Voldemort's Last Stand

Voldemort's Last Stand
Part of the Battle of Hogwarts
Date	2 May 1998
Location	Great Hall, Hogwarts Castle, Highlands, Scotland, Great Britain
Cause	Voldemort attacks Hogwarts in order to capture and kill Harry Potter
Result	Harry Potter defeats Lord Voldemort for the final time End of the Second Wizarding War
Commanders
Harry Potter
Lord Voldemort †
Casualties
Lord Voldemort

Harry Potter: "I know things you don't know, Tom Riddle. I know lots of important things that you don't. Want to hear some, before you make another big mistake?"

Lord Voldemort: "Is it love again? Dumbledore's favourite solution, love, which he claimed conquered death …? So what will stop you dying now when I strike?… If it is not love that will save you this time, you must believe that you have magic that I do not, or else a weapon more powerful than mine?"

Harry Potter: "I believe both."

— Harry and Lord Voldemort face off in the Great Hall

Voldemort's Last Stand, also known as Voldemort's End, was the conflict that marked the end of the Battle of Hogwarts and by extension the Second Wizarding War. It took place at dawn on 2 May 1998 in the Great Hall of Hogwarts Castle.

Lord Voldemort, the last of his Horcruxes destroyed and mortal once again, was confronted by Harry Potter as the second part of the Battle of Hogwarts progressed. The pair of them faced off in this climactic conflict in front of all the surviving fighters gathered in the Hall and, after a brief duel, Voldemort was killed once and for all.

History

Harry's sacrifice

"Finally, the truth. Lying with his face pressed into the dusty carpet of the office where he had once thought he was learning the secrets of victory, Harry understood at last that he was not supposed to survive. His job was to walk calmly into Death's welcoming arms."

— Harry coming to the realisation that he must die

In the middle of the battle, after Harry witnessed the death of Severus Snape in the Shrieking Shack, he took a flask of Snape's memories to Albus Dumbledore's Pensieve and viewed them. After seeing memories covering years of the professor's life, Harry realised that Snape was a loyal member of the Order of the Phoenix, and he himself was a Horcrux. He realised that the best solution and ending to the battle was for him to die.

Harry Potter sacrifices himself at the hands of Lord Voldemort

He ventured out to the Forbidden Forest alone, knowing that saying goodbye to Ron and Hermione would be far too painful. As he was passing the dementors, he opened the Golden Snitch left to him to reveal the Resurrection Stone. Using the stone, he summoned the spirits of his parents, Sirius Black, and Remus Lupin. They gave him strength as he went to his death. In the remains of the Forbidden Forest Acromantula colony, he found Lord Voldemort and allowed himself to be hit with the Killing Curse, destroying the Horcrux that was Harry.

The battle

"You see? Harry Potter is dead! Do you understand now, deluded ones? He was nothing, ever, but a boy who relied on others to sacrifice themselves for him!"

— Lord Voldemort addresses the defenders of Hogwarts

Voldemort gloating over Harry's "death", Neville slays Nagini, and the second half of the battle breaks out

After the hour-long armistice during the Battle of Hogwarts, Lord Voldemort and his Death Eaters took Harry Potter's believed "dead body" to the Castle to announce their victory. However, the arrival of the Hogwarts centaur herd, Grawp and the families and friends of the Hogwarts students that had stayed to fight as well as the shopkeepers and homeowners of Hogsmeade made the battle restart as the fighters ran into the Entrance Hall to avoid Grawp, who had started fighting with Voldemort's giants.

Neville Longbottom beheaded Nagini, Voldemort's last Horcrux with Godric Gryffindor's Sword, thus rendering him mortal once again. Harry Potter discreetly took his Invisibility Cloak and joined the fight, that was moving to the Great Hall through the Entrance Hall, while concealed.

Fighting ensues in the Great Hall

The Great Hall became crowded with fighters. Lord Voldemort stood in the centre of the battle, striking all within reach. At this point, most of the Death Eaters were defeated: Yaxley was brought to the floor by George Weasley and Lee Jordan; Antonin Dolohov fell with a scream at Filius Flitwick's hands; Walden Macnair was thrown across the room by Rubeus Hagrid; Fenrir Greyback was defeated by Ron Weasley and Neville Longbottom; Aberforth Dumbledore stunned Augustus Rookwood; Pius Thicknesse was floored by Percy and Arthur Weasley.

