The Burrow

"This is the best house I've ever been in."

- Harry Potter on the Burrow

The Burrow is the family home of the Weasley family. Located on the outskirts of Ottery St. Catchpole in Devon, England, it is a thoroughly magical dwelling that became a second home to Harry Potter. In 1997, following the death of Albus Dumbledore, the Burrow became the Headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix. The Weasleys were forced to abandon their home during the height of the Second Wizarding War when they became targets of the Death Eaters.

Layout
The Burrow is located on the outskirts of Ottery St. Catchpole, a small village located in Devon, England. It is so well hidden that Molly Weasley doubts that the postman even knows it exists. Nestled amongst rolling hills and fertile meadows, other wizarding families in the area include the Diggorys, the Lovegoods and the Fawcetts. The building itself might once have been an old stone pigpen, which has had several crooked stories attached to it. Four or five chimneys dot the roof of the house, and the entire building is most likely held up by magic due to its crazy construction.

From the 1970s to the 1990s, the Burrow was the home to Arthur and Molly Weasley, and their seven children: Bill, Charlie, Percy, Fred, George, Ron, and Ginny. Frequent visitors included Ron's best friends Harry Potter and Hermione Granger, and various members of the Order of the Phoenix.

Exterior
The Burrow has a small yard at the front of the house, with a garage that stored Arthur Weasley's Flying Ford Anglia and Muggle artefacts, and a chicken coop that houses the family's chickens. A sign in the ground reads "The Burrow" by the main entrance.

The back garden contains a stone outhouse that the Weasleys have converted into a Broom shed, and the Weasley children keep their broomsticks in the building during their time at home. When she was six, Ginny Weasley began a regular habit of breaking into the broom shed and taking each broom out in turn since her elder brothers wouldn't allow her to play Quidditch with them. In the summer of 1996, Albus Dumbledore and Harry Potter had a conversation in the broom shed prior to announcing their arrival at The Burrow.

Behind the main house is a large, overgrown garden with a pond full of frogs. The garden is home to a large number of Gnomes; the Weasleys have to regularly de-gnome the garden by throwing them over the hedge. However, the Gnomes always sneak back in since Arthur Weasley is soft on them and thinks they're funny. The entrance to the kitchen backs onto the garden, and is surrounded by rusted cauldrons and old wellington boots. The garden is often used by the Weasleys to hold large family gatherings, such as when the entire family, including Harry Potter and Hermione Granger, stayed at The Burrow prior to the Quidditch World Cup final in 1994, or Harry's seventeenth birthday party in 1997. Prior to the wedding of Bill Weasley and Fleur Delacour, the garden was tidied up, and new Flutterby bushes were planted at the door to the kitchen to replace the cauldrons and wellies. The garden is surrounded by a fence while the yard appears to be walled off.

The Weasleys also own an orchard behind their garden, which is surrounded by high trees. The orchard is contained within a paddock. The Weasley children use the orchard to practice Quidditch during their school holidays. The orchard was used in 1997 to host the wedding of Bill Weasley and Fleur Delacour. A large white marquee was erected, and the ceremony and the reception took place inside. A cornfield is located just outside the Burrow to the right of the property. Small ponds and swamps are found within this cornfield. To the left of the main property are hills and fields that surround the Weasleys garden and orchard. The Burrow can be exited by moving down a long lane that moves out towards the village of Ottery St. Catchpole.

Interior
The interior of The Burrow is cosy and lived in, with a jumbled and cluttered array of furniture and trappings. In the summer of 1997, the entire house underwent a massive cleaning and reordering in preparation for the wedding of Bill Weasley and Fleur Delacour.

Kitchen
The kitchen of the Burrow is the social centre of the Weasley family. Located at the back of the house, it is accessible from the garden. The kitchen contains a large wooden table with room enough for eight chairs. In the Summers of 1994 and 1997, due to the large number of house guests, the kitchen table could not seat enough people so meals were eaten outside at a table instead. There is a large fireplace in the room which also operates as the Weasleys' connection to the Floo Network, and a clock with one hand that points to various times such as "You're late" or "Time to feed the chickens". The kitchen opens out on the front yard, through the front door and opens up on the back garden, through the back door. A perch for the family owl Errol is located outside one of the kitchen windows. The kitchen is entered by walking up some small steps from the front yard.

