Neville Longbottom

"It takes a great deal of bravery to stand up to your enemies, but a great deal more to stand up to your friends."

- Albus Dumbledore

Neville Longbottom (born July 30, 1980) was a Hogwarts student in the same year as Harry Potter. His parents, Frank and Alice Longbottom were well-respected Aurors, and members of the First Order of the Phoenix. Shortly after his birth, they were tortured into insanity by Bellatrix Lestrange and Barty Crouch Jr., by means of the Cruciatus Curse. After the incapacitation of his parents, Neville went to live with his grandmother.

Throughout the years, Neville grew from a shy, introverted boy into a courageous defender of Hogwarts. He survived the Battle of Hogwarts and eventually became the new Herbology professor.

Characteristics
Neville is described as a round faced boy with light brown hair. Being quite clumsy and forgetful, he is often picked on by other students, particularly those from Slytherin. Not being very studious, he frequently lacked confidence in his classes; he was terrified of Potions master Severus Snape, and was frequently bullied for his mishaps in class. However, in his third year, his self-esteem was raised in Defence Against the Dark Arts classes with encouragement from Professor Remus Lupin.

By his fifth year, he managed to raise his confidence and pass his O.W.L.s; his best subject is, by far, Herbology, in which he received an "Outstanding." He also managed to pass his Potions exam. He found he was able to perform better without Snape breathing down his neck.

He was also a key member of Dumbledore's Army, and progressed farther than anyone, sans Hermione Granger.

First Year
Neville first appeared as an unnamed character on Platform 9¾, where he told his grandmother that he had lost his toad, Trevor. He met Hermione Granger, who agreed to help him find Trevor, and then Harry Potter and Ron Weasley on the Hogwarts Express when he entered their compartment tearfully looking for Trevor. After arriving at Hogsmeade Station, Neville managed to retrieve Trevor from Hagrid.

At the Sorting Ceremony, Neville was so nervous, when the Sorting Hat shouted out his house, he ran across the Great Hall with the Hat still on his head; he had to return to the stool to hand the Hat to the next student. On the way to Gryffindor Tower after the Welcoming Feast, Neville had a bundle of walking sticks dropped on his head by Peeves the Poltergeist.

In his first Potions lesson, Neville managed to melt Seamus Finnigan's cauldron, and was drenched in their boil-curing potion.

The following week in his first flying lesson with Madam Hooch, Neville accidentally broke his wrist after falling off his broom from a great height; afraid of being left behind on the ground, he had pushed off too early. He was taken to the hospital wing and his wrist was healed.

Several hours later, he ended up heading to the Hogwarts Trophy Room with Harry, Ron, and Hermione for the former's duel with Draco Malfoy. Nearly getting caught by Filch, the four end up in the forbidden third floor corridor, where Neville drew Harry's attention to a giant three-headed dog. They manage to escape and safely return to Gryffindor Tower.

Shortly after Christmas vacation, Neville was the target of a prank by Draco Malfoy in which his legs were stuck together with the Leg-Locker Curse. Neville had to bunny-hop all the way to Gryffindor Tower so someone could perform the countercurse. When Harry, Ron and Hermione urged him to report Malfoy, Neville replied that he didn't want more trouble. Harry gave Neville his last Chocolate frog from Christmas and told him that he was worth twelve Malfoys, and that the Sorting Hat chose him for Gryffindor, while Malfoy was in "stinking Slytherin." Several seconds later, Neville inadvertantly helped the trio identify Nicolas Flamel when he gave Harry the collectible card (Dumbledore) from the Chocolate Frog.

Neville was sent to the hospital wing a third time after a Qudditch match between Gryffindor and Hufflepuff. Having heard Malfoy taunt the Gryffindor team, Neville got into a fight with Crabbe and Goyle. The pair knocked Neville out cold, but Madam Pomfrey believed Neville would make a full recovery.

