Rabastan Lestrange

Rabastan Lestrange
Biographical information
Born	Before 1964
Blood status	Pure-blood
Title(s)	Death Eater
Physical information
Species	Human
Gender	Male
Family information
Family members	Radolphus Lestrange (ancestor) F. Lestrange (ancestor) R. Lestrange (ancestor) Lestrange Sr. (possible father) Rodolphus Lestrange (brother) Bellatrix Lestrange (sister-in-law) †
Affiliation
House	Slytherin (possibly)
Loyalty	Death Eaters

"The Dark Lord will rise again, Crouch! Throw us into Azkaban; we will wait! He will rise again and will come for us, he will reward us beyond any of his other supporters! We alone were faithful! We alone tried to find him!"

— Bellatrix Lestrange declaring the loyality of her, Rodolphus and her brother-in-law Rabastan to the Dark Lord

Rabastan Lestrange was a pure-blood wizard, brother of Rodolphus, brother-in-law of Bellatrix, possibly son of Lestrange and likely a Slytherin at Hogwarts.

He was a Death Eater who fought in the First Wizarding War. The Lestranges were among Lord Voldemort's most loyal and trusted servants, the only ones who searched for him after his first downfall. After Voldemort's first downfall, Rabastan, Rodolphus, his wife Bellatrix and Barty Crouch Jr. participated in the torture and permanent incapacitation of Alice and Frank Longbottom and was sentenced to life imprisonment in Azkaban. Rabastan later escaped with a group of Death Eaters and fought in several battles of the Second Wizarding War, including the Battle of the Department of Mysteries, and possibly the Battle of Hogwarts.

After Lord Voldemort's final defeat, Rabastan was presumably killed or imprisoned in Azkaban once more.

Biography

Early life

Rabastan possibly attended Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and was sorted into Slytherin house, like his brother Rodolphus. It is possible that he didn't attend Hogwarts at the same time as Rodolphus, as he was not mentioned among a small group of Slytherins and future Death Eaters, as Rodolphus and Bellatrix were.

First Wizarding War

Rabastan is tried before the Council of Magical Law, along with his brother, his sister-in-law, and Barty Crouch Jr.

Rabastan served as one of Lord Voldemort's Death Eaters during the First Wizarding War. He, along with Rodolphus and Bellatrix, were among Voldemort's most loyal servants.

Soon after the conflict ended in late 1981, Rabastan was put on trial with his brother Rodolphus, sister-in-law Bellatrix, and Barty Crouch Jr. for being a Death Eater and for participating in the torture of Alice and Frank Longbottom. They were all sentenced to life imprisonment in Azkaban.

Second Wizarding War

Rabastan escaped Azkaban in 1996, along with his brother, sister-in-law and several other Death Eaters with the Dementors' defection to Voldemort.

Battle of the Department of Mysteries

"We'll split into pairs and search, and don't forget, be gentle with Potter until we've got the prophecy, you can kill the others if necessary..."

— Lucius Malfoy gives orders to the group of Death Eaters

He later participated in the Battle of the Department of Mysteries. He went with fellow Death Eater Crabbe Sr. to try and find Harry, Hermione, and Neville. Crabbe was incapacitated by Harry and Rabastan attempted to kill Hermione when Harry stopped him by tripping him. Neville then disarmed him with a Disarming Charm and when Rabastan reclaimed his wand he was Stunned by Hermione. His head fell in a bell jar filled with some sort of time wind that transformed his head back into a baby's, continually aging and de-aging. He was presumably returned to Azkaban afterwards, though he was at large once again by late 1997 after another Azkaban break-out.

Presumably, Rabastan participated in other battles in the Second Wizarding War, including the Battle of Hogwarts.

Post-War

It is unknown what happened to Rabastan after Voldemort's death. He was either killed or imprisoned again in Azkaban.

Physical appearance

Rabastan is described as a quite thin man. It is unknown if Azkaban took a toll on his appearance.

Personality and traits

Rabastan was a very loyal Death Eater, willing to use the Dark Arts to commit atrocities for the sake of his master. He was not as brave or as calm as his brother as he is described as "nervous-looking" during his trial in 1981 with his eyes "darting around the crowd".

Magical abilities and skills

• Dark Arts: Rabastan could cast the Cruciatus Curse (which takes ability and a powerful bit of magic to perform) to a devastating effect on Frank and Alice Longbottom.
• Martial magic: Rabastan participated in the Battle of the Department of Mysteries. He likely participated in the Battle of the Seven Potters and helped his brother duel Nymphadora Tonks. If Rabastan fought in the Battle of Hogwarts he most likely fled when the reinforcements arrived or was overwhelmed by them.

Etymology

• The name Rabastan may be a play on Rastaban, the traditional name of one of the stars of the constellation Draco. It is derived from an Arabic phrase "Rās al-Thu`bān (رأس الثعبان)" meaning "head of the serpent"; the snake is a symbol strongly connected with Lord Voldemort and Slytherin. The star is also known as Alwaid, meaning "who is to be destroyed" in Arabic.

Behind the scenes

• During the Battle of the Department of Mysteries, Rabastan was paired with fellow Death Eater Crabbe during the pursuit of the Dumbledore's Army members. He and Crabbe pursued Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, and Neville Longbottom into the Time Chamber. It is unknown whether Rabastan was the Death Eater whom Harry stunned, or the one whom Hermione knocked into a bell jar, causing the head to continuously age and de-age. It is likely to be the former, as Rabastan is said to be thin while the baby-headed Death Eater's arms are said to be thick, and Rabastan likely would have been recognised and referred to by name in the book (as Dolohov was) if it was he who took his mask off.
• It is possible that he or Rodolphus is the unidentified bearded Death Eater holding Ron hostage in the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (portrayed by Richard Trinder). If this proved, Richard's role in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 might also be Rodolphus or Rabastan.

Appearances

• Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (First appearance) (Appears in flashback(s))
• Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (First identified as Rabastan Lestrange)
• Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (film) (Masked) (Possible appearance)
• Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (video game) (Masked)
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (Possible appearance)
• Pottermore (Appears in flashback(s))