There are a great many villains in the Harry Potter series. When you think of antagonists Harry must face, your mind most likely drifts to Dolores Umbridge, Bellatrix Lestrange, or Lord Voldemort. But we can’t forget about the Dursleys. Despite being Muggles, they were responsible for a great deal of pain and misfortune in Harry’s life before he was eventually allowed to go to Hogwarts.
All three Dudleys, Petunia, Vernon, and Dudley executed their unique brand of misery on Harry but perhaps the worst of all was Vernon. Some of Dudley’s behavior can be explained away by the way he was raised, and the fact he started to change his tune towards the series’ end. Even Petunia had some reasons for why she acted the way she did. But Vernon only acted out of cruelty. It’s hard to pinpoint only ten terrible things he did to Harry but we did our best.
Making Hedwig stay shut in her cage
Harry’s loyal and beloved snowy owl Hedwig brought him a much-needed dose of happiness during his long and painful summers at the Dursley’s while on break from Hogwarts. If it weren’t for Hedwig, it’s easy to believe Harry would have jinxed them all and gone on the run.
But Hedwig suffered at the hands of Vernon just like her owner. Uncle Vernon forced Harry to keep Hedwig in a padlocked cage for the majority of his time at Privet Drive. Being constrained in such cramped quarters is torture for a bird like Hedwig.
Putting bars on Harry’s window
In Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Dobby gets Harry in trouble with the Ministry of Magic. He receives a warning about performing underage magic. Once Vernon Dursley finds out that Harry can’t do magic without getting expelled from school, he gleefully uses it as an opportunity to lock Harry away in his bedroom.
Not only does he lock the door and install a cat flap for food but he puts iron bars on the window to keep Harry from sending Hedwig out for help. Luckily for Harry, he had the Weasley’s on his side. They’re able to help him escape, but not without Vernon attempting to yank Harry back inside by the ankles. You’d think he would be happy to let Harry go but he cares more about keeping Harry miserable.
Keeping Harry from reading mail
Way back in book one, Vernon Dursley was responsible for trying to keep Harry from finding out about Hogwarts, his parents, and the magical world altogether. When Harry received his acceptance letter to Hogwarts, Vernon ripped it up and threw it in the fire.
No matter how many letters were sent to the house, Vernon did what was necessary to keep Harry from reading them. It got to the point where he took his entire family to a hut in the middle of the stormy sea just to try and hide from the post. Unfortunately for him, Dumbledore wouldn’t give up.
Lying to Harry about his parents
Going off of Vernon’s decision to keep Harry from reading his acceptance letter, he and Petunia also lied to Harry during his childhood about what happened to his parents. They told Harry that James and Lily Potter died in a car crash.
In reality, they were murdered by Lord Voldemort, who also attempted to kill Harry but was unable to do so. In an effort to conceal his magical heritage, Vernon comes up with an idiotic lie about their death. He even shamelessly alludes to the possibility that James was a drunk driver when Marge is in town.
Forcing Harry to live in a cupboard under the stairs
Perhaps one of the worst and most inhumane things the Dursleys ever did was to make Harry live and grow up in a cramped cupboard full of spiders beneath the stairs. While we don’t know exactly how Harry was raised as an infant, it’s terrible to consider he might have been shut inside the cupboard in a crib even as a little boy.
It’s bad enough to see him in there as a pre-teen but even worse to imagine a young toddler confined to such quarters. Even worse, they had a spare bedroom the entire time but gave it to Dudley to use as a place for all his toys instead of allowing Harry to stay there (at least until later in the book).
Mocking and belittling Harry and his family
As mentioned above, the Dursleys lied to Harry about the true nature of his parent’s death and their lives in general. But Vernon had no qualms about making cutting and cruel remarks about Harry and his family.
He would make Harry sound like an idiot and delinquent to any of the neighbors or his co-workers who might have discovered his existence, such as at the business meeting he holds in the second book. As if lying to the boy wasn’t bad enough, Harry was also a victim of emotional and verbal abuse for 12 whole years.
He pits Dudley and Harry against one another
Dudley is a brat. There is no denying that. But one has to wonder if it had to be that way. Had the Dursleys not been such terrible people, Dudley and Harry might have even been friends, or at least, not enemies, while growing up. Vernon and Petunia both were happy to compare Dudley and Harry to one another.
They would build up their own son while tearing Harry down. They nurtured a volatile and explosive relationship between the two boys. By the series’ end, Dudley is actually the only one who doesn’t hate Harry and actually seems to feel some genuine remorse for how he was treated over the years.
He was extremely rude to the Weasleys
Thankfully, the Weasleys and the Dursleys don’t have to cross paths very often. But in the early days, there was the occasional brush. Arthur and Molly always attempted to be extremely polite to Vernon and Petunia, only to be met with resentment and fear. The worst example came in the fourth book when the Weasleys intended to pick Harry up for vacation.
Prior to their arrival, Vernon made countless derisive remarks about the couple. He called Molly a “dumpy” woman and belittled Arthur’s career choices. When they did finally arrive it was essentially instantaneous chaos in the Privet Drive living room. Although some of that can be blamed on the messy arrival due to Floo powder travel.
He allows Marge to verbally abuse Harry
We’ve already established that Vernon would frequently mock, insult, torment, and all-out abuse Harry during his entire childhood. You’d think maybe he’d at least have the decency and tact to not allow his family or other people to do it too but no such luck. Vernon was only too happy to let his horrible sister Marge degrade Harry in the same fashion he did, if not worse.
When Marge came around she was always quick to compare Harry and Dudley. Despite knowing nothing about Harry’s real past, she would make cutting remarks about his mother and father, seriously cruel stuff. Vernon never said a word to defend Harry, if anything, he encouraged it.
He often comments on how happy he’d be if Harry died
Vernon Dursley is a bully and a coward. He’s not the type of man you’d ever want to be friends with. Not only did he make a little boy’s life a living hell with apparent glee, but he would frequently even wish for his death. Even Petunia typically didn’t stoop that low.
But whenever there was a chance Harry was in mortal danger, Vernon cared more about his own wellbeing than Harry’s. He made no effort to hide his happiness when Harry’s life was at risk. He wasn’t afraid of Voldemort and would have been only too happy to hear Harry had been finished off by the dark wizard.
Next: Harry Potter: 10 Worst Things The Dursleys Have Ever Done
