- By MuggleNet Editorial Staff
- 7 Jul, 2026
Wizarding World History
Follow the history of the Wizarding World from ancient magic and the founding of Hogwarts to Harry Potter’s years at school, the Battle of Hogwarts and beyond.
This timeline places major Harry Potter and Wizarding World events alongside key moments from Muggle history, showing how magic’s hidden story unfolds across centuries.
The history of the Wizarding World stretches much further back than Harry Potter’s first trip to Hogwarts. Long before the Boy Who Lived, there were wandmakers, goblin rebellions, medieval witch hunts, and politics that shaped the world Harry would eventually discover.
This guide lines up major magical milestones with Muggle history, from the founding of Rome and the opening of Ollivanders to the creation of Hogwarts, the signing of the International Statute of Secrecy, the rise of Voldemort and the Battle of Hogwarts.
Use it as a quick reference, a deep-dive reading companion or a reminder that wizarding history was never happening in isolation. Sometimes the Muggle world and magical world moved separately. Sometimes they collided.
A History Wizarding World Events
Follow the thread from ancient Rome to modern Hogwarts-era history, with each color showing whether an event belongs to the Muggle world, the wizarding world, or both.
- 750 B.C.
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Rome is founded
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Rome becomes a republic
- 500 B.C.
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Ollivanders wand shop opens
- 250 B.C.
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Julius Caesar is assassinated
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Gaius Octavius is appointed the first Roman emperor
- 1 A.D.
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Emperor Trajan expands the Roman Empire
- 250 A.D.
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The Roman Empire’s borders begin to recede
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The Roman Empire falls
- 500 A.D.
- 750 A.D.
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Hogwarts is founded
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The first recorded broom flight occurs
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Ragnuk the First forges the sword of Gryffindor
- 1000 A.D.
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Vikings arrive in North America
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The Chamber of Secrets is built
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Quidditch is invented
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Armand Malfoy arrives in Great Britain with the invading Norman Army
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Hogsmeade is founded
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Merlin attends Hogwarts and is Sorted into Slytherin
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Ignotus Peverell receives or creates the Cloak of Invisibility
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Magna Carta is sealed
- 1250 A.D.
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Barberus Bragge introduces the Golden Snidget to Quidditch
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The first known International Warlock Convention takes place
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Ignatia Wildsmith invents Floo powder
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Nicolas Flamel is born
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The Black Death kills millions
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Pope Gregory XI proclaims magic heresy
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Extensive witch hunts take place in Europe
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The All-England Wizarding Dueling Competition is held
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The Gutenberg press is invented
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The Age of Exploration begins
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Beedle the Bard writes The Tales of Beedle the Bard
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Azkaban is built by Dark sorcerer Ekrizdis
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The Quidditch World Cup is established
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Gringotts Bank is founded
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Malleus Maleficarum (The Hammer of Witches) is published by Dominican friars
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Christopher Columbus arrives in North America
- 1500 A.D.
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Diagon Alley and the Leaky Cauldron are established
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St. Mungo’s Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries is founded
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The British East India Company is founded
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Guy Fawkes attempts to blow up British Parliament
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Goblins stage an uprising near Hogsmeade
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The Mayflower sets sail for America with Isolt Sayre on board
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Wizards’ Council institutes the Wand Ban
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The Werewolf Code of Conduct is implemented
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The Great Fire of London
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The International Statute of Secrecy is signed
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The International Confederation of Wizards is formed
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The International Statute of Secrecy becomes law
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The International Confederation of Wizards Quidditch Committee is established
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The Salem witch trials take place
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MACUSA is founded
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The British Ministry of Magic is formed
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The Acts of Union are officially passed by Scottish and British Parliaments
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The International Warlock Convention instates a ban on the breeding of dragons
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The British Ministry of Magic defines and outlaws the three Unforgivable Curses
- 1750 A.D.
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James Watt’s steam engine patent kicks off the Industrial Revolution
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The Declaration of Independence is signed
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Rappaport’s Law is signed, segregating wizard and No-Maj communities
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The Haitian Revolution begins
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Napoléon Bonaparte stages a coup d'état, ending the French Revolution
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Richard Trevithick builds the first successful steam locomotive
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Haiti declares its independence from France
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Joseph Nicéphore Niépce creates the first photograph
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The Hogwarts Express begins transporting students to the school
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Platform nine and three-quarters is established
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The British East India Company collapses
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Alexander Graham Bell is awarded a patent for the telephone
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Hogwarts’s caretaker attempts to banish Peeves from the school
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Albus Dumbledore is born
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Gellert Grindelwald is born
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Carl Benz designs the first Muggle automobile
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Charing Cross Road opens
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The Lumière brothers stage the first film projection
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Gellert Grindelwald is expelled from Durmstrang
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The Wright brothers become the first Muggles to successfully carry out a powered flight
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World War I begins following the assassination of Franz Ferdinand
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Germany surrenders and World War I ends
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The Treaty of Versailles is signed
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The German Workers’ Party, which will become the Nazi Party, is formed in Germany
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Prohibition begins in the U.S.
