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He Who Must Be Named
Although He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named was notorious for being so feared that most were too scared to even say his name, for the 10th Anniversary of the Battle of Hogwarts it is finally time to put to rest this fear of a name. Known as Lord Voldemort during the peak of his power, many have never considered that he was not always known by this name. Prior to becoming the Dark Lord, Voldemort’s given name was Tom Marvolo Riddle. The name Tom Riddle belonged to his Muggle father, and Marvolo was the name of his maternal grandfather, a direct descendant of Salazar Slytherin. The name Marvolo can be derived from the Latin word “malvolio”. This name is very fitting as “malvolio” can be translated to “ill will”.
Tom Riddle was born on the 31st of December, 1926 at Wool’s Orphanage in London. Tom’s mother died shortly after his birth, and it was assumed by the Orphanage that she was a circus worker, although this was false. Raised by Muggles, he was ignorant of the magical world but was able to control his own magic from childhood. He used it to bully fellow orphans, and was also a known Parselmouth from a very young age. It is rumored that Tom once took two children with him to a remote cave during a picnic outing with the orphanage where they emerged traumatized, but neither of them ever spoke of what happened. It is evident that young Tom had already developed a very cruel nature. His father Tom Riddle Sr. was a Muggle who abandoned his mother Merope Gaunt shortly before her death. Merope is aptly named after one of the seven Pleiades from Greek mythology, who was shamed for marrying a mortal. The Gaunt family were proud descendants of Salazar Slytherin, and jealously guarded their Pure Blood status. They were known for their vanity, greed, and violence, traits that all seemed to have been passed down to their last heir, Tom Riddle.
Tom was sorted into Slytherin house once he arrived at Hogwarts, and resolved to become a model student. During his time at school he became Slytherin Prefect and later Head Boy. He gathered a group of like-minded peers and, though it could never be proven, they are thought to have committed several petty crimes. After discovering his ancestry, Tom was disgusted by his Muggle father and created an anagram to form his new name. By rearranging Tom Marvolo Riddle, the sentence “I am Lord Voldemort” can be spelled. The name Voldemort has a French background. In French, Voldemort translates to “Flight from Death.” Voldemort discovered Salazar Slytherin’s legendary Chamber of Secrets in Hogwarts Castle and, being the Heir of Slytherin, was able to tame the Basilisk within. He blamed the havoc he wreaked with the monster, including the murder of fellow student Myrtle Warren, on young Rubeus Hagrid, and even received a reward for services to the school. That same year he murdered his remaining family over the summer before returning to Hogwarts for his final year.
Voldemort’s rise to power began when he started gathering like-minded individuals who thought that wizards should come out of hiding and rule over the Muggle world. Calling themselves the Death Eaters, they began to gather the allegiances of Giants and Werewolves, both of which were marginalized groups at the time by the wizarding world. In the face of Voldemort obtaining power at an alarming rate, the Ministry of Magic’s Bartemius Crouch Senior issued a decree allowing Aurors to use Unforgivable Curses on all suspected Death Eaters without question. At the height of Voldemort’s conquest, a prophecy was given by Sybill Trelawney foreseeing his downfall by a child who was to be born at the end of July. Hunting down the subject of the prophecy, who he deemed to be none other than Harry Potter, Voldemort killed both James and Lily Potter. Due to Lily’s selfless sacrifice, when Riddle attempted to kill baby Harry the curse rebounded, destroying his body and ending the First Wizarding War.
