Hey everyone,
Welcome to another installment of Harry Potter Theory. In this video, we’re going to be
discussing one of if not THE most powerful wizard to have ever lived - Merlin. You’ve
probably heard of Merlin before, and if not, I’m sure you’ve at least heard the expression
‘Merlin’s Beard’ which is commonly used by Dumbledore and expresses surprise.
Merlin is a particularly interesting character because he didn’t only exist in Harry Potter
folklore, he existed in our folklore as well. We see this same sort of thing with Nicholas
Flamel. However, it should be mentioned that there are a few differences between the two
Merlins. The Merlin from our own folklore was a legendary figure known across the lands
as a prominent enchanter and wizard- he was most notably featured in Arthurian legend,
but was also a prominent figure in medieval Welsh poetry. The concept of ‘Merlin’
that we’re most familiar with first appears in Geoffrey of Monmouth’s famous work entitled:
Historia Regum Britanniae. The book was first published in 1136 and is essentially a pseudo-historical
account of British history- following the lives of the Kings of Briton over the millennia.
Merlin was created when Geoffrey combined two prominent historical figures - Myrddin
Wyltt, A north Brythonic prophet, and Ambrosius Aurelianus, a Romano-British war leader.
However, The story that we most commonly associate with Merlin in our own culture is the story
of King Arthur, and the knights of the round table. The story, which has been subject to
copious adaptations over the years, tells the tales of King Arthur, his court, his kingdom,
and his most trustworthy men. The Knights of the Round Table were a sub-order of the
Knights of Camelot created by Arthur Pendragon, and they helped him with whatever quarrels
he had to deal with. In one story, even helping him to combat his sister, Morgana Pendragon,
and her attempts to conquer Camelot. In the realm of this universes ‘Merlin’, he is
a powerful sorcerer, and the trusted and wise advisor of Arthur.
However, what is most interesting about Merlin is that he’s such an enigmatic figure. He’s
the subject of much discussion, widely because his existence has been adapted in so many
ways, and slotted in to so many different stories. There’s a certain allure about
Merlin, because he’s this figure that’s supposedly immensely wise and powerful, but
there’s still so much that is unknown about him. The fact that he appears in so many different
tales, myths and legends only adds to this mystique.
I mean, he even ended up in Harry Potter. And though Merlin isn’t explicitly mentioned
much in Harry Potter, he does pop up here and there. He’s the reason that the phrase
‘Merlins beard’ exists (as I mentioned earlier), he’s on a Hogwarts portrait, he’s
on a Chocolate Frog Card, and he’s even the founder of an organization called ‘The
Order of Merlin’.
It has been expressed that The ‘Order of Merlin’ was founded by Merlin during the
middle ages, created with the goal of promoting laws to protect and benefit muggles. While
it was once an organization, it later became an award, honouring impressive accomplishment
or good deeds. There are three different levels of the award: First Class, Second Class, and
Third Class.
The three levels of the award can be distinguished by the colour of the ribbon which holds up
a large golden medal. First class was awarded for "acts of outstanding bravery or distinction"
in magic, and was represented by a green ribbon. Second class was awarded for "achievement
or endeavour beyond the ordinary." and was represented by a purple ribbon, and Third
Class was awarded for “contributions to knowledge or entertainment’ and was represented
by a white ribbon.
Being a recipient of the Order of Merlin was a huge honour, and can be compared to being
knighted in our own world. Albus Dumbledore was the recipient of this award after his
prominent defeat of Gellert Grindelwald in 1945.
Merlin was a strong believer that the muggle and wizarding worlds should co-exist, and
founded the original organization in an effort to help alleviate any complications associated
with the coalescence of the two worlds. In the middle ages especially there was a lot
of conflict between muggles and wizards. The wizarding world was essentially wide open,
and muggles knew that witches and wizards walked among them. However, rather than embracing
them for their magical abilities, muggles were exceedingly harsh when it came to dealing
with magical folk. They treated them like freaks- like spawn of the devil, and hunted
them down in purges called ‘witch-hunts’. What this tells me about Merlin’s character
is that he was particularly pure of heart, as he was able to take the moral high ground
and still consider the greater good of the world, when his own people were being persecuted.
