Hogwarts
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Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is a fictional school of magic that is the main setting of the Harry Potter series of novels.
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Hogwarts appears to be the only school of magical arts in Britain, training people with magical abilities to become fully qualified witches and wizards. Its status is not discussed in great detail in the Harry Potter novels, but it is known to be a co-educational secondary boarding school taking children from ages 11 to 18. Examinations are taken at the end of every year, though those taken at end of the fifth and seventh years (Ordinary Wizarding Levels and Nastily Exhausting Wizarding Tests, respectively) are considered to be the more prominent evaluations. The number of students at the school is not specified in the books, although creator JK Rowling has suggested that there is an annual intake of about 280 students comprising most, but not necessarily all, of the magical children living in Britain's hidden wizarding community.
There are only two other schools of magic mentioned by name in the Harry Potter novels: one, Beauxbatons, may be located in France while the other, Durmstrang, is based at an unspecified location elsewhere in Europe. It is also possible to study magic by distance learning, a method used by at least one member of the ancillary staff at Hogwarts.
Management of the school is undertaken by the Headteacher, assisted by a Deputy Headteacher. The Headteacher is answerable to the 12-member Board of Governors. Hogwarts appears to retain a high degree of independence both from the Ministry of Magic, the chief civilian government authority, and from the Department for Education and Skills, which as a Muggle body has no jurisdiction over magical matters.
It is unclear how Hogwarts is funded, or what its fee structure is. In the sixth book in the series a special fund for books or equipment for needy students is mentioned.
The current headmistress of Hogwarts is Professor Minerva McGonagall. She took this position in an acting capacity after her long-serving predecessor Albus Dumbledore died in combat with invading followers of the evil Voldemort on the battlements of the castle.
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Location and Grounds
Hogwarts Castle is an ancient, rambling castle with seven floors in a mountainous and secluded location somewhere in the UK. Its precise location has not been revealed in the books, but the author has suggested that she envisions it to be in Scotland[1].
The castle has extensive grounds, including a mountain lake, a large and dense forest, a number of greenhouses, several outbuildings and a full-size Quidditch pitch.
The nearest settlement is the small village of Hogsmeade, which is used as a minor transit hub for visitors to the school, and is the location of the nearest railway station.
Hogsmeade station is reached by a dedicated train service called the Hogwarts Express, which departs from London's Kings Cross railway station. No apparition is possible on the school grounds, though it is possible to arrive by means other than the school train; using brooms, or apparating to a nearby location and walking (shown in book 6), or using other magical means of travelling such as Floo powder. First-year students reach the actual castle by boat, while the rest of the students go by thestral-drawn-carriages. The school is enchanted to repel Muggles (non-magical people), to whom Hogwarts appears to be an old ruin with a sign reading 'Keep Out'. Electronic devices do not work in the grounds of Hogwarts, as there is too much magic in the air.
Staffing and Curriculum
Hogwarts has a number of teachers, all granted the title of professor on appointment, each specialising in a single subject. Other staff positions at the school include that of school nurse, caretaker, librarian, and gamekeeper/groundskeeper. About a hundred house-elves work in the kitchen.
Students are taught a range of subjects all based around the magical arts. None of the standard academic disciplines taught in Muggle institutions appears to be on the syllabus.
For a complete list of subjects, see Hogwarts subjects.
The syllabus appears to be modelled on the standard secondary school system in England and Wales, with exams in the fifth and seventh (final) years. The seven Core subjects (Potions, History of Magic, Transfiguration, Charms, Astronomy, Herbology and Defence Against the Dark Arts) are taken for at least the first five years. Once they reach their third year, students have a choice of certain subjects such as Divination and Arithmancy. All these subjects are assessed in the fifth-year OWLs. Harry Potter and Ron Weasley, for instance, took eleven OWL exams apiece. Students are also expected to attend a careers advice meeting with their Head of House during the fifth year right before OWL examinations to arrange future classes and determine a career path.
Depending on a successful outcome, students then choose to proceed with the study of a reduced number of subjects to NEWT level. Students failing to achieve the required grade (typically a high level pass) for a particular subject will not be permitted to continue with it. Students unfortunate enough to fail all their tests must have further consultations with their Head of House. Students take NEWTs on the subjects they have continued during the 7th year. Eligibility for many wizarding careers seems to be based on the number, grades, and subject of NEWT and OWL exams passed.
