Welcome to Harry Potter Theory. Today, we're discussing the history of one of the most infamous spells known to the wizarding world—the Cruciatus Curse and its incantation “crucio”.
For those of you who may not know, the Cruciatus Curse is one of three of the wizarding world’s most formidable spells, which have come to be known as the “Unforgivable Curses”. Alongside the Cruciatus Curse, this trio of Unforgivable Curses is made up of the Killing Curse and the Imperius Curse, with the the most fatal curse—and therefore likely the most well known—being the Killing Curse, which is also known by its incantation, “Avada Kedavra”. Outside of the Unforgivable Curses, ”Avada Kedavra” may also be the most well-known spell in the entire Harry Potter universe due to its horrifyingly memorable usage throughout the series. After all, this is the incantation used by Lord Voldemort to murder Harry’s parents, James and Lily Potter. It’s also the spell used in the Dark Lord’s attempt to kill Harry himself—not once, but twice—the first of these failed murder attempts occuring when the Killing Curse infamously bounced back at Voldemort, resulting in the demise of his first reign of power in the 1970s and early 80s. The Avada Kedavra Curse once again went awry when Voldemort tried to kill Harry with it during the Battle of Hogwarts almost two decades later. The Imperius Curse, on the other hand, is arguably the least dark and ominous spell of the three. Cast by uttering the incantation “imperio", this curse is used to essentially possess another person and control their actions. So, while certainly not a GOOD spell, it doesn’t cause physical harm in the same way the other two do—which I guess makes it less terrifying, and therefore less memorable.
This, of course, brings us to the third and final spell of the Unforgivable Curses, and the one that we’ll be focusing on today—the Cruciatus Curse. Also known as simply the Torture Curse, the Cruciatus Curse is used by saying the word “crucio”. Within the wizarding world it has a reputation as one of the darkest spells, as it causes unimaginable pain to its victim. In fact, the suffering endured at the hand of this curse is so intense and powerful that it typically results in the victim becoming permanently afflicted mentally or physically if they are subjected to it for prolonged periods of time.
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