History of Hogwarts New Zealand

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Professor Cyndi Kingsley

Gryffindor HoH | Mother of 3
 
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35,918
OOC First Name
Cyndi
Blood Status
Mixed Blood
Wand
Knotted 15 Inch Flexible Oak Wand with Meteorite Dust Core
Age
4/2005
In 2012, with the help of Bearse Prosinian, Alicia Barker, a Hogwarts Scotland alum, came up with a vision for a school in New Zealand much like their alma mater. The land that was purchased was located on the North Island of New Zealand, and it was both large enough and distant enough from nearby cities to create a school for wizard children. With a forest that was home to creatures, both magical and non-magical, a lake that was large enough to house a large population of Merpeople and other underwater creatures, and a series of cliffs that would be declared off limits to students, the castle that was already on the land seemed an ideal place to educate future wizards and witches.

In 2016, the castle was opened with some significant changes to the building and its grounds, the most notable of which were the additions of a Quidditch Pitch and a set of Greenhouses for lessons. In September of that year, Hogwarts New Zealand, which would quickly take on the beloved nickname, HNZ, opened its doors to its first group of eager students awaiting the chance to be sorted into one of four prestigious houses- Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw or Slytherin.

The quiet wizarding areas of Brightstone Village and Obsidian Harbour quickly saw a boom in population as parents flocked to the area to be closer to their children who were attending the new school. Other wizards and witches, both good and evil, came to the area, eager to live amongst those who were similar to themselves. In 2016, the New Zealand branch of the Ministry of Magic was quickly set up to ensure that the wizarding laws of the land were upheld with Gellert Coote elected as the New Zealand Minister of Magic. Things did not always go so well in the New Zealand area, and throughout the school's early years, a number of events occurred that left the wizarding citizens wondering just how safe they actually were in New Zealand. One such instance occurred in 2018 when a mass murderer left several wizards dead in the Ministry of Magic Headquarters. This would be the first, though certainly not the last time that Coote's ability to be Minister was questioned.

From the start, the school has had its fair share of fantastic events and memorable student and professors. Rumors abounded only several years after HNZ opened its doors when Bearse Prosinian was in the school one day and gone the next with no explanation. He was later reported dead, though few people knew the full details of what had occurred. In 2018, the Gryffindor Head of House, Nicolas King, was outed as an Auror. Only much later did people find out that he had been placed in the school by Minister of Magic, Gellert Coote. In 2021, the school hosted its 1st Triwizard Tournament, inviting delegations from Hogwarts Scotland and Durmstrang. What was supposed to be an exciting time for the school took a turn for the worse when, during the second task, Headmistress Alicia Barker was kidnapped, presumably by a band of dark wizards calling themselves Death Eaters. Though actual Death Eaters had died out with the death of Voldemort at the hands of Harry Potter, there was still small cells throughout the world, including in New Zealand, that continued to uphold ideals consistent with those of the Death Eaters. This event prompted parents to seriously consider whether HNZ was safe for their children. Despite rumours to the contrary, the school remained open. Headmistress Barker eventually was found, but she resigned her post and left the school, leaving Nicolas King and Cecily Rambolt to rise to the position of Headmaster and Headmistress.

Even with the loss of their Headmistress, the school persevered, and 2023 saw a lot of action come to the wizarding world and the school. In 2023, after the death of the notorious Antonin Dolohov, a death eater who worked under Voldemort himself, death eater enthusiasts led by Dolohov's granddaughter, Thorine, marched in Obsidian Harbor. Their march put fear into the hearts of New Zealand's citizens and would be one of the largest open gatherings of death eater enthusiasts anywhere. The event sent many of the New Zealand wizards and witches into a panic as they realized that there were still many people who shared the death eater ideology not only still around, but thriving. This news was no surprise to Aurors throughout the world who were gathering information about a growing threat to the Ministry.

In the school, after a wild melee during the annual Halloween Feast, several students were sent into the Forbidden Forest as punishment. The invasion of their forest was not taken lightly by the forest's centaurs who marched two of the students and a professor back to the castle with weapons drawn. That was not the only excitement in the castle in that year. 2023 also would forever been known as the year that the first graduating class walked across the stage to receive their diplomas. They would be the first students to enter but certainly not the last students to exit the school.

