Cedric Diggory

## History

### Early Life

Cedric was born in either September or October of 1977, to Amos Diggory and his wife. He grew up near Ottery St Catchpole, a small town located in Devon, England. When he was seven years old, his father enjoyed bragging about him to the family friends, as well as anyone who would listen.

## Involvement

### Fifth Year

In 1993, Cedric became a Prefect and Captain of the Hufflepuff Quidditch team. On 7 November, he led his team against Gryffindor in the first match of the school year. Originally, the match should have taken place between Gryffindor and Slytherin, but Draco Malfoy played on the fact that his arm had been injured by the hippogriff Buckbeak to get out of playing in stormy conditions.
During the match, Cedric and Harry Potter contested the Golden Snitch. However, Harry was overcome by the presence of Dementors and fell from his broom. Cedric caught the Snitch, but as soon as he realised what had happened to Harry, he immediately offered to replay the match. Oliver Wood was said to have declined the offer, feeling that Cedric had won the match fair and square.
When Harry got back his Firebolt broomstick, Cedric was among those who congratulated Harry on his ownership of the broomstick.

### Sixth Year

In the summer of 1994, Cedric attended the Quidditch World Cup with his father, travelling to the game with the Weasleys, Harry Potter, and Hermione Granger as he and his father lived close to the Burrow.
Cedric started his sixth year in September 1994, the same year that the Triwizard Tournament was reinstated. Being of age, Cedric submitted his name to the Goblet of Fire for the chance to become the Hogwarts Champion. On 31 October, the Goblet chose the champions to represent the three schools; Fleur Delacour for Beauxbatons, Viktor Krum for Durmstrang, and Cedric himself for Hogwarts.
Cedric joined the other champions in a small room off the Great Hall, and was surprised to learn that after he had left the Hall, the Goblet had produced a fourth name — Harry Potter. Harry claimed that he did not cheat and put his name in, and while no-one thought he was telling the truth, Cedric was kind to Harry. Cedric later asked Harry how he managed to cheat, and Harry again told him that he never cheated. Though Harry felt Cedric did not believe him, he remained kind and appeared to be okay with what Harry was telling him.

### Triwizard Tournament

In the weeks that followed his selection, Cedric was supported by the majority of the school, even the Slytherins. Enchanted badges became popular around the school that read *Support CEDRIC DIGGORY — the REAL Hogwarts Champion!*, then changed to read *POTTER STINKS*. Cedric, however, was not fond of the badges and asked his friends not to wear them.

As part of the Tournament, Cedric took part in the Wand weighing ceremony conducted by Garrick Ollivander, who deemed his wand '*pleasantly springy*', and posed for photos for the *Daily Prophet*. However, his entry into the Tournament was completely overlooked by Rita Skeeter's article on the event in favour of Harry, a situation about which his father was most displeased.

* First Task

In the months before to the First Task, Cedric was informed by Harry that the first task was to get past a dragon. Cedric was the only Champion not to be aware of them, and Harry felt it was only fair to tell him so everyone would be on an even footing.
On 24 November, the Champions gathered and randomly selected miniature versions of a dragon with a number on them to indicate the order in which they would face them. Cedric drew the Swedish Short-Snout and the number one slot, so entered the arena first to attempt to retrieve the golden egg it was guarding.
Facing the dragon, Cedric transfigured a rock into a Labrador to distract the creature. While the dragon turned to chase the dog, Cedric went for the Golden egg. Although he retrieved it, the dragon lost interest in the dog, preferring to go after Cedric. The dragon burned Cedric on the side of his face, and he barely managed to get away from it. He was tended to by Madam Pomfrey, who applied an orange paste to his face to heal the wound.

* Second Task

Like all the Champions, Cedric had to work out the clue hidden in the golden egg to prepare for the Second Task. He was aided by Barty Crouch Jnr, disguised as the new Defence Against the Dark Arts professor Alastor 'Mad-Eye' Moody, who told him to take it into the bath and listen to it underwater. He took it into the prefects' bathroom on the fifth floor, and opened the egg underwater. He heard the clue, but it took him a while to figure out that it referred to the merpeople in the lake.
On 24 February, the Second Task took place. Having deciphered the clue in the golden egg, Cedric knew he had to breathe underwater for at least an hour and retrieve something that had been stolen from him. He effectively employed the Bubble-Head Charm, and reached the merpeople village shortly after Harry. He found that his something that he would '*sorely miss*' was Cho, and rescued her. He warned Harry — who was worried about the other 'hostages' — to hurry up, then swam to the surface. He arrived one minute outside the hour time limit, and received forty-seven points. After two tasks, he was tied for first place with Harry.

