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Timeline of the Wizarding World



The Twentieth Century A.D.


 
1269
 events in the Wizarding World
1066
 events from Muggle history
indicates events in the development of broomsticks and Quidditch
indicates events related to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry
indicates important events in the history of magic
indicates important events in the lives of main characters
indicates important events in the battle against the Dark Arts



1900-1910

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1910-1919

1917
Frank Bryce born. (GF1)
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The Twenties

c.1920
Minerva McGonangall born. (Sch2)
1927
Tom Riddle Jr. born
Tom Riddle Jr. born to witch mother and Muggle father in Little Hangleton. His mother dies, living just long enough to name her son, and Tom is raised in an orphanage.

1929
Rubeus Hagrid born of human father and giantess mother (Fridwulfa)
1929
October
Stock market crash in the U.S., beginning of the Great Depression


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The Thirties

c. 1931
September
Minerva McGonagall starts her first year at Hogwarts

1932
Fridwulfa abandons Hagrid and his father, her human family
September
McGonagall starts her second year at Hogwarts

1933
September
McGonagall starts her third year at Hogwarts

1934
September
McGonagall starts her fourth year at Hogwarts

1935
first Atlantic broom crossing by Jacunda Sykes on an Oakshaft 79
September
McGonagall starts her fifth year at Hogwarts

1936
September
McGonagall starts her sixth year at Hogwarts

1937
September
McGonagall starts her final year at Hogwarts

1938
June
McGonagall leaves Hogwarts
September
Tom Riddle Jr. starts his first year at Hogwarts
he hears about the Chamber of Secrets and determines to find and open it

1939
September
Tom Riddle Jr. starts his second year at Hogwarts


1939

World War Two begins


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The Forties

1940
September
Tom Riddle Jr. starts his third year at Hogwarts

Hagrid starts his first year at Hogwarts


c.1940-41
Frank Bryce returns from fighting in World War Two.
He takes up as gardener for the Riddles and avoids people for the most part (GF1)

Hagrid acquires an Acromantula egg and hatches it in a cupboard in the castle


1941
September
Tom Riddle Jr. starts his fourth year at Hogwarts

Hagrid starts his second year at Hogwarts

later that school year
Hagrid's father dies
1941
December 7
Attack on Pearl Harbor

1942
Albus Dumbledore is Transfiguration teacher at Hogwarts

Eunice Murray, famous Seeker for the Monstrose Magpies, dies

September
Tom Riddle Jr. starts his fifth year at Hogwarts
He is a prefect; he finally discovers how to open the Chamber of Secrets, and learns to control the Basilisk

Hagrid starts his third year at Hogwarts


1943
Armando Dippet is Headmaster of Hogwarts

a student named Myrtle dies in a second floor bathroom after seeing the Basilisk

June 13
Hagrid expelled from Hogwarts after being falsely accused of opening the Chamber of Secrets
Aragog the Acromantula is released into the Forest where he establishes a colony of the giant spiders

Tom Riddle Jr. is given an Award for Service to the School

Tom Riddle constructs his diary
He begins placing his memories and some of his personality into it in an attempt to preserve what he learned about the Chamber of Secrets

Hagrid is made an assistant groundskeeper by Professor Dumbledore

September
Tom Riddle Jr. begins his sixth year at Hogwarts.
He is dabbling in the Dark Arts and some of his closest friends are starting to refer to him as Lord Voldemort; outwardly, however, he is a model student

1944
summer
Tom Riddle Jr. murders his father and grandparents in their mansion in Little Hangleton
September
Tom Riddle Jr. begins his seventh year at Hogwarts; he is Head Boy

1945
Dumbledore defeats the dark wizard Grindelwald
June
Tom Riddle Jr. leaves Hogwarts
He begins his personal quest for immortality by means of the Dark Arts
1945
World War Two ends

after 1945
Tom Riddle disappears after leaving the school.
He travels far and wide, sinking deeply into the Dark Arts, consorting with the very worst of wizard-kind. Riddle undergoes so many dangerous, magical transformations that when he resurfaces years later as Lord Voldemort, he was barely recognizable.

1949
A blue roan Hippocampus is caught off the coast of Scotland by Merpeople and domesticated
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The Fifties

  1951
Rita Skeeter born

c. 1958
Bertha Jorkins born
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The Sixties

1960s
Magnus "Dent-Head" Macdonald tries to reintroduce Creaothceann, but to no avail, which is probably a good thing (QA2)

c. 1960
Severus Snape born (CR)

James Potter born

Lily Evans born
Lily's parents are Muggles, as is her sister, Petunia.

