Torquil Travers

**Torquil Travers** was a British wizard and a member of the Pure-blood Travers family. He served as the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement for the British Ministry of Magic in the 1920s.

## Biography

Torquil Travers was born into the Travers family, one of the "Sacred Twenty-Eight", a number of families that were judged to be still "truly pure-blood" by the author of the *Pure-Blood Directory* published in the 1930s.

He ended up joining the British Ministry of Magic and eventually became the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. In 1927, he, accompanied by a number of Ministry wizards that included Theseus Scamander, Head of the Auror Office, and Leta Lestrange, arrived at Hogwarts Castle to question then Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor, Albus Dumbledore in his own classroom regarding Newt Scamander's rumoured voyage to Paris.

## Personality and traits

Torquil Travers was described as a "harsh, mean-spirited man".

Having risen to a high position of power within the Ministry of Magic, Travers enjoyed the authority he possessed and disliked being contradicted or contested on any subject. He considered his place as the wizard in charge of the security of the British community as giving him the ability to pursue any course of action he saw fit, whether it was interrupting a Defence Against the Dark Arts class at Hogwarts while Dumbledore was still teaching (and in spite of Professor McGonagall's protests) or ordering the arrest of people for merely coming into contact with criminals like Gellert Grindelwald and his followers. His immediate reaction to any problem seemed to be attempting to remove it, leading Dumbledore to criticise the policies he had introduced while at the Ministry as those of 'suppression and violence'.

His position has also led him to expect instant obedience or submission to his demands or orders. Although he seemed to agree to compromise about lifting Newt Scamander's travel ban in exchange for him tracking down Credence Barebone and killing him, he refused to accept any negotiations about the terms of the deal, rejecting Newt's request as soon as he refused the deal. He also demanded that Dumbledore fight Grindelwald for the Ministry rather than ask, all the while ignoring the Hogwarts teacher's advice regarding his approach to dealing with the threat. He also refused to listen to Theseus's advice about arresting the entire crowd present at Grindelwald's rally and instead ordered him to follow his orders instead of questioning them.

He was also a very blunt man who made minimal effort to hide his opinions and feelings. He remained convinced, despite clear evidence to the contrary, that Newt was responsible for the partial destruction of New York during the Obscurus incident. While this led him to express his dislike of certain people and their opinions (he never hid his disdain for Dumbledore), he didn't let his feelings blind him to the fact that Dumbledore was a far more powerful wizard than he was and that he was the only one who had the skill necessary to defeat Grindelwald. He also seemed to have a soft spot for Theseus Scamander, who served under him as the Head of the Auror Office, trusting him with the lead of the intervention to arrest the Paris rally. His trust or favour Theseus was enough to accept to include his fiancé, Leta Lestrange, as a member of his own staff when he expressed a desire for her to work at the Ministry.

## Etymology

* Torquil is an Anglicised form of the Norwegian and Swedish masculine name *Torkel*, and the Scottish Gaelic name ***Torcall**,* ultimately stemming from the Old Norse name *Þorkell*. This Old Norse name is made up of the two elements: *Þór*, meaning "Thor" the Norse god of thunder; and *kell* (in some variants *ketill*), meaning "(sacrificial) cauldron".
* Travers is an English and Irish surname that means "toll or tolltaker" (as on bridges), "traverser" (Norman: "to cross"), "skillful", or (in French) "from the crossroads."