In time, Neville learned about Harry and Hermione's attempt to take Norbert the Norwegian Ridgeback up to the Astromy Tower to send to Ron's brother Charlie. When he learned Malfoy was trying to get them caught, Neville snuck out of Gryffindor Tower to find them and warn them. He instead ended up getting caught by Professor McGonagall. He lost fifty House points, and was put in detention with Harry, Hermione, and Malfoy. Sent into the Forbidden Forest with Hagrid to search for an injured unicorn, Neville and Malfoy went along one path with Fang, while the other three took another. As what he saw as a joke, Malfoy snuck up behind Neville and grabbed him, to scare him. Neville panicked, and sent up wand sparks to warn Hagrid. When Hagrid learned the truth, he instead paired Neville with himself and Hermione.

On the night Quirinus Quirrell attempted to steal the Philosopher's Stone, Neville attempted to stop Harry, Ron and Hermione from sneaking out to stop him. He was willing to fist fight them, but was incapacitated by Hermione's Full Body Bind.

For standing up to the trio, Neville won ten ponts for Gryffindor at the end-of-term feast. Having, moments before, tied Slytherin for the House Cup, this pushed Gryffindor into undisputed first place.

Second Year
"They went for Filch first. And everyone knows I'm almost a Squib."

- Neville Longbottom

Neville's first appearance in 1992 was after the start-of-term feast, where he applauded Harry and Ron for flying a car to Hogwarts. The following morning when Ron received a Howler from his mother, Neville urged him to open it quickly.

In Gilderoy Lockhart's first Defence Against the Dark Arts class, a pair of Cornish pixies picked Neville up by the ears and hung him, by his cloak, from a chandelier. Moments later, he crashed back to the ground when the chandelier collapsed.

After the Basilisk attack on Colin Creevey, Neville tried to protect himself by purchasing a large, "evil-smelling" green onion, a pointed purple crystal, and a rotting newt tail. The other students pointed out that Neville should be all right; he was a pure-blood and thus unlikely to be attacked.

Neville attended the first (and only) meeting of Lockhart's dueling club. To practice Expelliarmus, Neville was paired with Justin Finch-Fletchley. When Lockhart suggested the pair to volunteer spell blocking, Snape shot this down, claiming that Neville had difficulty with the simplest spells, and would somehow send Justin to the hospital wing in a matchbox.

Shortly after Valentine's Day, Neville informed Harry that his belongings had been searched by someone.

Third Year
Neville's first appearance in 1993 was on the Hogwarts Express. Having stopped in the middle of nowhere, Neville enters Harry's compartment to find out what has happened. Moments later, a Dementor enters the compartment. After arriving at Hogsmeade station, Neville told people about the experience in the compartment. This made its way to Draco Malfoy, who taunted Harry about fainting.

In their first Divination class, Neville accidentally broke two of Professor Trelawney's tea cups while reading tea leaves. As the class departed, Professor Trelawney warned him that he would be late next class and urged him to work hard to catch up with everyone else.

In Care of Magical Creatures class, Neville practiced bowing to a Hippogriff; he constantly backed away from the animal, which didn't seem to want to bow back.

The next day in Potions, Neville again managed to earn the ire of Professor Snape. He somehow was able to turn his Shrinking Solution orange instead of green. To ensure Neville would get the potion right, Snape told him that he would feed some of it to Neville's toad, Trevor, at the end of the class. Desperately, he asked Hermione for help; she whispered instructions to him out of the corner of her mouth. By the end of class, he was able to turn his potion green, and successfully shrunk Trevor from a toad to a tadpole.

Later that day, Neville helped Professor Lupin's first practical Defence Against the Dark Arts lesson about Boggarts. When asked what scared him most in the world, Neville replied "Professor Snape." To counter the boggart, Lupin asked Neville to picture Snape in his grandmother's clothes. For his help, Neville earned ten points for Gryffindor. Neville destroyed the boggart at the end of class.

