House Selwyn

**House Selwyn** is an Ancient and Noble House of the Wizengamot that is currently led by the reclusive Adramalech Selwyn, who is represented in the Wizengamot by his grandniece Cassilda Selwyn.

## History

### Coming to England

The House that formed the foundations for House Selwyn originally came to British Isles, along with sixteen other families, prior to the fall of the Roman Empire. The Selwyns may have used nomenography to select a new surname. The foundational Houses then spent the next few centuries warring with each other, interbreeding with each other, or both, until they settled their differences and formed the Wizards Council. The Wizards Council then ruled Magical Britain from the 7th century until the Normandy Invasion in 1066, which would eventually lead to the formation of the Wizengamot.

### Later History

House Selwyn rose to become the richest and most powerful House of the Wizengamot, though rumors still abounded that they once generated Dark Lords whose names they removed from the history books.

Over the course of House Selwyn's history several Selwyn cousins have been granted their own Wizengamot seats, forming House Yaxley, House Carrow, House Warrington, and House Travers, who all serve as vassals of the Selwyns in the Wizengamot.

### First Wizarding War

At the end of the First Wizarding War the Selwyn Heir, Berith Selwyn, confessed to having placed several members of House Selwyn and it's cadet branches under the Imperius Curse to make them join Voldemort and his Death Eaters. Berith was sentenced to Azkaban, but took his own life in a Ministry holding cell before he could be transferred there.

### Post-War

Sometime after the war Cassilda Selwyn was named Seneschal of House Selwyn, as her foreign education and young age meant she had no connections to Berith.

### Book 2 - The Secret Enemy

Due to their association with Voldemort, Harry Potter tries to break the Selwyns monopoly on imported potions supplies by forging an alliance between House Longbottom, House Greengrass, and the Indian Patil family. This leads Tracey Davis to warn him that the Selwyns are a powerful family who would make for dangerous enemies.

## Family Residence

The main residence of House Selwyn is **Cauchemar Abbey** in Dark Peak Moor, Derbyshire, also referred to as the **Abbey of Nightmares**. Cauchemar Abbey has been in use by the Selwyn family since somewhere in the eighth century. Several caverns and tunnels run underneath the Abbey, and contain the Spawning Pool.

## Behind the Scenes

TSM has revealed that Adramalech Selwyn is a vampire, and that this is not even in the top three creepiest things about House Selwyn.

## Canon Divergence

In Canon the Selwyns are only briefly mentioned as being a member of the Sacred Twenty-Eight, who Dolores Umbridge claims to be related to. A Death Eater named Selwyn appears in Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows, who works alongside Travers.

In POS the Selwyns are one of the most powerful families in Britain, holding 32 votes, a number rivaled only by House Malfoy's 27, and later by Harry Black, who, combined with his godfather Sirius, holds 32 as well. House Selwyn's connection to the Yaxleys, Carrows, Warrringtons, and Traverses is also unique to POS.

The Selwyns also appear to carry a great many dark secrets, as several members of their cadet branches are openly afraid of Lord Adramalech.

## References

Book 3 - HP&DEM - Ch. 99 - Feasts, Electives & Student Organizations (Conclusion),

"In the earliest days of Wizarding Britain, many of the old Roman families who founded our society used numenography to select new surnames for themselves when they formally broke ties with Mother Rome.".
Book 3 - HP&DEM - Ch. 90 - Reactions & Overreactions (Pt 1),

A brief history of the Ancient and Noble Houses is given.
Book 3 - HP&DEM - Ch. 90 - Reactions & Overreactions (Pt 1),

Draco explains why the Selwyns have thirty-two votes.
Book 4 - HP&TRG - Ch. 140 - Marseilles, With an S,

Yaxley is revealed to have avoided Azkaban due to Berith's confession.
Book 3 - HP&DEM - Ch. 121 - Conspiracies in Action,

Dolores Umbridge researches the history of House Selwyn.
Book 2 - HP&TSE - Ch. 42 - The Birthday Party (Pt 1),

Harry plots to break the Selwyn monopoly on potion supplies.
Book 3 - HP&DEM - Ch. 93 - Reactions & Overreactions (Pt 4),

The Warringtons attend the Selwyn family dinner.
Book 3 - HP&DEM - Ch. 116 - Families at Christmas,

Camilla learns what the Carrow twins have seen.
Book 3 - HP&DEM - Ch. 93 - Reactions & Overreactions (Pt 4),

"Let me begin by saying that Grandfather is still resting and will not be joining us this evening," she said. Immediately and to Cassius's surprise, a good deal of the tension in the room drained away, and Cousin Uriah actually exhaled in obvious relief..