* Yule Ball

At Christmas, Cedric was required to attend the Yule Ball, a traditional part of the Triwizard Tournament. He asked Cho Chang (whom he either was already dating or subsequently began to) to attend the ball with him, and she accepted. Towards the end of the ball, Cedric found Harry and told him to take the egg into the bath and '*mull things over in the hot water*' as he had done. As repayment for warning him about the dragons, he gave Harry access to the Prefect's Bathroom to work out the clue.

* Third Task

Prior to the Third Task, Cedric, along with the other Champions, joined Ludo Bagman to view the maze that was being grown on the Hogwarts Quidditch pitch. Along with Harry, Cedric was dismayed to see the Quidditch pitch overgrown, but was assured by Bagman that the pitch would be returned to normal following the conclusion of the Tournament.
On 24 June, Cedric was joined by his parents, who had been invited to watch the Third Task. During the meeting, his father confronted Harry over the coverage he had been receiving in the press at the expense of his son. Cedric tried to calm him down and explain that it was not Harry's fault, then apologised to Harry.
Because they were tied for first place, Cedric entered the maze with Harry. They split up, each hoping to be the first to get to the Triwizard Cup placed in the centre of the maze. Soon after, Cedric encountered one of Rubeus Hagrid's now gigantic Blast-Ended Skrewts, and narrowly escaped being burned by it. After the Skrewt, Cedric came across Viktor Krum. Krum — who was under the Imperius Curse at the time — attacked Cedric with the Cruciatus Curse. He was saved by Harry, who stunned Krum, and reluctantly shot red sparks into the air to mark Krum's position, so that the Durmstrang champion could be retrieved from the maze. Despite being briefly united, he and Harry split apart again to seek the cup.
Cedric spotted the cup, and sprinted towards it as fast as he could. From his left, an Acromantula burst onto the path and attacked him. His wand was knocked out of his hand, but the timely arrival of Harry distracted it enough for Cedric to recover his own wand. Although the giant spider was too powerful to be brought down by a single spell, Harry and Cedric both stunned it at the same time. Recovering, the two of them found themselves next to the Triwizard Cup.
Having been saved by Harry twice in the maze, Cedric urged him to take the Cup. The two argued about who should take it and win the Tournament, each pointing out that they had been helped by the other. Eventually, Harry suggested that they both take it for a Hogwarts victory. Pleased, Cedric helped the injured Harry towards the Cup, and they both took hold of it. Their touch activated the Cup, which had been turned into a Portkey, and the two of them were transported away.

### Death

The Portkey deposited both Cedric and Harry in an unknown graveyard. Confused, Cedric recommended proceeding with wands out until they knew what was going on. Soon after their arrival, Peter Pettigrew emerged from the darkness carrying the small form of Lord Voldemort. At this point Harry's scar hurt with intense pain, upon him being in close proximity to Voldemort. Voldemort ordered Pettigrew to '*Kill the spare*', and he used Voldemort's own wand to murder Cedric with the Killing Curse. Harry heard Cedric's body hit the ground.

### Legacy

Although dead, Cedric still had a role to play in the night's events. After Voldemort was reborn, he and Harry engaged in a duel, during which their wands — which shared a wand core from the same phoenix — connected, creating the effect known as *Priori Incantatem*, the backward spell effect. Voldemort's wand began regurgitating the last spells it had cast in reverse.

Cedric's shadow emerged from Voldemort's wand, along with the shadows of Frank Bryce, Bertha Jorkins, and James and Lily Potter. Cedric's 'echo' asked Harry to take his body back to his parents while he helped the others. Harry agreed, and when he broke the wand connection, the shadows advanced on Voldemort, shielding Harry. Harry used the opportunity to take hold of Cedric's body, then summon the Cup to himself and transport them both back to Hogwarts.

#### Legacy

"*The Ministry of Magic, does not wish me to tell you this. It is possible that some of your parents will be horrified that I have done so — either because they will not believe that Lord Voldemort has returned, or because they think I should not tell you so, young as you are. It is my belief, however, that the truth is generally preferable to lies, and that any attempt to pretend that Cedric died as the result of an accident, or some sort of blunder of his own, is an insult to his memory.*"
— Albus Dumbledore speaking highly of the late Cedric Diggory[src]

Cedric's body was returned to the grounds, and Harry clung to it, refusing to let it go until Albus Dumbledore pulled him away. The crowd that had gathered for the Third Task erupted into screams when they realised what had happened, and Cedric's parents were grief-stricken by the fate that had befallen their son (although his mother attempted to console herself by reflecting that Cedric had not suffered in death, and that he had died after winning the Tournament, believing that the victory would have made him happy).

