The REAL Reason Voldemort Let Slughorn LIVE - Harry Potter Theory

Harry Potter Theory

Tv & Film

4.7 • 701 Ratings

🗓️ 11 July 2025

⏱️ 10 minutes

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Summary

While Voldemort, ethics aside, had one of the greatest minds the Wizarding World had ever seen…He also had many flaws. He was arrogant, shortsighted, and unreasonably obsessed with the pursuit of immortality.

But one thing he WASN’T was someone who would shy away from MURDERING those who got in his way.

He murdered Burbage mid-meal, order the murder of Cedric Diggory for standing in the wrong place at the wrong time, and ordered countless other deaths without hesitation.

And even when his closest followers failed him-even slightly, he was quick to dispose of them..And simply move on. Just look at what happened to Wormtail, strangled by his own silver hand for showing a moment of mercy. Or Severus Snape, killed not for betrayal, but simply because Voldemort believed it would grant him mastery of the Elder Wand.

But with all of this in mind, there’s one person Voldemort left alive that I still can’t make sense of: Horace Slughorn.

Today we’re going to be discussing WHY Voldemort, more trigger-happy than perhaps ANYONE ELSE, made the unusual decision to leave Slughorn alive. Was it calculated? Merciful? Or something else entirely.

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Transcript

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1:00.5	The following podcast contains audio extracted from videos on the Harry Potter Theory YouTube channel. While Voldemort, ethics aside, had one of the greatest minds that Wizarding
1:06.0	World had ever seen, he also had many flaws. He was arrogant, short-sighted, and unreasonably obsessed with
1:13.9	the pursuit of immortality. But one thing he wasn't was someone who would shy away from
1:19.2	murdering those who got in his way. He murdered Burbage mid-meal, ordered the murder of
1:25.3	Cedric Diggery for standing in the wrong place at the wrong time,
1:28.5	and ordered countless other deaths without hesitation. And even when his closest followers failed him,
1:34.9	even slightly, he was quick to dispose of them, and simply move on. Just look at what happened to
1:41.0	Wormtale, strangled by his own silver hand for showing a moment of mercy.
1:46.0	Or Severus Snape, killed not for betrayal, but simply because Voldemort believed it would grant him mastery of the elder wand.
1:54.4	But with all of this in mind, there's one person Voldemort left alive that I still can't make sense of, Horace Slughorn. Today we're going to be discussing why Voldemort left alive that I still can't make sense of Horace Slughorn.
2:02.1	Today we're going to be discussing why Voldemort, more trigger-happy than perhaps anyone else,
2:07.8	made the unusual decision to leave Slughorn alive.
2:11.7	Was it calculated, merciful, or something else entirely?
	...

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