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June 13th 1943. Hagrid remains at Hogwarts and is trained as gamekeeper. Believing Hagrid innocent, Dumbledore convinces Headmaster Dippet to let the boy stay . Read More. 1979. Order of the Phoenix photographed. The Order of the Phoenix arose in the 1970s to fight the first rise of Lord Voldemort.
Dumbledore believed that Hagrid had been wrongly accused and fought for him to be allowed to stay at Hogwarts. While Hagrid wasn't allowed to perform magic and was given the position of Keeper of Keys and Grounds, he was permitted to remain on the grounds.
- Overview
- Biography
- Physical description
- Personality and traits
- Magical abilities and skills
- Hagrid's pets
- Relationships
- Etymology
- Behind the scenes
"I would trust Hagrid with my life."
— Albus Dumbledore's trust in Hagrid
Professor Rubeus Hagrid (b. 6 December 1928) was an English half-giant wizard, son of Mr Hagrid and the giantess Fridwulfa, and elder half-brother of the giant Grawp. Hagrid stood at eleven feet, six inches tall.
Hagrid attended Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in 1940 and was sorted into Gryffindor house. In Hagrid's third year, he was framed by Tom Riddle for the crime of opening the Chamber of Secrets and using his pet Acromantula to attack several Muggle-born students and eventually killing one of them. Though Hagrid's wand was snapped and he was expelled, he was trained as gamekeeper of Hogwarts and allowed to live on the school grounds at the request of Albus Dumbledore.
In 1991, Hagrid was given the task of reintroducing Harry Potter to the wizarding world. In 1993, Hagrid would assume the post of Care of Magical Creatures professor after the retirement of Professor Silvanus Kettleburn. As a member of both the original and the reinstated Order of the Phoenix, Hagrid fought in several battles of the First and the Second Wizarding Wars, including the Battle of Hogwarts in 1998.
It can be assumed that Hagrid kept in contact with the trio after the war. By 2017 he was still living, and presumably still teaching and tending to his gamekeeping duties at Hogwarts. When Harry's son, Albus Severus, started school he invited him for tea, just as Hagrid had done for his father and his friends Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger.
Early life (1928–1940)
"My dad was broken-hearted when she wen'. Tiny little bloke, my dad was. By the time I was six I could lift him up an' put him on top o' the dresser if he annoyed me. Used ter make him laugh..." — Hagrid telling Olympe Maxime about his father Hagrid was born on 6 December 1928 to Mr Hagrid, a wizard, and Fridwulfa, a giantess, and grew up in the West Country of England, near the Forest of Dean, where he acquired his distinctive accent. When Hagrid was about three, his mother returned to her giant colony, leaving his father to raise him alone. Hagrid said he had very few memories of his mother from his childhood, but remembered his father fondly; as a half-giant, he overtook his father in size by the age of six, and amused the "tiny" wizard by picking him up and setting him on top of a dresser when Hagrid was annoyed with him. Later, when talking to Harry, Ron, and Hermione about the death of his mother, Hagrid admitted that she was not a great mother at all. He grew to an height of eleven and a half feet tall, immense by human standards but very small by giant standards.
