Bellatrix Lestrange

"...his last, best lieutenant..."

- Description

Bellatrix Lestrange (née Black) (1951- 2 May 1998) also known as Bella, was a pure-blood witch and Death Eater who was extremely loyal to Voldemort. She was one of the few females in the group. She was married to Rodolphus Lestrange, who was also a Death Eater. Bellatrix was related to other Death Eaters, such as her brothers-in-law Lucius Malfoy and Rabastan Lestrange and her nephew Draco Malfoy. Bellatrix was also related to members of the Order of the Phoenix she eventually killed, such as Sirius Black, her cousin, and Nymphadora Tonks, her niece. Bellatrix's life of violence and malice was eventually ended when she was killed by Molly Weasley during the Battle of Hogwarts.

Early Life
Bellatrix was born in 1951 to Cygnus and Druella Black. She was the oldest sister to Andromeda and Narcissa, though Bellatrix presumably cut off contact with the former when Andromeda married Muggle-born wizard Ted Tonks and was disowned. Bellatrix attended Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and was sorted into the Slytherin House. She eventually married Rodolphus Lestrange — a fellow pureblood, as was expected of her — and when Lord Voldemort first rose to power, she and her husband joined the Death Eaters. Unlike her sisters, Bellatrix displays no outward affection for her husband whatsoever, never even mentioning him in conversation. It was revealed by J.K. Rowling that Bellatrix's true love was Voldemort.

First Wizarding War and Time in Azkaban
Bellatrix and Rodolphus fought in the First Wizarding War on the side of Voldemort. After the Dark Lord's fall in 1981, Bellatrix and a group of Death Eaters, including her husband, brother-in-law and Barty Crouch Jr., captured Aurors and Order of the Phoenix members Alice and Frank Longbottom. Bellatrix used the Cruciatus Curse to torture them into insanity. She and her associates were tried for this before the Wizengamot and sentenced to life imprisonment in Azkaban. Unlike many other Death Eaters, Bellatrix not only did not attempt to lie about her loyalty — she proudly proclaimed that she was loyal to the Dark Lord and that he would return.

Second War
When Voldemort returned in 1995, he stated that the Lestranges were among the most faithful members of his inner circle. In January of 1996, Bellatrix was one of the many Death Eaters who escaped from Azkaban and rejoined Voldemort.

"You dare speak his name? You filthy Half-Blood!"

- Bellatrix to Harry Potter in the Department of Mysteries.

Bellatrix participated in the Battle of the Department of Mysteries in a bid to steal a prophecy regarding Harry. She became enraged when Harry Potter spoke Voldemort's name and told her that he was a half-blood. Later, she briefly tortured Neville Longbottom with the Cruciatus Curse to try to coerce Harry into handing over the prophecy. It was clear that, given the chance, she would have enjoyed further torturing Neville to further punish his parents.

When the Order of the Phoenix arrived, Bellatrix dueled and defeated her niece, Nymphadora Tonks, and then began fighting her cousin, Sirius Black. She knocked him through a veiled stone arch in the Death Chamber, killing him. She then defeated Kingsley Shacklebolt in a duel and deflected a spell from Albus Dumbledore, fleeing. She was pursued by Harry, who she taunted over his godfather's death. Harry was enraged to the point that he attempted the Cruciatus Curse on her. He only succeeded in knocking her down, however. She then shouted at him: "You need to mean it, Potter!"

Voldemort then arrived, and he and Dumbledore began to duel. Bellatrix was pinned to the floor by the statue through a spell of Dumbledore's while her master fought. After trying to possess Harry and being spotted by Ministry officials, Voldemort fled, taking Bellatrix with him as he Disapparated.

In July 1996, Bellatrix accompanied her sister Narcissa to the house of Severus Snape at Spinner's End. Once there, Bellatrix interrogated Snape and voiced her distrust of him. Narcissa, however, proceeded to beg Snape to look after her son Draco's welfare while he attended Hogwarts. Snape shocked Bellatrix by asking her to bind him and Narcissa with an Unbreakable Vow to assist Draco.

A year later, Bellatrix was living with Narcissa at Malfoy Manor so that she could be closer to Voldemort. A copy of the Sword of Gryffindor had been secured in her vault at Gringotts, but nobody knew at the time it was merely a copy. In that year, Harry, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger were captured by Snatchers and brought to the Manor with the real sword. Seeing it, Bellatrix panicked and revealed her vault also contained another of Voldemort's Horcruxes: Helga Hufflepuff's Cup. Bellatrix interrogated Hermione and tortured her with the Cruciatus Curse.