In an effort to regain the support of the wizarding community, 2024 was quite a busy year for the New Zealand Ministry of Magic. In 2024, after popular demand, a new wizarding mall opened up on Makutu Island. It was a moment of triumph for the Minister, showing other wizarding countries that New Zealand was thriving. The peace in New Zealand, however, was short-lived.

The 2nd Triwizard Tournament found Hogwarts representatives making their way to beautiful France where host school, Beauxbatons, had worked long and hard on tasks that could challenge the Triwizard participants. In the end, Mike Goulding (Hogwarts) Moko Craven (Durmstrang) and Aubrey Derlinch (Beauxbatons) were chosen to participate. After encountering veelas and searching for runes, getting through a cave maze with little more than their wits and their wands, and surviving a bitter duel, Moko Craven took home the prize for Durmstrang.

Later on in 2024, the Ministry was dealt a heavy blow when the Head Auror, Scott Anderson, was murdered. Nicolas King was quickly brought in to take over the position and secure justice. King left the school in the capable hands of Cecily Zhefarovich with whom he'd led the school for some time. He immediately launched an investigation, which resulted in the chase, apprehension, and death of Thorine Dolohov after a duel to the death with the aurors.

Only a short while after Headmistress Zhefarovich had taken over, she decided to pursue another calling: motherhood. Roman Ivo would take over as Headmaster and quietly lead the school for several years. Eventually, he too would leave, and ex-Charms professor Gabriel Lloyd would take over as Headmaster.

While the school would run relatively smoothly with only the normal student dramas occurring, the same could not be said for the New Zealand Ministry. In 2028, another public appearance of death eater enthusiasts occurred. This appearance was even more quiet than the one that had occurred some years before. At about the same time, numerous sightings of wizards and witches in death eater masks appeared in various public locations across the wizarding world. Though the individuals did nothing but stand in silence, the event very nearly launched a panic in the wizarding community. The Scitorari threat that had been growing far from home had suddenly crept into the far reaches of the New Zealand wizarding community.

It wasn't long after that Gellert Coote made the decision to resign from his position as Minister of Magic so that he could live to enjoy the rest of his life. The election process for the new Minister was filled with the typical accusations being flung by each of the candidates. In the end, two candidates moved to the front of the pack. Seraphine Snow, a witch from a large and old line of purebloods was eventually named Minister of Magic. Thomas Hensel, a self-processed blood supremist, was named Deputy Minister of Magic, a decision that didn't sit well with much of the community but which proved that blood prejudice was still very much alive in New Zealand.

Ministry attention once again turned to the school when Headmaster Lloyd was informed that one of his professors had died in the school's forest at the hands of a centaur. What made this event worse was the admission by Deputy Headmaster Blaze that he was at the scene when it occurred. Soon after the death, it was revealed that Takuya Blaze had been working with the Head Auror though the details of their work remained a mystery. In light of the events, Gabriel Lloyd had no choice but to demote Blaze from his deputy Headmaster position. After serving as Hogwarts Headmaster for two years and following the wake of this event, Gabriel Lloyd left the school to spend more time with his family. It wasnt until a year after, in 2031, that Hogwarts New Zealand found its next lead, promoting Ava Davershire to the position of Headmistress. Takuya Blaze, who remained as a professor, would be re-promoted to the deputy Headmaster position before eventually leaving the school altogether to pursue other goals. Ava Davershire would appear in the news frequently, not only for her work at the school but for her relationship with the Head Auror and former HNZ Headmaster, Nicolas King.

After nearly a decade of being the Minister of Magic, Seraphine Hensel was forced to step aside to allow another to lead the country. The country had seen many changes take place, the worst of which was the rise of the Scitorari, a group that believed magic was not being used to its full potential because of limitations placed by the Ministry. Combating the Scitorari problem became a talking point for all of the Minister of Magic candidates, some politicians even going so far as to consider an Auror presence in the school. No such thing happened, though the school would see other changes namely Kingsleys departure as Deputy Headmistress and Elvera Le Feys promotion into the position. After a year of campaigning, a vote would put Cameron Kingsley of the Department of Mysteries in the position of Minister of Magic and Mikhail Matthias in the position of Deputy Minister.

