Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is a Scottish boarding school of magic and the main setting of the Harry Potter series. The castle is in the mountains by a lake. The precise location can never be uncovered as the school is hidden by the most powerful spells possible. Spells protecting the castle include anti-Apparition. These spells may be lifted by the Headmaster. Most electronic devices will not work on Hogwarts grounds, though Colin Creevey had a functioning muggle camera during his time at the school (although it may have been completely manual, not requiring any electricity).

Houses
Hogwarts students are divided into four Houses; Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin. They were named after the four founders, Godric Gryffindor, Helga Hufflepuff, Rowena Ravenclaw and Salazar Slytherin.

Gryffindor is well known for the bravery and chivalry. The house colors are scarlet and gold, and the house is symbolized by a lion. The house ghost is Nearly Headless Nick. Important past and current Gryffindors include Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger, Albus Dumbledore, Minerva McGonagall, James Potter, Lily Potter, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, Ginny Weasley, Neville Longbottom and the rest of the Weasley family.

Hufflepuff is well known for loyalty, fair play and tolerance. The house is symbolized by a badger, and the house colors are yellow and black. The house ghost is The Fat Friar. Important past and current Hufflepuffs include Nymphadora Tonks, Pomona Sprout, Cedric Diggory, and Ernie Macmillan.

Ravenclaws value wit, creativity, and wisdom. The house is symbolized by an eagle and the house colors are blue and bronze. However the house colours are portrayed as blue and silver in the movies with a raven symbolizing the house. The house ghost is The Grey Lady (Helena Ravenclaw, Rowena Ravenclaw's daughter). Important past and current Ravenclaws include Luna Lovegood, Cho Chang and Filius Flitwick.

Slytherins value ambition, cunning, resourcefulness, and pure blood heritage. The house is symbolized by a serpent, and the house colors are green and silver. The house ghost is The Bloody Baron. Important past and current Slytherins include Lord Voldemort, Draco Malfoy, Lucius Malfoy, Bellatrix Lestrange, Narcissa Malfoy, and Severus Snape.

School Spirit
Hogwarts' motto is "Draco dormiens nunquam titillandus", meaning Never tickle a sleeping dragon.

The School Song:

"Hogwarts, Hogwarts, Hoggy Warty Hogwarts, Teach us something please, Whether we be old and bald, Or young with scabby knees, Our heads could do with filling, With some interesting stuff, For now they're bare and full of air, Dead flies and bits of fluff, So teach us things worth knowing, Bring back what we've forgot, Just do your best, we'll do the rest, And learn until our brains all rot."

Staff


Hogwarts has in its faculty an abundance of wise and talented professors. Each specialises in a specific subject. Other staff positions include that of school nurse, caretaker, librarian, and gamekeeper/groundskeeper.

Heads of Hogwarts

 * Professor Phineas Nigellus Black
 * Professor Dilys Derwent
 * Professor Armando Dippet
 * Professor Albus Dumbledore
 * Professor Everard
 * Professor Dexter Fortescue
 * Professor Godric Gryffindor
 * Professor Helga Hufflepuff
 * Professor Rowena Ravenclaw
 * Professor Salazar Slytherin
 * Professor Dolores Umbridge
 * Professor Severus Snape
 * Professor Minerva McGonagall

Deputy Heads

 * Professor Alecto Carrow
 * Professor Amycus Carrow
 * Professor Albus Dumbledore
 * Professor Minerva McGonagall

Heads of Houses
Gryffindor


 * Professor Godric Gryffindor
 * Professor Albus Dumbledore
 * Professor Minerva McGonagall

Slytherin


 * Professor Salazar Slytherin
 * Professor Phineas Nigellus Black (possibly)
 * Professor Horace Slughorn
 * Professor Severus Snape

Hufflepuff


 * Professor Helga Hufflepuff
 * Professor Pomona Sprout

Ravenclaw


 * Professor Rowena Ravenclaw
 * Professor Filius Flitwick

Professors
Astronomy

Arithmancy
 * Professor Aurora Sinistra

Care of Magical Creatures
 * Professor Septima Vector

Charms
 * Professor Kettleburn
 * Professor Rubeus Hagrid
 * Professor Wilhelmina Grubbly-Plank

Defence Against The Dark Arts
 * Professor Filius Flitwick

Divination
 * Professor Galatea Merrythought
 * Professor Quirinius Quirrell
 * Professor Gilderoy Lockhart
 * Professor Remus Lupin
 * Barty Crouch, Jr. (impersonating Professor Alastor Moody)
 * Professor Dolores Umbridge
 * Professor Severus Snape
 * Professor Amycus Carrow

