Death Eaters

"They were a motley collection; a mixture of the weak seeking protection, the ambitious seeking some shared glory, and the thuggish gravitating toward a leader who could show them more refined forms of cruelty."

- Albus Dumbledore on the forerunners of the Death Eaters.

The Death Eaters (originally the Knights of Walpurgis ) was the name given to followers of Lord Voldemort. The group primarily consisted of wizards and witches who were radical pure blood supremacists and who practised the Dark Arts with reckless abandon and without regard to or fear of wizarding law. Lord Voldemort used this select group of wizards and witches during both the first and second Wizarding Wars, employing them as his elite force. They often wore black hoods and masks with snake-like eye slits to cover their faces. Only the members of the inner circle of the Death Eaters had Dark Marks burned into their left forearms. When Voldemort touched one of them, each of the Death Eaters felt it, signalling for them to Apparate to their leader's side.

Forerunners
Before the Death Eaters themselves came to be, Tom Riddle, as Lord Voldemort was known in his childhood and early adulthood, gathered a gang of Slytherin students who considered themselves his friends, though in truth, he felt no real attachments to any of them due to his lack of desire for a true friend. According to former Hogwarts headmaster Albus Dumbledore, they were a mixture of weak seeking protection, ambitious seeking glory, and thuggish seeking a leader who could show them more refined cruelty, and were considered to be forerunners of the Death Eaters since most (if not all) indeed became the first Death Eaters. He manipulated them to do his bidding, and, though this led to several nasty incidents over the years, with Riddle's strategic discretion, none was linked back to the group, much less the model student Riddle himself.

Origins and the First Wizarding War


By 1970, the Knights of Walpurgis (later renamed the "Death Eaters") was an organisation that included people that Tom Marvolo Riddle, who became Lord Voldemort, knew from his time at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry as well as their relations. Nearly all of those recruited were from Slytherin House (however, there may have been recruits from Gryffindor, - such as Peter Pettigrew - Ravenclaw, and even from foreign schools within the ranks as well, such as Igor Karkaroff. There were presumably no Hufflepuff Death Eaters, as Hufflepuff House boasts of being the only house never to produce any Dark Wizards). Actively gathering an army of Dark Wizards and creatures, with the belief that his hidden Horcruxes granted him immortality, Voldemort and his followers planned to overthrow the Ministry of Magic.

Death Eater activity during the First Wizarding War consisted of attacks on wizards, witches, and large numbers of Muggles. These were initiated by the Death Eaters, often, but not always, on the orders of Voldemort. When the Ministry did not suffer an ostensible collapse in the eleven years of Voldemort's reign, the Death Eaters began to attack prominent wizarding families. As a result, fear gripped the wider wizard community, but the Death Eaters remained opposed by the Order of the Phoenix, founded by Albus Dumbledore. The Ministry, in retaliation and spearheaded by the head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement Barty Crouch Sr., legalised the usage of the Unforgivable Curses against suspects, and ordered kill rather than capture, attack first and question later, and imprison without trials.

At the height of the war, Severus Snape reported to Lord Voldemort the part of a prophecy he had heard, while listening in on a conversation between Dumbledore and Sybill Trelawney, which predicted that either Harry Potter, son of Order members James and Lily Potter, or Neville Longbottom, son of Order members Alice and Frank Longbottom, would be the one to destroy Voldemort. Voldemort chose to attack the Potters, seeing them as a greater danger to him. He chose Harry over Neville because Harry was a half-blood, like himself. Despite being under the protection of the Fidelius Charm, Voldemort was able to get into their home because James had entrusted his old friend Peter Pettigrew to be Secret-Keeper, and Pettigrew subsequently betrayed the secret to Voldemort.

Snape failed to overhear the entire prophecy, including the announcement that Voldemort himself would mark his own equal. Although Voldemort killed James and, despite Snape's pleas that she be spared, Lily, the Killing Curse rebounded off Harry and hit Voldemort, destroying his living body. However, due to his extensive performance of Dark magic, Voldemort's soul survived and escaped.

With their leader's disappearance, the Death Eaters largely fell into chaos. Many were rounded up and imprisoned without trial, as part of the hard line taken by Ministry official Barty Crouch Sr. Sirius Black, whom Pettigrew framed for his crimes, was among those imprisoned in Azkaban without a trial. Soon afterward, Bellatrix, Rodolphus, and Rabastan Lestrange and Barty Crouch Jr. tortured the Longbottoms into insanity while trying to procure information about Voldemort's whereabouts; this attack was considered one of the most atrocious acts in history. They were captured and sentenced to Azkaban, but Bellatrix proudly proclaimed that the Dark Lord would rise again. On the other hand, Barty Crouch Jr. pleaded to his father of his own innocence, that he was merely at the wrong place at the wrong time, and that evidence of his crimes were at best very vague; his father disregarded it all and sentenced him to prison, a sentence that led the entire court to be roaring with triumph.

