Important Note about Timelines in the Lexicon

Time Lines
master time line of the entire saga
 

History of Magic
character time lines
chronology of sport brooms
timeline of the Philosopher's Stone
timeline of Quidditch
timeline of the end of Prisoner of Azkaban
      detailed analysis of the events of the evening of June 6, 1994

Calendars
day-by-day calendars of the stories

Essays
Problems with the use of time in the series
Generations in the Wizarding World
time line of the attack by Voldemort on Harry's family, 
including the missing 24 hours and the Priori Incantatem mystery (and that pesky wand order business)

Important Note about Timelines in the Lexicon
There have been a number of different timelines suggested for the Harry Potter universe. Throughout the books, Rowling has dropped some hints about the time frame of the books, but she hasn't specifically identified the year. What is clear is that she does have a timeline in mind for the series. This has become more and more evident as dates for events in the novels as well as Quidditch Through the Ages and Fantastic Beasts are fit into some kind of whole. The Lexicon has tried to do exactly that with the timelines linked to this page. The release of the list of 101 Famous Wizards cards gave us a lot of new information, and the dates and personalities almost exactly fit as well (with only one notable exception).

Every detail doesn't fit exactly--perhaps because she didn't work out every date in every book--but her overall design shines through. And she did in fact give a pretty obvious clue in the second book. Nearly Headless Nick's cake indicated that he had died five hundred years ago, which was 1492. That Deathday Party, then, must take place in 1992. But while this seems pretty clear cut, there has been plenty of controversy and alternative theories put forward. When I created the Lexicon's timelines, however, I stuck with what seemed to be the most concise canon reference. From that starting point, I carefully researched each event in the books and wherever possible I placed them on the real calendar of the years they would have taken place. Sometimes it took some pretty shrewd analysis and deduction to figure out which date to use. As I worked on the time lines, though, I started to realize that Rowling had dropped a lot more clues than first met the eye. My timelines and calendars of the events of the books are as accurate as it is possible to be.

The "official timeline of Hogwarts" appeared on the DVD of Chamber of Secrets. Warner Bros. Home Video has confirmed that Rowling did personally review, make notes on, and ultimate approve this timeline, so it is now considered canon. When I got the DVD home, I immediately found the timeline and, with some trepidation, compared the dates that they used to my timelines. I am delighted to report that they match exactly. They must have done the exact same painstaking research that I had done...or more likely, they had an original timeline from Rowling, the exact same timeline that I deduced by my research. Either way, the timeline on the DVD validates the accuaracy of the timelines on the Lexicon. I can't tell you what a thrill it was to find out that my research is backed up by official sources! The only place that the Lexicon timeline differs is in the year that Riddle originally opened the Chamber of Secrets. The book states that it was fifty years ago, which would place it in 1943. However, the DVD timeline places these events in 1941-42, with the final confrontation between Riddle and Hagrid taking place on June 13, 1942. This is actually fifty-one years before Chamber of Secrets, but that isn't important. I'll be adjusting the Lexicon timeline to take this into account. 

Oh, and one more thing. The DVD timeline also states clearly that Hermione is younger than Harry and Ron, which also supports what is given in the Lexicon. She was ten when she started Hogwarts.