*Main article: Memorial feast to Cedric Diggory*
Cedric's death was widely felt throughout the school, and on 26 June the Leaving Feast was turned into a memorial for him, with black banners replacing the house colours. Dumbledore delivered a tribute to Cedric, and relayed the events that had led to his death to the student body, telling them, against the explicit wishes of the Ministry of Magic, that the young Hufflepuff had been murdered by Lord Voldemort himself.

**Harry Potter**: "*So, according to you, Cedric Diggory dropped dead of his own accord, did he?*"
**Dolores Umbridge**: "*Cedric Diggory's death was a tragic accident.*"
**Harry Potter**: "*It was murder. Voldemort killed him, and you know it.*"
— Harry arguing with Dolores Umbridge over Cedric's death[src]
The Minister of Magic Cornelius Fudge refused to accept Harry Potter's claims that Lord Voldemort had returned, and tried to hush up Cedric's death, claiming that it was a freak accident during the Tournament that killed him. He also slandered Harry Potter as a liar and questioned Albus Dumbledore's sanity.

In death, Cedric proved to be an inspiration to many students at Hogwarts. His death was heartfelt and was tragic enough to cause even those who disliked Harry to believe his claims of Voldemort's return. During the school year after Cedric's death, Hogwarts was under the watchful eyes of the British Ministry of Magic with Dolores Umbridge, a high-ranking Ministry official being employed as Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher. She constantly told students that Harry lied about Cedric's death and refused to teach any practical magic.

This started a rebellion amongst the students, and they formed Dumbledore's Army, an alliance against Umbridge that taught students how to prepare themselves for the day that Lord Voldemort announced his return. During the D.A's meetings, Cedric was a key point of interest, with students wanting accounts of how he died, and his former girlfriend, Cho, seeking comfort from Harry, by asking whether Cedric would have survived if he had known what they were being taught.

Harry, in turn, assured her that Cedric had known what he (Harry) was teaching the other students, but Cedric was simply unable to match Voldemort's experience and evil, and that Harry himself had made it back through good luck, rather than greater talent. Later on that year, only when incontrovertible proof of the Dark Lord's return was presented, did Fudge believe Voldemort had indeed returned and that Cedric was actually murdered.

Cedric was thereafter remembered as someone who had not strayed across the dark path and whom had stood up to Voldemort. Harry continued to honour him by keeping a badge that read 'Support Cedric Diggory'.

### Alternate timelines

By 2020, Cedric's father, Amos, was still greatly grieving for his son's death. When he found out Harry Potter had retrieved a Time-Turner, he begged Harry to use it to save Cedric. Harry stated that it was dangerous to meddle with time, but his own son, Albus Potter, secretly agreed to it along with his friend, Scorpius Malfoy. Although they managed to create alternate realities (including one where Cedric lived), it changed time too much and they had to restore the original timeline.

Indeed, the one timeline where Albus and Scorpius succeeded their goal of saving Cedric actually humiliated him in public, causing him to join the Death Eaters in bitter hatred for society; he ended up killing Neville Longbottom, thus preventing Nagini's death, which in turn prevented Voldemort from being killed, and Harry was killed in turn, thus leading to an age of darkness where Voldemort ruled. Albus and Scorpius prevented an attempt at changing time a third time by Delphi during the third task with the help of Cedric himself who rescued the two from the Dark witch, thinking that it was part of the task.

In 2021, Harry visited Cedric's grave, which was placed on a beautiful hill. He shared this experience with his son, Albus Potter, explaining that he came to say sorry for a life that was stolen and that he visits every year on the anniversary of Cedric's death. He tells Albus that Cedric was a great wizard and that he did not deserve his fate.

## Physical Description

Cedric was a tall and extremely handsome young man with chiselled features, dark hair, and bright grey eyes. Although he was a Seeker (a position usually taken by small and light players), he was well-built and burly.

Because of his handsomeness, Cedric caught attention from numerous girls - Angelina Johnson commented that he was '*tall and good-looking*', while Katie Bell agreed that he was '*strong and silent*'. Even Pansy Parkinson, who usually had something negative to say about everyone's appearance, acknowledged his good looks. The fact that Fleur Delacour tried to use her Veela allure on him to charm him into becoming her date for the Yule Ball was further proof of how attractive he was.

## Personality

Cedric was said to be an embodiment of the qualities of Hufflepuff House. He had a sense of fair play: during the 1993 Gryffindor/Hufflepuff match, despite his capture of the Golden Snitch (which ensured his team's victory), Cedric immediately offered to replay the match once he found out that his opponent, Harry Potter, had fallen from his broom due to the influence of the Dementors.

