Weasley family

"*My father told me all the Weasleys have red hair, freckles, and more children than they can afford.*"
— Draco Malfoy's dislike of the Weasley family
**Weasley** was the surname of a pure-blood wizarding family in Great Britain. They were considered one of the prominent wizarding families, although their lack of money and their sympathy for Muggle-born wizards and even Muggles made other wizards and witches view them scornfully. They lived in The Burrow, a ramshackle house of four or five stories “a little way outside” the village of Ottery St Catchpole.

They were included in the Sacred Twenty-Eight list, published in the *Pure-Blood Directory* by the 1930s. However, they deplored their inclusion in the list, because they said they had ancestral ties to many interesting Muggles. Their protests earned these families the opprobrium of advocates of the pure-blood doctrine, and the epithet 'blood traitor'.

When Harry Potter befriended Arthur and Molly Weasley's youngest son, Ronald Weasley, the Weasleys became a second family to Harry. The Burrow became Harry's home away from home and Arthur and Molly served as de facto godparents in Sirius Black's absence. Harry would eventually marry into the family when he married Ginevra Weasley.

## Family history

### Early history

"*The Death Eaters know Ron's with you now, they're bound to target the family — don't apologise. It was always a matter of time, Dad's been saying so for months. We're the biggest blood traitor family there is.*"
— The family and how they are viewedThe Weasleys (unlike many other pure-blood families) willingly associated with Muggles, Muggle-borns, and half-bloods and do not consider themselves superior to others because of their blood status. Thus, elitist pure-blood families such as the Malfoys and the Blacks consider them "blood traitors" and treat them with disdain; Cedrella Black was even disowned by her family for marrying Septimus Weasley. Despite being "one of the biggest blood traitor" families, they seemed rather proud of it.
The Weasleys tended to have large numbers of children; an unusual trait for wizarding families, according to Draco Malfoy. Ron's generation of Weasleys were considered poor by wizarding standards; their vault at Gringotts Wizarding Bank only contained a small pile of Sickles and a single Galleon as of 1992.
For several generations, only boys were born into the family, until the birth of Ginevra Savannah Weasley. This trend ended with the grandchildren of Arthur and Molly, who include more girls than boys.

### Recent history

"*There was a very small pile of silver Sickles inside, and just one gold Galleon. Mrs Weasley felt right into the corners before sweeping the whole lot into her bag.*"
— The Weasley family's lack of wealth, as shown in their Gringotts VaultArthur Weasley was born on 6 February, 1950, to Septimus and Cedrella Weasley (née Black). Arthur had at least two brothers. He attended Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry from 1961-1968 and was sorted into Gryffindor House. In his third year in 1963, he probably chose to take Muggle Studies, due to his interest in Muggles. While at school, he met and began dating fellow Gryffindor Molly Prewett.
### First Wizarding War

Shortly after graduating from Hogwarts, Arthur and Molly married. Their marriage was rather rushed, as Lord Voldemort was gaining power during that time and the First Wizarding War began. They presumably took up residence at the Burrow, since at least 1970. The Burrow quickly became home to the Weasleys. Despite being poor, none of the family seemed ashamed of their home and it had a comfortable, relaxed atmosphere. It was a welcoming place, and friends of the family were regular visitors.

Arthur and Molly were not members of the first Order of the Phoenix; it is unknown if he was otherwise involved in the war. However, Molly's brothers, Fabian and Gideon Prewett, joined the Order, and were eventually killed by five Death Eaters, one of whom was Antonin Dolohov. During the course of the war, Arthur and Molly had seven children: Bill in late 1970, Charlie in 1972, Percy in 1976, twins Fred and George in 1978, Ron in 1980, and Ginny in 1981. Molly had longed to have a daughter after having her first five sons, but had another son before finally having a daughter.

The war ended soon after Ginny's birth, but not before Molly's brothers Fabian and Gideon Prewett, both Order members, were thought to be murdered by Death Eaters. The Prewett brothers were ambushed by five Death Eaters and fought like "heroes". The family was upset when some Death Eaters, such as Lucius Malfoy, were able to get off scot-free by claiming that they had been under the Imperius Curse, although Lucius wasn't lying because his father had him under the Imperius Potion. Arthur believed they were lying, and he and Lucius were hostile towards one another whenever they crossed paths.