Herbology
 * Professor Sybill Trelawney
 * Professor Firenze

Transfiguration
 * Professor Pomona Sprout
 * Professor Neville Longbottom

Potions
 * Professor Albus Dumbledore
 * Professor Minerva McGonagall

Muggle Studies
 * Professor Horace Slughorn
 * Professor Severus Snape

History Of Magic
 * Professor Quirenius Quirrell
 * Professer Charity Burbage
 * Professor Alecto Carrow


 * Professor Binns

Support Staff
Caretaker

Nurse
 * Apollyon Pringle
 * Argus Filch

Gamekeeper
 * Poppy Pomfrey

Referee and Flight Instructor
 * Oggpossibly
 * Professor Rubeus Hagrid

Librarian
 * Rolanda Hooch


 * Irma Pince

School Syllabus
Each year, the Hogwarts Deputy Head sends letters to eligible witches and wizards who will be eleven years old. These letters invite the children to be students at Hogwarts. If for any reason a letter does not reach its intended recipient, owls will continue delivering letters until the person receives one (as was Harry Potter's experience when he turned eleven). The letter contains a list of needed supplies, which includes spell books and cauldrons. Students usually obtain school supplies at Diagon Alley in London.

Letters to Muggle-born witches and wizards, such as Hermoine Ganger and Lily Evans who may not be aware of their powers and are unfamiliar with the concealed wizarding world, are delivered in person by a member of Hogwarts staff, who then explain to the parents/guardians about magical society, and reassure them regarding this news[HP7]. They also assist the family in regards to buying supplies and gaining access to Diagon Alley.

Term begins on 1st September. Students usually reach Hogwarts via the Hogwarts Express, which leaves from platform 9 3/4 of London's Kings Cross Station. There seem to be other ways of entering the school, such as via brooms or Floo powder, or simply apparating to a nearby location such as Hogsmeade. Missing the Hogwarts Express for any reason is a very serious problem but will not cost the student points, because the term has not started offically.

After the Hogwarts Express arrives, students depart for the school accompanied by chaperones. First-year students travel to the castle via small boats. The boats sail from the edge of the Black Lake, under an opening in the rocks upon which Hogwarts is built, through a curtain of ivy, and finally into an underground harbour. Older students travel on the road in carriages pulled by thestrals.

Upon arrival at the Hogwarts Great Hall, new students are sorted into Houses by the Sorting Hat. After all new students have been sorted, a feast begins to welcome everyone to the new school year.

After dinner, students are led to their House common room by a prefect. This is a special time for new students to get comfortable with their surroundings, because the next day classes begin.

Tryouts for House Quidditch teams happen at the very beginning of the school year. First-years are usually prohibited from joining a Quidditch team, as they are usually inexperienced with brooms, however exceptions have been made.

Students may go home for certain holidays such as Christmas. The students who choose to remain are treated to a feast along with some faculty.

When Christmas holidays end, classes begin again. In Harry Potter's second year, Gilderoy Lockhart organised a Valentine's Day celebration. It was not continued after he left the school. The Easter holidays are not as enjoyable as the Christmas ones, as students are overloaded with homework in preparation 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.

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, students wear uniforms consisting of open-fronted black robes with a house insignia on the chest. Beneath is worn a grey jumper (sweater), white collared shirt, and necktie in the colours of their House. Boys wear long, dark trousers, and girls wear dark pleated skirts and black tights.

Grades
Grading on routine homework seems to be along the same lines as that for muggle students. Hogwarts students also have difficult exams as they progress higher in the system. O.W.L.s, or Ordinary Wizarding Levels, are a set of standardized tests for fifth-year students which determine what courses a student may continue to study in their final years at Hogwarts. N.E.W.T.s (Nastily Exhausting Wizarding Tests) are optional levels of education for exceptional students, much like honors classes for muggle students. To progress to N.E.W.T. level, students must receive certain high marks on O.W.L. exams. N.E.W.T tests occur at the end of the seventh year, and cannot be retaken.

Ordinary Wizarding Levels Grading System
 * O = Outstanding (Pass, may continue to N.E.W.T.)
 * E = Exceeds Expectations (Pass, almost always continues to N.E.W.T)
 * A = Acceptable (Pass, rarely continue to N.E.W.T)
 * P = Poor (Fail, may repeat subject)
 * D = Dreadful (Fail, may not receive O.W.L. credit)
 * T = Troll (Fail, with distinction. More than one T may mean refusal into other N.E.W.T.s)

Early history
Hogwarts was founded circa the 10th century, by two wizards and two witches: Godric Gryffindor, Salazar Slytherin, Rowena Ravenclaw, and Helga Hufflepuff. They each represented an aspect of wizarding that they wanted to bring out in new students. However, shortly after founding Hogwarts, Salazar Slytherin had a falling 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 his own true heir, 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 Muggle-born students.

