Quick answer
- Three named deaths in the novel-era story are attributed to Bellatrix Lestrange: Sirius Black (Order of the Phoenix, Ch. 35), Dobby (Deathly Hallows, Ch. 23) and her niece Nymphadora Tonks during the Battle of Hogwarts.
- Only two of those deaths happen on the page. Tonks’s death is never shown; J.K. Rowling confirmed Bellatrix killed her in a 2007 web chat, and the official Harry Potter website says so too.
- She also tortured Frank and Alice Longbottom into insanity, used the Cruciatus Curse on Neville, and tortured Hermione at Malfoy Manor.
- Molly Weasley kills her in Deathly Hallows, Ch. 36, after Bellatrix’s Killing Curse misses Ginny by an inch. In the film she freezes and shatters; in the book she simply falls dead.
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Bellatrix Lestrange kills three named characters in the books: her cousin Sirius Black, the house-elf Dobby, and her niece Nymphadora Tonks. She also tortured Neville’s parents into permanent insanity, cursed Neville himself, and tortured Hermione. Molly Weasley finally kills her at the Battle of Hogwarts.
This guide lists selected fights and related events involving Bellatrix, in book order with chapter numbers, and marks where the films changed what happens. Spoilers cover all seven books and all eight films, plus one detail from Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. Chapter numbers are the same in the UK and US editions.
Who did Bellatrix kill?
| Victim | How (book) | Where in the book | What the film changed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sirius Black | An unnamed spell, “the second jet of light”, hits his chest and he falls through the veil | Order of the Phoenix, Ch. 35 | She casts the Killing Curse, Avada Kedavra |
| Dobby | The silver knife she throws as he Disapparates hits him in the chest | Deathly Hallows, Ch. 23 | Same outcome |
| Nymphadora Tonks | Off-page during the Battle of Hogwarts; her body appears in the Great Hall | Deathly Hallows, Ch. 33 (body) | Also off-screen |
Tonks is the only one of the three whose death we never see. The books never say who killed her. J.K. Rowling answered that in her web chat of 30 July 2007, and the official Harry Potter website repeats it: Andromeda’s “own sister, Bellatrix, murdered her daughter Nymphadora Tonks.”
She came close to a fourth. In the final battle her Killing Curse misses Ginny Weasley “by an inch” (Deathly Hallows, Ch. 36), and that is the moment Molly steps in.
Everyone else she hurt
| Person | What she did | Book |
|---|---|---|
| Frank and Alice Longbottom | Cruciatus Curse until they lost their minds | Goblet of Fire, Ch. 30 (trial seen in the Pensieve) |
| Neville Longbottom | Cruciatus Curse in the Death Chamber, to force Harry to hand over the prophecy | Order of the Phoenix, Ch. 35 |
| Nymphadora Tonks | Blasted her down the Death Chamber steps, unconscious | Order of the Phoenix, Ch. 35 |
| Kingsley Shacklebolt | Defeated him after Sirius fell | Order of the Phoenix, Ch. 35 |
| Hermione Granger | Cruciatus Curse and a knife at her throat | Deathly Hallows, Ch. 23 |
Neville’s family is the clearest thread. Bellatrix tortured his parents, then tortured him with the same curse fifteen years later.
Bellatrix’s fights and related events in order (book vs film)
The “Film” column says whether the scene plays out the same way on screen. “—” means the film has no clear equivalent.