Between wars
"The Dark Lord will rise again, Crouch! Throw us into Azkaban; we will wait! He will rise again and will come for us, he will reward us beyond any of his other supporters! We alone were faithful! We alone tried to find him!"

- Bellatrix Lestrange on trial for her Death Eater activities

Some Death Eaters managed to elude justice by claiming the Imperius Curse had been used on them, such as Lucius Malfoy, or by turning in other Death Eaters, as Igor Karkaroff did. Due to many trying to escape by claiming they were bewitched, the Ministry assigned specialists to find out who was lying, although this did not work out to the fullest since Malfoy and several others were determined innocent. Most followers hid their allegiance to Voldemort and therefore did not try to find him, although a handful of Death Eaters, such as the Lestranges and Barty Crouch Jr., remained fiercely loyal to their fallen master and sought him out. They were supposedly rewarded by Voldemort for their loyalty. Some, such as Evan Rosier, chose to resist arrest and fought to the death.

Outbreaks of Death Eater activity did occur, although rarely and sporadically, during the thirteen years of Voldemort's absence. Perhaps the most notable event was the riots at the four hundred and twenty-second Quidditch World Cup in 1994, during which a group of Death Eaters attacked the camp of wizards and witches as well as a nearby Muggle family. The Death Eaters seemed to consider torturing and humiliating Muggles a form of entertainment.

The Dark Lord's return
On 24 June 1995, Lord Voldemort finally returned to a physical body through a Dark potion created by Peter Pettigrew (the potion required a bone from Voldemort's father, flesh from the servant and blood from the enemy - that being Harry). The body was human-shaped, though hairless and with many unusual features such as serpentine nostril slits and feline-esque eyes.

Moments after Lord Voldemort had finally regained his body, he summoned his followers to him by touching Peter Pettigrew's Dark Mark. Some proved too afraid to return to him, such as defector Igor Karkaroff, while others who were dead or imprisoned remained absent. Severus Snape did not return on the claim that he had to appear more loyal to Dumbledore and the Order of the Phoenix; Snape returned two hours later, under the claim that he was trying to maintain the cover of a double agent, which the Dark Lord found satisfying. Despite several absences, there were several who returned the call, including Lucius Malfoy, Nott, Crabbe, and Goyle, who had sons at Hogwarts School; Avery went to beg for forgiveness, but Voldemort told the band of Death Eaters who did not try to find him that he wants thirteen years of repayment before he could forgive them for their wavered loyalty; Snape would later comment that had the faithless Death Eaters not been forgiven, then Voldemort would have very few followers left, indicating many deserters compared to surviving loyalists.

Harry Potter was present for Voldemort's return to power, and even duelled him, resulting in a spectacular display of Priori Incantatem, revealing that the cores of Voldemort's and Harry's wands were related. Harry managed to escape and tell Headmaster Albus Dumbledore of Voldemort's return.

Minister for Magic, Cornelius Fudge, and most of the Ministry of Magic originally refused to believe that Lord Voldemort had returned. Though Harry Potter and Albus Dumbledore served as dissenting voices, the majority of the public chose to believe in the Ministry, as well as its wider propaganda and smear campaign against Potter and Dumbledore, printed in news outlets such as the Daily Prophet. Finally in 1996, the Minister for Magic witnessed Voldemort and Dumbledore's duel in the Ministry of Magic and was forced to admit his mistake.

Bid for the Prophecy


Armed with the advantage of the Ministry's denial, the Death Eaters kept a low profile in order to maintain their standing in the wizarding world and slowly but surely rebuild their forces without detection or hindrance. Due in part to the Ministry's refusal to remove the Dementors from Azkaban, a proposition Dumbledore supported immediately following Voldemort's return, the Death Eaters informally recruited the Dementors to the cause. Similar progress was made with giants. The quiet revolt of the Dementors fostered a mass breakout of imprisoned Death Eaters from Azkaban in early 1996.



In early summer of 1996, Voldemort sent a group of twelve Death Eaters, led by Lucius Malfoy, into the Department of Mysteries in order to steal the prophecy concerning himself and Harry Potter. Having originally attacked Harry Potter based upon a partial recounting of it, Voldemort now desired to hear the full version in order to understand entirely the nature of the connection between himself and Potter. Harry was lured there, along with five other members of Dumbledore's Army, when Voldemort used their connection to give Harry a false vision of his godfather being tortured.



