Source plot synopsis — includes the ending
The young wizard Harry Potter is about to turn seventeen. While being escorted to the Burrow by members of the Order of the Phoenix, the group is attacked by Death Eaters, who kill "Mad-Eye" Moody and Hedwig, and injure George Weasley. Lord Voldemort attempts to kill Harry but fails.
After the Death Eaters and Lord Voldemort take over the Ministry of Magic, Harry and his friends Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger begin searching for Voldemort's four remaining Horcruxes, which they hope to destroy and thus render him mortal. They learn that the locket Horcrux is in the possession of Dolores Umbridge at the Ministry of Magic. Harry and his friends infiltrate the Ministry and steal the locket from Umbridge, but are unable to destroy it. The locket's Dark magic affects Ron, who abandons Harry and Hermione. In Godric's Hollow, Harry and Hermione are attacked by Voldemort's snake Nagini, but manage to escape. One night, a Patronus guides Harry to a pond containing the Sword of Gryffindor. When he tries to recover it, the locket tightens around his neck, nearly drowning him. Ron returns and saves Harry, then destroys the Horcrux with the sword.
The three friends visit Xenophilius Lovegood, who tells them of the mythical objects known as the Deathly Hallows: the Elder Wand, the Resurrection Stone, and the Cloak of Invisibility. Xenophilius then alerts the Ministry of Magic to the presence of the trio in his home, and Harry and his friends flee. Soon after, they are captured by bounty hunters known as Snatchers, and are imprisoned in Malfoy Manor. Harry and Ron are thrown into the cellar with Dean Thomas, Luna Lovegood, Mr Ollivander, and Griphook the goblin, while the Death Eater Bellatrix Lestrange tortures Hermione. The house-elf Dobby helps the prisoners escape, but is killed in the process.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione break into Gringotts Bank and retrieve a Horcrux, Helga Hufflepuff’s cup. Voldemort learns of their mission which leads to Harry having visions of another Horcrux hidden at Hogwarts. After the trio enters the school with the help of Aberforth Dumbledore, Voldemort prepares to assault the castle. As the Death Eaters enter the school and fight the professors and students, Hermione destroys Hufflepuff’s cup. They then accompany Harry to the Room of Requirement, where they discover the next Horcrux, which is the Diadem of Ravenclaw. Draco Malfoy and his friends Crabbe and Goyle ambush them, and Crabbe casts a fire spell which grows out of control, killing him and destroying the Horcrux.
After stealing the Elder Wand from Albus Dumbledore's tomb, Voldemort is unable to make it obey him. Believing that Severus Snape is the master of the wand, Voldemort uses Nagini to mortally wound him. Before dying, Snape passes his memories to Harry, who views them in the Pensieve. The memories reveal that Snape loved Harry's mother, and acted as a double agent against Voldemort in an attempt to protect her. The memories also reveal that Dumbledore planned his own death at the hands of Snape so that Snape could gain Voldemort's trust, and that Harry himself became a Horcrux when Voldemort first tried to kill him. Now, Harry must die to render Voldemort mortal. On his way to surrender himself to Voldemort, Harry instructs Neville Longbottom to destroy Nagini.
Voldemort casts the Killing Curse on Harry, who then awakens in a dreamlike place. He is greeted by Dumbledore, who explains that the curse destroyed the fragment of Voldemort's soul inside Harry, and that Harry can now return to life. Harry subsequently regains consciousness and pretends to be dead. Voldemort orders Hagrid to carry Harry's body back to Hogwarts, and demands that the professors and students surrender; however, Neville pulls the Sword of Gryffindor from the Sorting Hat and kills Nagini. The battle resumes, during which Molly Weasley kills Bellatrix. Harry reveals himself to be alive and duels with Voldemort, who casts another Killing Curse. However, the Elder Wand refuses to kill Harry because he is its true master (the wand passed to Draco when he disarmed Dumbledore before his death, then to Harry when he disarmed Draco at his manor). Voldemort's spell rebounds and kills him.
In the novel's epilogue, set nineteen years later, Harry and his friends see their children off to Hogwarts. Harry and Ginny, now married, have three children: James Sirius, Albus Severus, and Lily Luna. Ron and Hermione have a daughter named Rose and a son named Hugo.
