In the Wizarding World, Gryffindors are synonymous with courage and heroism. Most of its house’s members have been noted for being protagonists within the story of Harry Potter. As a result, Gryffindor House has produced some of the most capable witches and wizards to ever grace the pages of the franchise. From being directly responsible for training history’s greatest wizard to even helping educate a prophesied chosen one, Gryffindor has earned its name as the house of the brave and true.
That being said, pinning down who among its members are the most powerful can be a bit tricky. With some characters, there is an obvious hierarchy of strength, but others may surprise fans with where they end up on the ladder when their full skills are taken into account. While some characters may not rank as high as most believe, that is not to say they are weak, just that they lack practical experience or knowledge when compared to others.
10
Harry Potter Defeated Lord Voldemort
He Only Accomplished This Thanks to Help from Others
It might surprise some that Harry isn’t at the top of a list about Hogwarts’ strongest Gryffindor wizards, but this is merely a reflection of his position as a student for most of the series. That doesn’t mean Harry isn’t proficient in magic. In fact, he is quite powerful and manages one or two feats that surpass most adults in his world. Starting from the beginning, though, Harry’s true talent lies in defense against the dark arts. Having encountered dark magic so many times across his young life, Harry has developed the skills necessary to fight back, ending up with an outstanding on his O.W.L.S. in the subject, something that not even Hermione Granger managed.
Harry also became head of the British Auror Department before his latest promotion.
His skill was so great that he was capable of teaching his fellow students during their time as Dumbledore’s Army, and later in life, he would rise to the position of Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, a position of high prestige that requires a great deal of training and talent. Another notable feat of his was producing a corporeal Patronus at thirteen years old, something most adults fail to do their entire lives. In short, Harry is skilled, but when compared to the more experienced or educated members of this list, his skills don’t really compare.
9
Hermione Granger Was the Most Gifted Witch of Her Class
She Would Go On to Become Minister for Magic
Even the people who despised Hermione Granger had to admit she was brilliant. The young woman had a knack for memorizing just about anything she came across in the wizarding world, a feat made all the more impressive when one remembers she is muggleborn and therefore had to learn everything from scratch. If there was ever a weakness in her ability to learn, it is that she was not as familiar with wizarding culture so much as the facts of it, resulting in gaps of her knowledge about things like wizarding fairytales or how people just accept the horrific situation of the House-Elves.
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On her own though, Hermione is a gifted witch, with knowledge that far surpasses the knowledge of most people in her year, and even some of those ahead of her. A good example of this is how she successfully brewed polyjuice potion during her second year, a time-consuming concoction that is easy to mess up if done improperly, but Hermione managed it perfectly, only choosing an incorrect ingredient to use for her specific potion. Later on in life, her skills and knowledge would only grow, elevating her to the position of Minister for Magic.
8
Molly Weasley Took Down Bellatrix Lestrange
Molly’s Greatest Magic Was Love
Molly Weasley might not be the first person people think of when they imagine powerful Gryffindors. That is, until they remember that Molly was the one to take down Bellatrix Lestrange, who was a powerful witch. Though she typically plays the role of housewife and provides an essential infusion of love into the life of Harry and his friends, Molly is by no means a pushover. Brief insights into her past reveal that Molly has a lot of talents that get overlooked because she is not one to brag about her talents.
She once successfully brewed a love potion (a N.E.W.T.s level potion), demonstrating a high level of skill in potionmaking. The various charms active throughout her house, including the enchanted clock in the Burrow, are further proof that Molly is highly skilled in charms. Going back to her most impressive feat though, Molly is a talented duelist, and managed to use her motherly instinct as a drive to push back and later defeat the incredibly dangerous Bellatrix Lestrange. What’s interesting here is that it also indicates that Molly has some familiarity with the dark arts, as she has been known to threaten to jinx people and the killing blow she landed on Bellatrix was stated to be a curse of some sort.
7
Lily Evans Defied Voldemort Three Times
She Earned Her Way Into the Slug Club
While not much information has been given on the talents of Harry Potter’s mother, Lily did do several things in her life that earned her a legacy worth remembering. During her school years, one of her most impressive feats was her skill in potionmaking. While she was no Severus Snape, and one has to wonder if Snape didn’t help her out in private, her skills were enough that she impressed Horace Slughorn, then the Potions Professor of Hogwarts. Her talent earned her a place in the Slug Club, through which Slughorn would come to remember her dearly.
As an adult, she joined the Order of the Phoenix and proved to be an excellent duelist, managing to combat several Death Eaters and even defy Voldemort three times before meeting her end. It should be noted that Lily survived just up until the end of the First Wizarding War, something many other people cannot claim to. Her most important act was her harnessing of ancient magic by sacrificing herself to protect her son from Voldemort. This single act destroyed Voldemort’s power and would later inspire her son to make a similar sacrifice when he was seventeen, resulting in Voldemort’s final defeat.
6
James Potter Became an Animagus at a Young Age
James Was a Part of the Order of the Phoenix
James Potter may not have been the best person in his youth, but those who knew him then could also note that he had a lot of talent as a wizard. His most notable feats during his academic years were successfully becoming an animagus, another time-consuming process that could be potentially dangerous if done wrong, and the creation of the Marauder’s Map, an artifact that to this day has yet to be replicated, and even managed to rebuff the efforts of a grown Severus Snape.