However, Harry and his friends managed to elude the Death Eaters, and the prophecy was accidentally destroyed by Neville Longbottom during the struggle. A battle ensued between the Death Eaters and several members of the Order of the Phoenix. Eleven of the twelve Death Eaters were captured, and Sirius Black was killed; Voldemort and Bellatrix Lestrange fled but not before Ministry officials witnessed the return of the Dark Lord.

Open war
The raid was a failure for the Death Eaters because their reactivation was no longer a secret, and several members were deported to Azkaban. Additionally, the return of Voldemort was proved to the sceptical Ministry officials. Revealed at last to the wizarding community, the Death Eaters proceeded to resume their earlier lifestyle and behaviour. Kidnapping, torturing, and assassinations of wizards, witches, and Muggles began anew as the Second War began. Due to the Ministry's failure to see the danger at hand in time, the Death Eaters' forces had already grown to the point where the Ministry had a very difficult time keeping them in check.

Victory at Hogwarts
"Dumbledore cornered! Dumbledore wandless! Dumbledore alone! Well done, Draco, well done!"

- Amycus Carrow on Dumbledore being cornered on the Astronomy Tower

During the Second Wizarding War, Voldemort plotted to be rid of Albus Dumbledore. At the close of the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry year in June 1997, Albus Dumbledore and Harry Potter obtained a locket that they believed to be one of the Horcruxes of Voldemort from a cave filled with Inferi. They Apparated into Hogsmeade and, through the assistance of Madam Rosmerta, they saw a Dark Mark hanging in the sky above Hogwarts Castle. Dumbledore and Potter borrowed broomsticks and flew to Hogwarts' highest tower in the castle, the Astronomy Tower.

Dumbledore encountered Draco Malfoy and performed the Full Body-Bind Curse on Harry, who was hidden under the Invisibility Cloak. Draco revealed how he successfully used a Vanishing Cabinet to help the Death Eaters enter Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Dumbledore then informed Draco that he already knew about the assassination plot, the cursed necklace, and the poison intended to kill him. He also delayed Draco in his plans to murder him until Severus Snape and four other Death Eaters arrived at the scene. Severus Snape successfully cast the Killing Curse on Dumbledore in front of the four Death Eaters, Fenrir Greyback, Draco, and Harry, who was still unnoticed and hidden. After Dumbledore's death, the jubilant Death Eaters retreated on Snape's orders. Harry Potter, free from Dumbledore's Full Body-Bind Curse, quickly chased after the Death Eaters and cast several unsuccessful spells at Snape when they reached the grounds. One Death Eater, Thorfinn Rowle, set fire to Rubeus Hagrid's hut, and the Death Eaters Disapparated when they reached the gate.

Among the Death Eaters present were siblings Alecto and Amycus Carrow, Yaxley, Thorfinn Rowle, Gibbon, Fenrir Greyback, and Bellatrix Lestrange. Draco Malfoy later became a Death Eater and was branded with the Dark Mark in 1996. Bill Weasley was attacked by Fenrir Greyback and received scars on his face but lived without becoming a werewolf because Greyback was not fully transformed at the time of the attack. However, Bill sustained minimal lycanthropic symptoms, including a taste for raw meat. On the Death Eaters' side, the only death was that of Gibbon, killed by a stray Killing Curse

Plottings and tactics
"Not content with corrupting and polluting the minds of Wizarding children, last week Professor Burbage wrote an impassioned defence of Mudbloods in the Daily Prophet. Wizards, she says, must accept these thieves of their knowledge and magic. The dwindling of the pure-bloods is, says Professor Burbage, a most desirable circumstances... She would have us all mate with Muggles..."

- Lord Voldemort ridiculing Charity Burbage to his followers before killing her

Now that Dumbledore had been killed, the Death Eaters became even bolder in their campaign of terror against the British wizarding world. Voldemort, with his Death Eaters, planned several courses of action following the successful assassination of Dumbledore. One was the overthrowing of the Ministry of Magic so that Voldemort would have absolute power. Another was capturing Harry Potter and killing him. While Voldemort went on his own personal quests and stayed out of sight of the wizarding community's eye, he worked through others, including Yaxley at the Ministry working in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement and Severus Snape and the Carrows at Hogwarts working as professors.

