In Harry Potter, the Patronus is a powerful spell. But it isn’t an easy spell to cast, in fact, some of the most advanced wizards out there would struggle with the spell. The spell itself requires the caster to visualize their happiest memory – and hold on very tightly to it. This sounds simple, but in practice has been proven to be quite difficult. The whole point of a Patronus, of course, is to ward off Dementors. Dementors suck all the life and happiness out of a person, so the longer it takes to cast a Patronus, the harder it will become. Though there is an interesting secondary use for a Patronus – a messenger.
A Patronus is unique to the caster and is very personal. Some witches and wizards will never have a corporeal Patronus (such as Lupin and Neville) while others will have theirs appear as an animal. Incidentally, a Patronus will take on the same form as the caster’s Animagus. The form a Patronus takes doesn’t automatically equal to power (though we can probably assume that a non-corporeal Patronus isn’t quite as strong as one with form). But these forms are iconic and worth talking about.
Updated June 4th, 2020 by George Chrysostomou: The wizarding world continues to amaze audiences around the world. With HBO Max featuring the many Harry Potter films, we’re revisiting one of the most famous magical creations of any wizard or which: the Patronus.
15 Luna Lovegood’s Hare
Luna Lovegood is an incredibly talented witch. She’s had some real darkness in her life (including the death of her mother) and yet it’s incredibly easy for her to access so many happy memories.
This fact, along with her skills as a magic wielder, results in her Patronus being more powerful than most. The free spirited hare is a perfect reflection of the character, who is both close with nature and easily underestimated.
14 Arthur Weasley’s Weasel
Arthur Weasley isn’t the best when it comes to casting spells. Indeed, he has a position with the Ministry of Magic which showcases some skill, although his expertise is with the muggle world rather than with magic itself.
The weasel is often seen as sly and cunning, which doesn’t necessarily reflect Arthur. However, not only does the Weasley name find its origin with the weasel, but it’s also an animal that J.K. Rowling has a great fondness for and is an undervalued creature, much like the character.
13 Ginny Weasley’s Horse
Ginny Weasley is tough and determined. She’s much like a horse in that she can be very calm and gentle, but also fearless and fierce in battle. Her own magical abilities mean that her Patronus is far more powerful than many of her peers.
Ginny has proven she can face off against great dark magic wielders such as Bellatrix Lestrange, demonstrating how much magic is fed into her Patronus. Many of her happy memories will come from a supporting and caring family, much like her father’s Patronus.
12 Ron Weasley’s Jack Russell Terrier
Ron’s Patronus didn’t get too many chances to stand out, though it was useful at times, of course. But the fact that it had a corporeal form says enough about it.
11 Hermione Granger’s Otter
10 Nymphadora Tonk’s Wolf
Being an Auror, and a member of the Order of the Phoenix, Tonks has had to rely on her Patronus on more than one occasion. Her Patronus likely got the most use during Harry Potter and the Order of Phoenix – where she was helping to guard Hogwarts. Her Patronus pulled double duty here, both protecting and sending messages. And frankly, there’s no way that Mad-Eye Moody would have allowed her out into the field had she not been capable of defending herself.
9 McGonagall’s Cat
McGonagall’s cat Patronus hasn’t had too many opportunities to shine, but we know that it’s a strong one. Most of us would be curious to know what happy memory she’s thinking of when she casts the spell.
8 Aberforth Dumbledore’s Goat
Given his family and his ability to have stayed alive this long, it goes without saying that his Patronus is a strong one. The fact that he lived in Hogsmeade during the Death Eater and Dementor prowls says it all.
7 Dolores Umbridge’s Cat
Though we shudder to think about what happy memory she’s thinking of in order to cast such a powerful spell. We have a feeling that her idea of happy and our idea of happy is very different…or at least we sincerely hope so.
6 Kingsley Shacklebolt’s Lynx
We have no doubt that Kingsley’s Patronus would have been capable of facing off against several Dementor as well. It fits in well with Kingsley’s attributes, for one thing.
5 Snape’s Doe
Snape was able to use his doe Patronus for a very important task. Ironically, it once again wasn’t one that required fighting off Dementors. But it did help Harry win the fight against Voldemort, which is arguably more important. Snape used his Patronus to tell a different form of a message – a nonverbal one. He had his doe guide Harry to the place where the sword of Gryffindor was hidden (by Snape). This finesse is impressive, especially when one considers the fact that Snape had to be out of sight for the entire scene.
4 *Lily Potter’s Doe
Lily Potter’s magic all comes down to love and affection. Her greatest strength is her heart. This is the only way that Harry was protected from a killing curse, because of the love of his mother.
As can be imagined therefore, he Patronus is incredibly powerful because it is created with all of that love and happiness. The doe is a gentle creature and inherently linked to her husbands Patronus. The doe is also a surprising symbol of strength but brings about imagery of family.
3 *James Potter’s Stag
James’ son inherited the stag as a Potronus, although perhaps a far more powerful one. But it cannot be denied that James was also an incredibly talented wizard who fought the dark lord himself.
The Stag is a more traditional show of power and strength but once again brings about imagery of family. The happy memories creating this stag will be of his wife and son, which makes the Patronus that much more powerful.
2 Harry’s Stag
Harry’s Patronus is impressive for that feat. And frankly, it’s impressive that a boy like Harry had room for happy memories in his life, and had the ability to recall them so strongly.
1 Professor Dumbledore’s Phoenix
Dumbledore is the only named character we know of with a magical creature as his Patronus. It likely has to do with his ties to Fawkes, and possibly even the deep ties his family has had with this special Phoenix. But we’re just guessing there.
Dumbledore’s Patronus was capable of sending off dozens of Dementors at once – all of whom had shown up in hopes of sucking the happiness out of his students. So you can’t really blame the Headmaster for being upset with them.