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Gellert Grindelwald rises to power
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Magical disturbances take place across New York City
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Tom Riddle is born
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Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is published
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Grindelwald escapes prison
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Alexander Fleming identifies penicillin
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Grindelwald fails to be elected Supreme Mugwump
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Prohibition ends in the U.S.
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The Pure-Blood Directory is published
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World War II begins
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Tom Riddle opens the Chamber of Secrets, resulting in the death of Myrtle Warren
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Tom Riddle graduates from Hogwarts
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Albus Dumbledore defeats Grindelwald and becomes master of the Elder Wand; Grindelwald is imprisoned at Nurmengard
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World War II ends; the United Nations is established
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A History of Magic by Bathilda Bagshot is published
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The Werewolf Registry is created
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The Cold War begins
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Tom Riddle kills Hepzibah Smith and flees Britain
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The Civil Rights Act outlaws racial segregation in the U.S.
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Rappaport’s Law is repealed
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Tom Riddle returns to Britain, adopts the name Lord Voldemort and curses the DADA teaching position
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Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is assassinated
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Squib Rights marches and pure-blood riots take place
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The First Wizarding War begins
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Albus Dumbledore forms the Order of the Phoenix
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Voldemort is defeated by baby Harry Potter and disappears for 10 years; the wizarding world celebrates
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Tim Berners-Lee invents the World Wide Web
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Harry Potter arrives at Hogwarts to begin his magical education
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Harry Potter receives the Cloak of Invisibility for Christmas
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The Cold War ends
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Voldemort possesses Quirinus Quirrell in a bid to obtain the Sorcerer's Stone
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Nicolas and Perenelle Flamel die after destroying the Sorcerer’s Stone
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The Chamber of Secrets is opened again
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Harry Potter uses the sword of Gryffindor to slay the basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets
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Sirius Black escapes Azkaban
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Death Eaters torture a Muggle family at the Quidditch World Cup
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The Order of the Phoenix re-forms
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Sirius Black is killed and Harry Potter inherits number twelve, Grimmauld Place
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Severus Snape kills Albus Dumbledore
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The Ministry of Magic falls as Death Eaters take over
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Voldemort kills Grindelwald
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Harry, Ron and Hermione infiltrate Gringotts Bank and steal Helga Hufflepuff’s cup
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The Battle of Hogwarts takes place when Voldemort and his forces invade school grounds; Neville uses the sword of Gryffindor to kill Nagini; Harry Potter defeats Voldemort in a duel
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Kingsley Shacklebolt is elected British Minister of Magic
- 2000 A.D.
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Hermione Granger is elected British Minister of Magic
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Albus Potter and Scorpius Malfoy steal a Time-Turner and accidentally create multiple alternate realities
Timeline Questions
Harry Potter Timeline FAQ
A quick guide to how this Wizarding World history timeline works, what it includes and where the biggest magical milestones fit.
What does this Harry Potter timeline cover?
This timeline covers major Wizarding World events, important Muggle historical events and crossover moments where magical history intersects with the non-magical world.
When does the Wizarding World timeline begin?
The timeline begins in ancient history, including early Muggle events such as the founding of Rome and early magical milestones such as the opening of Ollivanders wand shop.
When was Hogwarts founded?
Hogwarts was founded in the 10th century A.D. by Godric Gryffindor, Helga Hufflepuff, Rowena Ravenclaw and Salazar Slytherin.
What are the biggest events in Harry Potter history?
Major events include the founding of Hogwarts, the creation of the Chamber of Secrets, the signing of the International Statute of Secrecy, the rise of Grindelwald, the rise and fall of Voldemort, Harry Potter’s years at Hogwarts and the Battle of Hogwarts.
Why does this timeline include Muggle history?
Including Muggle history helps show how the Wizarding World exists beside our own, especially during moments such as medieval witch hunts, the Salem witch trials, world wars and modern political change.
Does this timeline include events outside the original Harry Potter books?
Yes. The timeline includes major events from the wider Wizarding World, including historical lore, Fantastic Beasts-era events and later events connected to the next generation.
About MuggleNet: MuggleNet has covered the Wizarding World since 1999, offering news, guides, editorials and fan resources for readers around the world.
