it cannot be used in story missions. This implies that, unlike for other dark spells such as [[Protego Diabolica]] that can be used in story missions, the player character doesn't canonically know the spell. Equally, the spell doesn't instantly kill other players, only summoned creatures.
[[File:Avada_Kedavra.png|thumb|A green spell cast by [[Ron Weasley]] in an attempt to kill [[Nagini]].]]
 
  +
*In ''[[Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2]]'', [[Ron Weasley]] casts a green spell in an attempt to kill Voldemort's snake [[Nagini]] (one of his [[Horcrux]]es). It is unknown if it is Avada Kedavra or not, although it was unsuccessful.
 
  +
===In films===
*In ''[[Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2]]'', the Killing Curse rebounds on Voldemort during his [[duel]] with Harry by the green light of the curse emitting through the crack in the Elder Wand, causing Voldemort's hand to turn black and spread, leading to his death.
 
  +
*In {{COS|FA}}, [[Lucius Malfoy]] says "''Avada-''" at [[Harry Potter]] after he unwillingly frees [[Dobby]]. Dobby blasts Lucius backwards with [[House-elf|magic]] to protect Harry, meaning Lucius does not finish the incantation. The part of the incantation shown was not represented in the subtitles. This line was improvised by [[Jason Isaacs]]. Furthermore in the novel, Lucius simply lunges at Harry physically rather than attempt to curse him.
*In ''[[Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2]]'', the rebounding Killing Curse affects Voldemort by causing him to disintegrate into ashes instead of leaving his physical body dead.
 
  +
*In {{GOF|FA}}, Barty Crouch Jnr (as [[Alastor Moody]]) uses not [[Bartemius Crouch Junior's spiders|three spiders]] but an arachnid of a separate species, an {{w|amblypygi}}.
* The curse's incantation was Voldemort's last words in life in the novel.
 
  +
*In {{OOTP|FA}}, [[Bellatrix Lestrange]] is shown using the Killing Curse to murder [[Sirius Black]] in a scene slightly different from that of the novel, in which Sirius was pushed through the [[Veil]] by an unidentified curse cast by Bellatrix. The effect of the curse is also not shown to be instantaneous in the film. Instead, it hit his arm or shoulder, stinging him and causing him to show signs of weakness as he fell into the Veil.
  +
*In {{DH|F1}}:
  +
**Hedwig is struck with the Killing Curse by a Death Eater while in flight, thus causing her corpse to fall from the sky. In the book, Hedwig is in her cage attached to Hagrid's motorbike when she is killed.
  +
**After being warned by Kingsley's Patronus and the Death Eaters arrive, an unidentified Death Eater appears and immediately attacks an unidentified Auror with what appears to be a Killing Curse, which causes the Auror to be blasted off his feet and into the wedding cake.
  +
**After defeating [[Antonin Dolohov]] in a [[Luchino Caffe|London diner]], Harry, Ron and Hermione briefly consider killing the man before choosing to wipe his memory instead; it's unclear what spell would have been used had they decided to carry through with the idea.
  +
[[File:Nagini DHF2.png|200px|thumb|right|A green spell cast by [[Ronald Weasley|Ron Weasley]] in an attempt to kill [[Nagini]]]]
  +
*In {{DH|F2}}:
  +
**All of Voldemort's victims when he [[massacre at Malfoy Manor|massacred]] them with the Killing Curse were covered in blood, which contradicts this curse's effect of not leaving any physical damage on the bodies.
  +
**Voldemort kills [[Pius Thicknesse]] with the Killing Curse after Pius interrupts Voldemort's thoughts. It is unknown if Pius survived the Battle of Hogwarts in the book, but it is certain that Voldemort did not kill him.<ref name="DHpt2">{{DH|F2}}</ref>
  +
**[[Ronald Weasley|Ron Weasley]] casts a green spell in an attempt to kill Voldemort's snake [[Nagini]] (one of his [[Horcrux]]es). Though if this was indeed the Killing Curse that Ron used against Nagini, she would have been destroyed as Horcruxes can be destroyed by being hit with a Killing Curse. This is proven when Harry surrenders to Voldemort and he is hit with the curse, while Harry was "killed", Voldemort simultaneously destroyed the Horcrux that resided in Harry's body. However, it may be that Ron ''did'' attempt the curse, but simply lacked the power and will to actually make it effective, based on prior observations that the person casting the Unforgivables must really want to achieve their intended purpose. It is also possible that the fragment of Voldemort's soul that was in Harry was only destroyed by the Killing Curse as Harry was an accidental Horcrux, and as such he lacked the additional enchantments that gave the other Horcruxes their invulnerability.
  +
**The Killing Curse rebounds on Voldemort during [[Voldemort's Last Stand|his duel with Harry]] by the green light of the curse emitting through the crack in the Elder Wand, causing Voldemort's hand to turn black and spread through his body, which in turn led to his death.
  +
**The rebounding Killing Curse affects Voldemort by causing him to disintegrate into ashes instead of leaving his physical body dead, although development screencaps for the film indicated he was originally going to leave his body behind like in the book.
  +
*In {{SOD}}, [[Gellert Grindelwald]] fires a green spell<ref name="SOD">{{SOD}}</ref> at [[Credence Barebone]] in [[Bhutan]], that his father and uncle parry with joint uses of golden light, which appears to be the Killing Curse, but neither the film nor screenplay identify the spell used, nor is it cast with an [[incantation]]; however [[Albus Dumbledore]] does later describe Grindelwald's act of firing this spell as him having "sought to kill".<ref name="SODS95">{{SOD|S|95}}</ref> If this is the Killing Curse, this also raises very serious questions of how Albus and Aberforth were able to block the spell, as the Killing Curse is said to a spell that cannot be blocked.<ref name="GOF14" /><ref name="WW-killing-curse">[https://www.wizardingworld.com/fact-file/spells/the-killing-curse The Killing Curse] at {{WW}}</ref>
  +
**Earlier in the film, [[Vinda Rosier]] fires similarly green spells at the [[Unidentified Qilin mother|mother Qilin]], eventually killing her,<ref name="SOD" /> whereas in the screenplay, this attack is merely described as Rosier and [[Carrow (Acolyte)|Carrow]] "firing SPELLS, flaying the mother Qilin's hide".<ref name="SODS9">{{SOD|S|9}}</ref> The Killing Curse does not cause any physical injury to its victims, thus the spells used in the screenplay are definitely not Killing Curses; the screenplay is higher canon in the films, thus even if Rosier's green spells are Killing Curses in the film, this cannot be considered a [[canon]]ical appearance of this curse. Furthermore, the Killing Curse causes instantaneous death, not requiring multiple uses (Rosier uses the green spell more than once to kill the Qilin, and even then, the Qilin was still alive long enough to give birth to a second Qilin).
   
