Gustav Kleinwuchs

***“Gustav Kleinwuchs was Grindelwald’s highest -ranking lieutenant. He was also known as the Butcher of Silesia and the Death Wolf among other appellations because of his crimes against humanity and magic itself.”***

Remus Lupin to Harry Potter on Gustav’s war history

**Gustav Kleinwuchs,** known later in life as **George Pettigrew**, was a notorious Dark Wizard during the Global Wizarding War and the father of Martin Pettigrew and the grandfather of Peter Pettigrew.

## Biography

### Family Lineage

Gustav Kleinwuchs was descended from Emeric Belasco, a Bavarian wizard better known as Emeric the Evil, who was responsible for the creation of Lycanthropy. Emeric's daughter Lucretia Belasco married into the Kleinwuchs family. By Gustav's lifetime the Kleinwuchs had risen to become one of the darkest and most prominent Houses of Europe.

### Grindelwald War

Gustav believed that The Elder Wand - a fabled wand of incredible power wielded by Emeric The Evil - had fallen into the hands of a powerful Dark Wizard named Gellert Grindelwald, a former lieutenant of Lady Echidna and entered his service to eventually return the Elder Wand to the bloodline of Emeric Belasco. He orchestrated and committed countless crimes against *humanity* and *magic itself*, impressing Grindelwald enough to make Gustav his left hand.

He was involved in some massacre in Silesia horrific enough to gain the moniker **The Butcher of Silesia.**

Gustav also created werewolf detention camps in Poland to finish his ancestor's work and create intelligent werewolves. The thousands of Wizards and Muggles slaughtered at these camps earned him the title **der Todeswolf** (the Death Wolf).Though he made great strides he never finished his work before the end of the war.

In early 1945 Gustav was caught in the Bombing of Dresden, which killed his entire family with the exception of his youngest son, Martin Kleinwuchs.

### Post-Grindelwald

In 1946 Gustav found refuge with the Department of Mysteries. The Unspeakables hid Gustav and Martin from the various Magical governments that assumed they had perished in Dresden, giving them the new identities of George and Martin Pettigrew in Wizarding Britain. In return for their aid Gustav gave the Unspeakables his research from the werewolf camps, though he kept his Animagery research and some of the lycanthropy material among other things for himself.

The Unspeakables assigned Augustus Rookwood as the Pettigrew's handler to help them integrate into British society and to keep an eye on them, but Gustav convinced Rookwood into betraying The Unspeakables on his behalf within two months.

Martin Pettigrew later married Edwina of House Gamp, but was unable to secure the Gamp Seat and fortune due to a clause in the Gamp Charter.

In 1962 George was on his death bed, partly due to old injuries from the war, where he spoke with Martin of their plans for Martin's son Peter Pettigrew, whose children could inherit the Gamp Lordship if their mother was Pureblood. Martin's wife Edwina overheard them speaking and also heard that they were planning to kill her if she didn't die of illness soon.

Edwina poisoned George and not long afterwards sabotaged one of Martin's potions to make it explode, killing them both in quick succession.

### Legacy

Gustav Kleinwuchs' name is still infamous to this day, as a younger member of the Unspeakables was horrified to learn they had given him asylum. Gustav's research into werewolves aided Damocles Belby’s production of the Wolfsbane Potion, the very thing Gustav committed so many atrocities in Poland to create.(Not that Belby knew where the research really came from).

His grandson Peter Pettigrew was inspired by his grandfather's deeds after meeting his portrait to start working with Augustus Rookwood, starting his descent into evil.Peter also used Gustav and Martin’s research on Wild Animagery to solve Morphic Resonance, allowing him to communicate with rats in similar(but inferior) way as Parseltounge.

## Physical Description

A painting of Gustav was kept in the Pettigrew vault, where he was portrayed as an older wizard with white hair and a neatly trimmed beard. Gustav's eyes shone with a strange "rat-like" gleam he shared with his grandson Peter.

## Personality & Traits

Gustav was a notorious Dark Wizard who was obsessed with the legacy of his ancestor Emeric Belasco. He was willing to kill anyone and anything that stood in the way of his ambitions, and was responsible for some sort of massacre in Silesia.

Gustav was also pragmatic, as he joined Grindelwald for the express purpose of obtaining the Elder Wand, which he believed to be his birthright.

## Magical Abilities & Skills

He was a powerful Wizard and presumably an expert on lycanthropy.

## Canon Divergence

Gustav Kleinwuchs/George Pettigrew is an original character of the Prince of Slytherin universe.

## References

Book 3 - HP&DEM - Ch. 123 - The Hunting of Sirius Black (Pt 2),

Peter reveals his treachery and family lineage in the Shrieking Shack.
Book 3 - HP&DEM - Ch. 126 - Speaking of Time,

The Unspeakables tell Hermione about Jocasta Flint.
Book 3 - HP&DEM - Ch. 120 - What's Past is Prologue (Pt 2),

Peter visits the Pettigrew Vault, discovers his grandfather's true identity and kills his mother..
Book 3 - HP&DEM - Ch. 131 - Moving Forward,

Harry blackmails the Unspeakables with proof of their deals with Gustav Kleinwuchs.
Book 3 - HP&DEM - Ch. 134 - The Kings of Rats,

James talks to Peter in his cell..