Memory Charm

The **Memory Charm** was a charm which first appeared in *Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets*. It erased or modified a person's memory. A trained witch or wizard was employed by a governing body to carry out memory charms. They were called an "Obliviator".

## About

It was used to erase or modify a person's memory. If it was not properly performed, it could erase a sizeable portion of a person's memory and in rare cases, erase everything and cause permanent brain damage. Lockhart suffered severe memory loss but eventually gained back a portion of who he was, e.g. personality traits like arrogance, but he couldn't remember why he had fans or why he loved signing autographs.

It was possible to break through a person's mind to find a forgotten memory but in the process, their mind and body were broken beyond repair.

## History

The spell was used routinely by wizarding governments in an effort to uphold the International Statute of Secrecy. For example, hiding dragons or for Muggles to forget finding an enchanted object. These things caused a continuous need for the spell to be used.

In November 1981, Peter Pettigrew killed twelve Muggles before disappearing during a fight with Sirius Black. It was witnessed by several Muggles whose memories had to be modified. In August 1991, Arthur Weasley and Perkins had to use the spell when a Muggle purchased an enchanted teacup and had her friends round for a party.

Gilderoy Lockhart was very skilled at using these memory spells. He tracked down lesser known wizards who had incredible stories to tell, and stole them by erasing their memory of what they did so he could fraudulently take the credit. In April 1993, Harry and Ron found out he was a fraud. Lockhart tried to produce a Memory Charm to erase their memory of what he did, but Harry used a Disarming Charm to knock his wand out of his hand. Lockhart used a second Memory Charm in the Chamber of Secrets when he stole Ron's broken wand. The spell spell bounced back, erasing Lockhart's entire memory. Lockhart was then a resident of the Janus Thickey Ward, a spell damage ward for those with permanent memory loss, in St. Mungo's Hospital.

In August 1993, Marjorie Dursley upset Harry by being incredibly rude. He accidentally inflated her and she flew away like a balloon. Two employees of the Accidental Magic Reversal Squad found her, deflated her and modified her memory that night. At an unknown date, Bertha Jorkins accidentally discovered Barty Crouch Jnr. was being kept in his father's house under the Imperius Charm. The father, Crouch Snr. altered her memory with a very powerful Memory Charm to the extent that she suffered permanent brain damage. In the summer of 1994, she was taken to Voldemort by Peter Pettigrew who broke through her memory with torture. He found out what she was enchanted to forget, but doing so broke her mind and body beyond repair causing her death.

## Notes and sources

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 *Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets*, Chapter 16
2. ↑ *Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire*, Chapter 7
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 *Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets*, Chapter 17
4. ↑ *Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets*, Chapter 18
5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 *Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix*, Chapter 23
6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 *Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire*, Chapter 1
7. ↑ *Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone*, Chapter 14
8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 *Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets*, Chapter 3
9. ↑ *Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban*, Chapter 10
10. ↑ *Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban*, Chapter 3