The meeting place for the Death Eaters was Malfoy Manor. At this place, the Death Eaters would make reports, and the Dark Lord would give them orders. On one occasion, Voldemort heard Yaxley's reports concerning events at the Ministry of Magic, though he was more impressed with Snape's reports regarding the Order of the Phoenix's plans to move Harry Potter. Voldemort also ridiculed Bellatrix Lestrange and the Malfoys for the marriage of Remus Lupin, a known werewolf, to Nymphadora Tonks, a relative of theirs. At this meeting, Charity Burbage, a professor of Muggle Studies at Hogwarts, was murdered by Voldemort and then fed to Nagini. Voldemort also took Lucius Malfoy's wand to fight against Harry Potter, believing his own to be inferior.

Attempt on Harry Potter
"That's him, it's him, it's the real one!"

- Death Eater after Harry Potter cast Expelliarmus, his "trademark" spell

Still opposed by the Order of the Phoenix and Dumbledore's Army, who knew it was not safe to trust the Ministry of Magic, Voldemort knew through Snape that Harry Potter would be moved from the house of his aunt and uncle a few days before his seventeenth birthday, which is when spells protecting him would have broken. The exact details of this move were unknown to the Death Eaters at large, though Snape manipulated Mundungus Fletcher with magic and knew the plans, only telling the Dark Lord enough to display loyalty.

As a congregation of members of the Order of the Phoenix and Dumbledore's Army, including Alastor Moody, Arthur Weasley, Kingsley Shacklebolt, Nymphadora Tonks, Remus Lupin, Rubeus Hagrid, Bill Weasley, Fleur Delacour, Fred and George Weasley, Mundungus Fletcher, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger, along with Harry Potter himself, left the home of the Dursleys, the Death Eaters attacked immediately. They could not tell right away which pair included the real Harry Potter because six of the congregation had used Polyjuice Potion. It was assumed that Harry would be with the strongest members, so Moody and Shacklebolt were attacked most fervently at first.

During the ensuing battle, Snape used Sectumsempra aimed to attack a Death Eater who was aiming to hit Remus Lupin on the back but missed and slashed George Weasley's ear off. Bellatrix Lestrange tried very hard to kill Tonks, but she did not succeed, while Tonks herself managed to injure Rodolphus Lestrange. Alastor Moody was killed by Voldemort himself. However, numerous Death Eaters were injured, and one was supposedly killed.

When Harry Potter used Expelliarmus, which they had come to consider his trademark spell, against Stan Shunpike, who was under the Imperius Curse, the Death Eaters knew the real Harry to be with Hagrid. Voldemort himself was present, flying without the aid of a broomstick, and led the charge against Harry. Despite their attempts to capture the boy, they were thwarted by Harry's spell-work, Hagrid's selfless courage, and finally, when Harry crossed into a protective spell over the home of Ted Tonks. Lucius' wand was snapped by a spell cast by Harry's wand, infuriating Voldemort even more.

The Fall of the Ministry of Magic
"The Ministry has fallen. Scrimgeour is dead. They are coming."

- Kingsley Shacklebolt through his lynx Patronus

On 1 August 1997, the Ministry of Magic was overthrown, and Minister for Magic Rufus Scrimgeour was killed by Death Eaters. Pius Thicknesse was installed in his place, controlled by the Imperius Curse placed on him by Yaxley and effectively Voldemort's thrall, and several Death Eaters became employees of the Ministry. The Death Eaters used the Ministry's resources to eliminate the Order of the Phoenix's defences, attacking the Burrow and other homes of Order members as well as those of some of their allies, such as Ted and Andromeda Tonks. While no one was killed, many were hurt under questioning about the whereabouts of Harry Potter, and all were subsequently put under surveillance.

Under the control of the Death Eaters, the Ministry created the Muggle-Born Registration Commission, an instrument for the humiliation and persecution of Muggle-borns, who were falsely accused of having "stolen" magic and consequently imprisoned in Azkaban. Propaganda against Muggle-borns and Harry Potter was spread; Harry was considered "Undesirable Number One," and there was a 10,000 Galleon reward for his capture. The Taboo curse was also placed upon Voldemort's name as a method of locating anybody who was brave enough to say it.

Headmaster Snape
Attendance at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry became mandatory during the 1997–1998 school year since Voldemort wanted all members of the magical population under his control, as well as a way to weed out Muggle-borns. Students were required to prove blood status, and any Muggle-born children were sent to the Muggle-Born Registration Commission and then to Azkaban.

Severus Snape was appointed Headmaster, though he faced fierce opposition from Minerva McGonagall and other professors, as well as the remaining members of Dumbledore's Army, including Neville Longbottom, Luna Lovegood, and Ginny Weasley. They encouraged rebellion, saved students from detention, and eventually stopped attending classes and took up residence in the Room of Requirement.