In the spring of 1994, Neville lost the passwords to Gryffindor Tower; because Sir Cadogan changed them so frequently, Neville needed to write them down so he could remember them. After the passwords disappeared, Sirius Black managed to enter Gryffindor Tower with a knife. After learning Neville was indirectly responsible, Professor McGonagall banned him from all future visits into Hogsmeade, gave him a detention, and forbade anyone from giving him the password to the common room. Two days later, Neville received a Howler from his grandmother; he tore out of the Great Hall, amid shouts of laughter, and opened it in the entrance hall.

At the end of his Divination final exam, Neville was told that, if he told anyone his results, he would suffer a serious accident.

Fourth Year
"Stop it! Can't you see it's bothering him?"

- Hermione Granger, about Neville during Defence Against the Dark Arts class in which the Unforgivable Curses were demonstrated

In 1994, Neville met up with Harry, Ron, and Hermione on the Hogwarts Express. He jealously listened to their recap of the Quidditch World Cup; his grandmother had not wanted to go, and did not purchase tickets. He was also awestruck by Ron's miniature figurine of Viktor Krum.

In Mad-Eye Moody's first Defence Against the Dark Arts class, Neville was able to supply information about the Unforgivable Curses, in particular the Cruciatus Curse. When Moody demonstrated the curse on a spider, Neville was terrified; he gripped his desk so hard, his knuckles turned white. After class, Moody took Neville to his office for a cup of tea. Having heard from Professor Sprout about Neville's aptitude in Herbology, Moody had a number of books he thought Neville would enjoy.

A few days later in class, Neville was put under the Imperius Curse by Moody, under the pretense of letting the class know what it felt like. Under Moody's influence, Neville performed a series of "quite astonishing gymnastics" that he could not have performed normally.

When the the Yule Ball was announced during the Triwizard Tournament, Neville asked Hermione to go with him. After Hermione politely declined, having already agreed to attend with Viktor Krum, Neville asked Ginny Weasley. While the pair seemed to enjoy themselves, Neville accidentally stepped on Ginny's toes while dancing.

Fifth Year
In 1995, Neville met with Harry and Ginny on the Hogwarts Express. Searching for seats, the trio entered Luna Lovegood's compartment. Once inside, he excitedly showed them his Mimbulus mimbletonia, a birthday present from his great uncle Algie. He told them about his plans to show it to Professor Sprout, as well as wanting to breed it.

After arriving at Hogwarts, Neville defended Harry during a verbal fight with Seamus Finnigan, claiming that the Daily Prophet was going downhill, not Harry and Dumbledore. He and his grandmother both believed Harry's claim that Voldemort had returned.

When Harry, Ron, and Hermione began organizing Dumbledore's Army, Neville was one of the first to sign up. At their first meeting in the Room of Requirement, Neville was left partnerless when they began practice; Neville instead partnered with Harry. After successfully Disarming Harry, Neville then joined Ron and Hermione, so Harry could check on the others. By the beginning of Christmas break, Neville had improved "beyond all recognition."

During Christmas break, Harry's friends learned that Neville's parents were not dead, but patients in St. Mungo's, having gone insane after being tortured by a group of Death Eaters at the end of the First Wizarding War. Harry was the only one who already knew this, having found out in the Pensieve in 1994, but he had told no one, keeping Neville's secret safe. Before Neville left, his mother handed him an empty Droobles Blowing Gum wrapper; while his grandmother wanted him to throw it away, Neville instead pocketed it.

When it was learned that ten Death Eaters escaped from Azkaban in 1996, including three of the ones responsible for the torture of Neville's parents, Neville did not speak of it, but it "wrought a strange and even slightly alarming change" in him, according to Harry. He worked harder than anyone in D.A. meetings and was the fastest to pick up new spells, aside from Hermione.

