Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Rowling uses several chapters as exposition to establish Voldemort's backstory. In a series of flashbacks, using the pensieve as a plot device, she reveals that Voldemort was the son of the witch Merope Gaunt and a Muggle called Tom Riddle.
Voldemort's given name was Tom Marvolo Riddle. In the second book he explains that the appellation "Lord Voldemort" is derived from an anagram of his name: TOM MARVOLO RIDDLE → I AM LORD VOLDEMORT. This is also a play on words, as his name, Tom Marvolo Riddle, is also itself a riddle.
Mason Riddle is the Son of Tom Marvalo Riddle, otherwise known as Lord Voldemort, and the only American student at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. He is one of the only students who switched houses from Slytherin, to Gryffindor.
Harry and Dumbledore study Lord Voldemort's early years by viewing donated memories in Dumbledore's Pensieve. Voldemort's mother, Merope Gaunt, is Salazar Slytherin's direct descendant, and his father is Tom Riddle, a Muggle. During this time period, Voldemort is known by his birth name, Tom Marvolo Riddle.
The Riddles and the Potters are distantly related.
In the seventh book, we learn that Harry is a descendant of Ignotus Peverell when he discovers the true origins of the invisibility cloak his father passed down to him. But fans may not have caught that Tom Riddle is also a direct descendent of that same family.
Voldemort's past, as revealed by the books, is shrouded in mystery and guesswork. In fact, at the beginning of the series, barely anyone but Dumbledore and Hagrid knew that Voldemort was the charming, successful Tom Marvolo Riddle.
Dumbledore knew Tom Riddle was a threat to the wizarding world: a dangerous man who needed to be stopped. But he also felt pity for him: Voldemort never had, felt, nor understood love. And in many ways, Dumbledore understood Tom: he knew what it was like to lust for power and the damage it could cause.
In an interview, Rowling described Snape's character as an "antihero". She has said that she drew inspiration for Snape's character from a disliked teacher from her own childhood, and described Snape as a horrible teacher, saying the "worst, shabbiest thing you can do" as a teacher is to bully students.
The most likely reason why Lord Voldemort's nose disappeared and he devolved into such an evil-looking creature is that as he dabbled deeper into the Dark Arts, his appearance gradually became as distorted as what remained of his twisted soul.
His viciousness to Muggle-borns is connected: Riddle may be half-blood, but Muggle-borns can claim no wizarding heritage, therefore to him they are as low as Muggles themselves. Riddle also hates Muggles because they remind him of his childhood and the Muggle father who deserted him.
Delphi was conceived from a liaison between Voldemort and Bellatrix. She was born at Malfoy Manor, shortly before the 1998 Battle of Hogwarts. As Bellatrix and Voldemort were both killed in the Battle and Bellatrix's husband Rodolphus was imprisoned at Azkaban, Delphi was raised by Euphemia Rowle, a Death Eater.
The biggest revelation in Harry Potter and the Cursed Child was that Lord Voldemort had a daughter with Bellatrix Lestrange, who was named Delphini.
That's right! You heard me- their daughter. For those unaware, in the Cursed Child (which was written for a POST Harry Potter world)- it's revealed that at one point in time, Bellatrix and Voldemort conceived a child of their own- Delphini.
It seems Dumbledore's words to Harry – about fear of a name increasing fear of the thing itself – were true for most of the wizarding world. Not Dumbledore, though. In Voldemort's presence, he insisted on calling him Tom Riddle, subtly reminding the Dark Lord of his past.
Not surprisingly, the one person who always seemed to see through the act was Dumbledore. Dumbledore had seen the true Tom Riddle when they first met: the boy who tortured, stole, and completely abused his powers. As a result, Dumbledore never fully trusted him, and Tom never even tried to win Dumbledore's trust.
The initial trauma from his childhood led to the false identity he developed in his teenage years when he decided to rewrite his story and identity. He wanted to rid the world of those who had hurt him, and he'd almost succeeded before the prophecy of Harry's birth stopped and eventually destroyed him.
Snape having the same Patronus, the doe, as Lily symbolized his everlasting love and unwavering devotion towards her. He hadn't stopped loving her after their last altercation, marriage to James Potter, or death. She was his "always," his guiding light, and he protected Harry for her.
Bellatrix used a powerful "love potion" on Voldemort and they have sex while he is temporarily obsessed with her. She then uses obliviate on him while he sleeps (you know, he falls asleep after his post-sex cigarette) and tells everyone that the baby is her and her husband's.
Voldemort's soul splintered then, killing his physical body and splitting his soul into a new Horcrux. Since he had just murdered Harry's parents in cold blood and attempted to kill a defenseless infant, there was enough justification for the creation of a Horcrux.
Dumbledore reveals how thoroughly he loves Harry. Harry is brave, and Dumbledore is proud as any father would be. More than that, Dumbledore succumbs to a parent's weakness; he cares more about Harry's happiness and wellbeing than the wizarding world he is trying to protect.
Lily brought light and warmth into Snape's life from the moment they met. He was an isolated, lonely child whose magic would have only made him more of an outsider in his hometown of Cokeworth.
In 2006, Rowling told an interviewer that Voldemort at his core has a human fear: the fear of death. She said: "Voldemort's fear is death, ignominious death. I mean, he regards death itself as ignominious. He thinks that it's a shameful human weakness, as you know.
Voldemort's first defeat took place on Halloween, October 31, 1981 at the hands of an infant Harry Potter. This led to Harry being known as "The Boy Who Lived". Shortly thereafter, all of his remaining Death Eaters were imprisoned, killed, or acquitted, bringing the war to an end.
It is revealed during the series that Hagrid attended Hogwarts while Tom Riddle was also a student at the school, and that Hagrid was expelled during his third year (because Riddle, in his pre-Lord Voldemort days, framed him for opening the Chamber of Secrets).