Voldemort started duelling with Minerva McGonagall, Horace Slughorn, and Kingsley Shacklebolt all at once, cold hatred in his face. Molly Weasley started a duel with Bellatrix Lestrange, the last Death Eater standing. Hundreds of people lined the walls, watching the two duels in awe.

When Bellatrix was killed, Voldemort turned on Molly Weasley, but Harry Potter cast a Shield Charm between the two, thus revealing himself and starting this confrontation.

The duel

Harry Potter: "There are no more Horcruxes. It's just you and me now, Riddle. Neither can live while the other survives, and one of us is about to leave for good."

Lord Voldemort: "One of us? You think it will be you, do you, the boy who has survived by accident, and because Dumbledore was pulling the strings?"

— The final discussion between two mortal enemies

As soon as Harry revealed himself, demonstrations of shock or joy were immediately stifled, for fear. As Harry and Voldemort began to circle each other, silence fell abruptly.

Harry said one of them was to die in that duel, and Voldemort voiced his belief that Harry would be the one because, unlike what happened to many of their other confrontations, he would not be "crouching behind greater men and women". Harry, however, explained that he himself had a far more powerful weapon than Voldemort. Harry explained to him that Albus Dumbledore's death had been planned between the former Headmaster and Severus Snape, so that Snape, working for the Order of the Phoenix, gained Voldemort's trust, and that the Elder Wand's power would die with him.

By chance, however, Draco Malfoy had disarmed Dumbledore moments before his death, making him the true master of the Elder Wand. Voldemort dismissed this by stating that he would finish off Malfoy after he finished killing Harry, but then Harry added that he had disarmed Draco months ago during the Skirmish at Malfoy Manor in March of that year, making him, Harry, the true master of the Elder Wand. This prompted Voldemort and Harry to draw their wands upon each other.

Voldemort's last stand with Harry Potter in the Great Hall

Just as the first rays of sun rose over the sill of the Great Hall windows, and both cast their spells in an almost simultaneous yell — Harry attempting to disarm Voldemort, and Voldemort attempting to murder Harry. The two spells collided with a bang like a cannon blast — though it was short-lived. The Elder Wand, however, refused to harm its true master and flipped over, flying high toward its rightful master. The rebounding Killing Curse hit Lord Voldemort, and his lifeless body hit the floor, his white hands then empty. Harry was immediately applauded for his victory, and his defeat of Voldemort signified the end of the Battle of Hogwarts as well as the Second Wizarding War.

Aftermath

"We did it! We bashed them, wee Potter's the one! And Voldy's gone mouldy, so now let's have fun!"

— Peeves sings a victory song after Harry defeats Voldemort

Voldemort's mutilated soul trapped in limbo

After the death of Voldemort, Harry returned the Elder Wand to Dumbledore's tomb, kept the Cloak of Invisibility, and left the Resurrection Stone where he dropped it in the Forbidden Forest. After the war ended, Harry went on to become an Auror, married Ginny Weasley, and started a family. The wizarding world was free again, and the surviving Death Eaters were imprisoned, as well as those who had collaborated with them. The Ministry of Magic radically reformed under Kingsley Shacklebolt, the new Minister for Magic.

Voldemort's body was removed from the Great Hall and placed in another room, while his soul was trapped in limbo in a stunted form, never to return nor move on.

Alternate timeline

When Albus Potter and Scorpius Malfoy attempted to use a "true" Time-Turner to save Cedric Diggory from death at Voldemort's rebirth, they inadvertently created an alternate reality where Cedric was so humiliated that he joined the Death Eaters in spite. Cedric killed Neville during the final stages of the Battle of Hogwarts, thus preventing him from killing Nagini. As a result, Voldemort remain protected from death, and succeeded in killing Harry.

As a result of killing Harry, Voldemort completely conquered the British wizarding world, where Dolores Umbridge became the permanent Headmistress of Hogwarts, Draco becoming the head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement and the Order of the Phoenix and their allies became no more than a flickering pocket of resistance. In a twist, Voldemort did not kill Snape, who continued to live up to his role as a triple agent, lamenting on his failure to protect Harry. Because Harry died during the war, Albus Potter became un-born.