After the Death Eaters and Lord Voldemort take over the Ministry of Magic, Harry and his friends Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger begin searching for Voldemort's four remaining Horcruxes, which they hope to destroy and thus render him mortal. They learn that the locket Horcrux is in the possession of Dolores Umbridge at the Ministry of Magic. Harry and his friends infiltrate the Ministry and steal the locket from Umbridge, but are unable to destroy it. The locket's Dark magic affects Ron, who abandons Harry and Hermione. In Godric's Hollow, Harry and Hermione are attacked by Voldemort's snake Nagini, but manage to escape. One night, a Patronus guides Harry to a pond containing the Sword of Gryffindor. When he tries to recover it, the locket tightens around his neck, nearly drowning him. Ron returns and saves Harry, then destroys the Horcrux with the sword.
The three friends visit Xenophilius Lovegood, who tells them of the mythical objects known as the Deathly Hallows: the Elder Wand, the Resurrection Stone, and the Cloak of Invisibility. Xenophilius then alerts the Ministry of Magic to the presence of the trio in his home, and Harry and his friends flee. Soon after, they are captured by bounty hunters known as Snatchers, and are imprisoned in Malfoy Manor. Harry and Ron are thrown into the cellar with Dean Thomas, Luna Lovegood, Mr Ollivander, and Griphook the goblin, while the Death Eater Bellatrix Lestrange tortures Hermione. The house-elf Dobby helps the prisoners escape, but is killed in the process.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione break into Gringotts Bank and retrieve a Horcrux, Helga Hufflepuff’s cup. Voldemort learns of their mission which leads to Harry having visions of another Horcrux hidden at Hogwarts. After the trio enters the school with the help of Aberforth Dumbledore, Voldemort prepares to assault the castle. As the Death Eaters enter the school and fight the professors and students, Hermione destroys Hufflepuff’s cup. They then accompany Harry to the Room of Requirement, where they discover the next Horcrux, which is the Diadem of Ravenclaw. Draco Malfoy and his friends Crabbe and Goyle ambush them, and Crabbe casts a fire spell which grows out of control, killing him and destroying the Horcrux.
After stealing the Elder Wand from Albus Dumbledore's tomb, Voldemort is unable to make it obey him. Believing that Severus Snape is the master of the wand, Voldemort uses Nagini to mortally wound him. Before dying, Snape passes his memories to Harry, who views them in the Pensieve. The memories reveal that Snape loved Harry's mother, and acted as a double agent against Voldemort in an attempt to protect her. The memories also reveal that Dumbledore planned his own death at the hands of Snape so that Snape could gain Voldemort's trust, and that Harry himself became a Horcrux when Voldemort first tried to kill him. Now, Harry must die to render Voldemort mortal. On his way to surrender himself to Voldemort, Harry instructs Neville Longbottom to destroy Nagini.
Voldemort casts the Killing Curse on Harry, who then awakens in a dreamlike place. He is greeted by Dumbledore, who explains that the curse destroyed the fragment of Voldemort's soul inside Harry, and that Harry can now return to life. Harry subsequently regains consciousness and pretends to be dead. Voldemort orders Hagrid to carry Harry's body back to Hogwarts, and demands that the professors and students surrender; however, Neville pulls the Sword of Gryffindor from the Sorting Hat and kills Nagini. The battle resumes, during which Molly Weasley kills Bellatrix. Harry reveals himself to be alive and duels with Voldemort, who casts another Killing Curse. However, the Elder Wand refuses to kill Harry because he is its true master (the wand passed to Draco when he disarmed Dumbledore before his death, then to Harry when he disarmed Draco at his manor). Voldemort's spell rebounds and kills him.
In the novel's epilogue, set nineteen years later, Harry and his friends see their children off to Hogwarts. Harry and Ginny, now married, have three children: James Sirius, Albus Severus, and Lily Luna. Ron and Hermione have a daughter named Rose and a son named Hugo.
Sources and content license
Source and revision history ↗ · Adapted from Wikipedia contributors, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Section headings and formatting adjusted. · Content license