Griselda Goshawk

## Griselda Rakepick (née Goshawk)

**Griselda Rakepick** (née **Goshawk**) (14 June, 1900 - 24 January, 1974) was a pure-blood witch who attended Hogwarts from 1 September 1911 to June of 1918. She was the daughter of Gresham Goshawk Snr, a half-blood wizard, and Henrietta Goshawk (née Gamp), a pure-blood witch. She had an older sister and a younger sister, Claribel and Muriel, and two younger brothers, Gresham Jnr and Alban Goshawk.

Griselda's mother, Henrietta, was a member of the Most Ancient House of Gamp, and the sixth of eleven children (of eight sisters and three brothers). Griselda had a number of first cousins which whom she was friends with, including Arcturus Black III, the Tremblay sisters, Jemima Marchbanks, and Louise Moore.

She married Antonius Rakepick in 1928, and had a son with him, Horace. She was the paternal grandmother of Patricia Rakepick, who taught Defence Against the Dark Arts at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

## Biography

### Early life

Griselda was born outside of Ipswich, Suffolk, England. She was the second child and daughter of Gresham Goshawk and his wife Henrietta.

On her mother’s side, Griselda had a total of twenty first cousins. This was because the Most Ancient House of Gamp produced eight children that lived to adulthood, the sixth of which being her mother, Henrietta.

Her mother, a pure-blood, had married a lower status pure-blood, which wasn’t entirely frowned upon by the Gamps. The Goshawks were known for having lots of children, most of which being girls. Her father was the oldest of seven, and had one brother and five sisters. She had a number of first cousins on the Goshawk side as well, as Gresham's brother, Phineas, fathered nine children.

#### Hogwarts years (1910s)

Griselda received her Hogwarts letter in the summer of 1911. She was believed to have purchased a wand made of pine and dragon heartstring at Ollivander's Wand Shop some time before attending. She shared a compartment with her cousin, Jemima Marchbanks, on the Hogwarts Express on 1 September 1910.

That night, she was sorted into Slytherin House, while her cousin Jemima Marchbanks went to Gryffindor. She did not consort with her cousin after that, and felt somewhat betrayed.

### Later life

Griselda married Antonius Rakepick on 13 May, 1928.

The couple had a son together in 1930, who they named Horace. Her son later married a half-blood witch and they had a daughter together, Patricia.

Griselda's granddaughter, Patricia Rakepick, taught Defence Against the Dark Arts at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in the 1980s.

Said to have had first-hand experience with the Cursed Vaults during her student years, Patricia Rakepick was invited to the school during the 1987–1988 school year by Professor Dumbledore, the school's Headmaster, to help put an end to the threat posed by the Vaults. At the end of the year, she accepted his offer to assume the position of Defence Against the Dark Arts instructor, where she offered more freedom and protection to Jacob's sibling during their search for the remaining vaults.

However, by the end of the next year, Rakepick's true intentions were revealed. She was working with the malevolent organisation known as 'R', and manipulated Rowan Tofty to open the Portrait Vault, the last major obstacle before the final Cursed Vault. When Rowan Tofty and her friends discovered the truth, they managed to defeat Rakepick, forcing her to flee Hogwarts.

## Etymology

"Griselda" derives from German *Grishilda*, from Old High German *grisja hilda*, literally "gray battle-maid".