Scullery
The scullery is located just off the kitchen. It is described as a tiny room with a mangle in it. This room is generally used by Molly Weasley when washing clothes.

Living room
The living room of the Weasley home is a cosy room, with a sofa and armchairs. There is a large fireplace, a wooden wireless set, and a clock that, rather than telling the time, indicates the status of each member of the Weasley family. Instead of numbers, there are various phrases such as "home," "school," "work," "traveling," "lost," "hospital," "prison," and "mortal peril". Instead of arms to tell the time, there are nine hands, one for each member of the family. With Lord Voldemort's return, the hands constantly pointed to "mortal peril". Molly Weasley got into the habit of carrying the clock around with her everywhere during this dark time.

It is in this room that George Weasley was treated after losing his ear to Severus Snape's Sectumsempra spell in the Battle over Little Whinging in 1997, and where the survivors of the battle toasted the memory of Alastor Moody. The living room was also where Rufus Scrimgeour released the contents of Albus Dumbledore's will to Harry, Ron and Hermione.

Bedrooms
The Burrow has at least six bedrooms. Arthur and Molly sleep in the master bedroom, while their children generally had bedrooms that often ended up shared either with each other or with guests. Their room is only a short walk away from Ron's room. and is most likely found on the fourth floor. It can also be suspected that two or three of the six bedrooms houses a fireplace as Harry noticed that the Weasleys had "four or five chimneys", two of which are located downstairs.

Ginny's room was on the first floor, and was small, but bright, and overlooked the orchard. She decorated the room with posters of The Weird Sisters and the Holyhead Harpies captain, Gwenog Jones. Hermione Granger would often stay in Ginny's room when she visited. Fleur Delacour stayed in Ginny's room with her during the Christmas holidays of 1996, much to Ginny's irritation.

On the second floor, Fred and George shared a room, and explosions from it were considered perfectly normal. The two frequently conducted experiments there; as a result, the bedroom continued to smell like gunpowder even after they moved out. They did so in 1996 to live in a flat above their joke shop in Diagon Alley, but still used the room as a storage area. The twins stayed in it once more during the Christmas holidays of 1996, and shared with Bill as well. Percy's bedroom was also on the second floor, and overlooked the garden. Percy shares a floor with Fred and George despite the fact that the constant explosions coming from the twins room would have greatly annoyed Percy who valued peace and quiet. Percy abandoned his room in the Summer of 1995. It was since shared by Fleur and Gabrielle prior to the former's wedding.

It is suspected that a bathroom is located on the third floor. In the Summer of 1992, Harry noticed Ginny staring at him from inside this door. As we know Ginny's bedroom is on the first floor, it seems unlikely Ginny would go into anyone else's room and so it can be deduced that Ginny was staring from the bathroom door.

Bill had his own room, and moved back into it when he returned to the country in the summer of 1995 to assist the Order of the Phoenix. Bill spent Christmas at the Burrow in 1996, but he bunked with Fred and George, as Remus Lupin was also a guest and he stayed in Bill's old room. Whenever Charlie was at the Burrow, he shared with Bill. Bill's room is probably located next to Ginny's on the first floor.

Ron has a small room at the top of the house beneath the attic. His room was decorated with posters of the Chudley Cannons, and was often shared with Harry Potter during his stays at the house. The ghoul spent some time in Ron's room during the Horcrux hunt. It is often referred to as the "attic room" although it is located just below the attic.

Attic
Located at the very top of the house is the attic. A small hatch in the ceiling outside Ron's room opens to reveal a ladder that allows access to the attic. The attic is a dark, musty place where the Weasley family Ghoul lives. The Ghoul is considered more of a pet than a pest by the family, and it has taken to loudly banging the pipes when it feels that things are too quiet in the Burrow.

