How Did Harry Potter Manage to Defeat Lord Voldemort?

Many people wonder how Harry Potter defeated Lord Voldemort, but Harry had a special attribute that not even Albus Dumbledore had.

Throughout the Harry Potter series, Harry manages to survive Voldemort's attacks and foil his evil plans time and time again, to the audience's constant surprise. Eventually, Harry defeats Voldemort in Deathly Hallows - Part 2 using only an Expelliarmus spell. People wonder how it is possible that a regular Hogwarts student was able to not only escape but also beat one of the most powerful dark wizards that ever existed, especially since Albus Dumbledore himself wasn't able to accomplish this monumental task.

The answer to Harry Potter defeating Lord Voldemort lies in the intricacies of magic. When Voldemort chooses Harry as his equal, Voldemort gives the Boy Who Lived the necessary tools Harry will need to confront the Dark Lord and end his dark threat to the Wizarding World. It could be said that, in reality, Voldemort defeated himself in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2. However, the respect Harry had for magic, which both Voldemort and Dumbledore lacked, was the ultimate key to his triumph.

Lord Voldemort's Ignorance Gifted Harry With Protection

After Lord Voldemort hears about the prophecy that explains how a baby was born with the ability to defeat him, Voldemort decides to kill James and Lily Potter's son, Harry Potter. However, Voldemort makes the mistake of giving Lily a choice to live, underestimating the power of love in magic. Lily stays in front of Harry and dies protecting her son, making the ultimate sacrifice, which gifts Harry with magical protection that forbids Voldemort from touching him. Thanks to this, Harry survives the Avada Kedrava spell as a baby, and Voldemort is doomed to live without a body for more than a decade.

This protection is crucial for Harry's survival for a couple of years. When Harry decides to keep the Sorcerer's Stone from Lord Voldemort in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, he only survives Voldemort and Quirinus Quirrell's attack because Voldemort can't touch him. Furthermore, Voldemort couldn't attack the Boy Who Lived as long as Harry lived with a blood relative since Lily's protection extended to Harry's home. This meant that as long as Harry lived with the Dursleys (up until his seventeenth birthday), he would be protected from Voldemort's evil agenda.

Lord Voldemort Accidentally Gave Harry Special Talents

After Lily's sacrifice, when Lord Voldemort tries to kill Harry, Voldemort's soul is so fragile that Voldemort accidentally creates a seventh Horcrux, transferring a piece of his soul into baby Harry. This connection allowed Harry to be naturally fluent in Parseltongue (the ability to speak with snakes). This knowledge, gifted by Voldemort himself, was crucial for Harry to stop Tom Riddle from coming back to life, as he had to speak Parseltongue to be able to access the Chamber of Secrets.

Additionally, the fact that Harry carried a piece of Voldemort's soul within himself may explain why he was selected by Voldemort's twin wand. Both wands were created from the same phoenix's feathers, which forged a powerful connection between them that allowed Harry to survive and escape Voldemort's attack at the end of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Harry and Voldemort's duel in the cemetery led to the two wands being connected through Priori Incantatem, a magical phenomenon that doesn't allow the wizards to hurt each other. The connection also brought back the echoes of Voldemort's last victims (including Cedric Diggory and Harry's parents), which bought Harry enough time to, once again, escape the Dark Lord.

Lord Voldemort Chose the Wrong Wand

Since Lord Voldemort was aware that he and Harry couldn't hurt each other if they didn't change their wands, he went looking for the next best thing: the powerful Elder Wand. One of the fabled Deathly Hallows, the Elder Wand was considered the most powerful wand in the world, as it was supposedly created by Death himself and gifted to Antioch Peverell. Unsurprisingly, the Elder Wand had belonged to Albus Dumbledore for over 50 years, and it was buried with the powerful wizard. Voldemort broke into Dumbledore's grave and, without considering the intricacies of magic, thought himself the master of the powerful wand. However, Draco Malfoy was the Elder Wand's master, as he had disarmed Dumbledore before Severus Snape killed him.

Voldemort misguidedly decides to murder Snape to gain ownership of the Elder Wand, ignorant of not only the fact that Draco had earned the wand's loyalty but also that Harry had defeated Draco in a duel and had become the Elder Wand's true master. Despite Harry warning Voldemort about this fact in the Battle of Hogwarts, Voldemort still decided to attack Harry with the infamous Avada Kedavra. For the second time in Voldemort's life, the unforgivable curse rebounded on him, as the Elder Wand wouldn't kill its master. Since Harry and his friends had already destroyed all of Voldemort's Horcruxes, this finally ended Lord Voldemort's life, with Harry finally defeating the Dark Lord.

Harry Potter is a very talented wizard, but ultimately, Lord Voldemort played a great part in defeating himself. Even though Voldemort was supposed to be gifted and intelligent, he always underestimated some of the most ancient and intricate knowledge of magic, which was his biggest weakness. Eventually, this led to Harry defeating Voldemort, as the young wizard took the time to understand these different types of magic (which he learned from Albus Dumbledore).

A lot of Harry Potter fans tend to underestimate Harry, as they think that he only won the Battle of Hogwarts because of his talented friends and mentors. However, there was more to Harry than luck, timing, and capable allies, as he was also cautious when it came to magic. For example, in the books, when Harry obtained the Elder Wand, he placed it back in Dumbledore's grave instead of keeping it for himself -- and in the movie, he destroys the wand. On the other hand, both Voldemort and Dumbledore thought themselves beyond the rules of magic. Harry's respect for magic eventually led him to defeat the darkest and most powerful wizard alive.