It takes a look to be a Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher in Harry Potter. Voldemort himself wanted the job, partly because he wanted to plant a Horcrux in Hogwarts. Professor Dumbledore turned him down, refusing to allow Tom Riddle to turn Hogwarts into his power base, and the dark wizard seems to have been furious. After that, Defense Against the Dark Arts teachers never lasted more than a year, and Dumbledore came to assume it was because of a curse.
By the time Harry started out at Hogwarts, the school had presumably already gotten through well over a dozen different teachers. That perhaps explains why Dumbledore struggled to get any particularly competent wizards for the role; and yet, despite that, some of the teachers proved rather impressive. Here’s every Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, ranked in terms of power.
7
Quirinius Quirrell
<<img src="https://static0.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/professor-quirrell-in-harry-potter-and-the-sorcerer-s-stone.jpg?q=70&fit=crop&w=825&dpr=1" />
</figure>
Professor Quirrell is something of a tragic figure, a half-blood Ravenclaw student whose own ambition led to his downfall. He was originally a Muggle Studies teacher at Hogwarts, and became frustrated because of the way he was mocked; determined to prove himself, he traveled the world seeking any sign of Voldemort. He got far more than he bargained for, and wound up possessed by He Who Must Not Be Named.
Hagrid described Professor Quirrell as having a “brilliant mind,” but a mind doesn’t equal power, and Quirrell never demonstrated any real magical power. By the time Harry met him, he was a broken shell of his former self, even if his mind was still straining against Voldemort. Disturbingly, it’s unclear whether he sought out Voldemort to defeat him or because he hoped to learn dark magic.
6
Gilderoy Lockhart
<<img src="https://static0.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/harry-potter-gilderoy-lockhart-in-chamber-of-secrets.jpg?q=70&fit=crop&w=825&dpr=1" />
</figure>
One of the most famous wizards of his generation, Gilderoy Lockhart was only remarkable in one real sense: he’d mastered a memory-altering charm that he used to secure his fame. Lockhart traveled the world seeking out witches and wizards who’d actually accomplished great things, then rewrote memories so he took the credit for their achievements. That means there’s a vast difference between Lockhart’s reputation and his actual power, explaining why his Defense Against the Dark Arts lessons were so feeble.
But Gilderoy Lockhart wasn’t always a fraud. A moderately-talented Ravenclaw, he saw his natural talent as an excuse not to put in the effort. He probably had the potential to be a real success if he’d applied himself, but that would have been too much like hard work. In the end, Lockhart wound up hoist by his own petard, his mind obliterated by his own backfiring spell.
5
Dolores Umbridge
<<img src="https://static0.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/umbridge_locket.jpg?q=49&fit=crop&w=825&dpr=2" />
</figure>
Like Lockhart, Umbridge is a witch whose reputation is likely greater than her actual power. That’s because she was a senior official in the Ministry of Magic, and took great pains to ensure she had a formidable reputation. For all her claims to greatness, Umbridge was unable to erase some of Fred and George Weasley’s magic from Hogwarts, something other teachers accomplished with apparent ease.
This isn’t to say Umbridge lacked power, though. At the very least, she was competent at Transfiguration and Charms, and she seemed disturbingly confident of her ability to cast the Cruciatus Curse. Umbridge showed no qualms in trying to duel Albus Dumbledore at one point, although he despatched her with predictable ease. Again, Umbridge’s confidence may well have outstripped her actual ability.
4
Amycus Carrow
We don’t really see much of Amycus Carrow, the Dark Arts teacher at Hogwarts while Harry was on the run in The Deathly Hallows. He numbered among Voldemort’s most faithful Death Eaters, and he was a skilled enough duelist to defeat Ginny Weasley even when she was boosted by Felix Felicis. He taught Crabbe and Goyle some pretty complex magic, including Fiendfyre, a destructive spell powerful enough to incinerate an actual Horcrux.
Still, it must be noted that Carrow failed every direct challenge we see on the page. He and his sister were left running for their lives when Professor McGonagall launched an attack on them, and he was easily subdued by Harry himself in a surprise attack. Carrow was certainly a powerful wizard, but he doesn’t really deserve to rank higher in this list.
3
Barty Crouch, Jr.
It’s a little hard to evaluate Barty Crouch, Jr. A member of the Death Eaters, he was certainly proficient in the Cruciatus Curse, and likely mastered the other Unforgivable Curses (he used Avada Kedavra to kill a spider). Crouch’s greatest achievement lay in defeating Mad-Eye Moody in a magical duel, but he had help from Peter Pettigrew here, so we can’t properly assign this as his personal feat.
Crouch infiltrated Hogwarts in the guise of Alastor Moody, and played the role so well he fooled Dumbledore for months. That presumably means Crouch demonstrated many powerful spells, but we only saw a few of them; he may well have manipulated events to avoid displaying his limitations. Crouch was certainly skilled at Transfiguration, as well as Charms; he was able to confuse the Tri-Wizard Cup, giving him a chance to put Harry’s name in it.
2
Remus Lupin
<<img src="https://static0.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/remus-lupin-1.jpg?q=49&fit=crop&w=825&dpr=2" />
</figure>
Dumbledore turned to members of the Order of the Phoenix for Harry’s third year, persuading werewolf Remus Lupin to come out of the shadows. Lupin appears to have been particularly talented; along with three others, he created the Marauder’s Map while just a student (demonstrating skill in Charms). A master in counter-curses and defensive spellwork, Lupin was able to produce a fully corporeal Patronus (the mark of a powerful wizard).
Lupin seems to have been a phenomenal duelist, surviving quite a few encounters with Death Eaters over the years. it certainly helps that he was a master of non-verbal spells, conducting rather complicated magic without bothering to speak on occasion. That makes Lupin’s fate all the more tragic; he died during the Battle of Hogwarts.
1
Severus Snape
<<img src="https://static0.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/snape-looking-sad.jpg?q=70&fit=crop&w=825&dpr=1" />
</figure>
Severus Snape had long coveted the Defense Against the Dark Arts job, but Dumbledore refused to let him have it for years; likely because he valued Snape too much, and feared losing him to Voldemort’s curse. There can be no doubt that Snape was the most powerful wizard to occupy the Defense Against the Dark Arts job during Harry’s time at Hogwarts, not least because of his skill in Occlumency. Snape was actually able to conceal his betrayal from Voldemort himself, acting as a triple-agent for Dumbledore. It’s a staggering feat, and makes him one of the most powerful wizards at Hogwarts.
Snape was proficient at dark magic; he’s said to have known more curses when he arrived at Hogwarts as a student than many seventh-years. Unlike all the other teachers, Snape even understood magic enough to craft his own spells (“Sectumsempra” was a particularly nasty example), and he’d go on to hold his own against Minerva McGonagall in a magical duel in The Deathly Hallows. Incredibly, Snape was even able to redirect McGonagall’s attacks so they neutralized other Death Eaters—without revealing his treachery.
Snape appears to have been Voldemort’s favorite. In the films, every one of the Death Eaters is able to fly unsupported by a broomstick; in the books, Snape is the only one Voldemort taught that particular skill to. It’s reasonable to assume he learned other techniques from Voldemort too, making him an absolute magical powerhouse. Little wonder Snape thought he deserved the Defense Against the Dark Arts job in Harry Potter; he knew his subject well.
Discover more from NAIRAVOICE.COM.NG
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