 
==Appearances==
 
==Appearances==
{{Imagecat|Images of Killing Curse}}
+
{{Imagecat|Images of the Killing Curse}}
*''[[Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone]]'' {{1st}} {{Flashback}}
+
*{{PS}} {{1st}} {{Flashback}}
*''[[Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (film)]]'' {{Flashback}}
+
*{{PS|F}} {{Flashback}}
  +
*{{COS|F}} {{C|''Avada'' only}}
*''[[Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (video game)]]'' {{Comment|Possibly}}
 
  +
*{{GOF}} {{1st ID}}
*''[[Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (film)]]'' {{Comment|''Avada'' only}}
 
  +
*{{GOF|F}}
*''[[Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire]]'' {{1st ID}}
 
  +
*{{GOF|G}}
*''[[Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (film)]]''
 
  +
*{{OOTP}}
*''[[Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (video game)]]''
 
  +
*{{OOTP|F}}
*''[[Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix]]''
 
  +
*{{HBP}}
*''[[Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (film)]]''
 
  +
*{{HBP|F}}
*''[[Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince]]''
 
  +
*{{HBP|G}}
*''[[Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (film)]]''
 
  +
*{{DH}}
*''[[Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (video game)]]''
 
  +
*{{DH|F1}}
*''[[Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows]]''
 
  +
*{{DH|G1}}
*''[[Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1]]''
 
  +
*{{DH|F2}}
*''[[Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 (video game)]]''
 
  +
*{{DH|G2}}
*''[[Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2]]''
 
  +
*{{CC}}
*''[[Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (video game)]]''
 
  +
*{{CC|P}}
*''[[The Tales of Beedle the Bard (real)|The Tales of Beedle the Bard]]'' {{Mention}}
 
  +
*{{COG|S}}
*''[[LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1-4]]''
 
  +
*{{COG}}
*''[[LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7]]''
 
  +
*{{SOD|S}} {{Possible}}
*''[[Harry Potter: Spells]]''
 
  +
*{{SOD}} {{Possible}}
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Latest revision as of 11:38, 27 March 2024

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"There was a flash of blinding green light and a rushing sound, as though a vast, invisible something was soaring through the air — instantaneously the spider rolled over onto its back, unmarked, but unmistakably dead."
— Description of the Killing Curse[src]

The Killing Curse (Avada Kedavra) was a tool of the Dark Arts and was one of the three Unforgivable Curses.[1] When cast successfully on a living person or creature, the curse caused instantaneous and painless death, without causing any injury to the body, and without any trace of violence.[1][4][5] The Killing Curse was accompanied by a blinding flash or jet of green light and a distinctive rushing sound when being cast.[1]

The only known counter-spell to this curse was sacrificial protection, which used the power of love.[6] The Killing Curse was a conventionally unblockable curse; therefore shield charms would not be able to defend against it.[1] However, one could dodge the green bolt,[7] block it with a physical barrier[8] by the use of Priori Incantatem,[7][9] or Disapparate if they wanted to quickly get away before the curse hit them. An explosion or fire could result if the spell hit something other than a living target.[8] In addition, phoenixes, being immortal, were able to survive a direct hit from the Killing Curse.[8]

History

Middle Ages

"The Cruciatus, Imperius, and Killing Curses were first classified as Unforgivable in 1717, with the strictest penalties attached to their use."
Dumbledore's notes from The Tales of Beedle the Bard[src]

The Killing Curse was invented during the early Middle Ages.[10]

B4C30M1 Wizengamot trial Pensieve memory

Death Eaters facing the Council of Magical Law for their use of the Unforgivable Curses

After the Wizards' Council was reformed into the Ministry of Magic, tighter restrictions were placed on the use of certain kinds of magic. The Killing Curse was deemed by the Ministry to be Dark Magic and, along with the Cruciatus and Imperius Curses, were declared "Unforgivable" throughout Great Britain in 1717.[10]

The use of any Unforgivable Curse on a human would carry the punishment of a life sentence without parole in Azkaban.[1]

Global wizarding war

The Killing Curse was also used in 1927 by the Magical Congress of the United States of America on magical beasts considered dangerous.[11]

This curse was used during the global wizarding war, both by Aurors and supporters of the Dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald.[12] At one point during the height of the global wizarding war, Auror Cassius Bell used this curse to kill a red-haired young witch in the Lestrange Mausoleum.[12]

First Wizarding War

"How Voldemort had killed Harry's father first. How James Potter had tried to hold him off, while he shouted at his wife to take Harry and run... Voldemort had advanced on Lily Potter, told her to move aside so that he could kill Harry... how she had begged him to kill her instead, refused to stop shielding her son... and so Voldemort had murdered her too, before turning his wand on Harry."
— Harry Potter reflecting on the murder of his parents[src]

During the First Wizarding War, when Barty Crouch Snr was in charge of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, he fought violence with violence, legalising the three Unforgivable Curses for Aurors against the Death Eaters in order to win the war.[13] This was repealed once the war was over, as it was no longer necessary.

