House of Black

## The Noble and Most Ancient House of Black

"*Toujours Pur.*"
―The family motto, translating to "Always Pure"
**The Noble and Most Ancient House of Black** was one of the largest, oldest, and wealthiest pure-blooded wizarding families in Great Britain, and one of the Sacred Twenty-Eight. Many wizarding families in Britain were distantly related to the House of Black. Like the Malfoy and Lestrange families, the House of Black was synonymous with elevated status and wealth. The Blacks were traditionally sorted into Slytherin at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, excluding Perseus Black who was sorted into Gryffindor and Nova Black who was sorted into Ravenclaw, both in the year 1963.

The Black family tree was displayed in the drawing room of the family home at 12 Grimmauld Place in London, England on an intricate tapestry, as an ornate mural. The tapestry started in the Middle Ages and showed the dominant line of the family up to its most recent members.

By the twentieth century, the House of Black had become one of the most influential wizarding families in the world. Most notably in Great Britain, where the popular culture surrounding pure-blood supremacy had grown significantly following the Global Wizarding War, the Blacks were practically seen as royalty amongst wizards and witches.

## Family history

### Early history

"*En stirps nobilis et gens antiquissima Black.*"
―Latin inscription on the Black family tree tapestryThe Black family traces its origin back to the Middle Ages. Considering themselves akin to royalty in the wizarding world (and regarded to be thus by many), the Blacks place great importance on blood purity; disdaining Muggles, Squibs, blood traitors, and Muggle-borns. Evident to their ideology, the Black family motto (which can be found on the family crest) is *Toujours Pur*, which means "Always Pure" in French.

The earliest known member of the House of Black is Licorus Black who lived during the 1800s. Although it is confirmed that the Black family was founded some time during the 13th century, no names nor history of any Blacks who came before Licorus are known. However, according to numerous sources, the House of Black had already established itself as one of the wealthiest and most powerful wizarding families in Britain during medieval times; reinforcing the belief that they are descended from either nobility or prominent figures of that time period.

### Recent history

By the twentieth century, the Blacks were seen as the pinnacle of pure-blood supremacy in Great Britain. Many members of the family had assumed important positions of power in the British Ministry of Magic, such as Alphard Black who became the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement during the late 1950s, and **Orion** and Regulus Black who were both confirmed to hold prominent yet unspecified positions.

During the trial of Joanna Edwards for the murders of Grace and William Lestrange in 1958, Alphard Black presumably played a pivotal role in her prosecution and subsequent sentencing to life-long imprisonment in Azkaban. Although the Wizengamot blamed the Lestrange murders on anti-pureblood extremists, it is speculated that Alphard Black was in fact involved in the murders as he secretly forced the only surviving witness of the crime, Zachary Lestrange, to swear an Unbreakable Vow that would force him to prioritize the lives of Alphard's grandchildren, Perseus and Ophelia Black, above his own. This, coinciding with the fact that Alphard took over William Lestrange's position as the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement shortly after his death, indicates a certain rivalry and power struggle between the Black and Lestrange families.

Some time during the 1940s, **Aurora Black** was removed from the family tree tapestry due to unknown reasons. It is believed that this had something to do with Aurora speaking out against the family's notions of blood-purity, though this has never been confirmed.

In 1963, Perseus, Ophelia and Nova Black all started attending Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Whereas Ophelia Black was traditionally Sorted into Slytherin House like all previous Black family members, Perseus Black was Sorted into Gryffindor and Nova Black was Sorted into Ravenclaw.

## Black family tapestry

"*The tapestry looked immensely old; it was faded and looked as though Doxys had gnawed it in places. Nevertheless, the golden thread with which it was embroidered still glinted brightly enough to show them a sprawling family tree dating back to the Middle Ages. Large words at the very top of the tapestry read: The Noble and Most Ancient House of Black, and below it, the phrase 'Toujours Pur'.*"
―Description of the family tree tapestry
The Black Family Tapestry was a tapestry depicting the Black family tree. Made in the 13th century, the tapestry recorded all siblings, spouses, descendants, and even cousins of members of the family, although none of these older names are known, with the earliest Black known to be on the tree was Licorus Black, who lived around the 1820s. Where the tapestry was located in these earlier times is unknown, but it was passed down to subsequent generations of Blacks, and found its place at 12 Grimmauld Place, home of the most recent members of the family by the twentieth century.