The Weasley Family home


The Weasleys have presumably been in residence at the Burrow for a long time, since at least 1970. The Burrow has been the home to the nine Weasleys, although their numbers have thinned over the years as the children grew up and moved out. Despite being poor, none of the Weasleys seem ashamed of their home, and it has a comfortable, relaxed atmosphere. It is a welcoming place, and friends of the family are regular visitors.

In the summer of 1992, Harry Potter first visited the Burrow when he was rescued from 4 Privet Drive by Ron, Fred and George. He stayed with them throughout the summer, and came to regard The Burrow as his second home after Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. During this time, Arthur and Molly Weasley came to look upon Harry as part of their family, and made sure he was always welcome. In the summer of 1994, the Burrow was alive with activity as the entire family was back under one roof since Bill had moved out to work in Egypt. The Burrow was further crowded with the addition of Harry Potter and Hermione Granger, and the entire household, with the exception of Molly, attended the Quidditch World Cup final.

During the Summer of 1995, the Weasleys temporarily left the Burrow, staying at 12 Grimmauld Place in London to assist the Order of the Phoenix. The following year, Bill's fiancée Fleur Delacour moved into the Burrow — much to the annoyance of Molly, Hermione and Ginny.

Order Headquarters
Following the death of Albus Dumbledore in 1997, the Headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix was moved from 12 Grimmauld Place to the Burrow. Since Dumbledore had been the Secret-Keeper for Grimmauld Place, his death had weakened the Fidelius Charm on the location, and all those who had been told the secret were now Secret-Keepers themselves - including Severus Snape, Dumbledore's killer. To prevent the enemy from discovering and infiltrating Headquarters, it was moved to the Burrow.

In July of 1997, the Burrow was used as the rendezvous location for the Order task force assigned to escort Harry to safety from 4 Privet Drive several days before his seventeenth birthday. Because of the need to protect Harry, the Burrow was defended by numerous protective spells in the hopes that they would be enough to keep Harry and the Weasleys safe. Following the Battle over Little Whinging, the Burrow became a somber place due to the disfiguring injury to George Weasley, and the news that Alastor Moody had been killed by Lord Voldemort.

Wedding
"Harry had never seen the place looking so tidy. The rusty cauldrons and old Wellington boots that usually littered the steps by the back door were gone, replaced by two new Flutterby bushes standing either side of the door in large pots; though there was no breeze, the leaves waved lazily, giving an attractive rippling effect. The chickens had been shut away, the yard had been swept, and the nearby garden had been pruned, plucked, and generally spruced up..."

- Description of the Burrow before Bill and Fleur's wedding

However, the wedding of Bill to Fleur Delacour was scheduled to take place at the Burrow, and the house underwent a thorough cleaning in preparation for the big event. Molly used the cleaning of the house as an excuse to stop Harry, Ron and Hermione from planning to hunt down Voldemort's Horcruxes in an effort to stop them from embarking on their dangerous quest. However, her attempts were only partially successful.

Despite the hectic wedding preparations, on July 31, the Burrow played host to Harry's seventeenth birthday party. However, the party was interrupted by the arrival of Minister for Magic Rufus Scrimgeour, who had arrived to disclose the contents of Dumbledore's will to Harry, Ron and Hermione. Each received an item that would eventually help them in their mission to defeat Lord Voldemort and destroy his Horcruxes. The day after, on August 1, the Burrow held the wedding of Bill and Fleur. Most of the extended Weasley family were present, as well as Order members, friends, and the Delacour family. Harry attended the wedding in disguise by using Polyjuice Potion to resemble a red-headed Muggle teenager from Ottery St. Catchpole. During the reception, the wedding was disrupted when Kingsley Shacklebolt's Patronus arrived and warned the assembled guests that Lord Voldemort and his Death Eaters had taken control of the Ministry of Magic, and were heading for the Burrow. With the full strength of the Ministry behind them, the Death Eaters broke the protective enchantments protecting the Burrow, Apparating into the reception. Guests had already started to flee the scene due to Kingsley's warning, including the Death Eaters primary target, Harry Potter, along with Hermione and Ron. The Ministry, aware of the Weasleys' ties to Harry, questioned the family and any remaining guests before releasing them.