Later on, he provided Harry with information as to how to decipher the golden egg clue for the Second Task. After Harry saved him in the maze, Cedric realised that Harry was the one who truly deserved to take the Triwizard Cup, and had no qualms with openly acknowledging it, which actually resulted in an argument of sorts between them. This sense of fair play and his ability to accept there were those who were better than him is a definite testament to his nobility and his grace.

He also appeared to possess a strength of character that was not unlike Harry's. This came into play when Fleur's turning the force of her Veela charm on him while asking him to be her date for the Yule Ball. He refused, for he already had a date. Hence, it could be said that Cedric was a man of his word with remarkable inner strength, especially given how he was able to successfully resist the allure of Veela charm (which could be overwhelming) and keep his previously made promise.

Besides all this, Cedric was genuinely modest, telling his father that his victory in the Gryffindor/Hufflepuff Quidditch match had not been a truly fair one. All the female Gryffindor Chasers described him as being *'strong and silent'*, suggesting that he was sensible enough to speak only when it was absolutely necessary. He was also courteously polite to foreigners: though he supported Ireland during the 1994 Quidditch World Cup final, he was still civil to Viktor Krum (who was from Bulgaria). The fact that his spirit's last request to Harry had only been to take his body back to his parents also proved that he loved his parents dearly.

While this side of him was never seen in the original timeline, he appeared to have a sense of honour and importance for his title at the school. This was proven by the fact that in one of the alternate timelines, in which he was humiliated during the Triwizard Tournament, this feeling of embarrassment eventually led him to join the Death Eaters. This means that if his pride or status had ever been shot down enough, this feeling of anger would have turned him over to the Death Eaters.

## Skills & Abilities

Given Cedric's relatively smooth and successful participation in the Triwizard Tournament, he was a skilful and competent wizard in his own right. He was also an accomplished Quidditch player.

* **Flying**: As the Captain and Seeker of the Hufflepuff Quidditch team, Cedric was a skilful and accomplished flyer and Quidditch player, especially since the position of Seeker was generally considered to be the hardest position to play. In particular, he was noted to have a very fast swerve. He even defeated Harry Potter once in a match, although this had been due to the presence of Dementors causing Harry to fall off his broom, but many still considered it an impressive display of his flying abilities.

"*You were the best, you know, no competition. Cedric did this weird thing where he Transfigured a rock on the ground... turned it into a dog... he was trying to make the dragon go for the dog instead of him. Well, it was a pretty cool bit of Transfiguration...*"
— Ron Weasley regarding Cedric's talent for transfiguration[src]

* **Transfiguration**: Cedric was shown to be proficient in transfiguration, given how he transformed a rock into a dog during the first task of the Tournament, and took the subject at N.E.W.T.-level, meaning he must have achieved either an 'Exceeds Expectations' or 'Outstanding' at O.W.L..

* **Charms**: Cedric was shown to be proficient in charm-work, using a successful Bubble-Head Charm during the second task of the Tournament, and took the subject at N.E.W.T.-level, meaning he must have achieved either an 'Exceeds Expectations' or 'Outstanding' at O.W.L. level. He also used the Wand-Lighting Charm to illuminate his dark surroundings whilst navigating the maze of the Third Task, along with casting the Red Sparks to alert the defeat of Viktor Krum. Furthermore, Cedric was shown to be very talented in the casting of defensive charms, such as the Disarming Charm and Stunning Spell; he was capable of using the Stunning Spell to stun and defeat an Acromantula, a highly dangerous beast in the maze of the Third Task with Harry Potter's help.
* **Indomitable willpower**: Cedric was shown to possess an exceptionally strong willpower that could rival that of Harry's. For instance, he was able to successfully resist Fleur's Veela charm and honour his previous arrangement with Cho. This was no easy feat, as Veela charm could be particularly powerful and Fleur seemed to be turning on the full force of it upon him.

## Possessions

* **Wand**: Cedric owned a wand, which 12¼ inches long, made of Ash wood with a Unicorn hair core. It was manufactured by the Wandmaker Garrick Ollivander and purchased from his wand shop Ollivanders in Diagon Alley, prior to 1988. It was described as being 'pleasantly springy' by Ollivander during the Wand weighing ceremony in 1994.
* **Dress robes**: He owned formal black Dress robes that he wore to the Yule Ball with his date Cho Chang.
* **Prefect badge**: Having been made a Prefect in his fifth year at Hogwarts, Cedric owned a Hufflepuff Prefect badge, which he would have worn during his formal Prefect duties.
* ***A Guide to Advanced Transfiguration***: Being a N.E.W.T. level student of Transfiguration class, Cedric owned a copy of this advanced textbook which he kept in his school bag among his other books.
* **Broomstick**: Being a successful and accomplished Quidditch of the Hufflepuff Quidditch team, Cedric would have owned his own broomstick which he would have flown with.

