The Harry Potter novels had us wrapped up so much in the magic on display that we completely overlooked how Hogwarts was the biggest lawsuit waiting to happen in the Wizarding World. The school was crawling with things that could kill students on an every day basis, but we had ourselves invested in the story to notice them.
If you think Hogwarts was the best place in the world, then you’re sorely mistaken. In this list, we’ve included those things that were present within the castle at some point or another, meaning even if they’re not at Hogwarts anymore, they still qualify. Living creatures also have been taken into consideration, and you’ll want to check out these 10 most dangerous things that were at Hogwarts.
Fluffy
The third floor was out of bounds for those who didn’t want to die a painful death – that’s a good joke, right? Except, Dumbledore was dead serious when he said that. Apparently, a small warning in the opening ceremony was appropriate in Dumbledore’s logic to tell curious first-years that a killer three-headed dog was behind the corridor door.
This monstrosity could rip apart any being in sight, and even one of the most powerful wizards in Snape ended up being bit by this dog. It would’ve been the most dangerous thing in Hogwarts history had the dog not had a weak spot for music. It’s a wonder why this was commissioned in the first place, but it has a cute named called Fluffy so it wasn’t that bad, right, Dumbledore?
Aragog
Our biggest gripe here is how the heck Hagrid managed to stow a giant spider in a cupboard inside the school – don’t they have anybody cleaning the cupboards? It’s a relief Aragog was very young when Voldemort drove him away, otherwise the giant nightmare he became would’ve devoured more than a few students.
Even so, Aragog was a dangerous creature had any student other than Hagrid come across him in his smaller state as well. His family of spiders later on were good examples as to how a spider of Aragog’s species could be merciless predators. Maybe Voldemort wasn't as bad as we thought he was. He did spare students from being eaten by Aragog.
Philosopher's Stone
If we find out something extremely powerful is being kept hidden in a school of all places, we’d be laughing our heads off, but this extraordinary creation was being housed at Hogwarts. The stone was so powerful that no one other than Nicolas Flamel did anything with it, since it was so unstable.
The Philosopher’s Stone was capable of bringing a body back to Voldemort, who was without a physical state for over a decade, so you can figure out what else this thing could’ve done. It also enabled Flamel to live for six centuries, meaning the possibilities for evil were boundless had anyone gotten their hands on it. Quirrell certainly was prepared to strangle a child just to get to the stone.
Illegal Potions
Yes, all of the potions we saw in the school were dangerous. Slughorn might have thought a love potion was funny, but we saw Voldemort’s mother mind control her husband into marrying her using this concoction.
In the same way, potions like the poylyjuice potion enabled Harry and friends to assault Malfoy’s pals and enter the Slytherin common room – which should have been a punishable crime, let alone an expulsion. In one scene from the book, Snape had the kids making a potion that, brewed incorrectly, would’ve become poison – he even had Neville’s toad drink it in hopes the animal would die. If you’ve got potions that can mind control, shapeshift, compel someone, and outright kill a being, then these sure as heck qualify as dangerous.
The Lost Diadem
The Diadem was never a weapon, but having the soul of Voldemort inside of it made it something dangerous for sure. We saw how it was with the locket, where Ron became consumed by evil intentions by wearing it, and there’s no doubt the Diadem would’ve done the same.
We’re keeping it on this list since the Diadem influenced events to such a level that Crabbe ended up burning down the entire Room of Requirement. Any object that causes people to want to kill one another deserves to be termed as dangerous, and the Diadem saw a lot of hardships and even death to attain it.
Half-Blood Prince's Book
It’s just a book, though, so why is it dangerous – that’s probably what some are thinking? Well, it’s dangerous because many of the spells contained within were designed to cause harm on others. The easiest example would be the Sectumsempra, which caused Malfoy to bleed profusely and possibly die had Snape not intervened.
Then there was the Levicorpus, which became such common knowledge that James Potter used it as well; this being the guy who was the sworn enemy of Snape, the one who created the spell in the first place. There’s no telling what other spells and potions were listed inside, but we saw Harry take note of them with the intention of using the spells on someone, before he found out their sinister origins.
The Basilisk
A creature that can kill you just by looking at you isn’t just dangerous – it’s a weapon of mass destruction! The Basilisk did claim the life of Myrtle, and would’ve killed more had Voldemort not sealed it away on purpose.
Even after its death, the Basilisk still qualifies as a dangerous object that continues to exist in Hogwarts, as its fangs remain in the Chamber of Secrets. Hermione and Ron did just this in Deathly Hallows and finished a horcrux using the Basilisk’s fangs. Should any students in the future locate the Chamber of Secrets, then they have poison galore to potentially kill others, and there’s no Fawkes at Hogwarts anymore to save anyone either.
The Elder Wand
Had word spread out that Dumbledore possessed the Elder Wand, then you have to believe Voldemort would’ve sent his agents to Hogwarts in order to steal it. Regardless of that possibility, the Elder Wand on its own was a dangerous creation, as its long and bloody history proves.
In Grindelwald’s hands, the wand was used to slay countless people around the world, while Voldemort also furthered the wand’s death count by taking the lives of scores of people. This wand also sliced the neck of Snape as part of its final kill; that too in the Hogwarts grounds.
The Vanishing Cabinet
Of course, this object being the very thing that brought Death Eaters to Hogwarts and resulting in Dumbledore’s death contributes to the cabinet placing on this list, but the cabinet was dangerous in its own right. In Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Fred Weasley stuffed the Slytherin Montague into the cabinet as a mean joke, but Montague recounted he was seemingly lost forever inside.
Montague almost died from the encounter, as he had no food or resources, and the cabinet seemed to be something like limbo before it was repaired by Malfoy. A bird’s life was tragically taken away when Malfoy attempted to check if the cabinet was repaired, which means it could’ve been used to kill people as well.
Moving Staircases
Although the other things on this list weren’t ranked definitively, we’re counting these staircases as the most dangerous things in Hogwarts. Why? That would be because they’re meant to be used every day, and each day should realistically see several kids plummeting to their deaths.
The staircases have no security systems around them, meaning a child could be in the process of stepping on, but end up meeting the pavement instead. Not to mention the horrific deaths that are very likely to happen when a kid is crushed between the stairs and the platform. It’s very easy to see someone even being murdered by another who just needed to push them while the stairs were on the other side. These staircases seemed to be built for sinister intent.