Potter family murder

Voldemort murdering Lily Potter before trying to murder infant Harry Potter

One of the most infamous events involving this curse happened on Hallowe'en (31 October) in 1981.[14] Voldemort arrived at the Potter cottage in Godric's Hollow,[15] after being told of its location by Peter Pettigrew, the Secret-Keeper of its Fidelius Charm,[16] and murdered James and Lily Potter while they attempted to protect their infant son Harry.[15] He cast the Killing Curse on Harry as well, but it backfired, therefore destroying Voldemort's body.[17] This event led to Voldemort's first downfall, the end of the First Wizarding War, and Harry's fate being sealed as "The Boy Who Lived".[18][14]

It should be noted that despite the curse being illegal, Aurors were allowed to use deadly force and the Unforgivable Curses against opponents during the First Wizarding War in order to win.[13]

Shortly before their imprisonment in Azkaban for being Death Eaters, Merula Snyde's mother and father taught her the Killing Curse, in order to teach her the necessary self-defence she would need without them around to protect her.[19]

Between the wars

"So that was how his parents had died... exactly like that spider. Had they been unblemished and unmarked too? Had they simply seen the flash of green light and heard the rush of speeding death, before life was wiped from their bodies?"
— Harry Potter contemplating the Killing Curse after witnessing its use on a spider[src]
Frank Bryce murder

Voldemort murdering Frank Bryce with the Killing Curse in 1994

When disguised as Alastor Moody using Polyjuice Potion during the 1994–1995 school year, Bartemius Crouch Junior performed each Unforgivable Curse on a spider in front of his fourth-year Defence Against the Dark Arts class in September 1994. He told his class the penalty for using an Unforgivable Curse on another human being was life imprisonment in Azkaban. The Ministry did not approve of this because "Professor Moody" was showing these curses to those who did not truly need to see it (i.e., a class of 14-15-year-olds), but it did not appear to have been illegal. Harry Potter had always wondered how his parents have died, and witnessing the curse that killed them was very clearly unpleasant.[1]

Lord Voldemort also used the curse in 1994 to murder Frank Bryce, the Muggle caretaker who looked after Riddle House, after secretly eavesdropping on his plan to kill Harry Potter with Pettigrew.[4]

Second Wizarding War

"The Elder Wand slashed through the air and green light erupted through the room; the kneeling goblin rolled over, dead; the watching wizards scattered before him, terrified: Bellatrix and Lucius Malfoy threw others behind them in their race for the door, and again and again his wand fell, and those who were left were slain, all of them, for bringing him this news, for hearing about the golden cup — "
— Voldemort ruthlessly massacring goblins with the Killing Curse[src]

The Killing Curse was known throughout most of the wizarding world to be Voldemort's signature spell. Lord Voldemort was a prolific user of the Killing Curse throughout his life. He used the curse excessively throughout the First and Second Wizarding Wars. He also used the curse outside of warfare, having killed Charity Burbage, an outspoken Muggle supporter, simply to satisfy the pure-blood supremacy of both himself and his supporters.[20] His first known usage of the curse was at age 16, murdering his father, paternal grandfather and paternal grandmother.[5] He used it to murder the famous wandmaker Mykew Gregorovitch[21] and notorious Dark wizard Gellert Grindelwald, while searching abroad for the Elder Wand.[22]

The Killing Curse

Voldemort murdering several goblins and Gringotts employees at Malfoy Manor during the Second Wizarding War

When he learned of Harry Potter's successful Gringotts break-in and retrieval of Hufflepuff's Cup, he murdered several goblins and other Gringotts employees in a fit of rage.[23] Ironically, the Killing Curse, Voldemort's signature spell, was ultimately the very spell that led to his own defeat. On 2 May, during the Battle of Hogwarts, Harry willingly let Voldemort hit him with the Killing Curse, in order to be rid of the piece of Voldemort's soul he harboured at the time.[24] In his final duel against Harry Potter, Voldemort would not realise that the curse would backfire (because the Elder Wand would not kill its true master), thereby finally putting an end to the Dark Lord. Harry thought surviving the Killing Curse for a second time felt like an "iron-clad punch".[25]

When Voldemort took over the Ministry, the three curses were once again legalised; this time every wizard and witch had the right to use them as they pleased. In fact, they were practised in Hogwarts as part of the curriculum of the Dark Arts class under the cruel tutelage of Professor Amycus Carrow, a Death Eater.[26] After Voldemort's final death and the reform of the Ministry under the newly appointed Minister Kingsley Shacklebolt, the three curses were made forbidden once again and their original penalties were restored.

Nature

"The green light filled the cramped hallway, it lit the pram pushed against the wall, it made the banisters glow like lighting rods, and James Potter fell like a marionette whose strings were cut...."
James Potter being murdered by Voldemort with this curse[src]
Godric flash

The famous flash of green light that indicated the curse

The Killing Curse was recognisable by the flash of green light and the rushing noise emitted from the caster's wand. When the curse hit a living, organic target it invariably killed them without causing any injury or pain.[1] The method the curse kills the victim is unknown; however, Lord Voldemort described the curse as having ripped his soul from his body when he was originally struck with it, resulting in his biological death.[17] It was known by most witches and wizards as Voldemort's signature spell.[1]

Snape killing Dumbledore

Snape killing Dumbledore, blasting him off the Astronomy Tower

Also, while most victims would simply drop dead when struck by the curse,[4][15] at other times it may carry a force of impact, such as when Snape's casting was able to blast Dumbledore off the Astronomy Tower ramparts.[27] During the Battle of Hogwarts in the Forbidden Forest, Harry described the impact of the curse as an "iron-clad punch",[25] as stated earlier.

When the curse hit an inanimate target the effect varied: it could produce fires,[8] large greenish explosions,[28] or explosions of such intensity that could blow up an entire cottage.[15] However, certain objects, such as the headless golden wizard statue of the Fountain of Magical Brethren, managed to block the curse without any visible damage to itself.[8] It should be noted that the curse itself did not terminate the animation of (i.e. "kill") the statue, however, as the statue was only animated by magic and so presumably had no real life in it for the curse to take away. However, later in the same duel, the centaur statue, also made of gold, broke into a hundred pieces when hit with the same curse.

It was also possible to intercept the curse with other spells, but this was extremely difficult as it required the energy jets of the two spells to collide.[7] As the energy jets of virtually all spells were very small and fast, this had only ever been recorded as occurring by accident.