Hogwarts years (1940–1943)
Tom Riddle: "Evening, Rubeus." Rubeus Hagrid: "What yer doin' down here, Tom?" Tom Riddle: "It's all over. I'm going to have to turn you in, Rubeus. They're talking about closing Hogwarts if the attacks don't stop." Rubeus Hagrid: "‘N at d'yeh —" Tom Riddle: "I don't think you meant to kill anyone. But monsters don't make good pets. I suppose you just let it out for exercise and —" Rubeus Hagrid: "It never killed no one!" Tom Riddle: "Come on, Rubeus. The dead girl's parents will be here tomorrow. The least Hogwarts can do is make sure that the thing that killed their daughter is slaughtered..." Rubeus Hagrid: "It wasn't him! He wouldn'! He never!" — Tom Riddle framing Hagrid for having opened the Chamber of Secrets Hagrid's father was thrilled when his son was accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, where Hagrid began his education in 1940 in which he was Sorted into Gryffindor House. In the 1942–1943 school year, during his third year, Hagrid acquired one in what would be a long line of dangerous pets: a young Acromantula which he named Aragog. That same year, fifth-year student Tom Marvolo Riddle, who would go on to become Lord Voldemort, opened the Chamber of Secrets and unleashed another monster, which Riddle used to attack and petrify a number of Muggle-born students until he finally caused the death of a girl named Myrtle Warren. When the school was threatened with closing, a consequence highly undesired by Riddle, the boy found out about Aragog and turned Hagrid in as the culprit. It likely didn't help that Hagrid had a habit of getting into trouble every other week; he'd once tried raising werewolf cubs under his bed and was known to sneak off into the Forbidden Forest to wrestle trolls (both of these statements were likely exaggerations on Riddle's part however). Hagrid protected Aragog and helped him flee to the Forbidden Forest; however, he was shortly thereafter expelled from Hogwarts, a fate that he was relieved that his father never knew of, having died during Hagrid's second year. Following his expulsion, the Ministry of Magic forbade Hagrid from practising magic and destroyed his wand. The then-Transfiguration teacher Albus Dumbledore, who was convinced that Hagrid was innocent, nonetheless convinced then-Headmaster Armando Dippet to have Hagrid trained for the job of Gamekeeper and allow the orphan to remain a resident of the school. Hagrid continued to do magic using his pink umbrella, which most likely contained the broken fragments of his wand, with varying degree of success. At some point after he came of age in 1945, Hagrid was entrusted the responsibility of helping out with the security of the school when he was named the school's Keeper of the Keys, in which capacity he was tasked with, among other things, opening the Entrance Gates to let visitors in and out of the school grounds and escorting new students to the castle for their first-ever arrival at Hogwarts school. At some point following the graduation of Molly Weasley around 1968, Gamekeeper Ogg retired or otherwise left the position, and Hagrid officially succeeded him in the role as gamekeeper of the school and took over his duties full-time.
First Wizarding War (1970–1981)
"No, sir — house was almost destroyed but I got him out all right before the Muggles started swarmin' around. He fell asleep as we was flyin' over Bristol." — Hagrid to Dumbledore on rescuing young Harry Potter in 1981 Sometime in the 1970s, Hagrid joined the original Order of the Phoenix. It was a secret organisation founded by Albus Dumbledore to oppose Lord Voldemort and his Death Eaters. The Order was constructed after Voldemort returned to England from abroad and started his campaign to take over the Ministry of Magic and persecute Muggles and Muggle-borns. Voldemort's first reign of terror lasted years and turned friends against each other. It was said that during this time it was difficult to trust one another, as you did not know for sure who had gone over to the dark side, partly due to the Death Eaters' access to the Imperius Curse. The Order worked with the Ministry to oppose the Dark Lord and his followers, even allowing Aurors the use of Unforgivable Curses. Voldemort also had a number of magical dark creatures under his command as well, such as giants. At the abrupt end of the First Wizarding War, Albus Dumbledore sent Hagrid to rescue a one-year-old Harry Potter from the ruins of his house in Godric's Hollow, after Lord Voldemort murdered both James and Lily Potter in 1981. Using Sirius Black's motorcycle, he brought Harry Potter to Albus Dumbledore and Minerva McGonagall, who were waiting to deliver the boy to his only remaining family — Lily's Muggle elder sister, Petunia, and her husband Vernon Dursley. Hagrid was very sad at the thought of James and Lily Potter being dead.
"A giant of a man was standing in the doorway. His face was almost completely hidden by a long, shaggy mane of hair and a wild, tangled beard, but you could make out his eyes, glinting like black beetles under all the hair."
— Hagrid's physical description
Hagrid was born to a wizard father and a giant mother, making him a half-giant. As a half-giant, Hagrid possessed great physical strength and endurance, including a resilience against some spells, though his ability to withstand spells was not as great as that of full giants. He was about twice as tall as an average man, standing at eleven feet, six inches tall (too big for an ordinary-sized broomstick) and three times as wide, with a long mane of shaggy black hair and a beard that covered most of his face.