The Carrows were also there at the school, with Amycus Carrow teaching Defence Against the Dark Arts, though in reality he taught the Dark Arts. There were many favoured students, such as Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle, who were encouraged to practice the Cruciatus Curse on rule-breakers. His sister, Alecto, took over the now mandatory Muggle Studies, though the course became a brainwashing of the superiority of wizard-kind over Muggles.

Skirmish at Malfoy Manor
"The Dark Lord is coming, Harry Potter! Your death approaches! Now…Cissy, I think we ought to tie these little heroes up again, while Greyback takes care of Miss Mudblood. I am sure the Dark Lord will not begrudge you the girl, Greyback, after what you have done tonight."

- Bellatrix Lestrange

During Harry Potter's time hidden from the Death Eaters, he accidentally said Voldemort's name and thus triggered the Taboo placed upon the name. He, Ron and Hermione were captured by a group of Snatchers led by Fenrir Greyback and brought to Malfoy Manor, where they were confronted by Bellatrix Lestrange and the Malfoys. Before either Lucius or Bellatrix could summon the Dark Lord, Bellatrix spotted Godric Gryffindor's Sword among the trio's possessions and interrogated Hermione using the Cruciatus Curse to find out where they got the item. She lied, claiming it was only a copy, a story Harry convinced the goblin Griphook to support. In the meantime, Dobby the house-elf came and rescued Harry, Ron, Garrick Ollivander, Luna Lovegood, and Dean Thomas from the basement. He, Harry and Ron saved Hermione and Griphook and took various wands from the house's occupants before fleeing; Dobby was killed by Bellatrix in the process.

As punishment for summoning him without successfully holding Potter, Voldemort caused physical harm to all present and forbade them to leave the manor.

Destruction of Voldemort's Horcruxes
Unknown to Voldemort or his Death Eaters, Harry, along with Ron and Hermione, was out seeking the Horcruxes of Voldemort. Regulus Black had already removed Salazar Slytherin's Locket from its hiding place, though he had been unable to destroy it. Albus Dumbledore destroyed Marvolo Gaunt's Ring with Godric Gryffindor's Sword, and Tom Riddle's Diary had been destroyed by Harry in his second year with a basilisk fang. Thanks to Snape's help through his doe Patronus, Ron Weasley was able to find the sword of Gryffindor and destroy the locket Horcrux.

Harry Potter concluded from Bellatrix's behaviour at Malfoy Manor that a Horcrux was in her safe at Gringotts Wizarding Bank. With the help of Griphook, Harry, Ron, and Hermione entered the bank and took Helga Hufflepuff's Cup, escaping on a dragon. The Cup was later destroyed by Hermione Granger using a basilisk fang when she and Ron entered the Chamber of Secrets.

Though the three companions were successful, Voldemort learned from hearing about Harry's venture into the bank that they were seeking his Horcruxes. In panic, he went to the places the Horcruxes were hidden, leaving Hogwarts last, but in the process revealing to Harry Potter that Hogwarts was indeed the last place to go.

Battle of Hogwarts
"If you continue to resist me, you will all die, one by one. I do not wish this to happen. Every drop of magical blood spilled is a loss and a waste... I command my forces to retreat immediately. You have one hour... I speak now, Harry Potter, directly to you... I shall wait for one hour in the Forbidden Forest. If, at the end of that hour, you have not come to me, have not given yourself up, then battle recommences. This time, I shall enter the fray myself, Harry Potter, and I shall find you, and I shall punish every last man, woman, and child who has tried to conceal you from me. One hour."

- Voldemort's ultimatum during the final battle

Voldemort, along with his Death Eaters and other allies, attacked Hogwarts and those defending it in May1998. During this battle, Harry, Hermione, and Ron managed to find the final Horcrux, Rowena Ravenclaw's Diadem, in the Room of Requirement. It was accidentally destroyed by Vincent Crabbe's out of control Fiendfyre curse. In the meantime, Death Eaters and their allies were storming the castle; Fred Weasley died in an explosion, and Remus Lupin and Nymphadora Tonks were killed in duels with Antonin Dolohov and Bellatrix Lestrange, respectively. Voldemort had Nagini kill Severus Snape, believing it would make him the true master of the Elder Wand, and then issued an ultimatum to the other side: Harry turns himself over within an hour, or everyone in Hogwarts will be killed.



It was then revealed to Harry that he himself had accidentally been turned into a Horcrux. He willingly took a Killing Curse from Lord Voldemort in order to destroy it, but because his mother's sacrifice lived on in his blood, the blood Voldemort took in himself in order to regain a body, Harry was not killed. Before Harry tried to sacrifice himself, he warned Neville Longbottom to kill Nagini. Neville retrieved the sword of Gryffindor and beheaded Nagini.