Performance

"Avada Kedavra's a curse that needs a powerful bit of magic behind it — you could all get your wands out and point them at me and say the words, and I doubt I'd get so much as a nosebleed."
Bartemius Crouch Junior (disguised as Alastor Moody) on the skill required to cast the curse[src]

The curse required great skill, power, and intent in order to be performed correctly. On 4 September 1994, Bartemius Crouch Junior, disguised as Alastor Moody, claimed that if all of the students before him were to get out their wands and perform it on him at one time, he would likely be completely unaffected as he believed they all lacked the necessary power needed to cast the spell.[1] On 30 June 1997, during the Battle of the Astronomy Tower, Severus Snape also stated that to cast the Unforgivable Curses, one needed both nerve and ability.[29] It was possible to cast the curse nonverbally, as Bellatrix Lestrange killed a fox without an incantation.[30] During his duel with Dumbledore during the Battle of the Department of Mysteries, Voldemort also used this curse several times without an incantation.[8] However, as Vincent Crabbe was capable of casting it (whose magical skills were often lacking),[31] the power and skill needed to perform it may have been somewhat overstated.

The Killing Curse, in addition to requiring the caster to be a very powerful and skilled witch or wizard, also required a genuine willingness and at many times deep desire to commit murder. Bellatrix seemingly implied this was true of the Unforgivables, and it was true of the Cruciatus Curse,[8] but not so much with the Imperius Curse.[32]

Voldemort killing Charity Burbage

Voldemort smiling maliciously while casting the Killing Curse on Charity Burbage without any regret nor remorse

One of the main reasons why Lord Voldemort demonstrated such an affinity for the curse was due to how exceptionally powerful and skilled he was magic-wise, along with his complete and utter lack of remorse or value for the lives of fellow humans. For example, Draco Malfoy, despite possessing many undesirable personality traits, found himself unable to murder Albus Dumbledore because he did not want to actually kill him.[27] Voldemort, on the other hand, had no such restraint and murdered countless people without remorse in his pursuit of power and immortality; in fact, he was fully prepared to murder one-year old Harry Potter upon deducing him to be a potential threat.[14] He was intending to use this most heinous act to create his final Horcrux. He succeeded, during the act, a piece of Voldemort's soul entered Harry. This effectively turned him into a Horcrux.[33] However, it would lead to his downfall and death.[25]

Signs

"A team of doctors had examined the bodies and had concluded that none of the Riddles had been poisoned, stabbed, shot, strangled, suffocated, or (as far as they could tell) harmed at all. In fact (the report continued, in a tone of unmistakable bewilderment), the Riddles all appeared to be in perfect health — apart from the fact that they were all dead."
— The Killing Curse has no psychical signs and leaves no external marks[src]
Lily dead

Lily Potter's corpse showed no outward signs of trauma, as the curse did not cause bodily harm

The Killing Curse was described as a jet or flash of blinding green light that "illuminates every corner of the room"[20] followed by a rushing sound, which caused the victim instant death.[1] Victims of the Killing Curse were identified by the fact that they simply appeared to have dropped dead for no biological reason. Indeed, victims seemed "perfectly healthy" apart from the fact that they were dead.[4]

James Potter's dead body

James Potter's corpse showed no outward signs of trauma either

This lack of visible injuries was one that had confused Muggles throughout the years of its use, requiring many Ministry of Magic officials to modify memories. For example, Muggle authorities were stumped over the death of the Riddles. The only thing about the bodies the doctors noted (determined to find something wrong) was the look of horror on their faces, as though they had been frightened to death.[4] Wizarding authorities, on the other hand, could tell at once the cause of one's death, due to the curse's somewhat unique nature.[5]

Sensation

Presumably, the Killing Curse did not inflict any pain on its target, since it caused instantaneous death.[1] However, Harry Potter, who awoke after a Killing Curse cast by Lord Voldemort hit him, described the sensation as an "iron-clad punch",[25] though this may have been caused by the destruction of the fragment of Voldemort's soul contained within his body.[33] However, when he was initially struck by the curse, it apparently caused him no sensation at all.[24]

When Voldemort was struck by his own rebounding Killing Curse after he attempted to kill Harry the first time, he described the sensation of his soul being ripped from his body as being "pain beyond pain".[17] However, given the uniquely mutilated state of his soul at the time and that his soul had not gone to the afterlife,[33] it seems likely that his reaction was atypical.

Survivability

"Not nice, Not pleasant. And there's no countercurse. There's no blocking it. Only one known person has ever survived it, and he's sitting right in front of me."
— Barty Crouch Jnr (disguised as Alastor Moody) regarding Harry Potter surviving the curse[src]

The Killing Curse could be dodged or physically blocked by an object, such as the statues Dumbledore animated to protect Harry during his duel with Voldemort after the Battle of the Department of Mysteries.[8] The Killing Curse was known to be unblockable, as once it struck the living victim, it almost always resulted in immediate death.[1] There was "no counter-curse",[1] since it was impossible to revive the dead.[9] However there were some exceptions:

Sacrificial protection

Lily protecting Harry from Voldemort

Lily Potter's love for her son protects him from the curse

The most effective method of surviving the Killing Curse was through sacrificial protection; the willing sacrifice of one's life for another, a manifestation of love, which was the most potent defence against the "unblockable" Killing Curse.[17] Love was a powerful and mysterious branch of magic; it gave those who experienced it the ability to do very great things.[6]

Harry Potter was saved by his mother Lily Potter, when she lovingly sacrificed herself for him after she refused to stop shielding him from Lord Voldemort, despite having been given the choice to live.[17] Harry became the only known survivor of the Killing Curse with no ill effects,[1] aside from attaining a lightning-shaped scar on his forehead.[14]

Horcruxes

Seven Horcruxes

Tom Riddle's horcruxes

Another defence employed against the Killing Curse was the creation of at least one Horcrux.[34] The creation of Horcruxes was a preventive measure, created by a wizard long before he faced an actual Killing Curse attack.[34] However, this was less effective than sacrificial protection, since it only allowed a little more than the soul of the target to live on, while the target's physical body still died. If one had Horcruxes, they would not be dead, but they would barely be alive and would be reduced, as Voldemort was when the Killing Curse backfired with his attempt to murder Harry in 1981, to living as a mutilated spirit.[17]