Hagrid's hands were as big as dustbin lids and his feet in their boots were like baby dolphins. He had dark eyes that glinted like black beetles. Hagrid's size often makes it difficult for him to enter rooms or buildings that are designed for ordinary sized people or not built with airy or grand designs, such as him not being able to fit easily into the Hospital Wing or the Burrow yet having no trouble moving in the Great Hall.
He often wore an exceptionally large moleskin overcoat with several pockets that held many things, though that sometimes caused him to spend a lot of time searching for what he wanted to find. Objects within the pockets have included any number of items, such as mouldy dog biscuits, the key to Harry Potter's Gringotts vault, peppermint humbugs, a squashy package of sausages, a copper kettle, a fire poker, wizard money, a birthday cake, birthday presents, a dirty spotted handkerchief, slug pellets, and a living owl. Hagrid's clothing is largely hand-made due to the descriptions of his clothing as being crafted of animal skin and far too large for a full-blooded or non-hybridised human being.
Despite his love for beasts, Hagrid was allergic to cats.
"I'm not saying his heart isn't in the right place, but you can't pretend he's not careless."
— Minerva McGonagall describing Hagrid's personality
Hagrid was an incredibly warm, kind-hearted, intelligent, perceptive man, and would often forget his exceptional size and strength when patting people on the back. Another of Hagrid's greatest traits was his courage. He was also very loyal to his friends and was ready to defend them or fight for them if necessary. He was particularly loyal to Albus Dumbledore, describing him as a "great man". He would react with fury if anyone dared insult the headmaster and wouldn't hesitate to magically assault or rough up the offender. However, despite his loyalty, Hagrid was not good at keeping secrets and accidentally told Quirinus Quirrell, Harry Potter, Ronald Weasley, and Hermione Granger, the secret of how to get past his three headed dog, Fluffy, which all four of them used to get through to the Philosopher's Stone. This was again shown when he revealed his half-giant status to Olympe Maxime, which Harry, Ron and Rita Skeeter all overheard, with the latter exposing it to the wizarding world by an article in the Daily Prophet.
"C'mon, now, get a move on! Got a real treat for yeh today! Great lesson comin' up! Everyone here? Right, follow me!"
— Hagrid's passion for magical creatures
Hagrid had a great love of magical creatures, including cross-breeds such as the Blast-Ended Skrewt, and had a better relationship with most of the inhabitants of the Forbidden Forest than most people, including the centaurs, though he had little interest in tame magical creatures due to the lack of a challenge they offered. Despite this, he did show a good understanding of such creatures when he returned to his post as Care of Magical Creatures teacher, continuing lessons on unicorns after Professor Wilhelmina Grubbly-Plank. Unfortunately he tended to overlook the dangers behind certain magical creatures, such as his dragon Norbert, and his pet Acromantula Aragog, which was alleged by Tom Riddle to be the monster of Slytherin in 1943, resulting in Hagrid's expulsion from the school. Hagrid never spoke about why he was expelled and would ignore any inquiries about it. Hagrid was fond of creatures in general and seemed to want to own any creature was even slightly fierce — his desires included a warthog and any dragon that he could get his hands on. He tended to give his pets ironic names, such as Fluffy for a vicious three-headed dog, and Fang, an affectionate Boarhound.
"Be grateful if yeh didn't mention that ter anyone at Hogwarts. I'm — er — not supposed ter do magic, strictly speakin'. I was allowed ter do a bit ter follow yeh an' get yer letters to yeh an' stuff — one o' the reasons I was so keen ter take on the job —"
— Hagrid explaining to Harry his rare usage of magic
For a man who was expelled during his third year and rarely used magic as a result, Rubeus Hagrid was a rather good wizard, being considerably advanced, with some of his abilities even comparing to the N.E.W.T.-level academical difficulty. Being a Half-Giant, he also had magical abilities which stemmed from his giant blood, such as great superhuman strength and endurance along with a certain degree of spell resistance. Hagrid's hands-on and outdoor style of living allowed him to acquire other skills such as looking after magical creatures, craftsmanship, arbalist (crossbowman) skills and social networking within the magical community.