Middle history
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.

Recent history
The existence of the school was threatened twice when the Chamber of Secrets was opened. The first time it was opened was in 1942, when Tom Riddle, the Heir of Slytherin and the man who would become Lord Voldemort, opened the Chamber in his sixth 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 and dodged his crimes for decades.

In 1992, the Chamber was re-opened by Ginny Weasley, under the influence of a diary written by Riddle. The diary allowed Riddle's memory to possess Ginny, allowing him to act through her to open the Chamber a second time. Lucius Malfoy, through the desire to further the power of the Dark Arts, had slipped the diary into her bundle of schoolbooks, with the hope that she would be possessed and carry out the necessary work for Lord Voldemort. His ulterior motive was to ruin the reputations of several great wizards, including Albus Dumbledore and Arthur Weasley, the latter of whom was highly influential concerning the Muggle Protection Act. However, Harry Potter discovered the truth, destroyed the diary and the Basilisk, thus bringing an end to this dark plots.

In 1994, the Triwizard Tournament recommenced with more powerful safety measures in place. However, more dark plots were being hatched. Barty Crouch Jr., disguised as Professor Alastor Moody, managed to enter Harry in the Tournament by putting his name in the Goblet of Fire under the name of a fourth school, which ensured he would be chosen by the Goblet. Harry's involvement in this plan caused him great misery at Hogwarts, as the representatives for Beauxbatons and Durmstrang, as well as many Hogwarts students, believed he was a cheater. It was because of Crouch Jr. and his influence over certain house-elves that Harry ended up at the end of the tournament with Cedric Diggory in a graveyard surrounded by Death Eaters. Voldemort was brought back to his physical form using Harry's blood in a complex spell. He attempted to torture and humiliate Harry, but Harry escaped and succeeded in alerting all Voldemort's enemies that he had returned. However, to the horror of all at Hogwarts, Cedric Diggory was murdered at the whim of Voldemort.

Hogwarts was further threatened when the Ministry of Magic began implementing "Educational Decrees" in 1995, as part of a conspiracy to discredit and ruin Albus Dumbledore. Dolores Umbridge, the new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, was the centre of this plan. With these Educational Decrees, she slowly took control of Hogwarts, and eventually replaced Albus Dumbledore as Headmistress. But it was through the cunning of Hermione Granger and the members of Dumbledore's Army that Umbridge was overthrown. The Ministry had no choice but to accept that Voldemort had returned. Order was restored to Hogwarts.

In 1997, Hogwarts was attacked by a mob of Death Eaters. Student Draco Malfoy was seduced into the service of Lord Voldemort with the promise of fame and glory. As a result, Headmaster Albus Dumbledore's safety was compromised, and he was murdered by Severus Snape. Following this horrible tragedy, Professor Minerva McGonagall was appointed acting Headmistress, although the security of the school hung by a thread. There was no certainty that Hogwarts would remain open. The faculty agreed to follow "established procedures" and let the school governors ultimately decide.

Regardless of the school governors' decision, with the takeover of the Ministry by Voldemort, attendance at Hogwarts was mandatory for all eligible children. New, militaristic requirements were established, such as proof of blood status. Muggle Studies, involving mainly of how muggles are vile things, became a required subject. Severus Snape was appointed Headmaster. It was a time of great terror in which no one could be certain who was friend or foe.

In May of that year, 1998 the Battle of Hogwarts took place. This battle ended with the death of many on both sides. Voldemort was destroyed and peace was restored.

Based on what is known since the time of the Battle of Hogwarts, Hogwarts was repaired and was still open by 2017; The House system remained in place, many descendants of previous students were now coming to Hogwarts as new pupils, and Neville Longbottom became the Professor for Herbology.

Behind The Scenes

 * 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".
 * In Harry Potter and the Philosophers Stone video game, a Muggle Studies Classroom is featured on the fifth floor, and an Ancient Runes Classroom is on the sixth floor.
 * In Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Dumbledore believes that Hogwarts is the place Tom Marvolo Riddle felt was his real home. Ironically, this is also how Harry Potter felt about Hogwarts.

Notes and references
Poudlard