Harry Potter’s Biggest Lily & James Mistake Proved Voldemort Was Right To Avoid One Spell To Hide His Horcruxes
In Harry Potter, Lord Voldemort uses several forms of magic to hide his Horcruxes except for the rather obvious secret-keeping spell, the Fidelius Charm, likely because this is what ultimately led to the Potters’ demise. Although the Harry Potter series mainly focuses on the titular character and his adventures at Hogwarts, a major part of his story actually takes place in the past, just after he was born. Namely, Harry is deeply affected by the deaths of his parents, which were caused by Voldemort, but more specifically, the betrayal of their friend, Peter Pettigrew.
The way the Fidelius Charm works is that the spellcaster chooses one person to be their secret-keeper. Once the spell has taken hold, the secret becomes undetectable inside the secret-keeper, keeping it safe from prying eyes. The secret can only be revealed by the secret-keeper themselves, if they choose to do so. When James and Lily Potter were forced to go into hiding to protect Harry, they chose Pettigrew to be their secret-keeper because they felt he was a less obvious choice compared to Sirius Black or Remus Lupin. However, this decision ended up leading to their tragic fates.
Lily & James Using Peter Pettigrew As Their Secret Keeper Got Them Killed In Harry Potter
Why Pettigrew Was A Bad Choice
At first glance, the Fidelius Charm seems to be a smart way to keep a secret from the world. By choosing someone you trust, and confirming their fidelity with a spell, it seems like your secret will be totally safe. In the eyes of James and Lily, they were doing just that: choosing a loyal friend to keep this life-altering secret. However, the major caveat that comes along with the Fidelius Charm is that you have to truly trust your secret-keeper. Unfortunately, as Pettigrew proved, betrayal is the problem that absolutely ruins the Fidelius Charm.
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Pettigrew was definitely a poor choice for a secret-keeper, even before he revealed his traitorous ways. Pettigrew was always the odd man out among the Marauders, never truly measuring up to Sirius, James, or Remus. His true character could be inferred by his Animagus form: a rat. Even apart from that, James and Lily should have picked someone more separate from them. Voldemort would likely have suspected anyone from the Order of the Phoenix, so choosing a more random or powerful person might have kept the secret more remote, and thus, safer.
Potential Betrayal Is The Reason Voldemort Didn’t Use The Fidelius Charm For His Horcruxes
The Horcruxes Were Far More Interesting Without The Fidelius Charm
The Fidelius Charm could certainly work in some situations, but it makes sense that Voldemort would choose to forego using this spell. As the Potters proved, one small betrayal can completely destroy the safeguards created by the spell, and the consequences can be deadly. Alongside the risk of betrayal, Voldemort never had anyone he trusted enough to even choose as a secret-keeper. Voldemort’s coldness and the fact that he rules with fear made it so that no one in the world would be totally willing to keep his secrets, even bound by magic.
Overall, the Fidelius Charm worked great for James and Lily’s deaths, but didn’t make as much sense for defeating Voldemort.
It is better that Voldemort didn’t use the Fidelius Charm for one of his horcruxes because the quest to find them was so much more interesting without it. Breaking a Fidelius Charm could be boiled down to simply having a conversation with someone, which isn’t very exciting. On the other hand, Harry’s journey of finding and destroying the horcruxes was action-packed and thrilling, giving readers a chance to delve into Voldemort’s mind. Overall, the Fidelius Charm worked great for James and Lily’s deaths, but didn’t make as much sense for defeating Voldemort.
After Seeing What Happened To The Potters, Voldemort Would Never Trust A Secret Keeper
Voldemort Was Betrayed Anyway
One more reason why Voldemort wouldn’t have used the Fidelius Charm is because he broke the Potters’ spell himself. Voldemort was able to get Pettigrew to betray his friends, and in doing this, he showed himself how easy it is to break a Fidelius Charm. After that, it wouldn’t make sense for him to ever use the spell, putting himself at risk. In some ways, Voldemort was smart in his desire to never trust anyone. Though it left him lonely, it made it so that he was rarely reliant on other people and could pull the strings of his schemes.
Of course, that isn’t to say that Voldemort was completely safe from betrayal. As Harry Potter readers know, Voldemort was eventually betrayed by Severus Snape, who had been working as a double agent the entire time. Though Voldemort was able to sniff out Pettigrew’s weakness, he was unable to see the love in Snape that pushed him to protect Harry. So, even without a Fidelius Charm, Voldemort’s isolation eventually led to his downfall at the end of Harry Potter.
- Cast
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Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Tom Felton, Alan Rickman, Matthew Lewis, Bonnie Wright, Evanna Lynch, Maggie Smith, Michael Gambon, Richard Harris, Ralph Fiennes, Helena Bonham Carter, Alfred Enoch, Harry Melling, Gary Oldman, Robert Pattinson, Warwick Davis, Oliver Phelps, James Phelps, David Bradley, David Thewlis, Katie Leung, Jason Isaacs, Imelda Staunton, David Tennant, Jamie Campbell Bower, Timothy Spall, Robbie Coltrane, Eddie Redmayne, Jude Law, Katherine Waterston, Ezra Miller, Dan Fogler, Alison Sudol, Johnny Depp, Mads Mikkelsen