An army of reinforcements stormed the castle, and the Death Eaters were defeated until only Bellatrix Lestrange (killed by Molly Weasley) and Voldemort himself were left. Harry and Voldemort then faced off in one last confrontation. Because Harry was the true master of the Elder Wand, the curse rebounded upon Voldemort, killing the dark wizard once and for all.

Aftermath
With the death of their master and the battle lost, many of the Death Eaters who survived were arrested, while others went into hiding. A few, such as the Malfoys, were pardoned. In fact Lucius had given much information on his former colleagues and helped capture as many as possible. After Voldemort's death, the Dark Marks on the Death Eaters' forearms faded into scars.

Ideology
"Many of our oldest family trees become a little diseased over time. You must prune yours, must you not, to keep it healthy? Cut away those parts that threaten the health of the rest... And in your family, so in the world...we shall cut away the cancer that infects us until only those of the true blood remain..."

- Lord Voldemort on his goals in Malfoy Manor



There are hints in the books that a long-standing dispute had existed in the Wizarding world regarding the relationship between Magic and Muggles, and the status of magically talented people born to Muggle parents. These disputes clearly date back to at least the time of the founding of Hogwarts, as the Sorting Hat described the rift between pureblood-valuing Slytherin and the other three founders, who were enthusiastic to admit any young witch or wizard of talent.

Though there are hints in the Tales of Beedle the Bard and other legends, even Muggle ones, that once upon a time witches, wizards and Muggles were known to each other and interacted. The International Statute of Secrecy was the solution settled upon in the 1600s to end these relationships, preventing misunderstanding, miscommunication, and cruelty by enforcing the hiding of magic and bringing about the obliviation of any Muggle aware of magic. Probably not coincidentally, the Scientific Revolution began in the Muggle world around this time.

But this remained a controversial choice. There were many in the magical world to whom it occurred that, united, the Wizarding community had enough power to openly take control of governments worldwide. For some this was just a means of power or wealth, but to others, such as Dumbledore, who flirted with the idea of a Wizard-led society with Grindelwald in his youth, this was an opportunity to improve the world, to use power responsibly and prevent tragedies based on xenophobia and secrecy like the one that had torn apart his own family.

As for Muggle-born witches and wizards, it seems that their status has been the subject of sometimes violent dispute for centuries. At the time of the books, and perhaps due to the influence of Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, and Hufflepuff long before that, it was considered gross and impolite to openly disparage Muggle-borns or use slurs like 'mudblood'. But clearly, prejudice and belief in the superiority and supremacy of a long-suffering aristocratic class persisted in many corners of the magical community, centered in England around Hogwarts' Slytherin house, just as Slytherin himself had intended. In many ways, this form of racism was delusional just like Nazi white supremacism, relying on a romanticised, imaginary history of Wizarding geneaology, and conveniently ignoring realities such as the partial or total Muggle origins of most witches and wizards, the existence of Squibs, and the lack of real differences in talent between pure-bloods and others. And, like Germany in the time of the Nazis, while most people were not openly prejudiced, only a few were really courageous enough to stand up to it as well. Most government officials were content to ignore the problems of classism in magical society, and many participated without complaint when the new Voldemort-backed regime began to persecute Muggle-borns.

Organization
The Death Eaters were an organization of pure-blood supremacists that coalesced around Voldemort. He found them very useful, as their ranks included Wizarding aristocrats that could accomplish his goals through government and money, and deadly, remorseless thugs of all stripes. But he did not really share their passion for pureblood supremacy. It is hinted in the 4th book that he openly shared his origins with them, and did not try to hide that he saw no shame in his half-blood status, though he held his Muggle parent in contempt. Though he allowed them to establish purification policies when they took over the Ministry of Magic, he busied himself with increasing his own power and stamping out opposition, never bothering to help them with these goals.

"The Death Eaters can't be all pure-blood, there aren't enough pure-blood Wizards left. I expect most of them are half-bloods, pretending to be pure. It's only Muggle-borns they hate..."

- Hermione Granger on the Death Eaters

Death Eaters followed their leader's commands first and foremost, and he treated them ruthlessly, often sending them on impossible missions and punishing them horribly if they failed him, even due to bad luck rather than incompetence. At his command, they worked against Voldemort's opponents, the Order of the Phoenix, through espionage, murder, and battle, as well as infiltrated and undermined the Ministry of Magic. When he needed tasks done to increase his own power, he often sent them if he considered the task trivial enough to not warrant his personal atteniton, such as retrieving the prophecy from the Department of Mysteries and visiting the werewolves and the giants. The Death Eaters' other, more spontaneous activities included Muggle torture and murder for fun, property crime, and plotting the eventual overthrow of the British Muggle government and replacing it with a wizard-dominated system. Upon their success in taking over the Ministry during the Second Wizarding War, they begun a campaign to identify Muggle-born witches and wizards and strip them of their wands, or even imprison or kill them, on the trumped up premise that they must have 'stolen' their magic from a 'real' witch or wizard.

