Minister Millicent Bagnold was a witch who served as the British Minister for Magic from 1980 to 1990. More notably, she was Minister for Magic at the time of James and Lily Potter's murders and Lord Voldemort's first downfall, in 1981.
As Minister for Magic
In 1980, at the height of the First Wizarding War, Bagnold rose to the position of Minister for Magic of Great Britain. Bartemius Crouch Snr was Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement during Ms. Bagnold's term.
She was in power when, on the evening of October 31, 1981, Lord Voldemort led an attack in Godric's Hollow that resulted in the deaths of James and Lily Potter, the destruction of Voldemort's body, as well as the inadvertent creation of a Horcrux, Harry Potter. The night that followed turned out to be the major upheaval of Bagnold's term in office since wizards up and down the country started celebrating Voldemort's downfall and the end of the First Wizarding War in what became "a night of large-scale breaches of the International Wizarding Statute of Secrecy" Bagnold defended these celebrations by famously stating that she asserted the wizards' "inalienable right to party."
It was also during her term in office that Death Eaters Igor Karkaroff, Rodolphus, Rabastan, Bellatrix Lestrange, as well as Bartemius Crouch Jr were rounded up and tried before the Council of Magical Law and sent to Azkaban. Sirius Black was falsely accused to be one of Voldemort's supporters and one of those responsible for the murders of James and Lily Potter and was sent to Azkaban without a trial.
After Bagnold's retirement in 1990, it was unclear who would succeed her. In the early 1980s, Bartemius Crouch Snr was very likely to succeed Bagnold, but his popularity was tarnished after the scandal in which he sent his own son to Azkaban. Albus Dumbledore also had a lot of popular support to be her successor, but he never expressed any desire to take the Minister's job, so Cornelius Fudge took the post instead.
On September 1, 1991, Prefect Robert Hilliard welcomed the Ravenclaw first years to Ravenclaw Tower with a short speech in which he mentioned former Minister Millicent Bagnold as one of the many notable Hogwarts students who had been Sorted, like them, into Ravenclaw.
Behind the scenes
- Bagnold's term in office was almost the same as Muggle Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher's (1979-90).
- She shares the same first name as Hogwarts Slytherin student Millicent Bulstrode.
- The name "Millicent" is from the Germanic name Amalasuintha, composed of the elements amal "work, labour" and swinþ "strength".
- Her last name is probably derived from the English author and playwright Enid Bagnold.
- Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (First mentioned)
- J. K. Rowling's Official Site (Mentioned only)
- Pottermore (Mentioned only)
Notes and references
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Bagnold had to be of age (17) at the time of her accession to the office of Minister, which was in 1980.
- ↑ Writing by J.K. Rowling: "Ministers for Magic" at Pottermore
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Pottermore introduction for Ravenclaws (transcription available here)
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Sixth question of the Third W.O.M.B.A.T. at J. K. Rowling's Official Site
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Chapter 27 (Padfoot Returns)
- ↑ Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, Chapter 1 (The Boy Who Lived)
- ↑ Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Chapter 30 (The Pensieve)
- ↑ Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, Chapter 5 (Diagon Alley)
- ↑ Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Chapter 5 (The Order of the Phoenix)