Abandonment
During the Easter holidays in 1998, the Weasleys were forced to abandon the Burrow when the Death Eaters finally discovered that Ron was assisting Harry after they were incarcerated at Malfoy Manor. Ron, with the assistance of Fred, George, and his father, had disguised the family ghoul as himself sick with spattergroit to explain his absence from school. However, he was recognized when he, Harry, and Hermione were captured by Snatchers and brought to Malfoy Manor. The Weasleys had already been under suspicion as "blood traitors" with ties to the Order, but were now known to be actively supporting Lord Voldemort's enemies. Fearing reprisals from Voldemort and his Death Eaters, the Weasleys stayed at the home of Aunt Muriel and at Shell Cottage, which they protected with a Fidelius Charm.

Weasley family

 * Arthur Weasley
 * Molly Weasley
 * Bill Weasley — moved out c. 1989 to work as a Curse Breaker in Egypt; revisited when attending Quidditch World Cup in 1994; moved back in 1995 to assist the Order of the Phoenix; moved to Shell Cottage with new wife Fleur Delacour in 1997.
 * Charlie Weasley — moved out c. 1991 to study Dragons in Romania ; occasionally revisits his family home such as when attending the Quidditch World Cup in 1994 and in 1997 when attending the wedding of Bill and Fleur.
 * Percy Weasley — moved out in 1995 after family argument to live in London.
 * Fred Weasley — moved out in 1996 to stay in flat above new shop, Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes in Diagon Alley.
 * George Weasley — moved out in 1996 to stay in flat above new shop, Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes in Diagon Alley.
 * Ron Weasley
 * Ginny Weasley

Others

 * Harry Potter — welcome guest at the Burrow, stayed during the summers of 1992, 1994, 1996 and 1997.
 * Hermione Granger — welcome guest at the Burrow, stayed during the summers of 1994, 1996 and 1997.
 * Fleur Delacour — fiancée of Bill, stayed at the Burrow from the summer of 1996 to August 1997.
 * Gabrielle Delacour — stayed at the Burrow for her older sister's wedding in August of 1997
 * Apolline Delacour — stayed at the Burrow for her daughter's wedding in August of 1997
 * Monsieur Delacour — stayed at the Burrow for his daughter's wedding in August of 1997

Pets

 * Scabbers, a.k.a. Peter Pettigrew (rat/Animagus)
 * Errol (Owl)
 * Hermes (Screech Owl)
 * Pigwidgeon (Scops Owl)
 * Arnold (Pygmy Puff)
 * Weasley family cat
 * Weasley family ghoul

Behind the scenes

 * In the film version of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, there is a scene in which the Burrow is attacked by Death Eaters, including Bellatrix Lestrange and Fenrir Greyback. In the scene, the Burrow is burned beyond conceivable repair by fireballs cast by the Death Eaters. The scene ends with no resolution to what happened next to preserve the home. There is no book equivalent to this scene.
 * There is some confusion about the number of bedrooms in the Burrow, since it is never clear where Charlie Weasley's original bedroom would have been, though it is possible that he shared a room with Bill. Furthermore, during the Christmas holidays of 1996, Molly Weasley listed where everyone would be staying: Fred, George, and Bill in the twins' room, Remus Lupin in Bill's room, Harry Potter and Ron in the latter's bedroom, Ginny and Fleur Delacour in Ginny's room, and presumably Molly and Arthur in their master bedroom. There is no mention of Percy's bedroom, despite Fred asking if he was coming home directly after Molly lists the sleeping arrangements and her concern about crowding. It is possible that Molly left Percy's bedroom empty, hoping that he would return for the holidays.

Appearances

 * Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
 * Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (film)
 * Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (game)
 * Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
 * Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (film)
 * Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
 * Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
 * Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (film)
 * Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (video game)
 * Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

Notes and references
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