"You’re lying, filthy Mudblood, and I know it! You have been inside my vault at Gringotts! Tell the truth, tell the truth! What else did you take? What else have you got? Tell me the truth or, I swear, I shall run you through with this knife! What else did you take, what else? ANSWER ME! CRUCIO!"

- overheard parts of Bellatrix’s interrogation of Hermione Granger

Bellatrix also threatened Hermione with a short knife, after Harry and Ron escaped from the cellar with the assistance of Dobby; she got close enough to get some of her hair on Hermione's clothes. This would come in handy later when Hermione used this hair to create a Polyjuice Potion to impersonate Bellatrix, making it possible to steal the Horcrux from the Lestrange's Gringotts vault. Dobby had caused the chandelier to fall from above Bellatrix's head, prompting her to release Hermione and jump out of the way. Bellatrix killed Dobby with a silver knife as the elf was Disapparating with Harry.

Bellatrix was a fanatically devoted Death Eater, whose lifetime of wickedness and debauchery culminated in the murder of Nymphadora Tonks during the Battle of Hogwarts in 1998. Her reckless and wanton use of threats ultimately caused her death. After nearly hitting Ginny Weasley with a Killing Curse, she herself was killed by Ginny's mother Molly, who Bellatrix did not take seriously; instead, she taunted Molly over the death of her son Fred. Bellatrix merely laughed at Molly, allowing Molly to hit her over the heart, killing her. After she toppled to the ground, Voldemort was enraged and turned on Molly, which led to Harry Potter revealing himself to be alive, for the showdown.

Physical appearance
Bellatrix Lestrange was described as tall, beautiful woman with long, thick, shining black hair. She had thin lips and dark, heavy-lidded eyes with pale skin and a strong jaw. She had the classic 'great good looks' and arrogant bearings common for members of the House of Black. But like her cousin Sirius her time in Azkaban cost her some of her beauty.

Personality and Traits
Bellatrix Lestrange was an intensely sadistic witch who at certain points seems mentally unbalanced. She can be easily distracted and had a fierce and dangerous temper, a trait that she shares with her cousin Sirius and her aunt.

She was fanatically devoted to Voldemort, believing that she proved her loyalty by her time in Azkaban, which seems to have furthered her mental decline. She was one of Voldemort's cruelest Death Eaters and believed she was his most trusted and loyal follower. Bellatrix was a steadfast believer in the supremacy of blood purity, as was taught to her by her family, and seemed particularly eager to kill her own family members if they violated this ideology.

She was skilled in Occlumency, which she instructed her nephew Draco in as part of his mission to kill Dumbledore. She is described by Harry as a "witch with prodigious skill and no conscience", proven by her many victories over other characters. Just before her death, she battled Hermione, Luna and Ginny all at once and was described as being equal in power to the three of them.

Bellatrix was an extremely skilled dueller and combatant. This is shown by her defeat of Nymphadora Tonks, the murder of Sirius Black, the quick defeat of Kingsley Shacklebolt, and the deflection of Albus Dumbledore's spell. She also demonstrated her skill with the quick defeat of four Snatchers and Fenrir Greyback.

Behind the scenes

 * Bellatrix's name appears to be derived from that of a star, like many members of the Black family. Bellatrix is the third brightest star in the constellation Orion, and means "female warrior" in Latin; it is also known as the Amazon Star.
 * Originally, Helen McCrory was going to play the role of Bellatrix in the film version of Order of the Phoenix, but due to her pregnancy she opted out of the film and was replaced by Helena Bonham Carter. McCrory was eventually cast as Bella's sister Narcissa in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.
 * In the Order of the Phoenix film, Carter's costume reflected the mental state of the character, thus the torn gloves and dress.
 * In the book version of Order of the Phoenix, Bellatrix was grabbed by Voldemort as he disappeared from the Department of Mysteries. In the Film, as soon as Voldemort and Dumbledore started dueling, she escaped via the Floo Network.
 * The House elf Kreacher has a great fondness for Bellatrix. Harry comes to understand that Kreacher responds to respect, and Hermione realises that the Death Eaters with which Kreacher was in contact were over-indulging him in contrast with Sirius' abuse. Basically, when they were nice to him, he gave them the information that they wanted.
 * J.K.Rowling revealed that Bellatrix was sexually attracted to Voldemort.

Appearances

 * Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
 * Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
 * Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (film)
 * Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (video game)
 * Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
 * Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows