According to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, an Unbreakable Vow is a magically binding oath between parties that cannot be rescinded. What sets this particular vow apart from all others is its severity; should one of the parties fail to fulfil their obligation to the other, the consequence is death.
This is why in the 6th instalment of the Harry Potter movie franchise, Half-Blood Prince, fans were left gobsmacked after witnessing the oath take place between 2 unlikely allies. In their bewilderment, they watched stoic Hogwarts professor, Severus Snape put his life on the line as he made a vow to Narcissa Malfoy.
Although sarcastic and unfeeling, Snape wasn’t easily identifiable as a threat. However, the unexpected occurrence left fans questioning his intentions and wondering if he had been on the dark side all along. Here is all you need to know about Snape’s vow and why he made it in the first place.
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Why did Snape make the Unbreakable Vow?
Here are the reasons why Hogwarts’ favourite antihero made the Unbreakable Vow:
#1 To win the Death Eaters’ trust
In the scene leading up to the vow, Narcissa is being cautioned by her psychopathic sister, Bellatrix LeStrange about Snape’s loyalty. According to Bellatrix, “Sissy… he can’t be trusted”.
When the sisters finally meet up with Snape, Bellatrix does not hide her suspicions about Snape, and the latter is forced to prove himself by making the vow. Consequently, he maintained his cover as one of them.
You can find out more about why Snape became a Death Eater here.
#2 To fulfil his promise to Albus Dumbledore
Snape had been working as a double agent with loyalties to both Dumbledore and the Death Eaters. Unknown to the Death Eaters, Dumbledore was already aware of their assassination plot and had instructed Snape to kill him instead when the time came.
By swearing the oath, Snape killed the proverbial 2 birds with one stone.
All this was necessitated by Narcissa’s fear for her son Draco’s safety. The Dark Lord, also known as Voldemort, had chosen the young Draco to kill Dumbledore, the magic world’s most powerful wizard, as a punishment for his father, Lucius Malfoy’s incompetence. Draco’s success or failure would either revive or further mar his family’s reputation.
The viral scene depicts Snape and Narcissa holding each other’s hands in a tight grip as Belatrix acted as their bonding agent. The vow placed 3 separate obligations on Snape to which he agreed by answering “I will” each time Bellatrix proposed a new term. He was to watch over Draco, protect him from harm, and complete the assignment himself should Draco fail.
You can find out more about the reasons why Snape killed Dumbledore here.
Did Snape break the Unbreakable Vow?
With such dire consequences on the line, Snape could not afford to break his vow. He did his best to supervise and shield Draco as he prepared to assassinate Dumbledore. Moreover, he completed the assignment himself by delivering the fatal blow that killed the veteran wizard, thus fulfilling the 3rd requirement of the Vow—“And if Draco should fail, will you yourself carry out the deed The Dark Lord has ordered Draco to perform?”.
Draco made multiple attempts to surreptitiously murder Dumbledore. He bewitched a fellow student to deliver a cursed necklace to Dumbledore but was thwarted when the mule mistakenly touched the necklace herself. Harry, who had been suspicious of Draco had voiced his suspicions to Professor McGonagall, but Snape promptly dismissed the idea.
His second attempt was to deliver a poisoned bottle of wine to Professor Slughorn so that the professor could then give it to Dumbledore. He had been found by the school groundskeeper trying to sneak into Slughorn’s quarters to plant the wine bottle but Snape immediately offered to “discipline” Draco himself; a ploy to protect him from a possible discovery. However, this was also thwarted when Slughorn opened the bottle for a celebration and its content nearly killed a student.
Also, during a bathroom duel between Harry and Draco, Harry used the Sectumsempra he’d recently learned on Draco but was unaware of how lethal it was. Snape promptly showed up in the bathroom to reverse the spell. These instances prove that Snape held up his end of the deadly bargain.
You can find out how wizards can cast spells without saying anything here.
Did Dumbledore know about Snape’s Unbreakable Vow?
It is unlikely that Dumbledore knew about Snape’s vow to Narcissa, and if he did, the wise wizard never mentioned it. In the conversation between Snape and Dumbledore where their pact is revealed, the latter only reinforces their agreement without implying any knowledge of the Vow—“I will not negotiate with you Severus. You agreed, nothing more to discuss”.
Another fact that isn’t revealed in either the book or movie is how Dumbledore came to know about Voldemort’s assignment for Draco. It is believed that perhaps it was Snape who informed him about the plan, seeing as Snape’s true loyalty lied with Dumbledore. Preferring not to die at Draco’s hands and knowing Draco’s life was at stake should he fail, Dumbledore enlisted Snape’s help to do the deed instead.
Until Snape finally upholds his promise by casting the deadly Avada Kedavra on Dumbledore,
Source: tenor
the latter neither explicitly nor implicitly suggests that he is aware of the Unbreakable Vow. Nonetheless, some fans believe Dumbledore must’ve known about it but simply acted aloof.
This may be due to Dumbledore’s tendency to know things, he was hardly a wizard to be kept in the dark and the fact that Harry overheard Snape talking to Draco about his Unbreakable Vow, it is possible he may have mentioned it to Dumbledore.
Meanwhile, other fans who insist Dumbledore didn’t know about the Vow have pointed out how when Snape angrily accuses Dumbledore of taking too much for granted and threatens to betray their agreement, Dumbledore only reminds Snape of the services he owed and not how Snape’s life depended on it.
These fans believe that if Dumbledore had known about the vow, he would’ve simply reminded the angry Snape that he had to continue as planned or else he would die.
Nonetheless, there isn’t enough evidence in the books or movies to determine whether or not Dumbledore knew about Snape’s Unbreakable Vow!
Snape’s Avada Kedavra spell was actually blue in colour, and you can find out why it was so here.
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