## Etymology

* The name Cedric was unintentionally created by Sir Walter Scott in his *Ivanhoe* character Cedric the Saxon when he misspelt the name Cerdic. Cerdic was a sixth-century Saxon leader and the first king of Wessex.
* It is commonly believed that J. K. Rowling borrowed Cedric's last name from Digory Kirke in C.S. Lewis's *Narnia* series, as he is said to be one of her favourite authors.

## Trivia

* Cedric was portrayed by Robert Pattinson in the film adaptation of *Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire*. Joe Livermore portrayed Cedric in the film adaptation of *Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban*.
* Tom Milligan portrays Cedric in the original West End Palace Theatre production of *Harry Potter and the Cursed Child*.
* Cedric's death is the first death Harry witnesses in the book series. Harry was in his cot when his mother died, but he would not remember this due to his age at the time, and he passed out before he sees Quirrell die. Yet, Harry is unable to see the Thestrals until *Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix*, because the reality of Cedric's death has not fully sunk in. Technically, however, Harry did not witness the event at all in the books, as he was described to have his eyes closed with agony during Cedric's actual death.
* In the film adaptation of *Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban*, Cedric, the Hufflepuff Seeker is struck by lightning during the Gryffindor-Hufflepuff match just as he is about to catch the Snitch, causing him to fall back. The player is not named in the film's dialogue, but 'Diggory' is embroidered above the Hufflepuff logo on his Quidditch robes, and the costume is identified as 'Cedric Diggory's Quidditch robes' in *Harry Potter: The Exhibition*. However, it may have not been intended to be Cedric at the time, since in the film adaptation of *Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire*, Harry, along with Fred and George Weasley, do not show signs of knowing Cedric previously, as the film implies that they are first introduced to him on the way to the Quidditch World Cup; while in the novel they only knew him from the aforementioned Quidditch match against Hufflepuff in the previous school year.
	+ When Harry is cleaning out his school trunk in 1997, he finds a 'Support Cedric Diggory!' badge in there. Considering the badges were only created by Draco Malfoy to get a rise out of Harry in 1994, it seems out of place that Harry has it, although he may have it by accident, or out of respect for Cedric. He could also have kept one as a memento from the Tournament.
* Cedric once borrowed *Quidditch Through the Ages* from the Hogwarts Library, and was due to return the book on 3 July.
* Although Harry and Dumbledore say it was Voldemort who killed Cedric, it was actually Peter Pettigrew, under Voldemort's orders, who killed him. It could be that they meant that Voldemort *ordered* Pettigrew to kill Cedric, which makes him equally responsible. It also should be noted that the wand Peter used to kill Cedric with was Voldemort's. In addition, they were likely simplifying the facts to address the relatively greater issue of Voldemort's return, and not to waste time explaining Pettigrew's defection and faking his own death.
* In *LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1-4*, Cedric is not killed right away like in the novel and film. He is stuck to the statue with Harry, and participates in the ensuing battle. Rather, he is killed when Voldemort shoots a Killing Curse just as they grab the cup, which strikes Cedric and kills him. Despite Cedric's death in the graveyard, his father gets instructions on how to rebuild him from Dumbledore. However, in the sequel, it is implied that Cedric is still dead, most likely to avoid creating a plothole surrounding the aftermath of his death and the Ministry's denial of Voldemort's return.
* Robert Pattinson has openly stated that he would rather want to play Cedric Diggory than playing Edward Cullen from the *Twilight* series.
* Despite being dead at the time, Cedric Diggory is an opponent in the Duelling Club minigame in the Nintendo DS version of *LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7*.
* *Man of Steel* star Henry Cavill auditioned to play Cedric, but lost out to Robert Pattinson. He later lost out to Pattinson on playing Edward Cullen in *Twilight*, despite being author Stephanie Meyer's first choice for the role.
* Hufflepuff is a house that is said to have produced the fewest Dark wizards. In an alternative timeline Cedric joined the Death Eaters and murdered Neville Longbottom. It's possible that due to the unique circumstances of Cedric's humiliation during the Triwizard Tournament and the overwhelming presence of the Death Eaters within the British Wizarding community created a situation where Cedric was easily influenced by the Dark Arts and the benefits that joining Lord Voldemort's elite could bring.