Disarming Charm

"That was a Disarming Charm - as you see, I've lost my wand - ah, thank you, Miss Brown. Yes, an excellent idea to show them that, Professor Snape, but if you don't mind my saying so, it was very obvious what you were about to do. If I had wanted to stop you it would have been only too easy. However, I felt it would be instructive to let them see..."

- Professor Gilderoy Lockhart teaching his second-year class about this charm

The Disarming Charm, also known as the Expelliarmus Spell or Disarming Spell (Expelliarmus) was a defensive charm which forced the victim to release whatever they were holding at the time, and sometimes block spells, usually against his or her will. It is common to see this spell used in duels, to make an opponent release their wand.

History
It is not known precisely who created the Disarming Charm. Some wizarding historians claim that it may have been invented by Merlin himself, others claim that its first widespread use was in Madagascar in the 11th century. Even if any of this is true, the fact remains that it was not very popular until 1379, when Elizabeth Smudgling — the most likely inventor in the opinion of Miranda Goshawk — used it in a duelling contest in Dartmoor. It became Harry Potter's signature spell and he notably used it to kill Lord Voldemort during the Battle of Hogwarts by rebounding his Killing Curse.

Practitioners
"They made the most of the last few hours in which they were allowed to do magic before the holidays...and practised disarming each other by magic. Harry was getting very good at it."

- Fred, George, Harry, Hermione and Ron's last few hours before they return home for the holidays


 * Albus Dumbledore.
 * Draco Malfoy.
 * Elizabeth Smudgling.
 * Fred Weasley.
 * George Weasley.
 * Ginny Weasley.
 * Harry Potter.
 * Hermione Granger.
 * Severus Snape.
 * Many other duelists.

Appearance
The Disarming Charm always appears as a jet of red light; indeed, this is one of the things that makes it recognisable before the effects of the charm are seen.

Effects
The Disarming Charm causes whatever an opponent is holding at the time - usually a wand - to fly high out of their reach; and can also be used to block spells, however, more enthusiastic casts can result in the victim of the charm being knocked unconscious in a similar manner to the Stunning Spell. If done too weakly, however, it will merely blow them back a few paces, or make their hair stand on end.

If one mispronounces the spell's incantation, dependent on how it was mispronounced, another effect may take place. When Cho first mispronounced it as Expelliarmious, seemingly nothing happened; when she uttered Expellimellius, she set her friend Marietta Edgecombe's sleeves aflame.

Priori Incantatem
If two wands with the same core are forced to do battle with each other, the effect is a magical connection called Priori Incantatem. When Priori Incantatem occured between Lord Voldemort and Harry Potter, the latter was using the Disarming Charm.

Etymology
English expel, meaning "remove" and Latin arma, meaning "weapon" or "the weapon".

Behind the scenes
"Then a blinding, jagged jet of white light flew through the air: Harry thought of lightning, but Snape had dropped to his knees and his wand had flown out of his hand"

- Dumbledore's use on Snape


 * This is the signature spell of Harry Potter.
 * When Dumbledore used this on Snape, it appeared as white lightning, and hence was probably a variation of it rather than the spell itself, or else an entirely different disarming spell.
 * The charm is described in The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 2, and has a spellbook purely for itself.
 * In the second film, it appears as a golden ring; from the fifth film onward it was a ball of blue light.
 * In the video games, the Disarming Charm worked rather like a Shield Charm, rebounding an opponent's spells upon them. This is actually also the describing of the spell in the The Standard Book of Spells series.
 * The Disarming Charm is mentioned on Doctor Who, when Shakespeare uses it to conclude a formula used to banish the villains from earth.

Appearances

 * Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
 * Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (film)
 * Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (video game)
 * Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
 * Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (film)
 * Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (video game)
 * Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
 * Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (film)
 * Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (video game)
 * 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 Half-Blood Prince (film)
 * Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (video game)
 * Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
 * Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1
 * Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 (video game)
 * Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
 * Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (video game)
 * LEGO Harry Potter: Building the Magical World
 * LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1-4
 * LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7
 * Pottermore
 * Wonderbook: Book of Spells
 * Harry Potter for Kinect

Notes and references
Encantamiento desarmador Expelliarmus Sortilège de Désarmement Aseistariisuntaloitsu Incantesimo di Disarmo Expelliarmus Экспеллиармус