The secondary goal of Merlin’s organization was to create laws and legislation surrounding
the use of magic on muggles. I think that this was definitely a step in the right direction,
but unfortunately, the conflict between muggles and wizardkind proved too difficult to manage,
as the worlds eventually needed to separate entirely for balance to be found. The wizarding
world, which had a much smaller population, had to retreat into the shadows- creating
their own new world with the use of concealment charms.
Though the exact year is not specified, we know that the Merlin from the Harry Potter
universe was born sometime in the medieval era- a period in history ranging from the
fifth century to fifteenth century. This is quite a broad range of dates, but fortunately,
given the fact that we know he attended Hogwarts, we can narrow this down a bit more. Some sources
indicate that Merlin was born in 982 AD which would make him one of the very first students
at Hogwarts. Hogwarts school of witchcraft and wizardry was founded in the year 990 AD,
which would mean that Merlin attended the school just a few years after it opened its
doors. When he started at the school, he was sorted in to Slytherin, so IF Merlin attended
the school during this period, then it would also mean that he would have been directly
taught by founder Salazar Slytherin. Other sources speculate that he was a student sometime
between the 11th and 15th century, however I am inclined to lean towards the former theory
because I think that some of Merlin’s power could be attributed to him having a teacher
as powerful as Salazar Slytherin. However, based on Merlin’s perspective on muggle/wizarding
relations, I don’t expect that Salazar rubbed off on him TOO much. A birth year of 982 would
also likely be more consistent with Arthurian legend, as those stories took place in the
11th/12th century, and Merlin was already quite old and wise. No one knows exactly how
Merlin was born, or who his parents were, but there are some theories, and I’m going
to share the one that seems to be most consistent with Arthurian Legend:
“Legend has it that Merlin was the son of a noble woman and an incubus or demon. Some
versions of the tale portray her as the daughter of the King of Northumberland. Shortly after
Merlin’s birth, the little one was baptized and cleansed of his demonic inheritance. A
paradoxical figure, he embodies an encounter between good and evil: a kindly servant endowed
by his father with supernatural powers.”
However, as we’ve seen, there are a lot of differences between the Merlin of Arthurian
legend, and the Merlin in the Harry Potter universe, so this could potentially be all
wrong. While attending the school, Merlin proved to be an exceptionally gifted wizard,
particularly in the realm of charms, earning his title of ‘The Prince of Enchanters’.
This is supported by Merlin’s very own chocolate frog card, which was created to immortalize
him after his demise:
"Medieval, dates unknown. Most famous wizard of all time. Sometimes known as the Prince
of Enchanters. Part of the Court of King Arthur."
Merlin is also the source of much pride for Slytherin house, as they were the house that
produced perhaps the most powerful, and definitely the most famous wizard in history. While attending
the school, Merlin studied the Cursed Vaults of Hogwarts in great detail- five legendary
rooms hidden inside Hogwarts walls that housed priceless treasures and powerful magical artefacts.
Before his death, Merlin further immortalized himself by painting his own portrait, then
enchanting it and hanging it on the wall of the school. His portrait would then serve
to inform people about the cursed vaults-however, his messages were cryptic and hard to understand.
The only character that we’ve seen that we know Merlin to have definitively interacted
with was Sir Cadogan- who was a fellow wizard and knight of the round table. Like Merlin,
Sir Cadogan’s portrait hangs on the walls of Hogwarts, and his particular portrait can
be found at the end of the Divination corridor. Cadogan might just be the closest connection
we have to the enigma that is Merlin.
Many speculate that Merlin was the most powerful wizard of all time, no questions asked, and
I think that there’s certainly an argument here. His title of ‘the prince of enchanters’
tells us right away that he was more versed in charms magic than anyone else, and charms
are one of the most difficult forms of magic to master. He was also a master of wandless
magic, though he did have a wand, and he even created a number of the spells that witches
and wizards commonly use today. Expelliarmus, have you heard of it? That was Merlin.
Merlin is such an interesting figure- the most powerful and famous wizard to have ever
lived, yet, we still don’t know so much about him. Who were his primary adversaries?
Did he know Raczidian or Ekrizdis? How did he achieve such high levels of power? Who
were his parents? Was he a pure-blood, half-blood, muggle-born? We just don’t know, and I think
that these are the things that make his character so compelling.
What do you guys know about Merlin? There are so many different stories and myths and
tales that speak of him, I know I’ve only scratched the surface. Do me a favour and
comment down below what YOU know about Merlin so that I can learn a little bit more myself.
Until next time
YER A WIZARD ARRY