Underage magic

Warning! At least some content in this article is derived from information featured in:Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery &Harry Potter: Magic Awakened. As such, spoilers will be present within the article.

Underage magic was anymagic used outside of school by awizard or witch who was under seventeen years of age. While children were permitted to use magic as part of their education, it had been banned from use outside of such under theDecree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery since1875. Compliance with the Decree was monitored and enforced by theImproper Use of Magic Office at theBritish Ministry of Magic using theTrace Charm. Children under the age of eleven, who had little control over their abilities and nowands, were exempt from the law. Though in wizarding families their parents were expected to keep them under control. The British Ministry of Magic could only detect where magic was used, but not who used it. Most experts believed that if a child had magical ability, they would exhibit it by the age ofseven.^[1]

Accidental wandless magic[]

Magical children were prone to usingmagic accidentally when feeling angry, scared, or confused, as a form of self-defence. They typically had no control over this magic.

Known examples[]

Ariana Dumbledore was attacked byMuggle boys after they saw her performing magic, and the trauma affected her to the point of preventing her from ever learning to control her magic. In one of her fits, she accidentally killed hermother in a magical explosion.^[2]

As a boy,Severus Snape made a branch of a tree snap and strikePetunia Evans in the shoulder when she made fun of him.^[3]

During their childhood,Jacob's sibling shattered atea set and vase when they sneezed, and brought a flower to life with their laughter.^[4]

As a newborn,Neville Longbottom magically adjusted his blankets so that he was swaddled more snugly, but nobody noticed.^[5] Later, his uncle,Algie Longbottom accidentally dropped him out of a second story window in one of his many attempts to get Neville to performmagic after becoming distracted by a slice ofmeringue offered to him by Neville's auntEnid. Luckily, on this occasion, he did and bounced away instead of hitting the ground in what would have been an otherwise terrible accident.^[6]

BeforeHarry Potter went toHogwarts, he did several things accidentally using his magical powers. He turned histeacher'swig blue,^[6] shrunk one ofDudley Dursley's old sweaters thatAunt Petunia was trying to force him to wear, and found himself on the roof once when his cousin Dudley and hisgang were chasing him; possibly through a form ofApparition. He managed togrow all his hair back when his AuntPetunia gave him a dreadful haircut using a pair ofkitchen scissors. He also magically spoke with aboa constrictor at the zoo inParseltongue and unintentionally set it free by making the glass vanish.^[7] In1993, he lost control of his magic whenMarge Dursley insulted his late parents; his angercaused her to magically inflate.^[8]

Before theunidentified Muggle-born Hogwarts student received theHogwarts acceptance letter, they used to make all kinds of strange things happen, such as making their toy ship float,^[9] making their book pages turn,^[10] lighting candles^[11] and making writing appear on their calendar.^[12]

Intentional wandless magic[]

Some magical children exhibited mild degrees of control over theirmagic and were able to use it with intent, but not to cast specificspells. The ability to perform specific spellswithout a wand was an advanced ability that even some adult wizards and witches found difficult. According toAlbus Dumbledore, it was unusual and even somewhat worrisome for a child to be able to control their magic before the age of eleven. When discussingTom Riddle's exceptional degree of control over his magic as a child, Dumbledore remarked that his powers were "surprisingly-well developed for such a young wizard and — most interestingly and ominously of all — he had already discovered that he had some measure of control over them, and begun to use them consciously".^[13]

Known examples[]

1930s[]

As a child growing up inan orphanage,Tom Marvolo Riddle developed remarkable control over his magic for his age, even before he consciously knew what the power was. He could manipulate the minds of animals and creatures (for the free will, thoughts, and minds of animals are quite weak), enchant objects to make them move or travel floating with his mind, inflict harm on those who annoyed him, and speakParseltongue.^[13]

As a baby, in the mid1930s,Minerva McGonagall used tosummon toys that had been left on upper shelves to her cot, made thefamily cat do her bidding, and madeher father's bagpipes play themselves.^[14]

1960s[]

Lily Evans displayed some control over her magical abilities as a girl. She floated off a swing set and manipulated the petals of a flower in front of her sisterPetunia.^[3]

Underage magic with a wand[]

British witches and wizards between the ages of eleven and seventeen were permitted to usemagic within school, but not outside it, as legislated in theDecree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery. When any magical activity was performed in the vicinity of an underage individual, theTrace Charm notified theImproper Use of Magic Office as to thespell that had been used and its location. Small infractions of the law would be met with a warning, but knowingly performing magic in aMuggle-inhabited area or in front of a Muggle was considered a crime punishable by expulsion fromHogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, as it violated theStatute of Secrecy. Exceptions were permitted in exceptional circumstances, such as self-defence and other life-threatening situations.^[15]

According toAlbus Dumbledore, although the Ministry could detect the use of magic near an underage witch or wizard, they couldn't determine who performed it. This was why Harry was blamed for theHover Charm used byDobby at his aunt and uncle's house; since Harry was the only wizard who lived there, the Ministry assumed he was the only one who could have cast the spell. In the home of a wizarding family, it was up to the adults to enforce the rules for underage members of the household (also according to Dumbledore). This was consistent with the relatively numerous incidences of underage magic mentioned as having been performed at home by Fred and George Weasley.

