Charity Burbage

Charity Burbage
Biographical information
Born	Before 1980
Died	Late July 1997 Malfoy Manor, Wiltshire, England, Great Britain
Blood status	Pure-blood or half-blood (possibly)
Marital status	Single
Nationality	British or Irish
Title(s)	Professor
Physical information
Species	Human
Gender	Female
Magical characteristics
Wand	Unknown length, wood and core
Patronus	Non-corporeal
Affiliation
Occupation	Professor of Muggle Studies at Hogwarts (?–1997)
Loyalty	Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry

"Not content with corrupting and polluting the minds of Wizarding children, last week Professor Burbage wrote an impassioned defence of Mudbloods in the Daily Prophet. Wizards, she says, must accept these thieves of their knowledge and magic. The dwindling of the pure-bloods is, says Professor Burbage, a most desirable circumstance... She would have us all mate with Muggles ... or, no doubt, werewolves ..."

— Lord Voldemort tormenting Charity Burbage

Professor Charity Burbage (d. July 1997) was a witch and the Professor of Muggle Studies at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, after the departure of the professor who formerly held the post. She started her career at Hogwarts presumably sometime from 1993 onwards, to 1997.

She believed that Muggles were not so different from wizards and witches, and used this viewpoint in her teaching. It would eventually lead to her death as Lord Voldemort murdered her personally for writing a Daily Prophet article about her views during the Second Wizarding War.

Biography

Early life

Charity was born to Mr and Mrs Burbage. Her parentage is unknown, but it is likely that she was pure-blood or half-blood.

Burbage possibly gained her magical education at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in her youth. It is likely that she achieved high O.W.L. and N.E.W.T. marks in Muggle Studies, as she secured a job teaching the subject later.

Career as a professor

"For those of you who do not know, we are joined here tonight by Charity Burbage who, until recently, taught at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."

— Lord Voldemort mentioning Charity Burbage's career at Hogwarts

Burbage took up the post of Muggle Studies professor sometime after a male teacher left. It is unknown what academic year she started teaching at Hogwarts, but it was sometime before the 1997–1998 school year.

Capture

Lord Voldemort: "Do you recognise our guest, Severus?"

Charity Burbage: "Severus! Help me!"

Severus Snape: "Ah, yes."

— Charity pleading for Snape to save her life at Malfoy Manor

Charity hung up in the air guarded by Wormtail after being captured by Death Eaters

During the summer holidays of 1997, Burbage was abducted by Lord Voldemort and his Death Eaters. An official statement claimed that she had 'resigned', although many who knew her were suspicious about her disappearance.

During her capture she was most likely held in the basement of Malfoy Manor, guarded by Peter Pettigrew. It was Pettigrew's job to keep the prisoners quiet and contained.

Death

"Avada Kedavra. Nagini, dinner."

— Lord Voldemort's nonchalant killing of Burbage

Burbage during the Death Eater meeting at Malfoy Manor

She was suspended over a table at Malfoy Manor while the Death Eaters were having a meeting there. Voldemort accused her of polluting the minds of young witches and wizards with pro-muggle ideas. He vilified her Muggle-friendly beliefs, claiming that she wanted to encourage more magical people to 'mate' with Muggles.

Voldemort murdering Charity

Burbage, noticing that Severus Snape was among the Death Eaters, begged him to save her. This caused amusement among some of the Death Eaters present, such as Bellatrix Lestrange. However, as he was serving as a undercover agent and could not risk blowing his cover, he could do nothing. He sat and watched with mostly concealed remorse as his supposed master cruelly taunted her and then murdered her with the killing curse, afterwards nonchalantly feeding her corpse to Nagini.

Post-mortem

"Alecto, Amycus's sister, teaches Muggle Studies, which is compulsory for everyone. We've all got to listen to her explain how Muggles are like animals, stupid and dirty, and how they drive wizards into hiding by being vicious toward them, and how the natural order is being re-established. I got this one for asking her how much Muggle blood she and her brother have got."

— Neville Longbottom on Burbage's sucessor, Alecto Carrow

Charity's lifeless body

No one knew of Burbage's whereabouts after her death. Sometime before 27 July, Charity Burbage's alleged resignation from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry was briefly mentioned of the front page of the Daily Prophet. However, members of the Order of the Phoenix did not believe it, such as Arthur Weasley, as they were unable to locate her anywhere after the summer.