The logistics of timetabling at the school seems fairly remarkable. Each professor teaches one subject to either five or seven year groups. There are at least two lessons a week for each year from the first to the fifth for core subjects, and third year through to the fifth for the others. Houses occasionally attend classes together - for instance, in Harry's own year, Gryffindor are routinely paired with Hufflepuff for Herbology and with Slytherin for Potions.
NEWT-level classes in the sixth and seventh years, however, are not divided into multiple sections. Classes are on more than one occasion described as lasting an hour and a half. If all classes are this length, the professors of core subjects teach anywhere from 36 hours a week if each class meets twice a week, and up to 90 hours if classes meet five times, which seems unlikely. Professors of non-core subjects would teach between 24 and 60 hours a week. Without the aid of a time-turner, these timetable arrangements suggest that Hogwarts has a particularly stringent work ethic and admirably dedicated students and staff. It seems probable that there are numerous members of the teaching staff who are not mentioned in the novels, and this is supported by evidence in the Harry Potter movies, in which a number of additional teachers are indeed seen as extras.
Apparition lessons, which are optional, are offered to over-17-year-olds for a fee of twelve galleons.
During their fifth year, two students from each House are picked to be prefects, which grants them extra privileges and disciplinary responsibilities. The leaders of the student body, the Head Boy and Head Girl, are drawn from the seventh year cohort.
Grading and Assessment
During their first four years, students need only to pass each of their subjects before advancing to the next level the following year. Regular exams and lessons usually seem to be graded on a numerical scale from 0 (bottom marks) to 100 (full marks) although some students routinely get higher than perfect scores.
To qualify as a registered practitioner of magic, students must take the compulsory Ordinary Wizarding Level examinations (OWLs) in their fifth year, and may proceed to the Nastily Exhausting Wizarding Tests (NEWTs), a more advanced exam regimen covering fewer subjects but in more depth, in the seventh year.
Subjects are graded on the following scale:
- O = Outstanding
- E = Exceeds Expectations
- A = Acceptable (Lowest pass grade)
- P = Poor
- D = Dreadful
- T = Troll (Readers may have thought this grade to have been a joke by Fred and George Weasley, but it was later revealed to be an actual grade.)
School Motto and Houses
The motto of Hogwarts is "Draco dormiens nunquam titillandus", which in Latin means "Never tickle a sleeping dragon". Creator J. K. Rowling said she wanted a practical motto for Hogwarts, since so many schools have less pragmatic ones such as "Reach for the stars".
Students at Hogwarts are divided into four houses, each bearing the name of one of the school's original founders. Students are assigned to a house based on their particular academic and personal strengths and weaknesses. The houses are:
- Gryffindor, characterised by valour and courage;
- Hufflepuff, characterised by loyalty and fairness;
- Ravenclaw, characterised by wit and intellect; and
- Slytherin, characterised by ambition and cunning.
Each of the school Houses has a Head of House who is a member of the senior teaching staff and exercises additional pastoral and disciplinary responsiblities over his or her House.
The houses of Hogwarts compete to earn 'house points'. As a form of incentive or group punishment, the achievements or failures of each student - academic or disciplinary - cause their respective house to gain or lose points. In the first book of the series, Harry Potter, Hermione Granger and Neville Longbottom find themselves shunned by other Gryffindor students after they are responsible for losing a significant number of house points.
There appear to be no fixed numbers of points attached to specific actions; this number is decided by a teacher or prefect on the spot and may vary greatly. It is possible that there is an inflation in the award of house points during the series: for example, in book one, Harry, Hermione and Ron earn a total of 160 points for the remarkable feat of recovering the Philosopher's Stone and defeating Voldemort, while by book six, 30 house points are awarded in the space of five minutes in a single lesson of Potions. However, these differences may simply result from the varying generosity of Hogwarts's assorted teachers.
Points are recorded in four enchanted hourglasses located in the School's Entrance Hall. The award or docking of points is automatically detected by unknown means and adjustments are made magically to the display in the relevant hourglass. At the end of each school year, the points are added up and the house with the most points wins the House Cup.
Disciplinary measures
Apart from losing points from a house, serious misdeeds at Hogwarts are punished by detention. Detention historically meant subjection to various forms of torture, but in present times usually involves assisting staff or faculty with tedious or perilous tasks. Ironically, when in book one students are caught wandering around the castle at night, for their "detention" they are sent, also at night, to the even more dangerous Forbidden Forest.