Also, an underage wizard or witch might perform magic outside of school if given permission by a recognised authority figure, as Dumbledore gave a sixteen-year-old Harry Potter permission to use any form of defensive magic during their journey toBudleigh Babberton in case of an attack.^[16]

Before1965, in accordance withRappaport's Law, magical children inAmerica were forbidden to possess wands until age eleven, and could not use them outside of school before they reached the age of majority at seventeen. They were issued wands upon their arrival atIlvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and had to leave them at school during vacations.^[17] It is unknown what the laws were after the law's repeal.

Known examples[]

1970s[]

Lily Evans occasionally used magic outside of school, despite living with herMugglefamily, and received a few warning letters, but nothing “too serious”.^[18]

Sirius Black secured the decorations of his room with aPermanent Sticking Charm against alteration by his parents.^[19] As he lefthis parents' home at the age of sixteen, he must have performed underage magic.

1990s[]

Hermione Granger mentioned having successfully cast "a few simple spells" upon learning that she was a witch and before her first year at Hogwarts,^[20] but apparently she was not given a warning. This might have been because underage magic warnings only applied to Hogwarts students.

Harry Potter receiveda warning after aHover Charm was detected in hishome inLittle Whinging on31 July1992, though it was actually performed byDobby thehouse-elf.^[21]

InAugust1994, a boy namedKevin took hisfather'swand andenlarged aslug before hismother caught him.^[22]

Hermione Granger used theWand-Lighting Charm in the woods on theQuidditch World Cup grounds on25 August1994, but no warning was issued. This could have been counted as a measure of self-defence (due to theDeath Eater activities), but it could also have been because Harry and Ron were with her (therefore, their Traces would have been triggered too) or the fact that magic was being used all around them anyway, thus, the Ministry couldn't tell that she had done it.^[23]

On2 August1995, Harry used the Patronus Charm to ward offDementors thatattacked him and his cousinDudley Dursley inLittle Whinging. He wasexpelled from Hogwarts for it, though this was, because the Ministry did not have the authority to expel Hogwarts students,rescinded and changed to aWizengamothearing, where he was acquitted on the grounds of self-defence.^[15] Just prior to using the Patronus Charm, Harry used theWand-Lighting Charm, but this, like Hermione's use of it a year prior, did not trigger any warnings or sanctions.^[24]

On27 July1997, Harry Potter used numerous spells during theBattle of the Seven Potters to defend against Death Eater attacks. No hearing was called as the Ministry apparently did not want to draw attention to Voldemort's current level of strength, nor that there had been a mass breakout fromAzkaban.^[25] Even if this were not the case, it would certainly be counted as being in self-defence.

Other underage magic[]

1970s[]

Nymphadora Tonks learned theJelly-Legs Curse when she was little.^[26] It is unclear if she was able to perform controlled wandless magic, got her own wand at a younger age or used the wand of another person.

1980s[]

At the age of five,Fred Weasley turned his younger brotherRon'steddy bear into a "great big filthyspider" after Ron broke histoybroomstick. This incident triggered Ron's lifelong fear of spiders.^[27] It is unclear if Fred did this without a wand and with some degree of control, or if he took thewand of one his parents or older brothers to perform thespell.

1990s[]

On2 August1995, when gripped by his uncle, Vernon Dursley,Harry Potter emitted adefensive charge, apparently as an automatic defensive response.^[28]

Previously on the same day, at the age of fifteen, Harry Potter cast theWand-Lighting Charm despite the fact that his cousinDudley Dursley had punched him moments before and knockedhis wand from his hand. The spell caused the wand's tip to light up.^[24] This was a specificspell, which differentiates it from the intentional wandless magic of children who have not yet learned spells, and it also involved a wand, though it was not in Harry's hand at the time.

Behind the scenes[]

• Harry's early uses of underage magic, such as turning his teacher'swig blue, were cut from thefilm adaptation ofHarry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, presumably for time reasons. The only visible incidents are his speakingParseltongue with theBoa constrictor at the zoo (depicted as aBurmesePython in the film) and subsequently making the glassvanish. In another difference from the book, the glass then reappears, trappingDudley inside the enclosure.

• InHarry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2, we see that whenSeverus Snape metLily Evans before they attendedHogwarts, he picked up a blade of grass which then flew over to Lily. As this did not happen in thecorresponding book, this cannot be consideredcanonical.
• TheLEGO Harry Potter game titles allow unlimited use of certain basic magic in certain instances even when Harry is in the Muggle world.
• InHarry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery, Year 2, chapter 1, Jacob's sibling has the option to tellRowan Khanna that they practised the spells they had learned before during the 1985Summer holidays.

Appearances[]

• Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone(First appearance)
• Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (film)
• Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets(Mentioned only)
• Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (film)(Mentioned only)
• Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
• Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (film)
• Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
• Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (film)
• Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (video game)
• Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince(Mentioned only)
• Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (film)
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2(Appears in flashback(s))
• Pottermore
• HarryPotter.com
• Harry Potter: The Character Vault
• LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1-4
• LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7
• Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery(Possible appearance)(Mentioned only)
• Harry Potter: Magic Awakened

Notes and references[]

See also[]

• Wandless magic
• Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery
• Trace