Sirius Black born

Remus Lupin born

Peter Pettigrew born


early 1960s
Remus, as a small boy, is bitten by a werewolf.

c. 1962
Bartemius Crouch Jr. born

c. mid-1960s
Bill Weasley born
Dates are very uncertain for Bill Weasley; it would seem that he is in his late 20s in GF (1994-5), but this is not confirmed directly by any part of the canon.

1967
Charlie Weasley born
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The Seventies

1970s
Remus Lupin, James Potter, Sirius Black, and Peter Pettigrew attend Hogwarts
also attending at that time were Severus Snape and Lily Evans, who would marry James Potter after they left school.
The books leave ambiguous the exact years they attended Hogwarts. JKR did state in an interview which coincided with the release of Goblet of Fire (CR) that Severus Snape was "about 35 or 36." That would place his birthdate in 1960 and his first year at Hogwarts to be 1971-72. This timeline works from that assumption. All dates for the this group might be a year off one way or the other.
Albus Dumbledore becomes headmaster of Hogwarts
The Years of Terror
During the 1970s, Voldemort began to gather followers who were eager for a share of his power. The closest followers of Voldemort were known as the Death Eaters. These years got progressively more dangerous and violent
  • As Voldemort's influence grew, some witches and wizards were controlled by the Imperius Curse and forced to commit atrocities, including the torture and murder of Muggles
  • Voldemort capitalized on the prejudice and distrust between the Giants and the Wizarding World; the Giants became Voldemort's followers and killed and tortured many people
  • the Dark Mark is used by Death Eaters to indicate a house where they have committed murders
  • no one dared to become friendly with strange witches and wizards, not knowing if they were Voldemort supporters
  • Hogwarts became one of the few safe places in the Wizarding World
  • Bartemius Crouch is head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement; he gives his Aurors the authority to use drastic methods not all the different from the tactics used by the Death Eaters they were fighting

    • 1971
    the Whomping Willow is planted to protect the entrance to a secret passage to the Shrieking Shack

    The Shrieking Shack
    the folks of the village of Hogsmeade are startled to discover loud haunting noises coming from a small house on the outskirts of the town once a month; this house becomes known as the Shrieking Shack and gains the reputation for being the most haunted building in Briain

    Remus Lupin is accepted as a first year student at Hogwarts
    he goes to the Shrieking Shack every month when he transforms into a werewolf

    September
    James Potter, Lily Evans, Sirius Black, Peter Pettigrew, Remus Lupin, Severus Snape begin their first year at Hogwarts.

    1972
    James Potter, Lily Evans, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, Peter Pettigrew, Severus Snape begin their second year at Hogwarts.

    The reason for Lupin's monthly disappearances is discovered by Black, Potter, and Pettigrew.
    They resolve to learn how to become Animagi to help Remus out, but it will be several years until they master the magic required.


    1973
    James Potter, Lily Evans, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, Peter Pettigrew, Severus Snape begin their third year at Hogwarts.
    Sirius, James, and Peter are working on learning to become Animagi
    Sirius Black and James Potter first visit Hogsmeade.

    Sirius Black and James Potter gain a reputation as practical jokers and troublemakers, although everyone likes them.
    They visit the Three Broomsticks in the town of Hogsmeade.


    1974
    James Potter, Lily Evans, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, Peter Pettigrew, Severus Snape begin their fourth year at Hogwarts.

    1975
    James Potter, Lily Evans, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, Peter Pettigrew, Severus Snape begin their fifth year at Hogwarts.
    James and Lily are made Prefects.

    Sirius, James, and Peter finally learn the complex spells necessary to become Animagi.
    They begin to accompany Remus when he transforms, affecting his ability to maintain some semblence of humanity as a werewolf.


    1976
    James Potter, Lily Evans, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, Peter Pettigrew, Severus Snape begin their sixth year at Hogwarts.

    Marauder's Map
    Sirius Black, James Potter, Peter Pettigrew, and Remus Lupin explore the castle and grounds in their animal forms and learn more about the secrets of the place than anyone, even Filch. They create the Marauders' Map, signing it with their nicknames: Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs.

    fateful practical joke
    Snape is intensely curious about where Lupin goes each month. Sirius jokingly suggests that Snape follow Lupin through the passage beneath the Whomping Willow. James Potter, realizing that Snape would encounter a full-blown and very dangerous werewolf at the end of the passage, stops Snape from going through, thereby saving his life. Snape, much to his disgust, is indebted to James Potter because of this.