•Magical aptitude: Despite having never graduated from Hogwarts and therefore not being fully trained in the magical arts as well as not often practising magic due to the fact that he was forbidden to do so, since he had been expelled from Hogwarts and his wand was apparently destroyed some years earlier, Hagrid's magical aptitude was clearly astonishing as he proved to be quite accomplished and skilled in magic enough that he was able to successfully conjure moderate levels of powerful magic. He was capable of performing successfully the majority of his spells using non-verbal magic via his umbrella-concealed wand, which only extremely powerful wizards and witches proved capable of using effectively. However, Hagrid's magic was never flawless as he was the only member of the Order of the Phoenix who could not cast the extremely powerful and difficult Patronus Charm. He additionally failed to completely transfigure Dudley Dursley into a pig, although he cast the spell non-verbally (non-verbal spells are usually less powerful than verbal spells unless cast by a powerful wizard or witch) and admitted that since Dudley was already so close to being a pig with his overweight physique and eating ways, he did not need to transfigure him completely, suggesting that Hagrid may have been able to do it but just chose not to further humiliate Dudley. He was also unable to repair Sirius Black's motorbike which had been heavily damaged during the Battle of the Seven Potters, though it must be noted that he was also struggling to control the motorbike and therefore he may just have been unable to exert enough magic to do so.
"He brought the umbrella swishing down through the air to point at Dudley — there was a flash of violet light, a sound like a firecracker, a sharp squeal, and the next second, Dudley was dancing on the spot with his hands clasped over his fat bottom, howling in pain. When he turned his back on them, Harry saw a curly pig's tail poking through a hole in his trousers."
— Hagrid attempting to turn Dudley Dursley into a pig
As early as in his third year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and possibly earlier than that, Hagrid managed to gain possession of numerous magical creatures, many of them dangerous, including Aragog, Fang, Fluffy, Buckbeak, and Norbert (later Norberta). Hagrid's love for animals and his talent for taming and training them won him th...
Family
"She wasn' really the maternal sort. Well ... it's not in their natures, is it?" — Hagrid discussing his mother Rubeus Hagrid was born to Mr Hagrid, a wizard, and the giantess Fridwulfa. Fridwulfa left the family because her son was "too small" for her liking, though Hagrid never seemed to resent her for abandoning him, generally appearing relatively indifferent about his lack of relationship with her. His father, on the other hand, seemed to be a very caring man who was heartbroken when his wife left, and was amused by the fact that, at the age of six, Hagrid was large enough to be able to set him on top of a dresser. Mr Hagrid died when his son was twelve years old, and by the time Hagrid tried to find his mother in 1995, she too had died, although he dismissed the issue on the grounds that he barely remembered her. On the other hand, he was saddened by his father's death, though he was at least glad that his father did not live to see Rubeus expelled from school. During his travels to the Northern giant colonies that same year, Hagrid found his maternal half-brother: an undersized giant called Grawp. As Grawp's size made it difficult for him to function within his colony, Hagrid brought him back to Hogwarts and hid him within the Forbidden Forest. As Hagrid and Maxime's mission had failed, it is extremely likely that Hagrid also brought Grawp back to prevent his half-brother from being enslaved by Voldemort alongside the other giants. Hagrid's attempts to raise and socialise Grawp initially appeared completely pointless; Grawp's progress in picking up English, or in curbing his violence, which often left Hagrid with a number of painful looking injuries, seemed almost non-existent. However, over the course of the year, Grawp grew increasingly attached to his older brother and was distressed by Hagrid's disappearance after Dolores Umbridge attempted to have Hagrid arrested in 1996. By Albus Dumbledore's funeral, Grawp was relatively calm and presentable, and he even attempted to comfort Hagrid by patting him (though a bit too hard) on the head and later embracing him. Grawp spent the first part of the Battle of Hogwarts stumbling around, yelling for "Hagger," but eventually jumped into the fray, fighting the giants brought to the battle by Voldemort.