Some of the methods Voldemort used, or planned to use, to survive in this state included living off another,[35] drinking unicorn blood,[35] using the Philosopher's Stone (reduced to a wraith-like state and the stone destroyed soon after before he could),[35] and creating a rudimentary body using unicorn blood and Nagini's venom.[17]

Voldemort's Horcruxes tethered his soul to the world. The Curse drove his mangled soul from his body, leaving him to roam only as a shadowy spirit, unable to move on to the afterlife but is a less-than-alive life form. If possible, one can make a Regeneration potion to return to human form, but it required the bone of the father, the flesh of the servant, and the blood of an enemy.[36] Because Voldemort required a servant to perform the rites of his rebirth, he was forced to spend thirteen years in hiding as he had no one who would come to his aid for such time.[17]

Upon the destruction of all his Horcruxes, Voldemort had no more defences against death, and was finally killed by his own deflected Killing Curse.[25]

Curse interception

"Harry responded with further Stunning Spells: Red and green collided in midair in a shower of multicoloured sparks..."
— Harry Potter's Stunners blocking the Killing Curse[src]
Priori Incantatem Pottermore

Priori Incantatem occurring between Lord Voldemort and Harry Potter

The Priori Incantatem effect was when two wands that shared the same cores were put into battleagainst each other. One wand would then force the other wand to repeat its previously-cast spells. Because of this, a Killing Curse could be blocked if a wand that shared the killer's wand's core fired a spell at it: both spells would connect and thus the wizard had been spared by the Killing Curse.[9]

Priori Incantatem occurred in the duel between Harry Potter and Voldemort in the graveyard during Harry's fourth year.[9] Voldemort cast the Killing Curse and Harry cast the Disarming Charm, and because their wands had twin cores, Priori Incantatem occurred; Harry was not killed and was able to hold Voldemort off to give him time to escape.[7][9]

Phoenixes were semi-protected from the Killing Curse, due to them being immortal. In 1996, Fawkes swallowed one intended for Albus Dumbledore, causing him to burst into flame and die instantly. However, he then was reborn from his ashes.[8]

The spell could be directly countered using a Stunning Spell, in which case red and green jets of light would meet and create multi-coloured sparks. Since neither spell was able to reach its intended target, neither would have any effect, as the jets of light basically exploded on each other. However, this was particularly tricky, as it required both jets of light to collide with one another.[37] It is unknown whether this was limited to the Stunning Spell or if it was possible to reflect the Curse with other spells, although during Harry and Voldemort's final duel a similar thing happened when Harry's Disarming Charm collided with Voldemort's Killing Curse, although the Elder Wand's allegiance to Harry had to be taken into consideration in this particular situation.[25]

If another target was placed between the caster and the targeted individual, then the new target would take the hit of the Killing Curse, which could simply result in an object being destroyed or damaged in an explosion of flames.[8] One could also avoid the effects simply by dodging or if the caster had poor aim,[31] as with many similar offensive curses, the spell had to be directly targeted at the intended victim.

Should the caster have used the Elder Wand—or actually any wand—without winning its allegiance, to cast the Killing Curse onto its true master, the wand would refuse to kill its master and therefore the curse would backfire onto the caster, thus killing them instead, as when Voldemort's Killing Curse rebounded on him during his final duel with Harry Potter.[25]

Known uses

"He saw the mouth move and a flash of green light, and everything was gone."
— Harry Potter being hit with the curse[src]

Successful

Caster(s) Victim(s) Date Note
San Bakar Isidora Morganach 15th century To stop her from weaponising ancient magic and using it on the students.[38]
Isidora Morganach's death (Avada Kedavra) HL
Victor Rookwood Victor Rookwood (backfired) 1891 Cast the Killing Curse on a Hogwarts student during an ambush. It rebounded on him, causing his death.[39]
Victor Rookwood boss battle HL
Sebastian Sallow Solomon Sallow For destroying the relic that could have potentially saved his sister and his personal hatred of him.[40]
Solomon Death
Gellert Grindelwald's acolytes Non-Magique mother September 1927 Used it on Gellert Grindelwald's orders to take over a Parisian house that was owned by a family of Non-Magiques by killing them all with the curse and use it as a temporary headquarters.[12]
Parisian Takeover
Non-Magique father
Carrow Non-Magique toddler
Gunnar Grimmson Irma Dugard Used it on Gellert Grindelwald's orders to keep Credence Barebone's identity as a secret.[12]
Grimmson kills Irma
Cassius Bell Red-haired young witch Used it in self-defence during Gellert Grindelwald's Paris rally in the Lestrange Mausoleum, when she attacked him.[12]
Auror kills Red Head Witch
Lord Voldemort Tom Riddle Snr Summer 1943 For abandoning him and his mother Merope and for being a Muggle.[5]
Thomas Riddle For being Muggles.[5]
Mary Riddle
James Potter 31 October 1981 For trying to stop him from killing Lily and Harry Potter.[15]
Lily Potter For refusing to stop shielding him from killing Harry Potter, despite Voldemort giving her the choice to live.[15]
Harry Potter (survived both) For being his enemy.[24]
Harry's sacrifice
31 October 1981; 2 May 1998
Bertha Jorkins Summer 1994 For being useless after he broke the Memory Charm on her.[4]
Frank Bryce August 1994 For overhearing his plan to kill Harry Potter and for being a Muggle.[4]
Fawkes (survived) 18 June 1996 Used it to kill Dumbledore, but Fawkes took the curse on himself and burst into flames. As a phoenix, Fawkes resurrected minutes later.[8]
Charity Burbage July 1997 Used it for supporting Muggle rights and being the Muggle Studies teacher.[20]
Voldemort kills Burbage
Alastor Moody 27 July 1997 Used it for being the Order of the Phoenix leader after Albus Dumbledore's death and trying to transport Harry Potter to safety.[41]
Unnamed German speaking Muggle family (a woman and two children) 1 September 1997 For not knowing where Gregorovitch was hiding.[21]
Mykew Gregorovitch 2 September 1997 For not being clear on who the thief was that stole the Elder Wand.[42]
Voldemort killing Gregorovitch
Gellert Grindelwald March 1998 For hiding the Elder Wand's location.[22]
Voldemort and Grindelwald
Unnamed goblin 1 May 1998 Used it in a fit of rage after hearing about Helga Hufflepuff's Cup robbery.[23]
Griphook
Death Eaters
Gringotts guards
Goblins
Unnamed Death Eater 2 May 1998 Battle of Hogwarts
Lord Voldemort (backfired) 31 October 1981 (survived)
2 May 1998
Patricia Rakepick Rowan Khanna 1990 Aimed the curse at Ben Copper, but Rowan jumped in the way, sacrificing their life in the process.[43]
Rowan Death
Bartemius Crouch Junior (disguised as Alastor Moody) Spider 4 September 1994 Used it to teach fourth-year Gryffindor students in Defence Against the Dark Arts.[1]
Barty Crouch Junior kills spider
Peter Pettigrew Cedric Diggory 24 June 1995 Used it on Lord Voldemort's orders to murder Cedric.[36]
Cedric's Death
Bellatrix Lestrange Fox near Spinner's End July 1996 Meant for a possible spy or Auror.[30]
Thorfinn Rowle Gibbon 30 June 1997 Used it to kill Remus Lupin, but he missed and killed his comrade instead.[44]
Severus Snape[27] Albus Dumbledore[27] Planned ahead of time by a slowly dying Dumbledore in order to fool Voldemort.[45]
Death Eater Hedwig 27 July 1997 Meant for Harry Potter, but missed and hit Hedwig instead.[37]
Death Eater kills Hedwig
Numerous Victims of the:
global wizarding war,
First Wizarding War, and
Second Wizarding War
1940s to 1998 Unknown reasons.
Delphini Craig Bowker Junior 2020 For interrupting her at the Hogwarts Quidditch pitch.[46]

