Hey everyone,
Welcome to another installment of Harry Potter Theory.
Today we’re going to be discussing something that I’ve talked about on the channel before-only-
this time we’re going to be looking at it with the inclusion of NEW information from
the latest Harry Potter game Hogwarts Legacy.
I am of course talking about the scene from the Deathly Hallows where Molly Weasley, the
sweet caring mother, stands up for her daughter and KILLS one of the most infamous Death Eaters
in the Wizarding World - Bellatrix Lestrange.
More specifically, we’ll be taking a look at HOW it happened and what spells may have
enabled this nurturing mother to take down one of the most powerful dark witches in history.
Let’s dive in.
In the Deathly Hallows Part 2 there’s A LOT going on.
Voldemort is regaining immense levels of power, Hogwarts is under siege from Death Eaters,
and the characters we had grown to love over the years suddenly start dropping off like
flies.
But while The Battle of Hogwarts certainly had a healthy number of fatalities, not all
of them were quite so sad.
The deaths of characters like Remus Lupin, Severus Snape and Fred Weasley undoubtedly
pulled on our heart strings, but we also got to witness the death of some less..favourable
characters.
One of the most significant being Bellatrix Lestrange.
In the midst of the chaotic Battle of Hogwarts, many memorable moments occurred, but one that
particularly stood out to me was Molly Weasley’s defeat of Bellatrix Lestrange- which demonstrated
the power of love.
Amidst the flying jets of light and widespread fighting between witches and wizards, Molly,
a loving and nurturing mother figure to Harry Potter and the Weasley family, found herself
engaged in a battle with one of the wizarding world's most feared witches.
Bellatrix's fearsome reputation was well-earned, having murdered and tortured copious witches
and wizards.
But she wasn’t just evil, she was powerful, too.
Her impressive magical abilities and dangerous nature made her one of the most formidable
witches of her time.
Let’s revisit the passage from the book:
“Not my daughter, you b*tch!”
yelled Molly
“Mrs. Weasley threw off her cloak as she ran, freeing her arms.
Bellatrix spun on the spot, roaring with laughter at the sight of her new challenger.”
“OUT OF MY WAY!”
shouted Mrs. Weasley to the three girls, and with a swipe of her wand she began to duel.
Harry watched with terror and elation as Molly Weasley’s wand slashed and twisted, and
Bellatrix Lestrange’s smile faltered and became a snarl.
Jets of light flew from both wands, the floor around the witches’ feet became hot and
cracked; both women were fighting to kill.”
“What will happen to your ch*ildren when I’ve killed you?”
taunted Bellatrix, as mad as her master, capering as Molly’s curses danced around her.
“When Mummy’s gone the same way as Freddie?”
““You — will — never — touch — our — ch*ildren — again!”
screamed Mrs. Weasley.
Bellatrix laughed, the same exhilarated laugh her cousin Sirius had given as he toppled
backward through the veil, and suddenly Harry knew what was going to happen before it did.”
“Molly’s curse soared beneath Bellatrix’s outstretched arm and hit her squarely in the
chest, directly over her heart.
“Bellatrix’s gloating smile froze, her eyes began to bulge: For the tiniest space
of time she knew what had happened, and then she toppled, and the watching crowd roared,
and Voldemort screamed.”
And JUST LIKE THAT, the entirely unassuming mother figure Molly Weasley had defeated the
infamous Bellatrix Lestrange.
In one fell swoop, Molly's actions symbolized the triumph of love and courage over evil
and cruelty.
But, I have to ask: other than being on the receiving end of an unidentified curse, what
actually caused Bellatrix to DIE?
In the book her eyes bulged and she toppled over, but in the movie she was blown in to
a thousand pieces.
What curse(s) did Molly use?
And what caused Bellatrix to EXPLODE?
First let’s establish what we have to work with:
The book just tells us that an unnamed curse hits Bellatrix in the chest, causing her to
topple over and die.
No incantation or spell colour is referenced.
The MOVIE however shows us a bit more:
In the film Molly fires 2 spells at Bellatrix- one white spell which seems to FREEZE and
contract Bellatrix’s body, then a RED spell which blows her to pieces.
I’m going to tell you right now that if you go by the books alone then the answer
to this question is a lot more straightforward.
A ‘curse’ of some kind is referenced and Bellatrix instantly dies.
The logical explanation here would be that Molly simply used Avada Kedavra AKA the Killing
Curse.
She may not have died ENTIRELY instantaneously, but the effects of the Killing Curse do tend
to vary a little bit in the books.
But that still doesn’t explain ANY of what went on in the film.
Avada Kedavra is neither white nor red in colour, and the way that Bellatrix died is
certainly not representative of the more ‘ethereal’ death faced by victims of the killing curse.
The first spell that Molly fires at Bellatrix is white in colour and has 2 effects: it causes
Bellatrix to FREEZE and it also causes her body to contract.
In my mind the most obvious choice for the first spell is Petrificus Totalus AKA the
Full Body-Bind Curse.
"Petrificus Totalus stiffens a person's limbs so they cannot move.
Only the person's eyes are free while the spell is in effect."
The spell definition takes careful note of the fact that only the eyes are free to move,
and it also just so happens that Bellatrix’s EYES are specifically referenced after she’s
hit with the curse.
Petrificus Totalus is a strong contender here.
Another possibility is the Freezing Spell AKA Glacius- a charm that freezes targets
with ice-cold air created from the tip of the wand.
Hogwarts Legacy fans will probably be thinking of this one.
But that still doesn’t explain the whole being BLOWN to smithereens thing.
What was the second spell that Molly used?
In Harry Potter lore there are 2 spells that fit the bill here.
The first is Reducto.
“With this powerful curse, skilled wizards can easily reduce obstacles to pieces.
For obvious reasons great care must be exercised when learning and practising this spell.”
But the issue with Reducto is that’s it BLUE, not red.
The next place my mind goes here is to Bombarda Maxima AKA the most powerful variant of the
Exploding Charm.
This spell produced large violent explosions capable of demolishing entire walls.
The Issue?
Well, Bombarda isn’t red either.
So what spells did Molly use on Bellatrix?
Well, the truth is that this magic may have simply been something we haven’t seen before.
Enter: Hogwarts Legacy
With the release of Hogwarts Legacy, one particular type of magic has been brought to the forement
of our minds: Ancient Magic.
For a deep dive on Ancient Magic you’re going to have to watch my video ‘History
of Ancient Magic’, but for now- let me briefly summarize:
The term ‘ancient magic’ refers to powerful, complex spells and rituals that have been
passed down through wizarding history for thousands of years.
Obscure but incredibly mighty magic that is shrouded in mystery and has dissipated over
the course of time.
In fact, by the time Harry Potter was born, Ancient Magic was extremely uncommon.
The only significant pointers to this type of magic in the Harry Potter story stem from
baby Harry, Lily Evans and the power of LOVE.
Lily famously used the power of LOVE - a form of ancient magic - to cast sacrificial protection
and save Harry from Voldemort’s killing curse.
A mother saving her ch*ild.
And in what other scenario do we see a mother doing everything in her power to save her
ch*ild?
Why, when Molly Weasley kills Bellatrix to save Ginny, of course.
After playing Hogwarts Legacy all I can say is this: the spells that Molly used to kill
Bellatrix look A LOT like ancient magic to me.
What do you guys think?
Was this ANCIENT MAGIC?
Petrificus Totalus?
Glacius?
Bombarda?
What spells did Molly use to seal Bellatrix’s fate?
Leave a comment down below
Until next time
Remember
It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live