The Scorpius of this timeline was alleged to be cruel and mean, such as forcing Craig Bowker Jnr to do his homework. However, because Scorpius was involved in using the Time-Turner to change the past, he maintained his original personality and memory of his friend Albus. He was able to persuade Snape of everything that happened and to help him in repairing the damage, thus restoring the timeline in which Voldemort was defeated.

Upon returning to their true time, Albus and Scorpius were greatly reprimanded by Professor McGonagall and their parents for plunging the world back into the dark age where Voldemort ruled, and would have been expelled were it not for McGonagall's understanding of the students' parents. Nevertheless, she punished them with a multitude of detentions and cancellation of their holidays.

Behind the scenes

• In the film Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2, the duel between Harry and Voldemort, as explained by David Yates, is extended and they fight at many different places at Hogwarts, with the final confrontation in the Entrance Courtyard. This is repeated into the video game.
• In Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2, Harry blocks Voldemort's Killing Curse several times during their fight on the Grand Staircase, despite the curse being unblockable. This can have something to do with the fact that the Elder Wand wasn't in Voldemort's power of use and that it was fighting Harry, its true master.
• In LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7, after Voldemort dies, he breaks and fades into several tiny LEGO bricks, which also happened in a different way in the film.
• In the battle, Harry Potter and Tom Riddle used the first spell they used one against another; Expelliarmus and Avada Kedavra respectively.
• Curiously, the colour of the spells Harry and Voldemort use against each other represent their house colours: Harry (red) for Gryffindor, Voldemort (green) for Slytherin. This is ironic considering Harry has green eyes while Voldemort's are red.

Differences between the book and the film adaptation

In the film, after discovering the truth of himself being a Horcrux, Harry met up with Ron and Hermione at the Grand Staircase, where he expressed his necessity to die, before bidding the two of them goodbye, something he avoided in the novel.

The duel as shown in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2

In the film version of the duel, Harry reveals himself after he jumps from Hagrid's arms as Voldemort looks on with a surprised and bewildered look. Harry fires a Blasting Curse at Nagini, but due to her protection, it rebounds on several Death Eaters behind Voldemort. Next, Harry dashes through the Courtyard as Voldemort follows, firing explosions at him. Shocked, Voldemort turns and sees a fraction of his Death Eaters retreating. Bellatrix screams and yells at all the Death Eaters to return, even pinpointing the fleeing Lucius Malfoy. He then turns and sees Harry dashing into the Entrance Hall as the battle recommences. Harry runs up the Grand Staircase; Voldemort stuns Neville, sending him flying into the Great Hall. Voldemort then grabs Nagini and Disapparates in pursuit.

Harry and Voldemort duelling on the Marble Staircase

Harry runs through a dusty seventh-floor corridor. When he hears a noise out of his line of sight, he turns and fires an explosion at it. He then runs and hides near the main staircase just as Voldemort Apparates with Nagini in tow. With a basilisk fang in hand, Harry comes out of his hiding spot and fires a Stunning Spell at Voldemort, which he blocks. The Dark Lord then fires Killing Curses at Harry, which Harry blocks, due to the Elder Wand's unwillingness to kill Harry. After firing a barrage of Killing Curses, Voldemort Disapparates behind Harry, and Harry barely blocks a Killing Curse with his Disarming Charm; the two spells meet and clash. Voldemort advancing on Harry, with Nagini ready to attack. Harry throws the tendrils above into the ceiling causing a large explosion and the ceiling to collapse in front of Voldemort. Harry turns to see Nagini and is ready to stab her with the basilisk fang when Voldemort releases a shockwave of dark energy. Harry narrowly evades it by jumping off the staircase. Voldemort destroys the basilisk fang with a Killing Curse and attempts to fire one at Harry. Harry begins to run as Voldemort turns to black smoke and flies after him.