Unsuccessful

"Crabbe wheeled around and screamed, AVADA KEDAVRA! again. Ron leaped out of sight to avoid the jet of green light."
— Vincent Crabbe attempting to murder Ron Weasley[src]
Caster(s) Victim(s) Date
Theophilus Harlow[39] Highwing[47] 1890[39]
Natsai Onai[47]
Unidentified 19th-century Hogwarts student[47]
Victor Rookwood[39] Ranrok[48] 1891[39]
Unidentified 19th-century Hogwarts student[39]
Unidentified Death Eater Hermione Granger[49] 18 June 1996
Lord Voldemort[8] Harry Potter[8] 27 July 1997
Death Eater Rubeus Hagrid[37]
Order of the Phoenix
Vincent Crabbe[31] Hermione Granger[31] 2 May 1998
Ron Weasley[31]
Bellatrix Lestrange[25] Ginny Weasley[25]
Delphini[50] Albus Potter[50] 31 October 1981 (time-travelled)

Etymology

Avada Kedavra is based on the Aramaic אַבַדָא כְּדַברָא, avada kedavra, meaning "let the thing be destroyed". J. K. Rowling confirmed this during an audience interview at the Edinburgh Book Festival on 15 April, 2004, where she had this to say about the spell's etymology: "Does anyone know where avada kedavra came from? It is an ancient spell in Aramaic, and it is the original of abracadabra, which means 'let the thing be destroyed'. Originally, it was used to cure illness and the 'thing' was the illness, but I decided to make it the 'thing' as in the person standing in front of me. I take a lot of liberties with things like that. I twist them round and make them mine."[51]

This phrase is also the origin of abracadabra, which, like Hocus Pocus, is used by magicians as a magic word when they perform tricks.[52]

"Kedavra" also sounds very similar to the English word cadaver, which means "corpse", and derives from the Latin cadere, "to fall".[53]

Behind the scenes

  • The biological reasons for the victim's death have never been fully explained. In any case, it is something that does not affect the health of the victims, as Muggle autopsies show that there is no change aside from outright death. It may simply be that the Curse just causes every organ in the body to instantaneously shut down, causing the death.
  • It is likely that if a caster could successfully prove they only cast the Killing Curse under the influence of the Imperius Curse, they would avoid imprisonment in Azkaban.
  • Out of the three Unforgivable Curses, the Killing Curse is the only one that Harry did not use.
  • While the curse is noted to be unblockable, there are many exceptions listed: the seventh book shows jets of red and green light colliding and shooting off into multi-coloured sparks, much like fireworks, while the films show it being blocked with a Shield Charm.
  • This is the only known spell whose sole and primary application is death. However, it is not the only spell that can prove fatal; Fiendfyre, Sectumsempra, Confringo, Diffindo or even Stupefy in exceptional circumstances. Antonin Dolohov used an unnamed curse that could also prove fatal and Molly Weasley also used an unnamed curse on Bellatrix Lestrange that caused Bellatrix's death; it is unclear whether any of the other attack spells being used by non-Death Eaters during the battle at Hogwarts were intended to kill the target, or simply disable.
  • The curse's incantation were Voldemort's last words in life in the novels.
  • Worth noticing is the similarity between the hand movements for the Killing Curse and the shape of Harry's scar; both resemble lightning bolts.
  • This is the only one of the three Unforgivable Curses without a Latin incantation.
  • During the Encounter at the Shrieking Shack, Sirius Black and Remus Lupin intended to kill Peter Pettigrew for his betrayal of James and Lily Potter.[54] It is unknown how they wanted to do it, but it was possibly by using this curse. If it would have been used, Peter would have died the same way as his former friends.
  • In the films the curse has been seen as a flash, jet, or burst of green or bluish turquoise light.
AvadaLEGO

The Killing Curse as seen in LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1-4

