Minister Hermione Jean[28] Granger (b. 19 September 1979)[1] was an English Muggle-born[3] witch born to Mr and Mrs Granger. At the age of eleven, she learned about her magical nature and was accepted into Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Hermione began attending Hogwarts in 1991 and was Sorted into Gryffindor House. She possessed a brilliant academic mind and proved to be a gifted student in almost every subject that she studied, to the point where she was nearly made a Ravenclaw by the Sorting Hat. Hermione first met her future best friends Harry Potter and Ron Weasley aboard the Hogwarts Express, and initially they found her unfriendly and somewhat of an "insufferable know-it-all", an impression reinforced by her constant correct answers and eagerness to please the professors. However, she stepped in to take the blame from the boys after they had saved her from a troll on Hallowe'en in 1991, surprising them in a grateful way, which led to them quickly becoming friends. She later played a crucial role in protecting the Philosopher's Stone from Voldemort. In her second year, Hermione had a key role in the discovery of the Chamber of Secrets, before falling victim to the Basilisk unleashed upon Hogwarts following the opening of the Chamber. However, she recovered from the petrification under the care of Madam Pomfrey with Professor Sprout's Mandrake Restorative Draught. The next year, Hermione was granted permission to use a Time-Turner from the Ministry of Magic to facilitate her volition to study far more subjects than were possible without time travel, though she and Harry later used it to rescue Sirius Black from the Dementor's Kiss and Buckbeak the hippogriff from execution. During her fourth year, Hermione became an advocate for the better treatment of house-elves, forming the association S.P.E.W., and helped in Harry's preparation for the Triwizard Tournament. In her fifth year, Hermione was the driving force behind the creation of Dumbledore's Army and fought alongside fellow D.A. members in the Battle of the Department of Mysteries. In her sixth year, Hermione continued her role as Prefect and fought in the Battle of the Astronomy Tower. Hermione played a significant role in many other battles of the Second Wizarding War, as well. In 1997, she fought in the Battle of the Seven Potters, alongside the Order of the Phoenix. Hermione and Ron decided not to return to Hogwarts for their final year of studies, instead choosing to accompany Harry on his quest to find and destroy Lord Voldemort's Horcruxes, a quest in which several of her actions were essential. She destroyed Hufflepuff's Cup, a Horcrux, with Ron using a Basilisk fang found in the Chamber of Secrets. Hermione then fought in the Battle of Hogwarts, helping in the defeat of the Death Eater who tortured her: Bellatrix Lestrange. Ronald Bilius[27] "Ron" Weasley (b. 1 March 1980) was an English pure-blood[2] wizard, the sixth and youngest son of Arthur and Molly Weasley (née Prewett). He was also the younger brother of Bill, Charlie, Percy, Fred, George, and the elder brother of Ginny. Ron and his siblings lived at The Burrow, on the outskirts of Ottery St Catchpole, Devon. Ron began attending Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in 1991 and was Sorted into Gryffindor House. He soon became close friends with fellow student Harry Potter and later Hermione Granger. Together, they made the Golden Trio and faced many challenges during their adolescence, including keeping the Philosopher's Stone from Professor Quirinus Quirrell, rescuing Ginny from the Basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets, saving Harry's godfather Sirius Black from the Dementors of Azkaban, and later supporting Harry during the Triwizard Tournament. He also helped form Dumbledore's Army and fought in numerous battles of the Second Wizarding War. These battles included the Battle of the Department of Mysteries (1996), Battle of the Astronomy Tower (1997), and Battle of the Seven Potters (1997). Ron also became a Gryffindor prefect and a Keeper on the Gryffindor Quidditch team during his fifth year at Hogwarts. He left Hogwarts before completing his final year in order to accompany Harry and Hermione on a hunt to destroy all of Lord Voldemort's Horcruxes and fought in the Battle of Hogwarts in 1998, during which he lost his brother Fred, a loss which devastated him and his family, especially George, Fred's twin. After the war, Ron became an Auror and helped reform and revolutionise the British Ministry of Magic.