Barty Crouch Jr.

Bartemius "Barty" Crouch (Junior)

Alias: Barty

Age: Barty was in his early 30s at the time of his death.

Special Abilities: As a Death Eater, Barty Crouch, Jr., was undoubtedly skilled in the Dark Arts. He was also quite cunning, able to imprison former Auror Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody and adopt his identity for nearly a full school year.

House: Unknown, but probably Slytherin.

Distinguishing Characteristics: As a teenager, Barty Crouch Jr. was a pale boy with straw colored hair and freckles. Azkaban and years of imprisonment in his father's home aged Barty prematurely. While Barty kept his fair, freckled skin and hair, by 1995 his eyes were lined and he looked older than he would have under other circumstances.

Heritage: Pureblood.

Family: Barty is the son of Bartemius Crouch, Sr., and his wife, Mrs. Crouch. At the end of the 1995 school year, Barty was the "last remaining member of a pure-blood family as old as any" (GoF, p 708).

First Mention: Goblet of Fire, chapter thirty.

First Appearance: As the imposter Moody--Goblet of Fire, chapter twelve.
As himself--Goblet of Fire, chapter thirty-five.

General: Bartemius Crouch Jr. (Barty) was born into a pureblood wizarding family of great distinction. His father, Bartemius Crouch Sr., was an important member of the Ministry of Magic. Crouch Sr. was Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement during Voldemort's first rise to power in the 1970s and very early 80s. After Voldemort's fall in 1981, some of the Death Eaters went quietly into hiding while other, more loyal Death Eaters desperately searched for their master. Barty was found with one such group of loyal Death Eaters. Along with Bellatrix, Rudolphus, and Rabastan Lestrange, Barty tortured Frank and Alice Longbottom into insanity with the Cruciatus Curse, hoping to discover Voldemort's location. For his part in the crime, Barty received a life sentence in Azkaban prison. He was sentenced by none other than his own father, Crouch Sr., who presided over the trial.

Barty, who was still a teenager at the time of the trial, pleaded with his father to have mercy on him. He swore his innocence, appealing to both his father and his mother, begging not to be sent with the dementors. While Barty's mother wept for her son, Crouch Sr. denounced him in front of all those assembled, shouting, "You are no son of mine - I have no son!" (GoF, p 596). Barty was then taken away and locked in Azkaban, where his health quickly began to fail him.

As Barty's health dwindled, so did his mother's. Knowing that her life was nearly over, Mrs. Crouch devised a plan to rescue her son from Azkaban. As a final favor to his wife, Crouch Sr. agreed. Arranging a final visit to see their dying son, Mr. and Mrs. Crouch went to Azkaban. Once inside the prison, Mrs. Crouch switched positions with Barty. They both took Polyjuice Potion to adopt one another's appearance. Crouch Sr. then took Barty away from Azkaban, leaving Mrs. Crouch to die inside the prison, just as she had planned. She died disguised as her son and was buried outside of Azkaban, where no one ever had reason to doubt that it wasn't actually Barty in the grave.

Once Crouch Sr. returned home with his son, he realized he needed to find a way to control Barty and keep him from searching for Voldemort. Crouch Sr. used a number of spells, including the Imperius Curse, to control Barty. He forced Barty to wear an Invisibility Cloak at all times and left him in the care of Winky the house-elf.

As the years passed, Barty became able to resist the Imperius Curse. Little by little he began to regain his strength. No one knew of his existence except for his father and Winky until one day a witch from the Ministry, Bertha Jorkins, came to speak with Crouch Sr. and overheard Winky talking to someone. Nosy and meddlesome, Bertha quickly figured out that Barty was still alive. To silence her, Crouch Sr. used a strong memory charm that succeeded in permanently damaging her mind. She was eventually apprehended on a trip to Albania by Peter Pettigrew, betrayer of the Marauders and servant of Lord Voldemort. Pettigrew took her to his master, who was able to break through the memory charms and learn that Barty was still alive. This gave Voldemort an advantage and he set out with Pettigrew to find his faithful servant.

Winky convinced Crouch Sr. to give his son occasional treats for good behavior. One such treat was permission to go to the 1994 Quidditch World Cup. Under an invisibility cloak, Barty watched the game from the top box. When Winky was not looking he stole Harry Potter's wand. After the game was over a band of former Death Eaters began torturing Muggles. Angered that these Death Eaters had been able to return to their normal lives after Voldemort's fall, Barty conjured the Dark Mark in the sky above the arena as a warning to them all. This mark instantly struck fear into all those who saw it and knew its meaning. In the confusion that followed the Mark's appearance, both Winky and Barty were stunned. When Winky was found unconscious and in the possession of a wand, Crouch Sr. instantly realized what had happened. He freed Winky for allowing his son to obtain a wand. Crouch then placed Barty back under the Imperius Curse and took him home.