For even more serious offences, students may suspended or expelled from Hogwarts. Harry comes under threat of expulsion at the beginning of his fifth year at Hogwarts after he is detected using magic in the presence of Muggles, a serious offence among the wizarding community.
Professors seem to be able to punish students with relative impunity and can hand out detention, even for unsatisfactory grades. Enforcement of rules outside of class mainly falls to the caretaker, with the assistance of the prefects. A student's Head of House usually has the final say in disciplinary matters.
The School Year
Enrollment and Arrival<h4>
There is a magic quill at Hogwarts that detects the birth of a magical person and records his or her name. Each year, the headteacher sends letters to the people on the list turning eleven, inviting them to take up a place at Hogwarts. If for any reason a letter does not reach its intended recipient, owls will continue to deliver letters until one is successfully delivered.
The letter also contains a list of supplies, including spell books and cauldrons. The prospective student is expected to buy all the necessary materials, normally from Diagon Alley, a wizarding shopping precinct near Charing Cross in London. Letters to Muggle-born wizards, who may not be aware of their powers or are unfamiliar with the concealed society of witches and wizards, are delivered by special messengers, who can explain the wizarding world to them.
Term begins on September 1. Students travel to King's Cross station to board the Hogwarts Express, which takes them to Hogsmeade village. First-year students are accompanied by the gamekeeper, currently Rubeus Hagrid, to small boats, which magically sail across the Hogwarts lake. The older students travel up to the castle in carriages pulled by thestrals, magical beasts that are visible only to those who have witnessed death.
<h4>The Sorting and the start of term<h4>
Returning students gather in the Great Hall with the Headteacher and teaching staff to await the entrance of the first years. These new arrivals are greeted by the deputy headteacher, who briefly explains their first encounter with magic inside the school, the Sorting. They are ushered into the Hall and undergo this ritual by donning a piece of sentient headgear referred to as the Sorting Hat. This hat, which traditionally sings a self-composed song at each annual ceremony, examines the students (conceivably using a form of hat-initiated Legilimency) and announces to which House they are assigned. Once the Sorting is complete, and the Headteacher has said a few words, the students and staff enjoy a start-of-term feast.
After dinner, the first years are led by a prefect to their common room. The next day, classes begin. Tryouts for House Quidditch teams are held shortly afterwards. Quidditch is a popular wizarding sport, although first years are usually prohibited from joining a Quidditch team, though exceptions have been made in some cases (notably Harry Potter himself, who was appointed Seeker during his first year). Instead, they receive flying lessons from Madam Hooch as part of their curriculum.
<h4>Terms and holidays<h4>
The school year is structured in a similar way to other, Muggle schools and colleges in the UK, with a three-term year punctuated by holidays at Christmas and Easter and bounded by the long summer vacation.
Students may go home for the Christmas holidays. The students who choose to remain do not have any classes and are present at the Christmas feast. The Great Hall is decorated in lavish style for Christmas, as indeed for other festivals and holidays throughout the year, such as Halloween in October.
In Harry's second year, Defence Against the Dark Arts tutor Gilderoy Lockhart organised a Valentine's Day celebration during the spring term. The Easter holidays are not as enjoyable as the Christmas ones, as students are overloaded with homework to prepare them for their exams, which are taken at the end of the year. Students are not allowed to use magic over the summer holidays until they turn seventeen.
Uniform
In the books, the Hogwarts uniform consists of a plain black work robe, a plain black pointed hat, and a winter cloak with silver fastenings. In the films adaptations, students typically wear school uniforms similar to those of UK public schools. These consist of open-fronted black robes with a house insignia on the chest. Beneath is worn a grey sweater, white collared shirt, and necktie in the colours of their House. Boys wear long, dark trousers, and girls wear dark pleated skirts and knee socks.
History
Early History
Hogwarts was founded over a thousand years ago by two wizards and two witches: Godric Gryffindor, Salazar Slytherin, Rowena Ravenclaw, and Helga Hufflepuff. Shortly after founding Hogwarts, Salazar Slytherin fell out with the other founders. Slytherin wanted to admit only pure-blood students, but the other three founders disagreed. Slytherin left the school, but not before secretly building the Chamber of Secrets. When an eventual successor, the Heir of Slytherin, returned to the school, he or she would be able to open the Chamber, unleash a horrible Basilisk, and purge the school of all non-pureblood students.