[28] After two years as an Auror, he worked at Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes with George to help keep the business thriving after Fred’s death. He and Hermione eventually married and had two children, Rose and Hugo Granger-Weasley. Ron was also named the godfather of James Sirius Potter, his sister Ginny Weasley's and Harry Potter's eldest child. Ginevra[9] Molly[22] "Ginny" Potter[23] (née Weasley) (b. 11 August 1981),[1] occasionally known as Gin by Harry Potter,[4] was an English pure-blood[3] witch, the only daughter of Arthur and Molly Weasley (née Prewett), and the younger sister of Bill, Charlie, Percy, the late Fred, George and Ron. She was the first female to be born into the Weasley line for several generations. She and her older brothers grew up in The Burrow on the outskirts of Ottery St Catchpole in Devon. Ginny attended Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry from 1992 to 1999, a year beneath the famous Harry Potter, and was sorted into Gryffindor House. During her first year, she developed a long-standing crush on Harry Potter and came under the influence of the memory of Tom Riddle's sixteen-year-old self, who was preserved in a diary, which forced Ginny to re-open the Chamber of Secrets, endangering the lives of many students, including her own. Following that ordeal, Ginny grew into a confident young woman, becoming an important member of Dumbledore's Army, an organisation taught and led by Harry Potter in her fourth year. She would later fight in the Battle of the Department of Mysteries (1996), the Battle of the Astronomy Tower (1997), and the Battle of Hogwarts (1998). She was also an accomplished Quidditch player, playing Chaser and Seeker at different times for the Gryffindor Quidditch team. After the Second Wizarding War, Ginny became a professional Quidditch player for the Holyhead Harpies. Upon retiring from the Harpies, she became the senior Quidditch correspondent for the Daily Prophet. Ginny eventually married Harry Potter and the couple had three children; James Sirius (named after Harry's father and godfather), Albus Severus (named after Albus Dumbledore and Severus Snape), and Lily Luna Potter (named after Harry's mother and their friend Luna Lovegood). By 2020, Ginny had become the sports editor for the Daily Prophet. Professor Neville Longbottom (b. 30 July 1980)[1][2] was a British pure-blood[3] wizard, the only child and son of Frank and Alice Longbottom. Neville's parents were well-respected Aurors and members of the original Order of the Phoenix until they were tortured into insanity by Bellatrix Lestrange and three other Death Eaters with the Cruciatus Curse when he was about sixteen months old. They were placed in the Janus Thickey Ward at St Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries, leaving Neville to be raised by his paternal grandmother, Augusta Longbottom. At the time of his birth, Neville was marked by a prophecy as being one of two children with the potential to defeat Lord Voldemort, the most powerful and feared Dark wizard in the world. However, Voldemort's first attempt to circumvent the prophecy by killing Neville's later friend and classmate Harry Potter, ultimately established Harry as Voldemort's nemesis. Neville began school at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in 1991 and was Sorted into Gryffindor House, along with Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, and Ronald Weasley. Throughout his school years, he was mostly a shy, clumsy, introverted boy who was constantly being told by his grandmother that he was not good enough or living up to his parents' accomplishments. However, in his later years, he showed that he possessed great courage and perseverance: he became an important member of Dumbledore's Army, an organisation taught and led by Harry Potter with the goal of helping other students learn spells to attack and defend themselves. Neville would later fight in the Battle of the Department of Mysteries (1996), the Battle of the Astronomy Tower (1997), and the Battle of Hogwarts (1998). During the Battle of Hogwarts, having refused Voldemort's invitation to join the Death Eaters, he destroyed the seventh and final Horcrux when he beheaded the snake Nagini. He also co-led the D.A. during his final year in opposition to the Death Eater professors. After the end of the Second Wizarding War, Neville briefly served as an Auror,[10] before becoming the Herbology professor and the Head of Gryffindor House[5] at Hogwarts and marrying Hannah Abbott from Herbology. He was also the godfather of Harry and Ginny's second son, Albus Potter. Tom Marvolo Riddle (31 December 1926[20] – 2 May 1998), later known as Lord Voldemort or, alternatively as the Dark Lord, You-Know-Who, or He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named was an English half-blood[3] wizard considered to have been the most powerful and dangerous Dark wizard of all time.[21][22] He was amongst the greatest wizards to have ever lived, rivalled only by Albus Dumbledore.[23][24][25] Descended from Salazar Slytherin on his mother's side through the House of Gaunt, Tom Riddle was conceived whilst his father, Tom Riddle Senior, was under the effects of a love potion supplied by his mother, Merope Gaunt. When the enchantment was lifted, Tom's father abandoned his pregnant wife and returned to Little Hangleton. His mother gave birth to him, before dying an hour later. Her only wishes were that he'd look like his father, and that he was named Tom after his father, his middle name Marvolo after her father, and that Riddle would be his last name. And with that, Tom Marvolo Riddle was born and raised in the Muggle-run Wool's Orphanage. Tom began attending Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in 1938 and was immediately sorted into Slytherin house. During this