In films

  • In the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Lucius Malfoy says "Avada-" at Harry Potter after he unwillingly frees Dobby. Dobby blasts Lucius backwards with magic to protect Harry, meaning Lucius does not finish the incantation. The part of the incantation shown was not represented in the subtitles. This line was improvised by Jason Isaacs. Furthermore in the novel, Lucius simply lunges at Harry physically rather than attempt to curse him.
  • In the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Barty Crouch Jnr (as Alastor Moody) uses not three spiders but an arachnid of a separate species, an amblypygi.
  • In the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Bellatrix Lestrange is shown using the Killing Curse to murder Sirius Black in a scene slightly different from that of the novel, in which Sirius was pushed through the Veil by an unidentified curse cast by Bellatrix. The effect of the curse is also not shown to be instantaneous in the film. Instead, it hit his arm or shoulder, stinging him and causing him to show signs of weakness as he fell into the Veil.
  • In Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1:
    • Hedwig is struck with the Killing Curse by a Death Eater while in flight, thus causing her corpse to fall from the sky. In the book, Hedwig is in her cage attached to Hagrid's motorbike when she is killed.
    • After being warned by Kingsley's Patronus and the Death Eaters arrive, an unidentified Death Eater appears and immediately attacks an unidentified Auror with what appears to be a Killing Curse, which causes the Auror to be blasted off his feet and into the wedding cake.
    • After defeating Antonin Dolohov in a London diner, Harry, Ron and Hermione briefly consider killing the man before choosing to wipe his memory instead; it's unclear what spell would have been used had they decided to carry through with the idea.
Nagini DHF2

A green spell cast by Ron Weasley in an attempt to kill Nagini

  • In Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2:
    • All of Voldemort's victims when he massacred them with the Killing Curse were covered in blood, which contradicts this curse's effect of not leaving any physical damage on the bodies.
    • Voldemort kills Pius Thicknesse with the Killing Curse after Pius interrupts Voldemort's thoughts. It is unknown if Pius survived the Battle of Hogwarts in the book, but it is certain that Voldemort did not kill him.[55]
    • Ron Weasley casts a green spell in an attempt to kill Voldemort's snake Nagini (one of his Horcruxes). Though if this was indeed the Killing Curse that Ron used against Nagini, she would have been destroyed as Horcruxes can be destroyed by being hit with a Killing Curse. This is proven when Harry surrenders to Voldemort and he is hit with the curse, while Harry was "killed", Voldemort simultaneously destroyed the Horcrux that resided in Harry's body. However, it may be that Ron did attempt the curse, but simply lacked the power and will to actually make it effective, based on prior observations that the person casting the Unforgivables must really want to achieve their intended purpose. It is also possible that the fragment of Voldemort's soul that was in Harry was only destroyed by the Killing Curse as Harry was an accidental Horcrux, and as such he lacked the additional enchantments that gave the other Horcruxes their invulnerability.
    • The Killing Curse rebounds on Voldemort during his duel with Harry by the green light of the curse emitting through the crack in the Elder Wand, causing Voldemort's hand to turn black and spread through his body, which in turn led to his death.
    • The rebounding Killing Curse affects Voldemort by causing him to disintegrate into ashes instead of leaving his physical body dead, although development screencaps for the film indicated he was originally going to leave his body behind like in the book.
  • In Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore, Gellert Grindelwald fires a green spell[56] at Credence Barebone in Bhutan, that his father and uncle parry with joint uses of golden light, which appears to be the Killing Curse, but neither the film nor screenplay identify the spell used, nor is it cast with an incantation; however Albus Dumbledore does later describe Grindelwald's act of firing this spell as him having "sought to kill".[57] If this is the Killing Curse, this also raises very serious questions of how Albus and Aberforth were able to block the spell, as the Killing Curse is said to a spell that cannot be blocked.[1][58]
    • Earlier in the film, Vinda Rosier fires similarly green spells at the mother Qilin, eventually killing her,[56] whereas in the screenplay, this attack is merely described as Rosier and Carrow "firing SPELLS, flaying the mother Qilin's hide".[59] The Killing Curse does not cause any physical injury to its victims, thus the spells used in the screenplay are definitely not Killing Curses; the screenplay is higher canon in the films, thus even if Rosier's green spells are Killing Curses in the film, this cannot be considered a canonical appearance of this curse. Furthermore, the Killing Curse causes instantaneous death, not requiring multiple uses (Rosier uses the green spell more than once to kill the Qilin, and even then, the Qilin was still alive long enough to give birth to a second Qilin).

Appearances

Wiki
The Harry Potter Wiki has 136 images related to Killing Curse.

