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Hidden in the Scottish Highlands lies the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
Here, young students train their magical abilities, learning Charms, Potions, and the art of Divination,
among many other topics.
Across the centuries, hundreds of thousands of pupils have roamed through its halls, until
the air within is as much alive with a sense of tradition as any form of magic.
In Hogwarts, the student body is separated into four Houses, each representing the tenants
of one of the school's original founding members.
While this helps maintain order and discipline, it also imparts a feeling of identity and
camaraderie.
It is never certain which House a student will be sorted into, but for those students
who are brave at heart, who display daring, nerve, and chivalry, it would be no surprise
were they to find themselves in the House of Gryffindor.
Gryffindor is the lasting namesake of Godric Gryffindor, who, together with the three other
founders of Hogwarts, established their respective Houses in 990.
The traditional sigil of House Gryffindor is the roaring lion, emblazoned in the royal
colors of scarlet and gold.
Godric himself was said to have resembled a lion in both appearance and personality
and today it serves to inspire the students of the House to display the same characteristics
he valued.
While the House emphasizes courage above all, this can also present itself in displays of
recklessness, self-righteousness, and arrogance.
The challenge to navigate the subtleties of this core value is at the heart of the House
itself and It is said that the Sword of Gryffindor shall appear to whichever student deserves
it most.
This Goblin-made sword is fashioned from pure silver and emblazoned with enormous rubies.
In the eras since Godric disappeared into the mists of history, order and discipline
has been maintained within the House by the Head of Gryffindor, a professor who had belonged
to that house during their own years in school.
Appointed by the Headmaster, the Head of Gryffindor is then responsible for punishing rule breaking
students and appointing a Head Boy or Girl alongside various Prefects to enforce their
rules in their absence.
This ensures that both the rules of Hogwarts and the House itself are adhered to at all
hours and that professors can maintain close attention to their charges without neglecting
their teaching duties.
Like other houses, Gryffindor maintains a portion of Hogwarts for it’s sole use, in
this case Gryffindor Tower.
The portrait of the Fat Lady is responsible for its protection and she changes the password
weekly, or even daily if the school is threatened.
Many of these passwords are complex and difficult to remember and any unlucky student who loses
track might find themselves locked outside.
Within lies the elaborate Gryffindor Common Room with its roaring fireplace and gold chandeliers,
as well as various dormitories with four poster beds.
All are adorned with the colors of Gryffindor and feature portraits of the House’s most
famous alumni.
Gryffindor has been responsible for the training of many famous witches and wizards over the
centuries, including Albus Dumbledore, one of the most beloved Headmasters in the school’s
long history and the man responsible for capturing the Dark Wizard Gellert Grindlewald, Sir Nicholas
de Mimsy-Porpington, who later became the House’s ghost-in-residence, and the Boy
Who Lived, Harry Potter.
These people have embodied what Godric Gryffindor thought were the most important qualities
and have gone on to prove the necessity of his values.
Through the actions of these Gryffindor members, the entire house has gained a favorable reputation
within the international wizarding community.
The most notable exception is House Slytherin, which has developed a fierce rivalry with
Gryffindor echoing that of their two founders.
In both the competition for the Hogwarts House Cup and on the grounds of the Quidditch field
the antagonism between the two houses has endured.
This rivalry, and a thousand other traditions within Hogwarts has come to define the entire
school.
Every year, as new students enter this magical place for the first time and are sorted into
their houses, many will carry with them the memory of famous witches and wizards and hope
that through luck, design, or fate, they too will enter the House of Gryffindor.
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