    Oliver Wood, Percy Weasley born

    Bill Weasley starts his first year at Hogwarts (date uncertain)


    1977
    Cedric Diggory born
    September
    James Potter, Lily Evans, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, Peter Pettigrew, Severus Snape begin their seventh year at Hogwarts.
    James and Lily are Head Boy and Girl
    October
    Angelina Johnson born

    1978
    April
    George and Fred Weasley are born (GF12)
    June
    James, Lily, Sirius, Remus, Peter, and Severus leave Hogwarts
    September
    Charlie Weasley starts his first year at Hogwarts

    1979
    Cho Chang born
    Peter Pettigrew starts passing information to Voldemort
    Dumbledore and his allies begin to realize that there is a spy in their midst but Peter is not suspected
    Charlie Weasley starts his second year at Hogwarts
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    The Eighties

    1980
    Karkaroff and Dolohov captured and sent to Azkaban

    Rosier and Wilkes, both Death Eaters, killed by Aurors (GF27)

    Charlie Weasley starts his third year at Hogwarts

    Neville Longbottom, Draco Malfoy born
    and other students of Harry's year

    March 1
    Ron Weasley born
    June
    Dudley Dursley born
    July 31
    Harry Potter born
    September 19
    Hermione Granger born
    Hermione's birth date is September 19, according to JKR in an interview (AOL), but the year has been much debated by fans. Some claim that since the British school system almost always uses September 1 as the cutoff for kids to enter school, Hermione must have been born in 1979 in order to be in the same year as Harry and Ron. There is only one specific canon reference to Hermione's age, from PA, when Dumbledore refers to her and Harry as being "a couple of thirteen-year-old wizrds." He may have been talking generally, using thirteen as the age for people of that school year and not knowing her specific age, as some have suggested. But since that's the only canon reference, that's what we use for the Lexicon until JKR indicates otherwise.

    1981
    Charlie Weasley begins his fourth year at Hogwarts

    Ginny Weasley born

    c. October 24
    The Fidelius Charm is cast on the Potters with Peter Pettigrew as Secret Keeper.
    October 31
    Defeat of Voldemort
    Voldemort attempts to kill Harry Potter after murdering his parents, but his spell rebounds onto him.
    Voldemort, nearly dead and without physical form, retreats into the forests of Albania where he possess the bodies of various animals to survive for the next decade, waiting.
    Hagrid, on Dumbledore's orders, goes to Godric's Hollow to rescue baby Harry from the ruins of the house.
    November 1
    Peter Pettigrew fakes his own death, killing twelve Muggles in the process
    November 1, late evening
    Hagrid delivers baby Harry to Dumbledore, who is waiting in Privet Drive to leave the baby with the Dursleys.
    But there is twenty-four hours missing from the chronology of events of these two days...

    after 1981
    Sirius Black is framed for the murders of Peter Pettigrew and twelve Muggles on November 1, 1981
    He sent by Bartemius Crouch, Sr. to Azkaban without a trial.

    Bartemius Crouch Jr. is arrested along with three others for using the Cruciatus Curse on Frank Longbottom and his wife in an attempt to discover the whereabouts of Voldemort; all of the accused are sent to Azkaban

    Frank Longbottom and his wife are committed to St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries, driven insane from the Cruciatus Curse

    Bartemius Crouch Jr. is secretly rescued from Azkaban
    His mother uses Polyjuice Potion to take his place there, where she dies within a year. Bartemiums Crouch Jr. is kept a virtual prisoner in his father's home, tended by Winky, a loyal house-elf

    In disguise as a rat, Peter Pettigrew becomes a pet of Percy Weasley
    He chooses Percy, a member of a solid wizarding family, in order to stay aware of what was going on in the magical world and perhaps hear word of his former master, Voldemort.


    1984-1985
    Charlie Weasley's last year at Hogwarts

    1985
    June
    Aunt Marge comes to Dudley's fifth birthday party.
    She whacks Harry around the shins to keep him from beating Dudley at Musical Statues.
    June
    Gryffindor wins the Quidditch Cup
    This is the last time Gryffindor wins the Quidditch Cup before Slytherin won for seven years straight.

    1988
    Neville Longbottom is dropped accidentally by his Great Uncle Algie from an upstairs window.
    Instead of falling to his death, he bounces, demonstrating his natural magical ability. His family is ecstatic.
    June
    Aunt Marge comes to Dudley's birthday party
    She brings a computerized robot for Dudley and a box of dog biscuits for Harry.
    September
    Cedric Diggory begins his first year at Hogwarts

    Angelina Johnson begins her first year at Hogwarts

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    The Nineties

    before 1991
    Quirrell takes a year off from Hogwarts for some first hand experience fighting the Dark Arts.
    He encournters Voldemort in Albania and is controlled by the Dark Lord.