Although some Death Eaters appear to have been fanatically loyal to Voldemort, such as Bellatrix Lestrange and Barty Crouch Jr., many seemed to serve him largely out of fear. As soon as he was defeated in 1981, many immediately renounced their loyalty and did not attempt to find Voldemort in the intervening years. Those who rioted at the 1994 Quidditch World Cup also fled when the Dark Mark was cast. Bill Weasley speculated then that those Death Eaters were “even more frightened than the rest of us to see him come back”. However, most Apparated to his side if they were able to when Voldemort called them upon his return, claiming that they had been loyal all along.

In turn, even though Voldemort valued the services they provided, and spoke as though they were a family, he saw them as no more than dispensable servants. Voldemort was willing to sacrifice even the most loyal of them if it would serve him well, the most prominent example being Severus Snape, who he thought to the end was faithful. Some Death Eaters deluded themselves to thinking that they alone knew and understood Voldemort, or were even close to him, but Voldemort never once desired a friend. Coupled with either disloyalty or constant failures, Voldemort lost faith in some of the once-highly revered servants such as Lucius and Bellatrix. As a sign of distrust-based precaution, the Death Eaters do not have knowledge of all their colleague's identities; Voldemort alone knows who they all are. This was done in order to prevent any traitors from turning all the others in.

"...why did this band of wizards never come to the aid of their master, to whom they swore eternal loyalty?"

- Voldemort stating the obligations that the Death Eaters have sworn to when they sided with him.

Becoming a Death Eater meant a lifetime service to Lord Voldemort. Death Eaters had no opportunity to "hand in their resignation" if the situation looked grim; deserters would be marked for death. Sirius Black thought his younger brother was killed for attempting to quit after being asked to do something hard, even though later this turned out to be the opposite. Igor Karkaroff deserted the Death Eaters after turning many of them over to the Ministry, and even though he went into hiding after his former master was revived, he was eventually caught and killed for his disloyalty. However, Voldemort did forgive the servants who did not attempt to find him but returned when he touched Wormtail's Dark Mark since Snape claimed that, if otherwise, Voldemort would be left with very few followers.

Hierarchy
Voldemort's most senior Death Eaters, most of whom were old chums from Slytherin house or younger Slytherin alumni, mostly pure-bloods, and people highly useful to Voldemort for their wealth, skill, or ruthlessness, were bestowed with the Dark Mark on the inside of their lower left arm. These were his inner circle, those he summoned to his side upon his rebirth in the 4th year, and who sat around his high table at Malfoy Manor. Having been branded with the Dark Mark was a symbol of very high status in Voldemort's social order, but was also something of a dangerous burden, as it allowed the Dark Lord to track, communicate with, and summon his chosen few.

The next level down were allowed to wear Death Eater garments in order to command the respect they engendered, but were not Marked. These seem to included those that Voldemort found useful but did not prefer to associate with, such as the 'half-breed' werewolf Fenrir Greyback.

On the lowest rung was a mass of supportive rabble, loyal to Voldemort but not useful enough to him to deal with him directly. They were given orders and opportunities to commit crimes or advance themselves through the senior Death Eaters. On the same tier were witches and wizards under the Imperius Curse (subtly implied by the author to disproportionately contstitute the weak-willed, like Pius Thicknesse, the stupid, like Stan Shunpike, and the dubiously loyal), and non-humans of different degrees of sentience such as Werewolves, Dementors, Giants, Acromantula, and Blast-Ended Skrewts. These were pressed into service by the Death Eaters, and sentient groups that would have ordinarily remained neutral like the Dementors, Giants, and Werewolves were brought into the fold with false promises that their grievances would be avenged upon victory in battle. This entire mass was mobilized for Voldemort's attack on Hogwarts, though before then, they were only used to maintain the new regime, or else roam uncontrolled, sowing chaos and demoralization as they sought individual gain.

Death Eaters' allies and other affiliations
The Death Eaters seem to have a hierarchy, with Voldemort at the top, followed by top ranking members, who were often his most powerful and trusted Death Eaters. Arguably, his topmost Death Eaters were Severus Snape, Lucius Malfoy (until he lost favour), Bellatrix Lestrange, and Barty Crouch Jr.

