Durmstrang Institute

The Durmstrang Institute is a wizarding school located somewhere in northern Europe, possibly in Russia, Scandinavia, or perhaps Hungary because the headmaster greeted Dumbledore with "Szervusz!" in the film version. Durmstrang was one of the three schools that competed in the Triwizard Tournament. It is an old school, having existed since at least 1294. The students at the school wear fur cloaks and blood-red robes.

Durmstrang, like Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, is located inside a castle. The castle is only four stories tall and fires are only lit for magical purposes. It has very extensive grounds. In addition, the school is Unplottable; Durmstrang, like other schools, likes to conceal its whereabouts so that the other schools cannot steal their secrets.

Durmstrang does not admit Muggle-borns. Therefore, it was ironic that Krum attended the Yule Ball with Hermione Granger, who is Muggle-born and would not have been admitted at his school.

Durmstrang is notorious for teaching the Dark Arts. Former Headmaster Igor Karkaroff was in the service of Lord Voldemort as a Death Eater, but managed to escape punishment in Azkaban by providing the Ministry of Magic with the names of his co-conspirators. Lucius Malfoy, another Death Eater, considered sending his son Draco to Durmstrang, but his mother did not like the idea of him going to school so far away.

Known Students


 * Viktor Krum
 * Poliakoff
 * Gellert Grindelwald
 * Karkaroff's Aide

Past
In about 1894, Gellert Grindelwald was accepted into Durmstrang Institute. Although the school was into the Dark Arts, Grindelwald's experiments in the dark magic has been too dangerous for the students. After a certain amount of time, even Durmstrang could no longer ignore Grindelwald's dangerous studies, and expelled him. Prior to his expulsion, he carved his mark on a wall of the school, which was left on there even now. Some students copied it onto their books and backs in order to impress others, but were taught a lesson by those who lost families to Grindelwald.

Events Surrounding the Triwizard Tournament
Durmstrang arrived at Hogwarts for the Triwizard Tournament by an enormous ship, where they also slept during their stay in Scotland. They chose the Slytherin table and ate there.

Bulgarian Quidditch Seeker, Viktor Krum, attended Durmstrang, and was still in school during the 1994 Quidditch World Cup. That same year, the school participated in the recommenced Triwizard Tournament. Karkaroff brought twelve students with him to Hogwarts to put their name into the Goblet of Fire. However, it was Krum who was chosen as the Durmstrang representive. As Krum was a celebrity, he was constantly hounded by Draco Malfoy and other students, who wanted autographs and the prestige of being close with him. Krum mostly ignored these advances, but formed a close friendship with Hermione Granger, a Gryffindor student. They continued communication after the Tournament through pen-pal letters.

Karkaroff fled after Lord Voldemort rose again. It is not known who took over, or whether the school's reputation improved or worsened due to this.

Etymology of Name
"Durmstrang" may be a Spoonerism for Sturm und Drang, a borrowed German expression meaning "turmoil, ferment" deriving from the name of a highly emotion-driven German artistic movement of the late 1700s. "Sturm und Drang" literally translates as "storm and stress."

Behind the scenes

 * In the movie, it is implied that the Coat of Arms for Durmstrang is a double-headed eagle, as that symbol was seen on the on the sails of the Durmstrang ship and on Viktor Krum's school clothing.
 * The above may be a clue to Durmstrang's location. The flag of Albania (which is near Bulgaria) also depicts a double headed eagle (but Albania's weather doesn't match the Durmstrang uniform since the country is located next to Greece), as do the flag of Imperial Russia and the Coats of arms of the Habsburg Monarchy.
 * It is also stated in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (film) that Krum plays for the Albanian Quidditch team. So it would make sense that Durmstrang is located there as well.
 * Durmstrang school uniform includes Russian ushankas and tsigeika coats. They also seem to carry some sort of staff.
 * Also in the movie, it appears that Durmstrang is an all-boy school, although this is not so in the book.
 * In the book, the hairstyle of the Durmstrang students was not described; in the film, all the Durmstrang students, who were all boys, had a buzzcut, except for Karkaroff's aide.