Sometime after the Fall of the Ministry of Magic, an editorial was published on the Daily Prophet disregarding Burbage's previous editorial and informing the public she was reported in hiding.

On 1 September 1997, under the tenure of Headmaster Severus Snape, attendance of Muggle Studies class was made mandatory by the Death Eater-controlled Ministry of Magic, under professor Alecto Carrow. It is unknown whether Burbage's true fate was ever uncovered and revealed to the wizarding world after the Second Wizarding War.

The Calamity

During the 2010s, Charity Burbage appeared as a Foundable during the Calamity. Volunteer members of the Statute of Secrecy Task Force were able to free her, allowing Charity to return to her original time.

Personality and traits

"Yes ... Professor Burbage taught the children of witches and wizards all about Muggles ... how they are not so different from us..."

— Voldemort condemning Burbage's pro-Muggle views

Charity Burbage seemed to be a kind person who had been friends with many other professors, such as Severus Snape. She held very strong and passionate views in favour of the rights of Muggles and Muggle-borns.

She held very tolerant attitudes towards Muggles, believing them to be fully equal to Wizardkind and that the decline of pure-bloods was beneficial to wizarding society, most likely based on the belief that it would lead to greater acceptance of Muggles among wizards and the decline of pure-blood supremacy.

Magical abilities and skills

• Muggle Studies: Charity was knowledgeable of Muggles and their ways of living considering that she was the professor of Muggle Studies at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. She incorporated her knowledge of Muggles into her teaching philosophy of promoting tolerance and understanding between Muggles and wizardkind.
• Charms: Charity could produce a non-corporeal Patronus, a mark of superior magical ability given the immense difficulty of performing the highly advanced protective charm.

Relationships

Severus Snape

"Severus ... please ... please ..."

— Burbage pleading to Severus Snape to save her life

Severus Snape, her colleague

During her employment at Hogwarts, she apparently considered herself to be friends with Severus Snape. She begged him to save her during the Death Eater meeting at Malfoy Manor in the summer of 1997. Despite his apparent murder of Albus Dumbledore (unbeknownst to most people, Dumbledore had planned his death with Snape), she viewed him as a friend.

However, it is also possible that she did not actually see Snape as a friend and was simply making a last ditch attempt to save herself by appealing to the only person in the room she had some semblance of a relationship with, having both been faculty members at Hogwarts.

Unfortunately he could do nothing to help her, as he needed to pretend that he was truly loyal to Voldemort, and any attempt to save Charity would have resulted in both of them being killed. Nevertheless, he seemed to feel a level of remorse for it, not looking as glad as the rest of the Death Eaters when Charity was about to be killed.

Etymology

'Charity' is from the English word charity, ultimately derived from Late Latin caritas meaning 'generous love', from Latin carus 'dear, beloved'. Caritas was in use as a Roman Christian name. The English name Charity came into use among the Puritans after the Protestant Reformation. Charity's name is likely a reference to her caring attitude towards Muggles.

Behind the scenes

Actress Carolyn Pickles on the set of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 as Charity Burbage

• Burbage is portrayed by British actress Carolyn Pickles in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1.
• Charity says the same last words that Albus Dumbledore did, except she adds another 'please'.
• One of Charity Burbage's predecessors and her immediate successor were professors who served Lord Voldemort, though Professor Quirrell only fell to Voldemort during his year off after leaving the job; she herself was murdered by Lord Voldemort.
• It is unknown in what year Charity Burbage started teaching Muggle Studies at Hogwarts, although it was definitely sometime prior to 1997. She presumably started her career after a male professor of the subject left the position, possibly after the 1992–1993 school year, or she may have alternatively taught alongside him. It is possible she taught the subject from the 1993–1994 school year to before the start of the 1997–1998 school year, although this is unproven.
• In LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7, Burbage is an unlockable character. In the game, she has grey hair and she appears to be older, as opposed to her relatively young depiction in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1. Her death at the hands of Lord Voldemort is also completely omitted from the game, along with the meeting at Malfoy Manor itself, presumably due the game being a family friendly game, as Burbage's death was rather disturbing.

Appearances

• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (First appearance)
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 (video game)
• LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7
• Pottermore (Mentioned only)
• Wizarding World (Mentioned only)
• Harry Potter: Wizards Unite
• Harry Potter: Magic Awakened (Mentioned in History of Magic classes)