time, Tom discovered his heritage and adopted pure-blood supremacist ideals. Tom opened the Chamber of Secrets and used its monster, the Basilisk, to attack Muggle-born students, resulting in the death of Myrtle Warren. He began his quest to attain immortality between the years of 1943 and 1998, creating his first Horcrux at the age of sixteen. While attending Hogwarts, Tom Riddle was made a prefect in 1942 until his graduation in 1945. Tom spent several months as a purchasing agent for the Dark artefacts shop Borgin and Burkes before disappearing. Splitting his own spirit into a total of eight fragments, Tom created an unprecedented seven Horcruxes, with one made later in his life, unintentionally and without his knowledge — Harry Potter. Tom re-emerged several decades later having abandoned his 'Muggle' name and becoming the self-proclaimed Lord Voldemort, an anagram of his birth name. In the First and Second Wizarding Wars, he commanded a veritable army of wizards and Dark creatures; committed countless murders and atrocities; and eventually succeeded in taking over the British Ministry of Magic. Voldemort was ripped from his body in 1981 after attempting to kill Harry Potter. Although unable to die, he was unable to regain a permanent and physical body until 1995, thus spending the intervening fourteen years as 'a shell, less than the meanest ghost'. He was finally killed by his own backfired Killing Curse after Harry Potter and Albus Dumbledore succeeded in destroying all of his Horcruxes. Unknown to most, however, Voldemort's legacy and bloodline would live on through his daughter Delphini, whom he conceived with his loyal follower Bellatrix Lestrange. The conception is thought to have occurred sometime after the Battle of the Department of Mysteries in 1996 and before Voldemort's death at Harry's hands in 1998. Riddle's broken and mutilated soul was then trapped in limbo for eternity, unable to move on to the afterlife or even return as a disembodied spirit. Draco Lucius[11] Malfoy (b. 5 June 1980) was a British pure-blood wizard and the only son of Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy (née Black). The son of a Death Eater, Draco was raised to strongly believe in the importance of blood purity. He looked down on half-bloods and Muggle-borns. Draco attended Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry from 1991-1998. He was sorted into Slytherin House almost the moment the Sorting Hat touched his head. During his years at Hogwarts, he became friends with Vincent Crabbe, Gregory Goyle, Pansy Parkinson, and other fellow Slytherins, but he quickly developed a rivalry with Harry Potter. He was made a prefect of his house and was a member of the Inquisitorial Squad during his fifth year, at the end of which his father was imprisoned in Azkaban following the Battle of the Department of Mysteries. Lord Voldemort charged Draco with making up for Lucius's failure, and he became a Death Eater at age sixteen but quickly became disillusioned and uncomfortable with the lifestyle. Draco was unable to complete his task of murdering Albus Dumbledore, which was later taken over by Severus Snape, and only performed his other duties fearfully and reluctantly. He and his family defected hours before the end of the Second Wizarding War, fearing for their lives. By 2017, Draco had married Astoria Greengrass and had one child, Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy.Professor Severus Snape (9 January 1960[1] – 2 May 1998)[2] was an English half-blood[3] wizard serving as Potions Master (1981-1996), Head of Slytherin House (1981-1997), Defence Against the Dark Arts professor (1996-1997), and Headmaster (1997-1998) of the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry as well as a member of the Order of the Phoenix and a Death Eater. His double life played an extremely important role in both of the Wizarding Wars against Voldemort. The only child of Muggle Tobias Snape and pure-blood witch Eileen Snape (née Prince), Severus was raised in the Muggle dwelling of Spinner's End, which was in close proximity to the home of the Evans family, though in a poorer area. He met Lily and Petunia Evans when he was nine. He fell deeply in love with Lily upon their meeting and became a close friend of hers.[7] Severus started at Hogwarts with Lily in the 1971–1972 school year, where he was Sorted into Slytherin House. This put him in the same year as Lily but unfortunately for him she was Sorted into Gryffindor House. Severus became the immediate enemy of James Potter and Sirius Black and was a frequent victim of their bullying. This led him to be irritable towards James's son Harry when he was a professor. Snape, when young, developed a passion for the Dark Arts, which increased as his desire for revenge against his bullies grew stronger. Snape became involved with the bullies in Slytherin House, many of whom were pure-blood supremacists. This put his friendship with Lily, a Muggle-born, under great strain until it was eventually broken in their fifth year.