Harry Potter holding the Elder Wand after Disarming Voldemort, in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2

Harry runs through the Catwalks by the Quad battlements and turns around, expecting Voldemort, but unexpectedly he turns around to see Voldemort Apparate and fire a blue and black spell at Harry. Though he deflects it, it instead hits the bridge and Harry falls. As he attempts to run, a part of Voldemort's cloak comes alive and begins to stretch itself to form tentacles that lift up and strangle Harry. After they wrap around Harry, they throw him into a stone pillar and Voldemort proceeds to punch and kick Harry down. As Harry attempts to regain his footing, Voldemort strangles him with his wand-free hand and throws him to the floor, backhanding him in the face as he rises again. Harry tells Voldemort that the Elder Wand will always fail him, only for Voldemort to push Harry back with a shockwave spell. Pushed to the edge, Voldemort advances, telling Harry he killed Snape. However, Harry informs that the wand belonged to someone else, and cites that it is time to finish things as they began them, together. He grabs Voldemort by the neck and shoulders and shoves them both off the castle and into the ravine below.

Tom Riddle: "Why do you live?"
Harry Potter: "Because I have something worth living for!"

As the two wizards scream, Voldemort apparates both of them away from the ravine into a pillar of black smoke. As they are flying through the air, Harry and Voldemort begin grappling each other inside the pillar, momentarily being fused together in the process, and slam into the roof of the school. Eventually, they crash-land into the Viaduct Courtyard; the impact forces their wands out of their hands.

Voldemort disintegrates upon death in the film adaptation, as opposed to merely dying as in the book

Injured, but still energised, they crawl desperately towards their discarded wands. Once attained, Voldemort and Harry's Killing Curse and Disarming Charm respectively clash; neither are damaged. Voldemort recovers more quickly, and Harry is forced to kneel awkwardly to block the jet of green light in time. Voldemort, roaring with fury, gradually directs the beams towards Harry, which is the opposite of what occurred in Little Hangleton. Just as he is winning, however, Voldemort unwillingly breaks free of the bond, feeling Nagini, his last Horcrux, destroyed. After a pause in the duel, their spells clash once more - although this time, Voldemort realises the Elder Wand is failing him. The connection between the two spells is moving closer to the tip of the Elder Wand; the Elder Wand releases green light from the fissures running along its length to Voldemort's hand, causing his entire arm to blacken and spread. The curse rebounds, and Harry Disarms Voldemort. The Elder Wand flies to Harry and "with the unerring skills of a Seeker", Harry catches it. Voldemort opens his mouth, but the only sound that comes out is a faint, low rasp, and he disintegrates into ashes. As the ashes are blown away, the sun rises.

As opposed to there being hundreds of witnesses as in the book, Harry instead goes inside to convey the good news to all, and no major celebrations are held immediately thereafter.

Differences between the book and the video game adaptation

In the video game version of the duel, Harry reveals himself after he jumps from Hagrid's arms. Draco runs over to Harry and gives him his wand, before running over to Neville. Then Voldemort and Harry duel while Draco runs off with his family. After three extreme hits by Harry, Voldemort lifts himself up in black smoke and follows Harry. Harry runs through the Grand Staircase and the corridors while he and Voldemort are yelling at each other. Later they find themselves in the Catwalks by the Quad battlements, in which they duel again. In the end, Voldemort fires a curse on the bridge Harry is standing on, causing him to fall. But before Harry falls, black smoke from Voldemort's robes grabs Harry. Voldemort then strangles Harry and asks him why he lives. Voldemort then tries to fire a curse at Harry's scar but is pushed back. Harry then walks towards Voldemort, explaining the Elder Wand's mastery. Harry then throws himself and Voldemort off the tower and Voldemort Apparates them both to the Viaduct Courtyard. Voldemort drops the wand and crawls towards it. Harry says it is useless to Voldemort and they begin to duel. Voldemort is then overpowered by Harry and he begins to disappear (like Tom Riddle in the second film). Voldemort then completely disappears. (However if Voldemort overpowers Harry he is thrown back in the air, like Neville in the film, and Voldemort says "You are mine.").

• The scene shown in the game where Draco gives Harry his wand, as well as the scene showing Voldemort grabbing Harry by the face and asking "Why do you live?" to which Harry answers "Because I have something worth living for!" and Voldemort trying to curse Harry's scar were both filmed for the film adaptation but were left out. The reason is unknown, but the possibility is that the film had to have a certain length. The latter scene is, however, shown in the trailer for the movie.

Appearances

• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (First appearance)
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (video game)
• Pottermore
• Wizarding World
• LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7
• Harry Potter for Kinect