When Harry had a vision that Sirius Black was in danger at the Ministry of Magic, Neville was one of the D.A. members who volunteered to accompany him. He, Ginny and Luna joined the trio in flying Thestrals to London despite Harry's reluctance to let them accompany him.

Once in the Hall of Prophecy, Harry was drawn to an orb that had his name on it. Neville and Hermione urged him not to remove it; once Harry had, the group was confronted by Death Eaters. In the subsequent battle, Neville accompanied Harry and Hermione. He disarmed a Death Eater who was struggling with Harry, accidentally disarming Harry as well. Later, Antonin Dolohov broke Neville's nose and wand, but he refused Harry's suggestion that he leave with an incapacitated Hermione to go get help, instead carrying her while he and Harry searched for Ron, Ginny and Luna. They were cornered by the Death Eaters, and Bellatrix Lestrange briefly tortured Neville with the Cruciatus Curse, wanting to see how long he held out before "cracking" like his parents.

After the Order of the Phoenix arrived, Harry tried to get out with Neville. As he was pulled up a flight of stairs, Neville accidentally smashed the prophecy. As the battle continued, Neville alerted Harry to the appearance of Professor Dumbledore.

As Harry later learned, Neville was one of two possible children listed by the prophecy:

"The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches...Born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies...and the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not...and either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives...The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies."

- Sybill Trelawney to Albus Dumbledore

As both Neville and Harry were born at the close of July to parents who had all escaped Voldemort three times, they both qualified for the prophecy child. However, Dumbledore believed that the prophecy did indeed refer to Harry, not Neville, as Voldemort marked Harry as his equal by attacking him instead of Neville.

Sixth Year
On September 1st, Neville was invited to join Horace Slughorn in his compartment on the Hogwarts Express. Slughorn was searching for new students to add to his Slug Club, but Neville didn't seem to meet Slughorn's requirements, and was not invited back to any of Slughorn's parties.

Not much of Neville is mentioned afterwards, but he did help in the First Battle of Hogwarts, where he is seen standing guard outside the Room of Requirement, waiting for Draco Malfoy. He participates in the battle with the Death Eaters, taking Felix Felicis along with Hermione, Ron, Ginny and Luna, and is relatively unharmed. Along with Luna Lovegood, he is the only member of the D.A. to reply to the summons via the coins.

Seventh Year


Again, Neville does not appear until near the end of the school year. In Harry's absence, he, Ginny, and Luna restarted Dumbledore's Army, and helped protect fellow students from being bullied by the Death Eater teachers, the Carrows. He led many underground revolts, from writing, "Dumbledore’s Army, still recruiting" on the Hogwarts walls to freeing students the Carrows had imprisoned and were torturing. The trio also attempted to steal Godric Gryffindor's Sword from Snape's office, but were caught on the way out. In his own way to subvert the Carrows' manner of discipline, Snape only gave them a detention, sending them into the Forbidden Forest with Hagrid.

By the time Harry, Ron and Hermione return to Hogwarts, Neville has been physically beaten up. His face is covered with numerous cuts acquired from resisting the Carrows.

Neville helped Harry, Ron and Hermione into Hogwarts via the Hog's Head and Room of Requirement. He participated in the Battle of Hogwarts, and came out relatively unscathed. After the first round of battle, he stood up in defiance of Voldemort, and was forced to wear the Sorting Hat as it burned. Fortunately, due to Harry’s "sacrifice", Neville shrugs off the Body Binding curse and frees himself. Because of his tremendous bravery shown on the battle field, he pulls the Sword of Gryffindor from the burning hat. In a single stroke, he killed Nagini, destroying Voldemort's last Horcrux. During the battle, he used various plants to attack Death Eaters, and he helped transport injured and dead students to the Great Hall. He and Ron defeated Fenrir Greyback together.