[6][7] In a misguided attempt to win back Lily's affections,[18] Snape joined the Death Eaters along with a group of his fellow Slytherins. Severus was made a member of the Slug Club presumably because of his talent in Potion-making. Horace Slughorn even kept a picture of him as a student, clutching his copy of Advanced Potion-Making. However, Horace did not actually have many hopes for Severus's future, as his photograph was kept behind many others.[19] As an active Death Eater, one of Snape's biggest contributions was letting Lord Voldemort know about the prophecy Sybill Trelawney made to Dumbledore. This part of the prophecy could have applied to either Harry Potter or Neville Longbottom, who was also born at the end of July 1980 to parents who were members of the Order. Once Lord Voldemort decided to target the Potters over the Longbottoms, Snape begged Voldemort to at least spare Lily. Voldemort ostensibly agreed, but did not actually follow through on this promise due to Lily's refusal to allow him to kill Harry, resulting in her sacrificing her life to save her son's. Shortly before Lily Evans was murdered by Lord Voldemort, Snape changed sides and became a member of the Order of the Phoenix as well as a double agent during the Second Wizarding War. With tremendous difficulty, Snape prevented Lord Voldemort from learning the truth about his loyalties. Despite the opinions of most others including Harry during his early life, Albus Dumbledore trusted Snape for reasons that were kept between them both until their deaths. Despite Snape killing Dumbledore, it is learned that they had a special agreement for him to do so. When he died, it was revealed that his deep strong love for Lily Evans caused him to redeem himself, joining Dumbledore's cause for her protection (and, after her death, that of her son) from Lord Voldemort.[7] The relationship between Dumbledore and Snape would be one of unusually strong loyalty, so much so that Snape agreed to kill Dumbledore upon the latter's own request. Before Dumbledore's death, Snape promised to protect the students of Hogwarts from the Death Eaters, who would inevitably take control of the Ministry of Magic as well as the school.[7] Snape later participated in the Battle of Hogwarts but was murdered by Lord Voldemort who mistakenly believed that Snape was the master of the Elder Wand (an immensely strong and powerful wand that Voldemort deeply desired, as well as one of the Deathly Hallows)[20] when in reality, Harry Potter was the true master of the Elder Wand, because Draco Malfoy had disarmed Dumbledore on the night of Dumbledore's death at the top of the Astronomy Tower, and Harry had disarmed Draco at Malfoy Manor.[21] After Snape's death, Harry Potter ensured that his portrait remained at Hogwarts, honouring him as a hero, despite their significant personal differences.[21] In addition, Harry later named his second son Albus Severus Potter in honour of Dumbledore and Severus, both of whom were an inspiration in Harry's life after the Battle of Hogwarts. Harry also was influenced by Severus' Hogwarts house, and freely admitted that his son Albus could choose Slytherin if he wished.[22] The Sorting Hat was a sentient magical hat at Hogwarts that was used to determine which of the four school Houses was the best fit for each new student. These four Houses were Gryffindor, the house of bravery, Hufflepuff, the house of hard work, Ravenclaw, the house of intelligence, and Slytherin, the house of ambition.[2] The Sorting Hat originally belonged to Godric Gryffindor, one of the four founders of Hogwarts.[3] It was normally kept in the Headmaster's office until it was needed for the Sorting Ceremony at the annual Start-of-Term Feast.[1] The famous Hogwarts Sorting Hat gave an account of its own genesis in a series of songs.[3] During the opening banquet at the beginning of each school year, the first-year students were lined up and their names read aloud alphabetically by last name. Each then took a seat on a stool and placed the hat on their heads.[2] The hat was battered and old by 1991; it was patched, frayed, and extremely dirty. In order to speak and sing, a tear along the brim opened like a mouth. It spoke to the wearer inside of the hat with a small, quiet voice, using Legilimency to interpret their thoughts and respond to them. After a time of consideration, the hat announced its choice aloud for all to hear, and the student joined the selected house.[3] The moment of consideration varied in time period from less than a second to over five minutes (known as "hatstall").[4] The Sorting Hat was notorious for refusing to admit it had ever made a mistake in its sorting of a student. On those occasions when Slytherins behaved altruistically or selflessly, when Ravenclaws flunked all their exams, when Hufflepuffs proved lazy yet academically gifted, and when Gryffindors exhibited cowardice, the Hat steadfastly backed its original decision. On balance, however, the Hat had made remarkably few errors of judgement over the many centuries it had been at work.[4] Although most people believed that the Sorting Hat used its Legilimency to see which House would be the most suitable for the student, the Hat actually used its Legilimency to see which House the student would be happiest in, which it judged by the student's mental reaction to mention of the House. This, it claimed, was the reason why it was never wrong when picking a House, as it wasn't the Hat picking the House at all but instead the students themselves.