The Unforgivable Curses

The Unforgivable Curses are three of the most powerful and sinister spells known to the wizarding world. They are tools of the Dark Arts and were first classified as “Unforgivable” by the Ministry of Magic in 1717. The use of any one of these three curses on a fellow human being is punishable by a life sentence in Azkaban. These curses are so named because of their malevolent nature: one kills, one tortures, and one strips the victim of their free will. The three curses are the Killing Curse (Avada Kedavra), the Cruciatus Curse (Crucio), and the Imperius Curse (Imperio). During the Second Wizarding War, under the Ministry of Magic controlled by Lord Voldemort, the Unforgivable Curses were made legal and were even taught to students at Hogwarts.

• Incantation: Avada Kedavra
• Light: A flash of blinding green light.
• Effect: Causes instantaneous and painless death. It leaves no mark of physical injury on the victim's body.

The Killing Curse is considered the most terrible of the three. It is unblockable by any known shielding spell, and the only known counter-effect is the powerful magic of Sacrificial Protection, which Lily Potter invoked to save her infant son, Harry Potter, from Lord Voldemort. This act caused the curse to rebound, destroying Voldemort's body. A wand that shares a core with the attacker's wand can also intercept the curse through the effect of Priori Incantatem. Known Uses and Users:

• Lord Voldemort used this curse as his signature spell, murdering countless individuals including James Potter, Lily Potter, Bertha Jorkins, Frank Bryce, and Cedric Diggory. He also used it to kill Harry Potter in the Forbidden Forest, though Harry survived due to Voldemort's Horcrux being destroyed instead.
• Barty Crouch Jr., while disguised as Alastor Moody, demonstrated the curse on a spider during a Defence Against the Dark Arts lesson.
• Severus Snape used the curse to kill Albus Dumbledore atop the Astronomy Tower, fulfilling a prearranged pact between them.

• Incantation: Crucio
• Light: Often a flash of red light (film), though no specific color is consistently described in the novels.
• Effect: Inflicts excruciating and unbearable physical pain upon the victim. It does not cause physical harm, but prolonged exposure can lead to irreversible mental damage and insanity.

To cast the Cruciatus Curse effectively, the caster must possess a genuine sadistic desire to cause pain for its own sake. A mere feeling of anger or a desire for retribution is insufficient to produce the curse's full, agonizing effect, as Harry Potter discovered when he attempted to use it on Bellatrix Lestrange. Known Uses and Users:

• Bellatrix Lestrange, Rodolphus Lestrange, Rabastan Lestrange, and Barty Crouch Jr. used this curse to torture the Aurors Frank Longbottom and Alice Longbottom into insanity.
• Lord Voldemort frequently used the curse to punish his Death Eaters and torture his enemies, including Harry Potter in the Little Hangleton graveyard.
• Harry Potter successfully cast the curse on Amycus Carrow in the Ravenclaw Tower after Carrow spat in Professor Minerva McGonagall's face.

• Incantation: Imperio
• Light: No specific light color is described in the novels.
• Effect: Places the victim in a dreamlike, blissful state, stripping them of free will and placing them under the complete control of the caster.

The Imperius Curse is the most insidious of the three, as it can be used to force innocent people to commit terrible acts against their will. It is possible, though exceptionally difficult, for a person with strong willpower to learn to resist and eventually throw off the effects of the curse. Harry Potter was taught how to do this by Barty Crouch Jr. (disguised as Alastor Moody) and became highly skilled at resisting it. Known Uses and Users:

• During the First Wizarding War, many witches and wizards claimed they had acted under the Imperius Curse to escape punishment after Voldemort's fall.
• Barty Crouch Jr. kept his father, Barty Crouch Sr., under the curse for months and also used it to control Viktor Krum during the Triwizard Tournament.
• Harry Potter used the Imperius Curse on a Gringotts goblin named Bogrod and a Death Eater, Travers, during the raid on Bellatrix Lestrange's vault.

The use of any Unforgivable Curse on a human carries an automatic life sentence in Azkaban. This law is one of the most severe in the wizarding world's legal code. There have been historical exceptions to this rule. During the First Wizarding War, the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, Barty Crouch Sr., authorized Aurors to use the Unforgivable Curses against Death Eaters in an effort to combat their power. In 1997, when Lord Voldemort took control of the Ministry of Magic, the curses were effectively legalized. They were openly practiced and taught at Hogwarts by the Death Eater professors Amycus Carrow and Alecto Carrow, who encouraged students to practice them on fellow students in detention.

• Etymology:
  • Avada Kedavra: J.K. Rowling confirmed this is derived from an ancient Aramaic phrase meaning “let the thing be destroyed,” which she originally meant in reference to an illness. It is a corruption of the well-known phrase “Abra Kadabra” (J.K. Rowling interview).
  • Crucio: This is the Latin word for “I torture” or “I crucify.”
  • Imperio: This is the Latin word for “I command,” “I rule,” or “I govern.” The root, imperium, means “command” or “power.”
• In the film adaptations, each curse is given a more distinct visual and auditory effect. The Killing Curse is consistently a jet of green light accompanied by a rushing sound. The Cruciatus Curse is often depicted as a bolt of red or white-blue energy that causes the victim to scream and convulse violently (film). The Imperius Curse is more subtle, often showing a glazed-over look in the victim's eyes (film).