Pets and other creatures
"He had known Hagrid to present a vicious baby dragon with a teddy bear, seen him croon over giant scorpions with suckers and stingers, attempt to reason with his brutal giant of a half-brother, but this was perhaps the most incomprehensible of all his monster fancies: the gigantic talking spider, Aragog, who dwelled deep in the Forbidden Forest and which he and Ron had only narrowly escaped four years previously." — Hagrid's love of dangerous magical creatures Hagrid had a good relationship with most of his pets and other magical creatures, most notably Fang, Aragog, and Buckbeak. His relationship with most magical creatures was arguably better then the ones most other wizards had. Fang was usually Hagrid's companion most of the time, although he was cowardly. Fang demonstrated some protectiveness towards Hagrid in spite of his cowardly nature such as when he attempted to protect Hagrid when Dolores Umbridge and some Auror's attempted to sack and arrest him. Hagrid, in turn, was also protective of Fang as he was enraged when the Aurors had stunned him, carrying his unconscious body as he fled Hogwarts, and immediately went after Fang when he was afraid during the Battle of Hogwarts. Hagrid had a huge friendship with Aragog, whom he had hatched in an egg when he was a student at Hogwarts. Hagrid protected Aragog when he was suspected to be the monster that opened the Chamber of Secrets, throwing Tom Riddle to the ground when he tried to curse him and sending Aragog to live in the Forbidden Forest. Hagrid managed to find Aragog a wife, Mosag, which allowed Aragog to have a family in the forest. Aragog, in turn, was grateful for Hagrid's friendship and protection to the point that he never directly harmed a human out of respect for Hagrid and commanded his family not to harm Hagrid while he was alive. However, this did not stop Aragog from letting his children and descendants attempt to eat Harry and Ron even though they were friends of Hagrid, claiming that he could not deny them fresh meat when it wandered into their midst. Hagrid was devastated when Aragog died and, along with Professor Slughorn, buried him near his Hut. Although Aragog's children and descendants did not hold back in attempting to devour Hagrid after Aragog's death, Hagrid attempted to protect them during the Battle of Hogwarts in honour of his friendship with Aragog, even though the Acromantulas were attacking both Death Eaters and Hogwarts defenders. Hagrid cared greatly about Buckbeak as he tried hard to prevent his execution by the Ministry of Magic and was overjoyed when he managed to escape with Sirius Black, unaware at the time that Harry and Hermione helped him escape. Hagrid was later reunited with Buckbeak and looked after him when Sirius was killed by Bellatrix Lestrange. Hagrid briefly had a pet dragon named Norbert, whom he had acquired from a disguised Quirinus Quirrell in exchange for knowledge on how to get past Hagrid's three-headed dog Fluffy. However, since dragons were illegal, Hagrid reluctantly allowed Norbert to be sent to Charlie Weasley in Romania and was devastated to let her go. When inquiring about Norbert from Charlie six years later, Hagrid was shocked to learn that Norbert was a female dragon, having mistaken her for a male dragon, and of her being renamed Norberta. Although the full extent of Hagrid's relationship with Fluffy is unknown, Hagrid used Fluffy to guard the entrance of the Underground Chambers where the Philosopher's Stone was being kept and before he accidentally told Quirrell, was the only one apart from Dumbledore who knew how to calm him. Hagrid also had a cordial relationship with the Forbidden Forest Centaur colony, especially with Bane, Ronan, Magorian and Firenze, and sometimes visited them whenever he went inside the Forest. However, Hagrid had a falling out with the centaurs when he defended Firenze from them as they believed Firenze had betrayed them by accepting the teaching post of Divination at Hogwarts, which was further complicated when he brought Grawp into the Forbidden Forest. During the Battle of Hogwarts, when Hagrid carried Harry, believing he was dead, back to Hogwarts, he was furious when the centaurs did not fight in the first half for Harry, accusing them of cowardice, which convinced them to fight in the second half of the battle. While Hagrid remained on good terms with Firenze, it is unknown whether Hagrid made peace with the other Centaurs after the battle ended.
