What house was Snape in?

Slytherin. He later became Head of Slytherin House.

Why is Snape's Patronus a doe?

Because he loved Lily Potter, whose Patronus was also a doe. When Dumbledore saw it, he asked whether Snape still loved her after all this time, and Snape replied that he always had.

Was Snape good or evil?

Both, in a sense. He was cruel to students and had been a Death Eater, but he spent the rest of his life secretly working against Voldemort and protecting Harry.

Why did Snape kill Dumbledore?

Dumbledore asked him to. Dumbledore was already dying from a cursed ring, and his death at Snape's hand spared Draco from becoming a killer and cemented Snape's position with Voldemort.

Who is the Half-Blood Prince?

Severus Snape. His mother's maiden name was Prince, and his father was a Muggle, so he styled himself the Half-Blood Prince.

Severus Snape: Character Profile, House, Patronus and the Half-Blood Prince

Who is Severus Snape?

Severus Snape is the Potions master at Hogwarts for most of the series and Head of Slytherin House. To Harry, he’s a sneering, unfair teacher who seems to hate him on sight. To readers, he’s the most debated character in the books.

Snape grew up poor and unhappy in Spinner’s End, a run-down Muggle mill town. His mother was the witch Eileen Prince and his father a Muggle, Tobias Snape. As a boy he met Lily Evans, a Muggle-born girl who lived nearby, and became her closest friend. That friendship, and its loss, shaped the rest of his life.

Why Snape was sorted into Slytherin

Snape has the classic Slytherin traits: ambition, cunning, intelligence and a talent for self-preservation. As a student he was fascinated by the Dark Arts and drifted towards the group of Slytherins who would become Death Eaters.

But Snape also shows the house at its best. His cunning let him lie to Voldemort’s face for years, and his Occlumency made him one of the few wizards who could. His loyalty, once given, was absolute. Read more in Gryffindor vs Slytherin.

Personality and traits

Snape is cold, sarcastic and capable of real cruelty, especially towards Harry, Neville and Hermione. He holds grudges for decades, chiefly against James Potter and Sirius Black, who bullied him at school.

Underneath, he’s driven by love and guilt. He never stopped loving Lily, and he blamed himself for her death, because he was the one who passed the prophecy to Voldemort. Everything he did afterwards was an attempt to make up for it.

Magical abilities and skills

Skill	Details
Potions	Exceptional. Improved textbook recipes as a teenager.
Spell invention	Created spells including Sectumsempra and Levicorpus.
Occlumency	Shielded his mind from Voldemort, the greatest Legilimens alive.
Legilimency	Taught Harry Occlumency in Order of the Phoenix.
Defence Against the Dark Arts	Finally got the job in Half-Blood Prince.
Flight without a broom	One of the few wizards shown flying unaided.

Snape’s story

Period	Key events
Childhood	Befriends Lily Evans before Hogwarts.
Hogwarts	Sorted into Slytherin; bullied by James and Sirius; loses Lily’s friendship after calling her a slur.
First war	Joins the Death Eaters; reports part of the prophecy to Voldemort; begs Dumbledore to protect Lily; becomes a spy.
Philosopher’s Stone	Protects Harry from Quirrell’s curse during a Quidditch match.
Order of the Phoenix	Teaches Harry Occlumency; Harry sees his worst memory.
Half-Blood Prince	Makes the Unbreakable Vow with Narcissa; kills Dumbledore.
Deathly Hallows	Becomes Headmaster; secretly sends Harry the sword; is killed by Nagini; gives Harry his memories.

Key relationships

Character	Relationship
Lily Potter	Childhood friend and the love of his life.
James Potter	School rival and bully.
Harry Potter	The son he spent his life protecting while treating him with contempt.
Albus Dumbledore	The man he served as a spy, and ultimately killed at his request.
Lord Voldemort	His master as a Death Eater, and the man he deceived.
Draco Malfoy	Student he swore to protect.
Narcissa Malfoy	Made the Unbreakable Vow with her.

Strengths and flaws

Strengths: brilliance, extraordinary courage, unbreakable loyalty and the discipline to keep a secret for nearly twenty years.

Flaws: cruelty, bitterness and an inability to let go of grudges. He bullied children who couldn’t fight back, including Neville, whose boggart was Snape.

Fun facts

“Always” is one of the most quoted lines in the series.
Neville’s boggart is Snape.
He applied for the Defence Against the Dark Arts job every year before finally getting it.
His doe Patronus led Harry to the sword of Gryffindor in the Forest of Dean.
His portrait was not at first hung in the Headmaster’s office, because he abandoned his post. Harry later made sure it was.

Snape in the books vs the films

Alan Rickman played Snape in all eight films. J.K. Rowling told him part of Snape’s secret early on, which shaped his performance.

His age. In the books, Snape is in his early thirties when Harry arrives. Rickman was in his mid-fifties.
His appearance. The book Snape has greasy hair, sallow skin and yellowed teeth. The films make him far more striking.
His cruelty. Book Snape is pettier and crueller to students, particularly Neville and Hermione. Rickman’s dry delivery made him funnier and more sympathetic.
The Prince’s Tale. The books spend a whole chapter in Snape’s memories. The film compresses it into a short montage.

Why Snape matters to the story

Snape is the series’ biggest twist and its most morally complex character. He shows that someone can do terrible things and still be on the right side, and that courage doesn’t require kindness. Without him, Voldemort would almost certainly have won. Whether he’s a hero is something readers still argue about, which is exactly the point.

Are you like Snape?

If you keep secrets, hold grudges and stay loyal for decades, you might share his house. Read the Slytherin guide, or take our house quiz.

Severus Snape