Bellatrix Lestrange

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

- Description

Bellatrix Lestrange (née Black) (1951- 2 May 1998) also known as Bella, was extremely loyal to Lord Voldemort and the Death Eaters, and 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 brother-in-law Lucius Malfoy 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' life of violence and malice was eventually ceased when she was killed by Molly Weasley.

Early Life
Bellatrix was born in 1951 to Cygnus and Druella Black. She was the oldest sister to Andromeda and Narcissa. She attended Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and was sorted into the Slytherin House. She eventually married Rodolphus Lestrange (a 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 is later revealed by J.K Rowling that Bellatrix's true love was Voldemort.

Time in Azkaban
Bellatrix and Rodolphus fought in the First War on the side of Voldemort. After the Dark Lord's fall, Bellatrix and a group of Death Eaters, including Barty Crouch Jr., captured 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.

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

- Bellatrix and Harry Potter in the Dept. of Mysteries.

When Voldemort returned in 1995, he stated 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. Bellatrix was among the Death Eaters who participated in the Battle at the Department of Mysteries in a bid to steal a prophecy regarding Harry.

During the last battle, she fought with and defeated two Aurors: Nymphadora Tonks and Kingsley Shacklebolt. She was also behind the death of Sirius Black, which she caused by knocking him through a veiled stone arch in the Death Chamber. It was clear that, given the chance, she would have enjoyed torturing Neville Longbottom to further punish his parents. She eventually fled from the battle, taunting and laughing at Harry, who chased her. 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 appeared at the battle, followed quickly by Dumbledore. Bellatrix was pinned to the floor by the statue of a witch while her master fought with Dumbledore. Voldemort, after trying to possess Harry, 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 the Malfoy's mansion so she could be closer to Voldemort. A copy of the Godric Gryffindor's Sword 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 and brought to the Malfoy mansion 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. She threatened Hermione with a short knife,after Harry and Ron escaped from the cellar, 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, she had dropped Hermione under it, whilst jumping out if the way. Bellatrix killed Dobby with a silver knife as the elf was apparating.

Bellatrix Lestrange was a devoted Death Eater, whose lifetime of wickedness and debauchery culminated in the murder of Nymphadora Tonks at the Battle of Hogwarts. Her reckless and wanton use of threats ultimately caused her death. After nearly hitting Ginny Weasley with a kiling curse, she herself was killed by Ginny's mother Molly, who Bellatrix did not take seriously, instead she teased and taunted Molly over the death of her son Fred Weasley. Bellatrix was killed in similar circumstance to her own murder of Sirius Black. After she toppled to the ground, Voldemort is enraged and turns on Molly, which then leads to Harry revealing himself, 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 in the novel 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. She also had some skill in Occlumency, and instructed Draco in the ability in order to further the ruin of Dumbledore. She is described by Harry as a, 'witch with prodigious skill and no conscience', proven by her many defeats of other characters. Just before her death she is battling, Hermione, Luna and Ginny, Bellatrix is described as being equal in power to all three of them.

Behind the scenes

 * 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.

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