[5] History Main article: Sorting Ceremony "Sings a different [song] every year. It's got to be a pretty boring life, hasn't it, being a hat? I suppose it spends all year making up the next one." — Ron Weasley's opinion of the Sorting Hat's existence[src] Sorting The Sorting Hat, Sorting students into their respective Houses at the ceremony Legend had it that the Sorting Hat was sewn roughly one thousand years ago and began as a normal hat belonging to Godric Gryffindor. When Gryffindor, along with Salazar Slytherin, Rowena Ravenclaw and Helga Hufflepuff, wondered how they would continue to sort the students when the four were dead, Gryffindor pulled his hat from his head and, along with the other founders, enchanted it with their combined intelligence. All four founders wanted to ensure that students would be sorted into their eponymous Houses, which would be selected according to each founder's particular preferences in students.[3] B2C12M1 Sorting Hat in Dumbledore's office The Sorting Hat on a shelf in the Headmaster's office The Sorting Hat, now animated, was able to sort and divide the students into the Hogwarts Houses, and continued to do so for a millennium, passed down to each new Headmaster or Headmistress of the school. When not in use, it is placed on a shelf in the current Headmaster's or Headmistress's office.[1] The hat continued to carry out its duty each September at the beginning of the start-of-term feast, when it was placed on a three-legged (sometimes four-legged) stool at the front of the Great Hall.[2] In 1858, Angus Buchanan, an eleven-year old Scottish Squib managed to sneak into the feast with the help of his wizard brother and put the Sorting Hat on his head. The Sorting Hat then kindly said he was a good-hearted chap, but no wizard.[6] Sword appears in hat The Sword of Gryffindor appears in the hat The Sword of Gryffindor, one of the founder's only other known relics, could be magically pulled out of the hat by any Gryffindor considered worthy, no matter how secure the sword's location.[7] It was unknown why this was possible, but was linked to loyalty of the highest regard in relation to Hogwarts. There were two known instances of this happening within 1992 to 1998, once when Harry Potter was in the Chamber of Secrets,[7] and once when Neville Longbottom refused to join Lord Voldemort during the Battle of Hogwarts.[8] During the Calamity in the late 2010s or early 2020s, the Sorting Hat spoke with a Calamity Investigator working for the Statute of Secrecy Task Force who was visiting Hogwarts, with the investigator being surprised by its ability to more articulately explain its experience being a Foundable than anyone else they had interviewed. The investigator theorised that the hat's enchanted origins might have enabled it to better understand the Calamity's effects.[9] The Sorting Hat and the Sword of Gryffindor were the only two relics that hadn't been turned into Horcruxes by former Hogwarts student Tom Marvolo Riddle during his transformation into Lord Voldemort. Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry was divided into four Houses: Gryffindor, founded by Godric Gryffindor; Hufflepuff, founded by Helga Hufflepuff; Ravenclaw, founded by Rowena Ravenclaw; and Slytherin, founded by Salazar Slytherin.[1] Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, often shortened to Hogwarts, was the British wizarding school located in the Scottish Highlands.[6][7] Any magical children residing in Great Britain or Ireland who had reached the age of eleven by the start of the incoming term were accepted as students.[8][9] It was a state-owned school, funded by the British Ministry of Magic.[10] The precise location of the school could never be uncovered because it was rendered Unplottable. To Muggles, the school appeared to be an old, abandoned castle. Similarly, most wizarding schools' locations were protected in order to protect the students and schools themselves from any harm.[4] Established around the 10th century, Hogwarts was considered to be one of the finest magical institutions in the wizarding world, though other notable schools included Beauxbatons Academy of Magic in France, the Durmstrang Institute implied to be in northern Europe, and Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in the United States.[4] British and Irish children with magical abilities were enrolled at birth by the Quill of Acceptance and Book of Admittance,[11] and acceptance was confirmed by owl post at age eleven. However, if the child in question was a Muggle-born or raised by Muggles, like Harry Potter, with no knowledge of the wizarding world, a special messenger from the school visited the child and his or her family in order to inform them of their magical heritage and the existence of the wizarding world.[12] It was possible for students to transfer to the school as well. The school's motto was Draco Dormiens Nunquam Titillandus (Draco Dormiens Nvnqvam Titillandvs), which, translated from Latin, means "Never tickle a sleeping dragon".