Behind the scenes

 * The Death Eaters were originally titled The Knights of Walpurgis. This name seems to be a play on Walpurgis Night, the evening of 30 April when, according to legend, witches and demons gather.
 * Walpurgis Night is the day before the feast day of St. Walpurga on the first of May. May 1st, 1998 was the last full day of Voldemort and the Death Eaters' reign of terror. They were finally destroyed on May 2nd.
 * It is possible that Tom Riddle had formed the Death Eaters under the inspiration of the army of Gellert Grindelwald.
 * The hoods worn by the Death Eaters in their first film appearance bear a resemblance to those worn by the Ku Klux Klan. For later films, the design was changed to one with a full mask and no point on the hood.
 * Despite his allegiance with Lord Voldemort, Fenrir Greyback was not an official Death Eater due to the fact that he was a werewolf. Nonetheless, Voldemort saw Greyback as too valuable an accomplice not to have in his ranks, and allowed him to accompany the group and wear their robes.
 * Narcissa Malfoy was not officially a Death Eater, never having been branded with the Dark Mark, even though she was married to Lucius Malfoy and is the sister of Bellatrix Lestrange, both very high-ranking Death Eaters. However, she was an ally of the Death Eaters, as she may have participated in the tormenting of Muggles the night of the 1994 Quidditch World Cup, relayed information to Voldemort which led to the Battle of the Department of Mysteries and the murder of Sirius Black, sat in on Death Eater meetings (though this may simply have been because they were held in her home at the time, much to her discomfort), and was given the duty of finding out whether or not Harry Potter was truly dead. However, she was not known to have participated in any battles, and she ultimately lied to Voldemort about Harry's death and thus helped bring about his fall.
 * Pius Thicknesse and Stan Shunpike were both dressed as Death Eaters when they fought in the Battle of Hogwarts and Battle of the Seven Potters, respectively. However, both were under the Imperius Curse at the time, and it is unlikely that either was ever an actual Death Eater.
 * Quirinus Quirrell was loyal to Lord Voldemort, but he was not a Death Eater as the organisation was inactive during Voldemort's years of disembodiment.
 * Several Death Eaters with the same last name have been mentioned in the series (e.g. Lestrange, Avery, Mulciber), which suggests that fealty to Voldemort may not end with the person themselves, and extends to their children. It is equally possible, however, that the children have similar ideological views to their parents.
 * Dolores Umbridge was never explicitly mentioned to be a Death Eater; however, she was a sympathiser who committed crimes against Muggle-borns at the Ministry of Magic while it was under Voldemort's control. She also participated in her own punishment for Harry Potter with a cursed quill for his outcry in Defence Against the Dark Arts, permanently carving I must not tell lies on the back of Harry's hand.
 * While the majority of the Death Eaters were males, two explicitly mentioned female Death Eaters were Bellatrix Lestrange and Alecto Carrow. Another unnamed woman was described in the first chapter of the Deathly Hallows, but it was Bellatrix Lestrange.
 * Unlike their fathers, Vincent Crabbe, Gregory Goyle and Theodore Nott do not appear to have ever been official Death Eaters, though Crabbe and Goyle were sympathisers who tried to capture Harry Potter for Voldemort during the Battle of Hogwarts, resulting in the destruction of Ravenclaw's diadem, the death of Crabbe and the ruin of the Room of Requirement.
 * Bellatrix was referred by J. K. Rowling as Voldemort's lieutenant, suggesting that she may be the second-in-command of the Death Eater organisation. Indeed, she has demonstrated great talent in combat and leadership skills and has been, in the past, trusted with many important things by her master. Similarly, Lucius Malfoy and Severus Snape seemed to be lieutenants of Voldemort. Bellatrix and Lucius Malfoy were entrusted with Horcruxes. All three were allowed to give subordinate Death Eater orders. However, Malfoy lost favour with Voldemort shortly before his demise.
 * The Death Eaters do not wear hoods or masks during Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2, but they do sometimes in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince and Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.
 * In Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 there seem to be not several dozens of Death Eaters like in the book, but hundreds. The end of the Battle of Hogwarts had over a hundred standing in the courtyard. It may be that some of them were imperiused wizards but when the battle resumed, a quarter of the Death Eaters fled, including the Malfoy family.

Appearances

 * Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
 * Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (film)
 * Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
 * Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
 * Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (film)
 * 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)
 * Harry Potter: A Pop-Up Book
 * Harry Potter Prequel
 * LEGO Harry Potter: Building the Magical World
 * LEGO Harry Potter: Characters of the Magical World
 * LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1-4
 * LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7
 * Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Motorbike Escape
 * Harry Potter LEGO Sets
 * Harry Potter for Kinect

Notes and references
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