Voldemort arrived at the Crouch home before the start of the 1994-1995 school year and placed Crouch Sr. under the Imperius Curse, releasing Barty. They then came up with a plot to restore Voldemort to his body and power. Barty, who had been so successful with Polyjuice Potion when escaping from Azkaban, once again took the potion to disguise himself. This time, Barty disguised himself as Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody and went to Hogwarts to teach Defense Against the Dark Arts in Moody's place for the 1994-1995 school year.

As Professor Moody, Barty was able to deceive everyone, even Dumbledore. He placed himself in close proximity to Harry Potter, gaining Harry's trust. At the beginning of the school year, Barty slipped Harry's name into the Goblet of Fire and managed to trick the Goblet into choosing Harry as a fourth competitor in the Triwizard Tournament. He then subtly found ways to help Harry get past the Triwizard tasks that occurred throughout the year.

Disguised as Moody, Barty taught his students about the Unforgivable Curses, demonstrating each and even using them on the students. He happened upon the Marauder's Map one night, and convinced Harry to let him borrow it in return for getting him out of trouble. The map proved useful for Barty. By June of 1995, Crouch Sr. began to fight the Imperius Curse just as Barty had and went Hogwarts looking for Dumbledore's help. Using this map, Barty was able to see his father's location on the school grounds. Barty found his father and killed him, stunning Viktor Krum in the process. He then transfigured Crouch Sr.'s body into a bone and buried it in front of Hagrid's cabin.

The third task of the Triwizard Tournament was held on June 24, 1995. The task was a magical maze that ended when one of the champions grabbed the Triwizard Cup. While taking the Cup to the maze, Barty turned it into a Portkey. The Portkey was intended to transport Harry to the graveyard in Little Hangleton where Voldemort and Pettigrew were waiting. The plan went somewhat awry, and the Portkey transported not only Harry, but Cedric Diggory as well. Cedric was killed almost instantly, but Harry eventually managed to escape, taking the Portkey back to Hogwarts.

Upon Harry's return to Hogwarts with Cedric's lifeless body, Barty made a fatal mistake. With all the excitement of the evening, he neglected to take his Polyjuice Potion as often as was necessary. Disobeying Dumbledore's orders, Barty took Harry back to his office. There he told Harry that he was Voldemort's spy and faithful servant at Hogwarts. Barty planned to kill Harry, but was not given the chance. Dumbledore, Minerva McGonagall and Severus Snape forced their way into the office to rescue Harry, rendering Barty unconscious in the process. It was then that Dumbledore informed Harry that the unconscious man in the office was not the real Mad-Eye Moody, but an imposter. Mere seconds after this revelation, the Polyjuice Potion wore off completely and Harry saw Barty for who he was. Azkaban and imprisonment in his father's home had aged him prematurely, but Harry recognized him as the same young man he had seen in Dumbledore's Pensieve earlier that year, Barty Crouch Jr.

After reviving Barty, Dumbledore administered Veritaserum to him. Instantly Barty told Dumbledore everything he asked: how he had escaped Azkaban, how his father had kept him prisoner, and how he had begun to fight the Imperius Curse. He told Dumbledore about Voldemort finding him and the plan they devised. He admitted to imprisoning Moody, killing his father, and sending Harry to Voldemort. All the while, Barty was extremely pleased with himself and the knowledge that he would be rewarded and held in high esteem by the Dark Lord.

However heinous his crimes, Dumbledore hoped Barty would serve as an adequate witness to the truth of Voldemort's resurrection. Unfortunately, Barty never got the chance to tell his story to anyone other than Dumbledore, Harry, Snape, McGonagall and Winky. Very late on the evening of June 24, 1995, Minister of Magic Cornelius Fudge went to question Barty. Fudge took with him a dementor. Upon seeing Barty, the dementor swooped down on him and administered the dementor's Kiss. The kiss, which basically removes the soul of an individual, rendered Barty far worse than dead and of absolutely no use to Dumbledore. Fudge was content to write Barty off as a lunatic and refused to believe anyone who said Voldemort had returned. Even though Barty was basically destroyed by the Dementor's Kiss, his inability to tell his story was beneficial to Voldemort. While Barty had not been able to kill Harry or even save himself from a terrible fate, he was successful in bringing about Voldemort's return.