The Lestrange Family

The Lestrange family is an ancient, wealthy, and fanatically pure-blood wizarding family, and one of the “Sacred Twenty-Eight”. In the era of the First Wizarding War and Second Wizarding War, the name Lestrange became synonymous with unquestioning and sadistic loyalty to Lord Voldemort. The family's most notorious members—brothers Rodolphus Lestrange and Rabastan Lestrange, along with Rodolphus's wife, Bellatrix Lestrange (née Black)—were among Voldemort's most trusted and cruelest Death Eaters. Their actions, particularly the torture of Frank and Alice Longbottom, cemented their reputation as some of the most feared dark wizards of their time.

As one of the oldest Pure-blood families, the Lestranges held a deep-seated belief in blood purity and a profound disdain for Muggles, Muggle-borns, and any who associated with them. Their inclusion in the Pure-Blood Directory of the 1930s as one of the “Sacred Twenty-Eight” confirms their long-standing status within magical high society. Their considerable wealth was stored in a high-security vault deep within Gringotts Wizarding Bank, a testament to their ancient lineage and power. The family was interconnected with other prominent pure-blood lines, most notably the Blacks through the marriage of Bellatrix Black to Rodolphus Lestrange, which also linked them to the Malfoys and the Tonks bloodline. Their ideology aligned perfectly with that of Lord Voldemort, making them natural and eager followers during his rise to power.

• Rodolphus Lestrange: The husband of Bellatrix Lestrange. He was a Death Eater during the First Wizarding War and was imprisoned in Azkaban alongside his wife and brother for using the Cruciatus Curse on the Longbottoms. He escaped during the mass break-out of 1996 and fought in several major battles of the Second Wizarding War, including the Battle of the Department of Mysteries and the Battle of the Seven Potters. He also fought at the Battle of Hogwarts, where he was likely either captured or killed.
• Rabastan Lestrange: The brother of Rodolphus. Like his brother, he was a loyal Death Eater who participated in the torture of the Longbottoms and was subsequently sentenced to life in Azkaban. He escaped with his brother and Bellatrix in 1996 and fought in the Battle of the Department of Mysteries, where he was injured by Hermione Granger and later apprehended and returned to prison. His activities after this point are unknown.
• Bellatrix Lestrange (née Black): The wife of Rodolphus and perhaps the most infamous member of the family by marriage. She was Lord Voldemort's most fervent and dangerous lieutenant. A powerful and sadistic witch, she was responsible for countless atrocities, including the murder of her cousin Sirius Black and the house-elf Dobby, as well as the torture of Hermione Granger and the Longbottoms. She was killed in a duel by Molly Weasley during the final stages of the Battle of Hogwarts.

• Lestrange Vault: Located deep within Gringotts, the vault was protected by ancient magic and a dragon. It was used by Lord Voldemort to hide one of his Horcruxes, the Cup of Helga Hufflepuff. The treasure within was further protected by the Gemino Curse and the Flagrante Curse, causing objects to multiply and become searing hot upon being touched by anyone but the true owner. Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger broke into the vault in 1998 to retrieve the Horcrux.

The name “Lestrange” is derived from the French l'étrange, meaning “the strange one.” This likely alludes to the family's fanatical, cruel, and erratic behavior, particularly exemplified by Bellatrix Lestrange.

• In the play Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, it is revealed that Bellatrix Lestrange gave birth to Lord Voldemort's daughter, Delphini, before the Battle of Hogwarts.
• The Fantastic Beasts film series introduces other members of the family, most notably Leta Lestrange. According to the family tree revealed in The Crimes of Grindelwald, the Lestrange family has a complex and dark history, including a prophecy and a tradition of extreme cruelty. This material establishes Leta as coming from a different, though related, branch of the family than Rodolphus and Rabastan. (Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, film).