Godric's Hollow

Godric's Hollow is a village in the West Country of England. It is a small community, which centres on a village square with only a church, a post office, a pub, and a few retail shops. The residential streets are lined with quaint cottages. Godric's Hollow is where Harry Potter's parents lived when he was a baby, and was where they were killed and Voldemort met his first downfall. Harry did not actually visit the place until Christmas of 1997. It is notorious, however, as the place where Harry Potter became known as "the Boy Who Lived". According to A History of Magic, the graveyard is rumoured to be haunted.

History
In 1689, witches and wizards went into hiding on account of the signature of the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy. The town was renamed Godric's Hollow in presumed honour of the famous Hogwarts founder who once lived there. It was one of many small communities of magical people and was home to many famous residents.

Duel between Grindelwald, Albus, and Aberforth
In 1899, a three-way duel broke out between Gellert Grindelwald, Albus Dumbledore, and Aberforth Dumbledore. Ariana Dumbledore, aged about 14 at the time, tried to help but did not know what she was doing and was inadvertently killed.

Murder of the Potters


On 31 October, 1981, James and Lily Potter were murdered by Lord Voldemort in their home in Godric's Hollow, at which time Voldemort lost his powers and physical form when he tried to kill the couple's infant son, Harry, due to Lily's sacrifice. James and Lily's bodies were laid to rest in the Godric's Hollow graveyard. Their tombstone reads, "The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death."

A statue was later erected in the village square in memory of the Potter family. From a distance, it appears as an obelisk carved with names, but transforms into a statue of the Potters when a wizard or witch gets closer to it.

Harry's visit and Nagini's attack
Harry Potter and Hermione Granger visited Godric's Hollow in 1997 to find Bathilda Bagshot, in the hope that she had Godric Gryffindor's Sword, which they needed to destroy Voldemort's Horcruxes. While there, Harry visited both his parents' graves and their former home, which, according to the sign that had been set in the ground outside of the house, had been preserved in "its ruined state as a monument to the Potters and as a reminder of the violence that tore apart their family."



This sign had been graffitied over the years with names and messages of support for Harry. The house, like the statue, had been made invisible to Muggles. During the same visit, they were attacked by Nagini, disguised as Bathilda Bagshot. Lord Voldemort had previously killed Bathilda and used Dark Magic to conceal Nagini within her corpse. She could not speak, however, except in Parseltongue and communicated mainly through gesturing.



After Nagini lured Harry away from Hermione and verified his identity, she telepathically contacted Voldemort, who told her to hold him. However, Hermione intervened, blasting the snake away and Disapparating with Harry just as Voldemort arrived. During the struggle, Harry's wand was inadvertently broken by Hermione's miscast curse.

Residents
Godric's Hollow is one of the places where magical families have come to live alongside Muggles. Over the centuries, it has been home to many wizards and witches of note, including Godric Gryffindor, who was born there, and Bowman Wright who forged the first Golden Snitch there in the Middle Ages.



Others who called the village home were the Dumbledore family, the family of James and Lily Potter and Bathilda Bagshot. Ignotus Peverell, pure-blood ancestor of Harry Potter, was born and subsequently buried at Godric's Hollow. It is rumoured that many people (of whom were Muggles) who lived in Godric's Hollow were sacrificed by wizards to Lord Voldemort.

Places of interest

 * Potter cottage: Home of James, Lily and Harry Potter. Partly destroyed after Voldemort's attack in 1981, it had been left in its ruined state and made invisible to Muggles, as a monument to the Potters and to Voldemort's first downfall.
 * Potter memorial: A statue depicting James and Lily Potter holding baby Harry.
 * Bathilda Bagshot's home: The house of Bathilda Bagshot. Nagini attacks Harry and Hermione there in 1997.
 * Dumbledore's home: Home of the Dumbledore family before the death of Ariana Dumbledore.
 * Graveyard: The local cemetery has among others, the graves of the Potter, Dumbledore and Peverell families.

Behind the scenes

 * In a The Life and Lies of Albus Dumbledore prop for the first part of the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, "Godric's Hollow" is poorly transcribed as "Godlike's Hollow".

Appearances

 * Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
 * Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (film)
 * Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
 * Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
 * Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1
 * Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 (video game)
 * Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
 * Quidditch Through the Ages
 * LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7

Notes and references
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