The tapestry was in the Black family for seven centuries, being passed down to descendants through the ages, finding its way into their homes, and by most members of the family it was treated as an object of reverance, representing their pure-blood heritage, which the House of Black held in great esteem. Despite this general respect of the object, some Blacks, the earliest known being Eduardus Limette and the most recent being **Aurora Black**, were disowned and removed from the tapestry for various reasons, such as supporting Muggle rights, being Squibs, and fraternizing with Muggle-borns and other blood traitors. Although Perseus Black openly defied family tradition by being Sorted in Gryffindor instead of Slytherin and frequently spoke out against the importance of blood-purity, he hasn't yet been removed from the tapestry.

The tapestry has been subject to some magical interference. It was enchanted with a Permanent Sticking Charm on the wall of the Grimmauld Place, and some members were noted to have been blasted off the tapestry for going against the family's notions of blood-purity.

## Physical appearance

The Blacks were commonly described as having *"great good looks"* and a certain aristocratic elegance and haughtiness that reflected upon their personalities, for they considered themselves *"practically royal."* The traditional look for the majority of the Black family is dark hair and dark eyes, though there were some exceptions: Perseus Black was green-eyed and Nova Black had soft blonde hair.

## Wealth

The Black family is considered to be vastly wealthy. Even in comparison to the highest of wizarding nobility in Great Britain, the Blacks are known to possess ungodly amounts of gold. Numerous vaults at the Gringotts Wizarding Bank are owned by members of the Black family. How the Blacks were able to hoard such a vast amount of wealth is unknown, but due to their presumed origins in the Middle Ages, it is assumed that original members of the family were involved in medieval conquests and subsequently collected the profits of war.

## Etymology

Black can be considered a colour, and is the result of the absence of, or complete absorption of, light. In Western culture, the colour black has typically been associated with evil, darkness, and witchcraft, but also with prestige and sophistication — appropriate for the rich and House of Black. Black has also been associated with life and prosperity by other cultures. In ancient China, black was the symbol of the element of water, which also corresponds to Slytherin, the Hogwarts house of almost all members of the Black family. In English heraldry, black represents darkness and ignorance; a possible allusion to the prejudice common to members of the House of Black.

However, the English word *black* is derived from either the Old English *blœc*, meaning "black", or *blac*, meaning "pale". Pallor is associated with sickness and the colour white, which is usually held to symbolise purity in Western and Indian culture, and death in East Asian cultures. This mirrors the typical colouring of members of the House of Black — dark hair and pale skin.

### Etymology of given names

Most Black family members are named after either stars or constellations. For example, the star Alphard is in the constellation Hydra (the Serpent), which possibly relates to Alphard Black's secret involvement in the murders of Grace and William Lestrange, as serpents often symbolize betrayal and secrecy. Another example is Perseus, a constellation in the Northern Hemisphere. Like the origins of his namesake, Perseus Black is the heir to his family dynasty as well, and like the mythological Greek hero Perseus, rebelled against his father's doctrines. Cygnus and Orion are also constellations, and Regulus, Polaris, Sirius and Arcturus are all named after stars as well. Two examples of traditional yet unique names are Ophelia Pandora Black, who was named after a moon and a galaxy cluster, and Nova Polaris Black, who was first-named after a transient astronomical event.

According to Professor Alex Layton, if a member of the Black family is disowned and removed from their family tapestry, their name is never used again in following generations. As such, the name Aurora is discontinued and prohibited from any further use to future members.

## Trivia

* Despite their marriage, Regulus and Lyra Black were second-cousins; a common occurence among aristocratic wizarding families in order to keep the family bloodline pure.
* It is possible that some of the disowned male members of the family have male-line descendants that are not recognised by the greater Black family due to their ancestors' actions. As such, it is unknown how many wizarding or Muggle families are in fact related to the Blacks.
* Many members of the **House of Black** have died at considerably younger ages than is normal for wizards and witches, and even Muggles for that matter. Of those whose dates of birth and death are shown on the family tree, none lived to be older than one hundred, and most died between the ages of fifty and eighty, with an average life expectancy of only 59.5 years (based on the family tree), though this is possibly the result of major inbreeding as well as emotional instability and war.