| When | What happened | Book | Film |
|---|---|---|---|
| After Voldemort’s fall, 1981 | Tortures Frank and Alice Longbottom → life in Azkaban | GoF Ch. 30 | Not shown; she is absent from Goblet of Fire |
| January 1996 | Mass breakout from Azkaban → escapes with nine others | OotP Ch. 25 | Shown |
| Department of Mysteries | Cruciatus Curse on Neville → stopped when the Order arrives | OotP Ch. 35 | Changed: she only threatens him, wand in his ear |
| Department of Mysteries | Duels Tonks, then Kingsley → beats both | OotP Ch. 35 | — |
| Department of Mysteries | Duels Sirius → Sirius falls through the veil | OotP Ch. 35 | Changed: Killing Curse |
| Ministry Atrium | Harry’s Cruciatus Curse → barely hurts her; leaves with Voldemort | OotP Ch. 36 | Changed: she flees by fireplace on her own |
| July 1996, Spinner’s End | Seals Snape’s Unbreakable Vow → Snape swears to protect Draco | HBP Ch. 2 | Shown |
| Christmas | Burns down the Burrow → Burrow destroyed | Not in the book | Film only |
| Night of Dumbledore’s death | Raid on Hogwarts and the Astronomy Tower → present when Dumbledore dies | Not in the book | Film only |
| Battle of the Seven Potters | Chases Tonks and Ron → Tonks escapes, Rodolphus injured | DH Ch. 4–5 | — |
| Malfoy Manor | Tortures Hermione → Hermione lies about the sword | DH Ch. 23 | Changed: she carves “Mudblood” into her arm |
| Malfoy Manor | Throws a knife at the escaping group → Dobby dies at Shell Cottage | DH Ch. 23 | Shown |
| Battle of Hogwarts | Kills Tonks → off-page | DH Ch. 33 (body) | Off-screen |
| Battle of Hogwarts | Fights Hermione, Ginny and Luna at once → her Killing Curse misses Ginny | DH Ch. 36 | Changed: only Ginny, who blocks a blue spell |
| Battle of Hogwarts | Duel with Molly Weasley → Bellatrix dies | DH Ch. 36 | Changed: she freezes and shatters |
The table has 15 selected events, including a prison escape and the Unbreakable Vow as well as combat. Two rows are film-only additions. Tonks’s off-page death records an outcome, not a filmed duel or a scene played out identically in both versions.
How did Bellatrix kill Sirius?
In the book, Sirius is laughing at her as he dodges. “Come on, you can do better than that!” he says, and then “the second jet of light hit him squarely on the chest” (Order of the Phoenix, Ch. 35). He falls backward through the veil in the Death Chamber and does not come back.
The book never names that spell or says it was the Killing Curse. All we know is that it struck him and he fell through the archway.
The 2007 film removes the doubt. Bellatrix says Avada Kedavra and the curse kills Sirius before he falls into the veil. The film also skips the long duel: in the book they had been fighting for some time, and Dumbledore had already arrived in the chamber.
Afterwards, Harry chases her up to the Atrium and hits her with the Cruciatus Curse. It only knocks her over. She tells him he has to really mean it, that “righteous anger” is not enough (Order of the Phoenix, Ch. 36). In the book, Voldemort grabs her and Disapparates after his duel with Dumbledore, making her the only Death Eater from the battle who is not caught. In the film she escapes through a Ministry fireplace before that duel.
Malfoy Manor: Hermione and Dobby
When Snatchers bring Harry, Ron and Hermione to Malfoy Manor, Bellatrix sees the Sword of Gryffindor and panics. She believes it is in her Gringotts vault. She stuns three of the Snatchers, forces Greyback to his knees, and keeps Hermione upstairs for questioning (Deathly Hallows, Ch. 23).
In the book she uses the Cruciatus Curse and threatens Hermione with a knife. In Deathly Hallows – Part 1 she also carves “Mudblood” into Hermione’s arm, which never happens in the book.
Her panic is a clue. Harry realises something else must be hidden in the Lestrange vault, and it turns out to be Hufflepuff’s Cup, one of Voldemort’s Horcruxes (Deathly Hallows, Ch. 26).
Dobby drops a chandelier to free Hermione, and as he Disapparates with Harry and Griphook, Bellatrix throws her silver knife. It is carried along with them and lodges in Dobby’s chest. He dies at Shell Cottage. Book and film tell this part the same way.
She also loses her wand in the fight. Ollivander later identifies it for Harry: walnut, dragon heartstring, 12¾ inches, unyielding (Deathly Hallows, Ch. 24).