Notes and references

  1. 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 1.16 1.17 1.18 1.19 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Chapter 14 (The Unforgivable Curses)
  2. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (film) - Chapter 1 (The Riddle House)
  3. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (film) - Chapter 7 (The Unforgivable Curses)
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Chapter 1 (The Riddle House)
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Chapter 17 (A Sluggish Memory)
  6. 6.0 6.1 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Chapter 37 (The Lost Prophecy)
  7. 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Chapter 34 (Priori Incantatem)
  8. 8.00 8.01 8.02 8.03 8.04 8.05 8.06 8.07 8.08 8.09 8.10 8.11 8.12 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Chapter 36 (The Only One He Ever Feared)
  9. 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Chapter 36 (The Parting of the Ways)
  10. 10.0 10.1 The Tales of Beedle the Bard, "Babbitty Rabbitty and Her Cackling Stump"
  11. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (2017 edition)
  12. 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 12.4 Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald - The Original Screenplay
  13. 13.0 13.1 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Chapter 27 (Padfoot Returns)
  14. 14.0 14.1 14.2 14.3 Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, Chapter 4 (The Keeper of the Keys)
  15. 15.0 15.1 15.2 15.3 15.4 15.5 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Chapter 17 (Bathilda's Secret)
  16. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Chapter 19 (The Servant of Lord Voldemort)
  17. 17.0 17.1 17.2 17.3 17.4 17.5 17.6 17.7 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Chapter 33 (The Death Eaters)
  18. Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, Chapter 1 (The Boy Who Lived)
  19. Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery, Year 5, Chapter 28 (About Merula)
  20. 20.0 20.1 20.2 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Chapter 1 (The Dark Lord Ascending)
  21. 21.0 21.1 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Chapter 12 (Magic is Might)
  22. 22.0 22.1 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Chapter 23 (Malfoy Manor)
  23. 23.0 23.1 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Chapter 27 (The Final Hiding Place)
  24. 24.0 24.1 24.2 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Chapter 34 (The Forest Again)
  25. 25.0 25.1 25.2 25.3 25.4 25.5 25.6 25.7 25.8 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Chapter 36 (The Flaw in the Plan)
  26. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Chapter 29 (The Lost Diadem)
  27. 27.0 27.1 27.2 27.3 Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Chapter 27 (The Lightning-Struck Tower)
  28. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (film) - Chapter 28 (Voldemort)
  29. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Chapter 28 (Flight of the Prince)
  30. 30.0 30.1 Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Chapter 2 (Spinner's End)
  31. 31.0 31.1 31.2 31.3 31.4 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Chapter 31 (The Battle of Hogwarts)
  32. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Chapter 26 (Gringotts)
  33. 33.0 33.1 33.2 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Chapter 35 (King's Cross)
  34. 34.0 34.1 Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Chapter 23 (Horcruxes)
  35. 35.0 35.1 35.2 Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, Chapter 17 (The Man with Two Faces)
  36. 36.0 36.1 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Chapter 32 (Flesh, Blood and Bone)
  37. 37.0 37.1 37.2 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Chapter 4 (The Seven Potters)
  38. Hogwarts Legacy - (San Bakar's Trial)
  39. 39.0 39.1 39.2 39.3 39.4 39.5 Hogwarts Legacy (Wand Mastery)
  40. Hogwarts Legacy (In the Shadow of the Relic)
  41. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Chapter 5 (Fallen Warrior)
  42. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Chapter 14 (The Thief)
  43. Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery, Year 6, Chapter 18 (Into the Forest)
  44. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Chapter 29 (The Phoenix Lament)
  45. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Chapter 33 (The Prince's Tale)
  46. Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, Act Three, Scene Nineteen
  47. 47.0 47.1 47.2 Hogwarts Legacy
  48. Hogwarts Legacy (Lodgok's Loyalty)
  49. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Chapter 35 (Beyond the Veil)
  50. 50.0 50.1 Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, Act Four, Scene Eleven
  51. Edinburgh Book Festival interview
  52. Wiktionary favicon abracadabra on Wiktionary
  53. "Cadaver" on The Online Etymology Dictionary"
  54. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Chapter 18 (Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs)
  55. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
  56. 56.0 56.1 Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore
  57. Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore - The Complete Screenplay, Scene 95
  58. The Killing Curse at Wizarding World
  59. Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore - The Complete Screenplay, Scene 9
Defence Against the Dark Arts (D.A.D.A.)
Subjectsdada
D.A.D.A. at Hogwarts
Classroom 3C · Classroom 3C backrooms · Temporary Classroom · Hogwarts Turris Magnus · Teacher's Office · Storeroom · Staircase · Storage room · Lesson Cup · Race Cup · Duelling Club · Dumbledore's Army
Professors
Isidora Morganach · Dinah Hecat · Arsenius Jigger · Albus Dumbledore · Galatea Merrythought · 1984–1985 professor · 1985–1986 professor · 1986–1987 professor · 1987–1988 professor · Patricia Rakepick · 1989–1990 professor · First 1990–1991 professor · Olivia Green · Quirinus Quirrell · Gilderoy Lockhart · Remus Lupin · Bartemius Crouch Junior (as Alastor Moody) · Dolores Umbridge · Severus Snape · Amycus Carrow (as Dark Arts teacher) · Unidentified professor · Brindlemore
Textbooks
The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection · Advanced Defence Against the Dark Arts · Break with a Banshee · Gadding with Ghouls · Holidays with Hags · Travels with Trolls · Voyages with Vampires · Wanderings with Werewolves · Year with the Yeti · The Essential Defence Against the Dark Arts · Defensive Magical Theory · Dark Arts Defence – Basics for Beginners · Confronting the Faceless · Defence Against the Dark Arts
Spells studied at Hogwarts under D.A.D.A.
Aqua Eructo · Boggart-Banishing Spell (Riddikulus) · Bombarda Maxima · Cave inimicum · Concealment Charms · Counter-curses · Counter-jinxes · Cruciatus Curse (Crucio) · Curse of the Bogies (Mucus ad Nauseam) · Cursed barrier spell · Densaugeo · Deprimo Spell (Deprimo) · Disarming Charm (Expelliarmus) · Ear-Shrivelling Curse · Everte Statum · Freezing Spell (Glacius) · Full Body-Bind Curse (Petrificus Totalus) · Fumos Duo · Green Sparks · Hex-Breaker· Hex-deflection · Hex Zapper · Homorphus Charm · Human-presence-revealing Spell (Homenum Revelio) · Impediment Jinx (Impedimenta) · Imperius Curse (Imperio) · Imperturbable Charm · Killing Curse (Avada Kedavra) · Knockback Jinx (Flipendo) · Lacarnum Inflamari · Langlock · Levitation Spell (Levioso) · Limbo Mist anticharm · Nonverbal spells · Patronus Charm (Expecto Patronum) · Pimple Jinx (Furnunculus) · Protective enchantments · Red Sparks (Vermillious) · Reductor Curse (Reducto) · Salvio hexia · Sea Urchin Jinx · Seize and pull charm (Carpe Retractum) · Shield Charm (Protego) · Smokescreen Spell (Fumos) · Snake-Vanishing Spell (Vipera Evanesca) · Softening Charm (Spongify) · Stretching Jinx · Tickling Charm (Rictusempra) · Tongue-Tying Curse (Mimblewimble) · Trip Jinx · Twitchy-Ears Hex · Verdimillious Charm (Verdimillious) · Verdimillious Duo Spell (Verdimillious) · Verdimillious Tria · Vermillious Duo · Vermillious Tria · Wand-Lighting Charm (Lumos)
Creatures studied at Hogwarts under D.A.D.A.
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