    1991
    June
    Aunt Marge comes to Dudley's birthday party
    She brings Ripper, her favorite bulldog. Harry accidentally steps on Ripper's tail and the dog "trees" him. Marge finally calls the dog off around midnight.
    DAY-BY-DAY CALENDAR FROM JULY 1991 THROUGH JULY 1992

    July

    Harry Potter is invited to Hogwarts
    July 24 - 30  -  letters begin arriving via owl post to invite Harry to Hogwarts.
    July 31, just after midnight - Hagrid rescues Harry from the Dursleys and from the Hut on the Rock
    July 31
    Harry and Hagrid visit Diagon Alley
    Hagrid retrieves the Philosopher's Stone from the Gringotts' high security vaults.
    Harry meets Draco Malfoy for the first time in Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions.
    Hagrid buys Hedwig for a birthday present for Harry.

    Quirrell attempts to steal the Philosopher's Stone from Gringotts but fails

    August
    Percy Weasley gives his pet rat, Scabbers, to his younger brother Ron. Scabbers is really Peter Pettigrew in disguise.
    Sunday, September 1
    Harry Potter, Hermione Granger,  Ron Weasley, and Draco Malfoy start their first year at Hogwarts
    They catch the Hogwarts Express at 11 am at King's Cross Station, then travel until evening to Hogwarts.
    Harry meets Ron and Hermione on the train. Ron becomes his friend.

    Dudley Dursley undergoes surgery for the removal of a pig's tail from his rather large behind

    Thursday, September 12
    Gryffindors and Slytherins have their first flying lesson

    Harry is made a Seeker on the Gryffindor Quidditch team

    October 31
    Halloween Feast
    The feast is interrupted by a Mountain Troll which almost kills Hermione Granger; she is saved by Harry and Ron, after which they become friends
    December 25
    Harry receives the Invisibility Cloak for a Christmas present from Dumbledore

    Harry discovers the Mirror of Erised and sees his family for the first time


    1992
    c. May 8
    Norbert hatches
    c. May 16
    Charlie's friends take Norbert from Harry and Hermione on top of the tallest tower
    June 4
    Harry, Hermione, and Ron follow Quirrell after the Sorcerer's Stone, overcome the various protections, and defeat Quirrell/Voldemort's attempt to steal the Stone
    June 8
    End of Term Feast - Gryffindor win House Cup (but not the Quidditch Cup)
    July 31
    Dobby the house elf visits Harry Potter in Privet Drive
    The Dursleys hold a dinner party for the Masons which is disrupted by a falling violet pudding.
    Harry is sent a warning letter from the Ministry, reminding him that he is not allowed to do magic outside of school.
    DAY-BY-DAY CALENDAR FROM JULY 1992 THROUGH JULY 1993

    early August

    Ron rescues Harry from the Dursleys in a flying car
    September 1
    Harry and Ron miss the Hogwarts Express and fly Mr. Weasley's bewitched car to Hogwarts

    Harry and his friends starts their second year at Hogwarts, Ginny Weasley and Colin Creevy start their first year

    September
    Gildroy Lockhart becomes the new Defense Against The Dark Arts professor at Hogwarts

    the Chamber of Secrets is reopened
    This time the Chamber is opened by Ginny Weasley under the influence of Tom Riddle by means of his diary.

    October 31
    Halloween Feast and 500th Deathday for Nearly Headless Nick (CS8)

    the Basilisk from the Chamber of Secrets attacks its first victim: Filch's cat, Mrs. Norris

    November 8
    Colin Creevy Petrified by the Basilisk
    December 18
    Justin Finch-Fletchly and Nearly-Headless Nick petrified
    December 25
    Harry and Ron use Polyjuice Potion to "become" Crabbe and Goyle.
    They learn that Malfoy is NOT the heir of Slytherin. Hermione is victim of in incomplete transfiguration and goes to the Hospital Wing for the next month

    Hermione is accidentally changed partially into a cat
    She spends the next month in the hospital wing


    after June, 1992
    Nicolas and Perenelle Famel die after a long, long life

    1993
    May 8
    Hermione Granger and Penelope Clearwater are Petrified; Hogwarts Quidditch Cup is cancelled
    Hagrid is sent to Azkaban; Dumbledore is removed as headmaster of Hogwarts
    May 24
    Harry and Ron enter the Forbidden Forest and meet Aragog
    May 29
    the spirit-form of Voldemort is defeated by Harry Potter in the Chamber of Secrets
    May 30
    Lucius Malfoy is removed from the Board of Governors of Hogwarts, Hagrid and Dumbledore return to Hogwarts