Did Bellatrix kill Tonks?
Yes, but you will not find it in the text. In Deathly Hallows, Tonks and Lupin simply appear among the dead in the Great Hall (Ch. 33). Rowling later confirmed that Bellatrix killed Tonks and Dolohov killed Lupin.
The books set it up for a long time. Bellatrix knocks Tonks out at the Ministry (Order of the Phoenix, Ch. 35). At the Death Eater meeting in Deathly Hallows, Ch. 1, Voldemort mocks Bellatrix over her niece’s marriage to a werewolf and tells her to “prune” her family tree. During the escape from Privet Drive she chases Tonks and Ron through the air, and Tonks says afterward that Bellatrix “tried very hard to kill me” (Ch. 5).
How does Bellatrix die?
In the last part of the Battle of Hogwarts, Bellatrix is the last Death Eater still fighting besides Voldemort. She is holding off Hermione, Ginny and Luna at once when her Killing Curse misses Ginny by an inch (Deathly Hallows, Ch. 36).
Molly Weasley pushes past Harry, shouting “NOT MY DAUGHTER, YOU BITCH!”, and tells the girls to stand aside. The duel is so fierce that the floor around them grows hot and cracks. Bellatrix laughs and taunts Molly about Fred’s death. Then Molly’s curse passes under her arm and hits her in the chest, directly over the heart. Bellatrix falls dead and Voldemort screams.
Rowling has said she always planned for Molly to be the one to kill Bellatrix, to set Molly’s love for her family against Bellatrix’s obsessive love for Voldemort.
Deathly Hallows – Part 2 changes the details. Bellatrix’s spell at Ginny is blue rather than a Killing Curse, and Ginny blocks it. Hermione and Luna are not part of the fight. The duel moves on top of a house table, and Molly’s spell freezes Bellatrix before a second one shatters her. Harry and Voldemort are elsewhere and do not see it.
Why were so many of her victims family?
Bellatrix was the eldest of the three Black sisters; all three were in Slytherin. Narcissa married Lucius Malfoy. Andromeda married the Muggle-born Ted Tonks and was disowned.
That makes Sirius her cousin, Tonks her niece and Draco her nephew. She killed the first two and taught Occlumency to the third (Half-Blood Prince, Ch. 15). The official Harry Potter website calls her devotion to Voldemort “a one-sided, consuming love.”
The Cursed Child (2016) adds one more family tie: Delphini, the daughter of Bellatrix and Voldemort, who says she was born at Malfoy Manor before the Battle of Hogwarts.
FAQ
Who did Bellatrix Lestrange kill?
Three named characters: Sirius Black (Order of the Phoenix, Chapter 35), Dobby (Deathly Hallows, Chapter 23) and Nymphadora Tonks during the Battle of Hogwarts. Tonks’s death happens off the page and was confirmed by J.K. Rowling.
Did Bellatrix use the Killing Curse on Sirius?
The book does not identify the spell. Sirius is hit by an unnamed “second jet of light” and falls through the veil. The film explicitly has Bellatrix cast Avada Kedavra.
Who kills Bellatrix?
Molly Weasley, in Deathly Hallows, Chapter 36, after Bellatrix’s Killing Curse narrowly misses Ginny. In the book her curse hits Bellatrix in the chest; in the film Bellatrix freezes and shatters.
Why did Bellatrix torture Neville’s parents?
After Voldemort’s fall in 1981, she, Rodolphus, Rabastan Lestrange and Barty Crouch Jr. tortured the Aurors Frank and Alice Longbottom for information about where Voldemort was. All four were sentenced to life in Azkaban (Goblet of Fire, Chapter 30).
Is Bellatrix related to Sirius and Tonks?
Yes. Sirius is her cousin and Tonks is her niece, the daughter of her sister Andromeda. Draco Malfoy, Narcissa’s son, is her nephew.
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This guide is the English edition of a BuzzBeaver article originally written in Japanese: 日本語版を読む. Facts are checked against the official manga and anime; fan theories are labeled as such.