Harry Potter Wiki
Register
Advertisement
Harry Potter Wiki

"It was not normal fire; Crabbe had used a curse of which Harry had no knowledge: As they turned a corner the flames chased them as though they were alive, sentient, intent upon killing them. Now the fire was mutating, forming a gigantic pack of fiery beasts: Flaming serpents, Chimaeras, and dragons rose and fell and rose again, and the detritus of centuries on which they were feeding was thrown up in the air into their fanged mouths, tossed high on clawed feet, before being consumed by the inferno."
— Description[src]

Fiendfyre, or the Fiendfyre Curse (Pestis Incendium),[1] was a deadly curse that produced powerful enchanted flames of immense size and heat that were capable of destroying nearly anything and everything in its path. The flames could also take the form of gigantic fiery magical beasts such as serpents, Chimaeras, and dragons that sought out living targets. It required extreme skill and intense concentration to control the flames and the beasts they could become.[2]

This curse was an advanced type of Dark Magic, and it was one of the few known substances capable of destroying Horcruxes.[2]

Description and effects[]

"Fiendfyre — cursed fire — it's one of the substances that destroy Horcruxes, but I would never, ever have dared use it, it's so dangerous."
Hermione on the dangers of Fiendfyre[src]
Fiendfyre

Fiendfyre conjured by Vincent Crabbe during the Battle of Hogwarts, in the Room of Requirement

Fiendfyre was an immensely powerful fire, burning at severely high temperatures. It could not be extinguished by normal or conjured water.[2][3] It was also very difficult for the caster to control,[2] flowing from their wand in a continuous stream of flame. If the caster flicked their wand when the stream of flame was still running from it, a jet of fire would shoot off and take the form of a large beast made of flame that almost seemed to have a mind of its own.[4]

When cast, the fire appeared with a roaring, billowing noise and gave its victims only a split-second's warning to escape, quickly consuming anything in the vicinity of its caster; it was difficult for the caster to control the movement of the abnormally large flames. The flames could take the form of fiery serpents, dragons, and Chimaeras, constantly mutating into other beasts as well as powerful, formless flames that destroy all things around itself at the caster’s wishes. The fire even possessed a sentience of its own, a continuous (though far from latent) desire to burn anything it could.[2] It would pursue any nearby lifeforms and anything that it could destroy, and was even capable of incinerating anything through mere contact.[4]

As Fiendfyre was extremely dangerous and even vaguely sentient, most casters had major difficulty with controlling the fire once it had been unleashed. Vincent Crabbe never learnt how to control the flames, therefore costing him his own life.[2] Casters with greater skill had an easier time controlling the flames, and could direct them to attack their opponents.[5][6] It was unknown if the fire was able to burn off on its own; it could be extinguished, but not with normal water and was hard to extinguish.

Fiendfyre was one of the few substances known with the ability to destroy Horcruxes. Hermione Granger was aware of this, but never considered the use of it against Voldemort's Horcruxes due to the inherently dangerous, uncontrollable nature of the spell.[2]

Known uses[]

Caster(s) Date Notes
Merula Snyde 1988–1989 school year Merula tried to teach Jacob's sibling this curse in Classroom 3C, however she lost the control of the fire until Professor Patricia Rakepick came and immediately extinguished it.[3]
Fiendfyre HM528
Rakepick extinguishing Fiendfyre HM528
Verucca Buckthorn-Snyde 22 June 1991 Verucca conjured Fiendfyre in anger at the Viaduct to attack Peregrine with cursed flames. The flames made him fall off the Viaduct without his wand.[6]
Verucca Buckthorn-Snyde controlling Fiendfyre HM757
Amycus Carrow 1997–1998 school year Harry Potter speculated that Amycus was the one to teach Vincent Crabbe how to summon Fiendfyre, since he was the Dark Arts professor.[2]
Vincent Crabbe 2 May 1998 Crabbe cast it during a skirmish in the Room of Requirement, during the Battle of Hogwarts, while it was transformed into the Room of Hidden Things. He conjured it in an attempt to kill Harry, Hermione and Ron in the room. He died in the ensuing magical inferno, having been unable to extinguish the flames. His use of Fiendfyre also destroyed Ravenclaw's Diadem[2], which was one of Voldemort's Horcruxes.

Known practitioners[]

"Like it hot, scum?"
— Vincent Crabbe having summoned Fiendfyre in the Room of Requirement[src]

Etymology[]

In Latin, pestis means "plague" or "pest". A plague is "a contagious disease that spreads rapidly and kills many people". Incendium means "fire". Together, Pestis Incendium means "fire plague", which alludes to the Fiendfyre Curse's ability to spread rapidly and kill many people if left uncontrolled and/or unchecked.

Behind the scenes[]

Goyle Falls to his Death

Goyle dies in his own Fiendfyre in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2

Appearances[]

Wiki
The Harry Potter Wiki has 45 images related to Fiendfyre.

Notes and references[]

See also[]

Advertisement