Middle History
Little information is given in the Harry Potter novels about the history of Hogwarts after its foundation, at least prior to the 1940s.
About three hundred years after the school was founded, the Triwizard Tournament began between the three most prestigious magical schools in Europe: Hogwarts, Beauxbatons, and Durmstrang. This Tournament was considered the best way for wizards of different nationalities to meet and socialize. The Tournament continued for six centuries, until the death toll became too high, and the Tournament was discontinued until 1994.
Recent History
The existence of the school was threatened twice when the Chamber of Secrets was opened. The first time it opened was in 1942, when Tom Riddle, the Heir of Slytherin and the future Lord Voldemort, opened the Chamber in his fifth year. When a girl named Myrtle was killed, the Ministry of Magic threatened to close the school. As Riddle spent his time away from Hogwarts in a Muggle orphanage, he did not want the school closed, so he framed Rubeus Hagrid for the misdeed.
In 1992, the Chamber was opened by Ginny Weasley, under the influence of a diary written by Riddle (one of the Dark Lord's horcruxes). The diary allowed Riddle's memory to possess Ginny, enabling him to act through her to open the Chamber a second time. Lucius Malfoy had secretly planted the diary in her schoolbooks, with the hope that she would be caught and held responsible, thus bringing an end to Arthur Weasley's Muggle Protection Act, as well as purging Hogwarts of non-pureblood witches and wizards. However, Harry Potter discovered the truth, destroyed the diary, and killed the basilisk that was living in the Chamber.
In 1994, the Triwizard Tournament began once more, though with several safety measures in place. However, Barty Crouch Jr., disguised as Professor Alastor Moody, entered Harry Potter's name in the Goblet of Fire under the name of a fourth school, ensuring that he would be chosen by the Goblet. He used a Confundus Charm to trick the Goblet into forgetting that only three schools could compete in the tournament. Consequently, Harry became a fourth champion, to the great disgust of the representatives for Beauxbatons and Durmstrang, as well as many Hogwarts students. Crouch made sure that Harry won the Tournament, having turned the Triwizard Cup into a Portkey, which carried Harry straight into the hands of Lord Voldemort. Harry escaped, but Voldemort succeeded in using Harry's blood in a complex spell, which allowed him to attain a bodily form and defeat some of Harry's magical protections.
Hogwarts was also threatened when the Ministry of Magic began implementing "Educational Decrees" in 1995, as part of a conspiracy to discredit Albus Dumbledore. Dolores Umbridge, the new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, was the centre of this plan. With the Educational Decrees, she slowly took control of Hogwarts, and eventually replaced Albus Dumbledore as headteacher. After she was attacked by Centaurs in the Forbidden Forest and the Minister for Magic, Cornelius Fudge, was forced to accept that Voldemort had returned, Umbridge was removed from the school.
Albus Dumbledore was the most recent Headmaster of Hogwarts, an elderly, white-haired gentleman with a keen sense of humour and twinkling eyes. He always knew what was going on at the school and took a special interest in Harry. He carried no course load, but formerly taught Transfiguration. Dumbledore was the only wizard whom Lord Voldemort ever feared. This made the school a safe haven during Voldemort's revival. There are twelve school governors who have the power to suspend the headmaster; Lucius Malfoy was a governor until he was dismissed after blackmailing the other governors into agreeing to suspend Dumbledore.
The current headmistress of Hogwarts is Minerva McGonagall in an acting capacity following the death of Dumbledore. Since Dumbledore's death in 1997, the closure of the school during the crisis has been discussed with many of the faculty adamant that it should remain open. Readers await the seventh and final book in the Harry Potter series to discover the fate of Hogwarts School.
See also: Battle of Hogwarts
Coat of Arms
Blazon Shield renaissance, Quarterly, I gules lion sergeant to sinister Or, II vert serpent argent, III Or badger reguardant proper, IV azure eagle Or, in fesse couped Or scroll with letter H sable, top riband for the name Hogwarts, base riband for the motto "draco dormiens nunquam titillandus".