### Between the wars

"*Another Weasley, eh? I spent half me life chasin’ yer twin brothers away from the forest.*"
— Rubeus Hagrid regarding Fred and George Weasley to their brother Ron
The Weasleys have a long history of being Sorted into Gryffindor House. Molly and Arthur, along with their seven children, were all Sorted into the House. During their time at Hogwarts, all their first five children distinguished themselves: Bill was appointed Prefect in his fifth years and Head Boy in his seventh year and distinguished himself as a student, earning twelve O.W.L.s; Charlie also was a Prefect, and in addition he was Captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch team and a skilled Seeker (according to Oliver Wood, he could have played for the National Team); Percy was Prefect and Head Boy as well, and in addition a distinguished student (he earned top grades in his N.E.W.T.s); Fred and George were in the Quidditch team and according to Ron they received good marks during their early years, but mostly they were well known for their creativity.

Ron felt dismay at being the sixth Weasley child to pass through Hogwarts. A large part of Ron's worries are caused by the fact that so many of the earlier Weasley children had excelled in some way or other. Ron eventually became a Prefect and a member of the Gryffindor Quidditch team, as did Ginny.

The Weasleys also became close to Harry Potter and the Muggle-born witch Hermione Granger, both Ron's best friends. Harry became an unofficial member of the family, receiving traditional Weasley jumpers and was even gifted with Fabian Prewett's watch when he turned seventeen. Molly was frequently as protective of him, as she was of her own children. Molly's boggart was the corpses of her children, which included Harry. Later in life, both Harry and Hermione officially became members of the family, when he married Ginny and she married Ron sometime after the Second Wizarding War.

### Second Wizarding War

The Weasleys' views led to their support to the Order of the Phoenix and Dumbledore's Army during the Second Wizarding War. In 1996 Ron and Ginny both fought in the Battle of the Department of Mysteries, receiving minor injuries for their efforts. In 1997 Bill, Ron, and Ginny also fought in the Battle of the Astronomy Tower. During the battle Bill was savaged by Fenrir Greyback, though he was not turned into a werewolf, he did develop some wolfish tendencies such as a liking for very rare steaks. Also in 1997 Arthur, Bill, Fred, George, and Ron all fought in the Battle of the Seven Potters, which resulted in George's ear being cut off from Dark magic. Bill married Fleur Delacour on 1 August 1997, although their wedding was disrupted by the arrival of Death Eaters following the fall of the Ministry of Magic

Arthur also participated in covert missions, such as guarding the prophecy regarding Harry on Dumbledore's orders. Bill also took a desk job at Gringotts in an attempt to persuade goblins to the Order of the Phoenix's side. In addition, Charlie worked as a recruiter. He spend much of his time trying to convince foreign wizards to join the fight against Voldemort, operating out of Romania. The Weasleys also opened their home to the Order, the Burrow replaced 12 Grimmauld Place.

During the height of the latter conflict, the Weasleys were placed under surveillance by the Voldemort-controlled Ministry of Magic because they had been in close contact with Harry, and eventually had to go into hiding. Fred and George participated in *Potterwatch* a radio programme designed to raise moral in the fight against Voldemort and lend support to Harry. The Weasleys took part in the Battle of Hogwarts.

### After the war

The family's financial status likely changed with the great commercial success of Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes and the successful careers of various family members. By the twenty-first century, many Weasleys and their relatives worked for the Ministry of Magic, including Arthur, Percy, Ron, and their in-laws, Harry Potter and Hermione Granger. The Weasley family also saw an expansion, as Molly and Arthur's children started having kids of their own.

Bill continued his work as a Curse Breaker. Charlie remained unmarried and proceeded to study dragons. Percy eventually became Head of the Department of Magical Transportation. George remained at Weasleys Wizard Wheezes and would never recover from the loss of his twin. Ron became an Auror after the war and retired after two years in order to join George at the shop. Ginny became a Chaser for the Holyhead Harpies. She eventually retired in order to start a family with Harry and became a sports editor and Quidditch correspondent for the *Daily Prophet*.

## Family members

### Main family

Arthur Weasley, one of three sons of Septimus and Cedrella Weasley, met Molly Prewett while they attended Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in the 1960s. They married soon after finishing school and went on to have seven children, whom they loved but did not spoil. All of those who were of age, except Percy, eventually became members of the reinstated Order of the Phoenix.