    Dobby the House-Elf is freed from service to the Malfoy family

    summer
    Granger family vacations in France
    summer (July/August)
    Arthur Weasley wins 700 Galleons in a Daily Prophet drawing
    The Weasley family spends a month in Egypt, visiting Bill.
    July
    Sirius Black escapes from Azkaban
    DAY-BY-DAY CALENDAR FROM JULY 1993 THROUGH JULY 1994

    July 31

    Aunt Marge comes for a visit to the Dursley's.
    August 7
    On the last day of Aunt Marge's visit, Harry blows her up and runs away.
    The Knight Bus picks him up in Magnolia Crescent and drops him off at the Leaky Cauldron.
    August 7 - August 30
    Harry stays at the Leaky Cauldron and spends his days in Diagon Alley.

    Quality Quidditch Supplies displays the new Firebolt broomstick.

    August 31
    Harry meets Hermione and Ron in Diagon Alley.
    They are all staying at the Leaky Cauldron. Hermione buys Crookshanks.
    September 1
    Harry and his friends begin their third year at Hogwarts, which is now surrounded by Dementors
    Remus Lupin begins his professorship at Hogwarts

    1994
    April 20
    hearing - Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures considers the fate of the hippogriff Buckbeak
    June 6
    Peter Pettigrew, disguised as Scabbers the rat, is cornered and revealed. He escapes and spends the next months searching for Voldemort in Albania
    June 6
    at sundown, Buckbeak is scheduled to be executed; Sirius Black is captured that evening and narrowly escapes suffering the Dementor's Kiss by riding to freeedom on Buckbeak
    summer
    International Confederation of Wizards Conference (GF18)

    Bertha Jorkins takes her ill-fated vacation in Albania, where she encounters Pettigrew and Voldemort. She is killed.

    DAY-BY-DAY CALENDAR FROM JULY 1994 THROUGH JULY 1995

    July 31

    Harry Potter's 14th birthday


    early Saturday, August 20

    Voldemort and Wormtail take up residence in the old Riddle House; Frank Bryce is killed, shortly before his 77th birthday (GF1)

    Harry Potter wakes up after seeing Bryce's death in a dream, with his scar hurting

    Monday, August 22
    Final of the 422nd World Quidditch Cup, Ireland beats Bulgaria, 170 to 160
    Tuesday, Aug 23
    Bartemius Crouch fires his house-elf, Winky, after she is found holding the wand which had cast a Dark Mark spell
    September 1
    Harry and his friends start their fourth year at Hogwarts
    October 30
    delegations from Durmstrang and Beauxbatons arrive at Hogwarts
    October 31
    Goblet of Fire selects of the champions for the Triwizard Tournament
    Saturday, November 21
    Hogsmeade weekend for Hogwarts students
    Tuesday, November 24
    First Task of the Triwizard Tournament
    December 25
    Yule Ball, 8 PM until midnight

    1995
    February 24, 9:30 AM
    Second Task of the Triwizard Tournament
    June 24, at dusk
    Third Task of the Triwizard Tournament
    Voldemort kidnaps Harry Potter and Cedric Diggory. Cedric is killed by Wormtail using Voldemort's wand. Voldemort is restored to his body in an ancient ceremony. The Death Eaters are called back to him and they gather. Voldemort and Harry duel and Harry manages to escape with Cedric's body.
    Cornelius Fudge and Dumbledore choose different paths. Fudge hides his head in the sand. Dumbledore begins to call together those he can trust to fight Voldemort.


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    original content © 2002 The Harry Potter Lexicon
    HARRY POTTER, characters, names, and all related indicia are trademarks of Warner Bros. © 2001.
    original artwork of Fawkes © 2001 Edgar Torné, used by permission
    original artwork of Snitch © 2001 Steve Vander Ark, used by permission
    original artwork of McGonagall, Harry and Malfoy, and the calendar © 2001 Laura Freeman, used by permission
    original artwork of Norbert hatching by Mary GrandPré, used by permission
    original artwork of Dumbledore © 2001 Alice Wack, used by permission
    NO PART OF THIS PAGE MAY BE REPRODUCED IN ANY MANNER WITHOUT PERMISSION
    original page date 7/25/01
    last page update 7/27/02