Harry Potter: 10 Worst Things Dolores Umbridge Has Ever Done

10. Refused To Teach Defensive Magic

Every year, Harry and his fellow classmates have a new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher. Usually, Professor Dumbledore handpicks the teacher himself, but in The Order of the Phoenix, Cornelius Fudge (the Minister for Magic) selects Umbridge for this prestigious role.

Rather than teaching defensive magic, Umbridge forces her students to sit and read the textbook throughout the lesson, and this dull method of teaching never changes. The students have to sift through the same old rubbish again and again for an entire year. Given Harry and his classmates are OWL students, Umbridge’s arrival couldn’t have come at a worse time.

The motivation behind Umbridge’s lacklustre style of teaching is even more infuriating. Fudge, Umbridge and the rest of the Ministry are convinced Dumbledore is trying to raise his own army and seize power for himself, so the last thing they want is for the students of Hogwarts to be combat-ready.

In other words, Umbridge’s terrible teaching style is motivated by unfounded paranoia. Dumbledore has no desire to take over the Ministry, yet Umbridge is still determined to stamp out all forms of defensive magic.