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At his core, James was a good man who believed in doing the right thing. He was an active participant in the Order of the Phoenix, battling the death eaters wherever he found them. His skills as a duelist caught the attention of Voldemort himself, making him question whether the young man and his wife were the parents of the supposed “chosen one” who would destroy him one day. All in all, James was a powerful Gryffindor. Had he been allowed to live, his skills might have only grown more potent with age.
5
Sirius Black Was One of Hogwarts’ Cleverest Students
His Spellwork Still Can’t Be Undone in Number 12 Grimmauld Place
Remus Lupin would later in his life state that Sirius Black was one of the cleverest students at Hogwarts. This is proven by how he helped his friends become animagi early into their academic careers and also by how he helped create the Marauder’s Map. To avoid repeating the praise directed towards James, though, Sirius was also a surprisingly powerful wizard, even by the standards of his “esteemed” family. Where he particularly shown was in charmwork.
Sirius was the Marauder known as Padfoot and could transfigure himself into a large black dog.
Sirius was stated to have placed permanent sticking charms in his family home to spite his parents, proving that his talent likely surpassed theirs at a young age. Later on in life, he would also develop his skills as a duelist, standing up to various Death Eaters and likely taking vicious satisfaction in physically confronting the very same ideology his parents had that he had so loathed all his life. As a side note, perhaps due to his status as an animagus, Sirius also had a talent for interacting with magical creatures, easily gaining their trust.
4
Remus Lupin Was the Best Defense Against the Dark Arts Teacher
His Condition Made Him Knowledgeable About Dark Creatures
Much like Sirius and James, Remus Lupin was also a Marauder, with a gift for charmswork that led to the creation of the Marauder’s Map. However, his talents began to branch out in adulthood. While he could never become an animagus due to being afflicted with lycanthropy, Remus’ condition likely led him to study up on dangerous magical creatures to have a better understanding of them, as well as resulting in a keen interest in defense against the dark arts. His talent was so great that by the time he first met Harry Potter, Remus had been approached to be Hogwarts’ newest DADA professor.
During his time as a teacher, Remus not only educated his class on the likes of dark creatures, likely picking up the slack from previous professors such as Quirrel and Lockhart, but also taught Harry the Patronus charm in private. This leads to another interesting fact about Remus. His control over the Patronus charm was so complete that he could will his corporeal Patronus to take an incorporeal form to better hide the truth of his condition from the world. By the time he left, Harry acknowledged him as the best teacher they had ever had.
3
Minerva McGonagall Was Hogwarts’ Transfiguration Professor for Years
She Later Became Its Headmistress
Minerva McGonagall had earned her place among Hogwarts’ senior staff decades before the series even started. Despite being in her elderly years, McGonagall had a formidable reputation as one of the most powerful and knowledgeable witches active during this time. In her youth, her talent in transfiguration earned her many awards for her skill, and she later successfully became an animagus, able to transfigure into a cat at will. Her knowledge, competence, and raw power earned her a position as the deputy headmistress of Hogwarts and later its acting headmistress.
McGonagall also displayed tremendous dueling talent, able to actually force back Severus Snape when she thought the time was right to strike. During the Battle of Hogwarts, McGonagall animated an entire army of statues to defend the castle and later dueled against Voldemort himself, holding her own as well as anyone could. For all these feats, she is regarded with nothing but respect from those she has taught and worked alongside.
2
Godric Gryffindor Was the Greatest Duelist of His Time
He Helped Found Hogwarts
Truthfully, not much is known about Godric Gryffindor’s specific magical talents. This is understandable as he was born a thousand years before the series even started. That being said, there are some notable facts about him that are worth mentioning. First and foremost is the fact that he helped found Hogwarts. He, alongside the other founders, were stated to have used ancient magic to do so, a skill that is largely lost to most wizards in the current era, suggesting that he was one of an exceedingly rare group of people that could harness magic more powerful than most.
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Speculation aside his charmwork also led to the creation of the Sorting Hat. His best recorded skill, though, was as a duelist. Godric was stated to be the greatest duelist of his era, and even alternated between using magic or a sword depending on who his opponent was, demonstrating aptitude in martial and magical combat, as well as an honorable side.
1
Albus Dumbledore Is the Greatest Wizard of All Time
Even Voldemort Was Afraid of Him
Albus Dumbledore is by and far considered the greatest wizard to ever live, even decades after his death. Dumbledore’s reputation was not an exaggeration. Harry himself noted that whenever he finally exerted the full authority of his skill, there was an undeniable aura of power that emanated from him, something that often defused tense situations. His ability was so great that the only person capable of rivaling him was Voldemort, and even he tried to avoid a direct confrontation for fear of his old teacher.
As a wizard, there was no aspect of magic that Dumbledore was not familiar with. Even when it came to the theoretical, his guesses often turned out to be exactly right, a reflection of how his brilliant mind could conceive of things that most people couldn’t. In short, he was a once-in-a-millennia talent. One that won’t be found again for some time. It was largely thanks to his ability to see the whole picture and understand the magic involved that Voldemort was finally defeated.
Harry Potter
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J.K. Rowling
- First Film
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Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone
- Latest Film
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Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows Part 2
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Harry Potter
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HBO Max