Floor Directory
Main Article: Hogwarts Floor Directory
Hogwarts is an enormous castle consisting of seven main floors and six towers, in addition to expansive dungeons and many secret rooms. Besides education, it provides all the necessary facilities for food, drink, leisure, and lodging for the students, staff, and entities that reside there throughout most of the year. As the school is a focal point of ancient magical energies, and has centuries of history within it, it holds a countless variety of surprises and resources. The stories often include elements of the castle's inherent unpredictability and the many secrets hidden within it.
The Grounds
Hagrid's Hut
Hagrid lives in a small hut on the grounds, on the edge of the Forbidden Forest.
The Forbidden Forest
The Forbidden Forest is the forest on the ground of Hogwarts school. Though never refered to as the forbidden forest directly by any character in the books, it is referred to by this name in a chapter title in the first book in the series. When it is discussed in the books it is usually called "the forest on the school grounds" which is "forbidden to students" owing to a variety of dangerous creatures which reside within.
Hagrid frequently travels into the forest for various reasons.
The following is an (incomplete) list of beings that inhabit the forest:
- Centaurs
- Fluffy
- Werewolves, according to Draco Malfoy
- An enchanted, flying Ford Anglia, formerly the property of Arthur Weasley
- A colony of Acromantulas, the late Aragog and his family
- Grawp, (a giant, brought there by Rubeus Hagrid)
- Trolls
- Unicorns
- Thestrals (bred by Rubeus Hagrid)
Greenhouses
There are at least three greenhouses where Herbology classes are held. See Herbology.
The Whomping Willow
The Whomping Willow is a magical tree on the Hogwarts grounds. The tree is violent, striking at those who dare approach it with its branches.
The tree was planted the year Remus Lupin (a werewolf) arrived at the school (c. 1971). Headmaster Albus Dumbledore planted the Willow to guard a secret passageway to the Shrieking Shack, a building in Hogsmeade. Lupin was smuggled to the house each month at the full moon, where he could transform into his wolf form without risking harm to others. In Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Harry and his best friend Ron Weasley flew an enchanted Ford Anglia to Hogwarts, and accidentally crashed into the Whomping Willow, causing minor damage to the tree but more significant harm to the car.
The Lake
The lake is located on the south side of the castle. A number of magical creatures inhabit the lake, including a giant squid, often seen near the surface, a colony of Merpeople inhabiting the bottom, and a population of grindylows.
Dumbledore is buried near the lake.
The Quidditch pitch
The Quidditch pitch is where Quidditch games are held, and where teams practice. There are three golden hoops at each end used for scoring, and stands surrounding it, providing seating for spectators. It houses the changing rooms for the four House teams and at least the Gryffindor Captain's office. The referee is often Madam Hooch, the flying teacher and Quidditch coach, but Severus Snape refereed once in Harry's first year, to protect Harry from further curses by Professor Quirrell. In the fourth book in the series it was the site of the third Triwizard Tournament task.
The White Tomb
The White Tomb is where Albus Dumbledore is buried.
Possible influences
In interviews [1] [2], JK Rowling has suggested that the name 'Hogwarts' derives from a type of lily which she had seen at Kew Gardens some time before writing the Harry Potter books. By coincidence, the name Hogwarts also features in the Molesworth books. The Hogwarts is the title of one of Molesworth's imitation Latin plays, and Hoggwart is also the name of the headmaster of Porridge Court, a rival of St. Custard's, Molesworth's terrible prep school.
References
- [1] "Hogwarts ... Logically it had to be set in a secluded place, and pretty soon I settled on Scotland in my mind." Fraser, L., An interview with J.K.Rowling, Mammoth, London, 2000. ISBN 0-7497-4394-8. pp 20-21. Additionally, Rowling mentions that a nest of horrific giant spiders has been rumoured to exist in a forest in Scotland Template:HPF. There is an annotation by Harry or Ron that says "confirmed by Harry Potter and Ron Weasley". This is thought to refer to their meeting with Aragog in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.
- Template:HPFref
See also
- Hogsmeade
- Hogwarts Houses
- Portraits in Hogwarts
- Beauxbatons Academy of Magic
- Durmstrang Institute for Magical Study
External links
- The Harry Potter Lexicon's Hogwarts Atlas featuring numerous images of Hogwarts
- POV-Ray models from the Harry Potter book descriptions
- Lego scale models of parts of Hogwarts based on the Warner Brothers film imagesde:Handlungsorte der Harry-Potter-Romane#Hogwarts
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