Albus Dumbledore
"Great man, Dumbledore. 'S long as we've got him, I'm not too worried." — Hagrid discussing his trust in Dumbledore Albus Dumbledore placed great trust in Hagrid, which Hagrid returned with fierce loyalty and unwavering admiration. This loyalty always flared up whenever someone insulted Dumbledore, one time causing Hagrid to give Dudley Dursley a pig's tail, and causing him to choke Igor Karkaroff another time. Hagrid would often describe Dumbledore as a "great man". While a professor, Dumbledore believed in Hagrid's innocence when he was accused of opening the Chamber of Secrets, and convinced then-Headmaster Armando Dippet to train Hagrid as the Gamekeeper and allow him to remain at Hogwarts. Hagrid went on to join Dumbledore's Order of the Phoenix as an adult, and he was the one tasked with bringing Harry Potter to Dumbledore after James and Lily Potter were murdered in 1981. Dumbledore also trusted him to move the Philosopher's Stone from Gringotts Wizarding Bank to the school and believed Hagrid could offer Harry as much protection as "a bunch" of Ministry Aurors could while shopping in Diagon Alley, in 1996. In 1995, Dumbledore gave Hagrid the difficult task of approaching the giant colonies of the North and dissuading them joining forces with Lord Voldemort, knowing Hagrid was fully capable of the delicate handling required to court the Gurg. Dumbledore additionally was the only one who supported Hagrid's decision to bring his giant half-brother Grawp with him back to Hogwarts after his mission to recruit the giants failed, allowing Grawp to stay in the Forbidden Forest and later having him sent to the mountains near Hogsmeade. After Albus Dumbledore's death, Hagrid was so devastated to the point that he was inconsolable, despite the best efforts of Olympe Maxime and even his half-brother Grawp.
in Latin means "red". The name suited Hagrid, as red could be for passion or emotion, "an earthy, warm and physical man, lord of the forest".
Hagrid is the archaic past participle of the verb "hagride", which means "harass or torment with dread or nightmares", and its etymology in turn is "hag" and "ride". A hag is a nightmare spirit in English folklore. According to folklore, the Hag sat on a sleeper's chest and sent nightmares to him or her. When the subject awoke, he or she would be unable to breathe or even move for a short period of time. This state is now called sleep paralysis, but in the old belief the subject had been "hagridden".
•Hagrid was the first person to tell Harry that he resembled his father, but had his mother's eyes. He was also Harry's first friend.
•It is unknown why no one calls Hagrid 'Rubeus', which is his first name, although when Hagrid meets Harry for the first time he tells him to call him Hagrid as that's what everyone calls him. This probably means that Hagrid tells people to call him by this name. The only individuals known to call Hagrid by his first name were Garrick Ollivander and Tom Riddle, who have both known him since he was a child.
•Given Hagrid's interest in unusual pets, it is possible that his activities may have caught the eye of the Illegal Pets Detection service at some point.
•Hagrid was not charged for raising Aragog under the Ban on Experimental Breeding because it was enacted in 1965, 22 years later.
•There are two common interpretations of Hagrid's statement to Harry about failing to turn Dudley into a pig on their first meeting- the first is that he genuinely tried to do so but failed due to the spell's complexity, or Dudley's general pig-like nature as he stated. The other is that he intended to give Dudley a tail and was only joking about attempting a full transformation.
•Hagrid was portrayed by the late Scottish actor Robbie Coltrane in the film adaptations of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, Chamber of Secrets, Prisoner of Azkaban, Goblet of Fire, Order of the Phoenix, Half-Blood Prince, Deathly Hallows: Part 1 and Part 2 and so is one of the 14 characters to appear in all 8 film adaptations.
Mar 11, 2016 · Hagrid volunteers to stay at Hogwarts after Dumbledore’s death. “Well, I’m stayin’,’ said Hagrid, fat tears still leaking out of the corners of his eyes and trickling down into his tangled beard.
Jan 1, 2016 · But back in 1968, when the chamber opened for the first time, all believed Hagrid was to blame, to the point of wand snapping and expulsion. We know the Ministry of Magic was aware of Hagrid's "guilt", because they were on the verge of shutting Hogwarts down, which didn't end up happening:
In the epilogue of Deathly Hallows, set nineteen years after Voldemort’s death, Hagrid is still at Hogwarts. He invites Harry's son Albus Severus Potter to his hut for tea. According to Rowling, Hagrid acts as a guardian and guide for Harry throughout the series.
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Rubeus Hagrid. Gamekeeper, Keeper of the Keys and Care of Magical Creatures teacher at Hogwarts. Rubeus Hagrid may have been intimidating physically - he was of course, half-man, half-giant - but he was also soft-hearted, especially when it came to looking after the beasts of Hogwarts.