Adulthood
After graduating from Hogwarts, Neville eventually became the school's Professor of Herbology. He was appointed at some time between 1998 and 2017, but remained in contact with Harry Potter and the others. Ginny tells their eldest son, James, to give Neville their love when he sees him at Hogwarts to which he responds, "Mum, I can't give him love." Neville also liked showing his students his D.A. coin, and telling them about his adventures.

In time, he married his former classmate and D.A. member Hannah Abbott, and the pair lived at the Leaky Cauldron, where she becomes the landlady.

J.K.Rowling has also confirmed that he briefly worked as an Auror immediately following the war.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione
"You're worth twelve of Malfoy. The Sorting Hat chose you for Gryffindor, didn't it? And where's Malfoy? In stinking Slytherin."

- Harry Potter to Neville

While the foursome never shared the bond Harry had with Ron and Hermione alone, they were friends nevertheless. Neville became friends with Hermione first, as she helped him find Trevor on the train to Hogwarts for their first year. She, Harry and Ron encouraged Neville to stand up for himself when Draco Malfoy played a prank on him. Harry pointed out that the Sorting Hat put Neville in Gryffindor, the house that values bravery, and that Neville could stand up to Malfoy. Because of his lack of confidence in classes, Neville often made mistakes, and Hermione came to his assistance. It was because of this that Neville plucked up the courage to ask Hermione to the Yule Ball in 1994, though she had already accepted the offer of Viktor Krum.

The trio also encouraged Neville the most in D.A. training, and Neville told Harry he and his grandmother believed him completely about Voldemort's return. When the trio returned to Hogwarts in 1998 just before the Battle of Hogwarts, it was Neville who greeted them very enthusiastically, and who first expressed a willingness to help them in any way possible and to fight the incoming Death Eater army. Harry trusted Neville with the task of killing Nagini, the final Horcrux, should Hermione and Ron not get the opportunity.

After leaving school, Neville remained in contact with Harry and Ginny, and appeared to be on friendly terms with their son James.

Severus Snape


During his years in school, Neville was terrified of Professor Snape, and managed to earn the Potion master's ire in almost every lesson. Snape subsequently targeted Neville for his verbal taunts and threats, which made everything exponenitally worse, and put an extremely nervous Neville even more on edge. Neville admitted in 1993 that Snape scared him more than anything else in the world, and was the form his Boggart took on.

Ginny Weasley
After asking Hermione to the Yule Ball in his fourth year and being turned down because she had already agreed to attend with Viktor Krum, Neville asked Ginny Weasley. She agreed to go with him as a friend, being too young to attend otherwise. The two continued to be friendly afterward, and Ginny, like Harry, Hermione and Ron, encouraged Neville to be more confident. She and Luna Lovegood were co-leaders of the re-formed Dumbledore's Army along with Neville when Snape and the Carrows controlled Hogwarts.

Hannah Abbott
Neville and Hannah Abbott were never shown as being more than classmates during school. Since Hannah was in Hufflepuff house and Neville in Gryffindor, they probably did not spend too much time together, though it is possible that they became friendly when they were both members of the first and second Dumbledore's Army. Sometime after leaving Hogwarts, Neville and Hannah and moved into the Leaky Cauldron, where she worked as the landlady. It is unknown if they ever had children.

Family
Neville was raised by his grandmother, Augusta Longbottom, after his parents were tortured to the point of insanity when he was an infant. This was pivotal to development of his personality because his grandmother was often disappointed with her grandson's seeming lack of magical skill, and inability to honour his parents' sacrifice. However, when Neville showed great bravery and heroism during the Second Wizarding War, his grandmother was shown to be very proud of him. She came to Hogwarts during the final battle and ran off to assist him in fighting Death Eaters.

Appearances

 * Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
 * Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (film)
 * Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (video game)
 * Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
 * Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (film)
 * Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (video game)
 * Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
 * Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (film)
 * Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (video game)
 * Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
 * Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (film)
 * Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (video game)
 * Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
 * Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (film)
 * Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (video game)
 * Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
 * Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (film)
 * Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows