Why did Voldemort kill Harry’s parents?

+96 votes
asked Jan 23, 2018 in Entertainment by Yonique (1,000 points)
edited Jul 15, 2019
I was discussing Harry Potter with some friends and one of them asked me why Voldemort killed Harry’s parents. I can’t remember why and my sister borrowed my book, so I can’t check it for the answer. Does anyone know the reason?

3 Answers

+22 votes
answered Apr 1, 2019 by Ira (740 points)
edited Apr 28, 2019
Voldemort killed Lily and James Potter because he feared that their son Harry would someday become a threat to his power. He got this idea because Severus Snape told him of the Prophecy about the Dark Lord and either Harry or Neville. The prophecy stated that the one who would destroy the Dark Lord would be a boy born in the month of July whose parents had defied the Dark Lord three times. This description fit both the Potters and the Longbottoms, and both Harry and Neville were born in July. What Voldemort missed was that he would mark the child as his equal and he would grow to have greater power. Voldemort ended up choosing Harry, who was a half-blood like him, rather than Neville Longbottom, a pure blooded wizard. Dumbledore informed Harry of the power that he had over Voldemort: the ability to love. Voldemort realized it was his weakness entirely too late.
+9 votes
answered Jun 13, 2019 by qwdsf (1,010 points)
edited Jul 7, 2019
Killing Harry’s parents wasn’t Voldemort’s goal. He wanted to kill Harry because there was a prophecy that predicted that Harry Potter would someday kill him. Harry’s parents died because they tried to protect him from Voldemort, so he killed them to get them out of the way.
0 votes
answered Jan 19, 2019 by Lettie (530 points)
edited Aug 14, 2019
Why did Voldemort kill Harry’s parents? Voldemort killed Harry’s parents because he wanted to kill Harry and they tried to protect him. He wanted to kill Harry because Hogwarts divination professor Sybil Trelawney prophesized that a boy born at the end of July would defeat Voldemort. Voldemort knew it would either be Harry Potter or Neville Longbottom, but he decided it was Harry. When Dumbledore tells Harry he has a power that Voldemort lacks, he means the capacity to love. Most people have this ability, but Harry’s is strengthened by his parents’ sacrifice to save him. This is mentioned somewhere in the book series, but I can’t recall the exact words.
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