Soon after the start of his tenure as Minister, Cameron Kingsley's stance on the Scitorari was tested as a tragedy rocked the wizarding community: Nicolas King, the Head Auror, was murdered just seconds after saying 'I do' to Hogwarts New Zealand Headmistress, Ava King. The killer, a member of the Scitorari, was immediately captured, just another face in the battle of evil versus good. Justice was swift as the Wizengamot unanimously sentenced the woman to a term of life imprisonment. Though the killer was caught, the New Zealand wizarding community was left feeling ill at ease, unconvinced of the ministry's ability to keep them safe even after a new Head Auror, Mason Talarico, was quickly named.

Shortly after, another scandal rocked the New Zealand community as an Auror investigation uncovered information indicating that a member of the Scitorari had run in the most recent Ministry election. With the discovery of her 'family,' a father and son she had been keeping under the effects of the Imperius Curse, Avory Brandt had nearly won the election, the consequences of which would have been devastating to the New Zealand community. At trial, the depth of her deception was made known and justice was quickly meted out.

The Scitorari would continue to capitalize on the wizarding community's lack of confidence in the Ministry by parading in Brightstone Village and Obsidian Harbour in March 2041. Their message was simple- the Ministry were liars- and the delivery was far-reaching, their message heard by students of the nearby school out for their Brighstone weekend and broadcast across wizarding media in the days and weeks to come. Though the Aurors did break up the event, no arrests were made.

It wouldn't be long before the Headmistress would be struck by tragedy once more, a student dying in the castle in March 2042 and then her eldest child murdered by another member of the Scitorari in June of the same year. With these blows, Ava King could no longer face the wizarding world, choosing to take what remained of her family and going into a self imposed seclusion. The Deputy Headmaster, Justin Cliffeton, would take over for the next school year, keeping the school running until a permanent replacement could be found. The trial for the killer was sensational, leading both to another imprisonment sentence for a member of the Scitorari and to the forced resignation of the Auror in charge of the investigation that led to the arrest. Citizens would question once more the ability of the Ministry to keep them safe even as the Auror department worked quietly to gain entrance to a Scitorari headquarter and walk away with what they hoped was evidence.

In 2044, a new Headmistress would come to the school, former Head of the Ministry's Experimental Charms department, Katherine Alicastell. Reform of the school was her goal. In an attempt to heal its broken image, the Ministry hosted its first annual Career Fair, an attempt to bring members of the Ministry, the community at large, and the students of the school together to discuss wizarding careers.

Terrible tragedy would strike the school soon after the Headmistress' arrival, a student dying in the lake. His death would rock the school for some time though the Headmistress did her best to both respect the loss and keep the students focused on their studies. Cliffeton would soon leave the castle, which would lead to the promotion of Monty Pendleton as deputy headmaster.

As Cameron Kingsley moved towards the end of his term as Minister, new citizens of New Zealand stepped forward for the position. Soon after, one was removed from contention and tried as a member of the Scitorari. In 2046, elections for the next Minister of Magic were finally held, culminating in a victory for Claudia Holland. Though not known until much later, another candidate was attacked by three members of the Scitorari just before election day, his memory destroyed in the attack. Along with the rest of the Wizengamot, Minister Holland declared them guilty and sentenced them to Azkaban for their crimes.

Minister Holland's efforts to promote better muggle and magical relations involved a muggle question and answer event. The event was well attended, but was not repeated. The school saw some changes during her tenure - Deputy Headmaster Monty Pendleton would step down from his position and leave the school and Slytherin Head of House, Kalif Styx, retired after more than thirty years of teaching. The remainder of Minister Holland's term as Minister would be a quiet one until its end when a series of events within the school led to a pair of students being expelled for breeding a Basilisk on school grounds, an action banned since Medieval times.

Minister Holland and the Wizengamot held a series of hearings, one for each of the students and one for Headmistress Alicastell, a Wizengamot member herself. Katherine would shortly after take leave from the school and then resign from her position. The students ended up being placed on house arrest, a consequence that left half the wizarding community believing they had been dealt with too harshly and the other half thinking they deserved far harsher punishment. The events within the school and their aftermath were the object of discussion in the wizarding community for some time, including during the campaigns for Minister of Magic that began shortly after.

The campaigns were less boisterous and more intimate than previous Minister of Magic campaigns, but in 2057, Victoire Fontaine became the next Minister of Magic with Rupert Cresswell earning the role of Deputy Minister. A new Headmaster, an internal hire, Matt Alcott-Ward would step in to commence the 2057 school year.
 
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