Alecto and Amycus Carrow

Alecto and Amycus Carrow were a brother and sister duo of Death Eaters who served Lord Voldemort. They are most significant for their role during the Second Wizarding War, where they were installed as cruel and sadistic professors at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry following its takeover by Voldemort. As Deputy Headmasters under Severus Snape, they enforced a brutal regime, torturing students and teaching the Dark Arts. Their tenure represents the complete corruption of Hogwarts's educational and moral principles under Voldemort's rule.

First Wizarding War The Carrows were known Death Eaters during Lord Voldemort's initial rise to power. After his first defeat, they were among the supporters who managed to evade capture and imprisonment in Azkaban, successfully denying their allegiance or hiding their activities from the Ministry of Magic. Second Wizarding War The Carrows returned to active service upon Voldemort's return. They were part of the group of Death Eaters who infiltrated Hogwarts on the night of Albus Dumbledore's death.

• Battle of the Astronomy Tower: Alecto and Amycus were present at the top of the Astronomy Tower after Draco Malfoy disarmed Dumbledore. Severus Snape admonished Alecto for not being on watch as he had instructed. They witnessed Snape kill Dumbledore and subsequently fled the castle grounds with him and other Death Eaters.
• Professors at Hogwarts: Following Voldemort's successful takeover of the Ministry of Magic in 1997, the Carrows were appointed as professors at Hogwarts to enforce the new regime's ideology. Alecto became the Professor of Muggle Studies, which she transformed into a subject that taught pure-blood supremacy and hatred of Muggles. Amycus became the Professor of Defence Against the Dark Arts, a class he renamed simply Dark Arts, where he openly taught students how to perform curses on fellow pupils who had earned detention. They were also appointed as Deputy Headmasters and were responsible for all student punishment, which they carried out with sadistic pleasure, frequently using the Cruciatus Curse. Their cruelty spurred Neville Longbottom, Ginny Weasley, and Luna Lovegood to revive Dumbledore's Army.
• Battle of Hogwarts: On the eve of the final battle, Lord Voldemort dispatched Alecto to guard the Ravenclaw Tower, anticipating that Harry Potter might go there.
  1. When Alecto saw Harry Potter, she immediately touched her Dark Mark to summon Voldemort.
  2. She was instantly stunned by a spell from Luna Lovegood before she could do anything further.
  3. Amycus, arriving to find his sister incapacitated, planned to blame the Ravenclaw students for summoning Voldemort falsely. In a fit of rage and frustration, he spat in the face of Professor McGonagall.
  4. Enraged by this act of disrespect, Harry Potter revealed himself from under his Invisibility Cloak and successfully cast the Cruciatus Curse on Amycus.
  5. Professor McGonagall then placed Amycus under the Imperius Curse, forcing him to retrieve Alecto's wand and hand it, along with his own, to her. She then magically bound the two siblings together and suspended them in the air, neutralizing them for the remainder of the battle. Their ultimate fate is not explicitly stated in the novels, but it is presumed they were sent to Azkaban for their crimes.

The Carrows are described as having a squat, lumpy appearance. Alecto is depicted as a “stocky little woman” with a similar build to her brother. Amycus has a “lopsided,” pig-like face and a distinctive wheezing laugh. Their personalities were overwhelmingly marked by sadism and cruelty. They took immense pleasure in inflicting pain and terrorizing the students at Hogwarts. Despite their brutality, they were also cowardly, particularly Amycus, whose first thought upon finding his sister stunned was to shift the blame onto students to avoid Voldemort's wrath. They were not known for their intelligence or cunning, relying instead on brute force and intimidation.

• Dark Arts: The Carrows were highly proficient in the Dark Arts. Amycus was skilled enough to be appointed as the Dark Arts professor, and both siblings regularly and effectively used the Unforgivable Curses, particularly the Cruciatus Curse, on students.
• Dueling: As active Death Eaters, they participated in major conflicts like the Battle of the Astronomy Tower and the Battle of Hogwarts. However, they were not exceptional duelists and were defeated with relative ease by skilled opponents like Luna Lovegood, Harry Potter, and Professor McGonagall.
• Wands: The specific details of their wands, such as wood, core, and length, are not mentioned in the novels. Both of their wands were confiscated by Professor McGonagall prior to the final battle.

• Wands: Their primary magical instruments, used to carry out their cruel acts at Hogwarts.
• The Dark Mark: As members of Voldemort's inner circle, both Alecto and Amycus bore the Dark Mark on their left forearms, which they used to communicate with their master.

Alecto and Amycus were siblings who worked as a close-knit, malevolent pair. They were subservient to Lord Voldemort, whom they served out of a combination of shared ideology and immense fear. They served under Severus Snape during his time as Headmaster, though Snape appeared to hold them in low regard. Their relationship with the students and staff of Hogwarts was one of oppressor and victim; they were universally hated and feared, and were particularly antagonistic toward members of Dumbledore's Army like Neville Longbottom.

• Alecto: In Greek mythology, Alecto (Ἀληκτώ, “the unceasing in anger”) was one of the three Furies, or Erinyes. The Furies were fearsome chthonic deities of vengeance who punished men for crimes against the natural order. This name reflects Alecto's role as a cruel and punishing figure.
• Amycus: In Greek mythology, Amycus was a brutal king of the Bebryces who challenged all foreigners to a boxing match he would invariably win, killing his opponents. He was eventually defeated and killed by the Argonaut Polydeuces. This name suits Amycus's brutish, violent, and bullying nature.
• Carrow: The surname may be a reference to “carrion,” the decaying flesh of dead animals, alluding to their vile and predatory characters.

In the film adaptations, Alecto Carrow was portrayed by Suzie Toase and Amycus Carrow was portrayed by Ralph Ineson. Their role in the films is broadly similar to the books, though their final confrontation in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 is altered. In the film, Amycus demands entry to Ravenclaw Tower and is stunned by Luna Lovegood's Patronus Charm. Professor McGonagall then duels and defeats Snape in the Great Hall, after which she animates the school's statues to defend the castle. (film)