Voldemort made his first reappearance in 1996 when attempting to murder Harry Potter in the Ministry of Magic. Foiled by Albus Dumbledore, he was unsuccessful and as a result his return became public knowledge. The Death Eaters won their first battle when Severus Snape killed Albus Dumbledore, one of Voldemort’s greatest threats. His next victory was when he managed to take over the Ministry and establish a totalitarian police state. Voldemort’s downfall began when he stole the Elder Wand from the tomb of Albus Dumbledore, which was bound to Harry Potter. Harry Potter, having destroyed most of Voldemort’s Horcruxes, sacrificed himself which destroyed one of the last remaining Horcruxes that was actually inside of himself. Like his mother had done for him, his sacrifice protected everyone he cared for. Under the protection Harry has granted them, Neville Longbottom was able to use the sword of Godric Gryffindor to kill Voldemort’s snake Nagini, the very last Horcrux. Voldemort, blinded with rage at the death of his lieutenant Bellatrix Lestrange and the loss of all seven of his Horcruxes, attempted to kill Harry once again but the Elder Wand would not kill its own master. The curse rebounded and killed Tom Riddle, ending the Second Wizarding War.
Dark wizards have always existed, and will continue to exist. For twenty years the world feared Gellert Grindelwald, thinking him to be the darkest, most dangerous wizard of all time. Tom Riddle grew up in the time of Grindelwald’s reign, and came to be who we now consider the most dangerous wizard in history, Lord Voldemort. In the spring of 1998, Grindelwald and Voldemort both perished once and for all. Today we celebrate a time of peace and harmony in the Wizarding World. Yet fear still exists, it still hides in people’s houses, forms in whispered tones, and as long as we do not allow fear to control us we will always have hope. So call him Grindelwald, and call him Voldemort, remember a darker past and look to a brighter future.
Tom Riddle was born on the 31st of December, 1926 at Wool’s Orphanage in London. Tom’s mother died shortly after his birth, and it was assumed by the Orphanage that she was a circus worker, although this was false. Raised by Muggles, he was ignorant of the magical world but was able to control his own magic from childhood. He used it to bully fellow orphans, and was also a known Parselmouth from a very young age. It is rumored that Tom once took two children with him to a remote cave during a picnic outing with the orphanage where they emerged traumatized, but neither of them ever spoke of what happened. It is evident that young Tom had already developed a very cruel nature. His father Tom Riddle Sr. was a Muggle who abandoned his mother Merope Gaunt shortly before her death. Merope is aptly named after one of the seven Pleiades from Greek mythology, who was shamed for marrying a mortal. The Gaunt family were proud descendants of Salazar Slytherin, and jealously guarded their Pure Blood status. They were known for their vanity, greed, and violence, traits that all seemed to have been passed down to their last heir, Tom Riddle.
Tom was sorted into Slytherin house once he arrived at Hogwarts, and resolved to become a model student. During his time at school he became Slytherin Prefect and later Head Boy. He gathered a group of like-minded peers and, though it could never be proven, they are thought to have committed several petty crimes. After discovering his ancestry, Tom was disgusted by his Muggle father and created an anagram to form his new name. By rearranging Tom Marvolo Riddle, the sentence “I am Lord Voldemort” can be spelled. The name Voldemort has a French background. In French, Voldemort translates to “Flight from Death.” Voldemort discovered Salazar Slytherin’s legendary Chamber of Secrets in Hogwarts Castle and, being the Heir of Slytherin, was able to tame the Basilisk within. He blamed the havoc he wreaked with the monster, including the murder of fellow student Myrtle Warren, on young Rubeus Hagrid, and even received a reward for services to the school. That same year he murdered his remaining family over the summer before returning to Hogwarts for his final year.
Voldemort’s rise to power began when he started gathering like-minded individuals who thought that wizards should come out of hiding and rule over the Muggle world. Calling themselves the Death Eaters, they began to gather the allegiances of Giants and Werewolves, both of which were marginalized groups at the time by the wizarding world. In the face of Voldemort obtaining power at an alarming rate, the Ministry of Magic’s Bartemius Crouch Senior issued a decree allowing Aurors to use Unforgivable Curses on all suspected Death Eaters without question. At the height of Voldemort’s conquest, a prophecy was given by Sybill Trelawney foreseeing his downfall by a child who was to be born at the end of July. Hunting down the subject of the prophecy, who he deemed to be none other than Harry Potter, Voldemort killed both James and Lily Potter. Due to Lily’s selfless sacrifice, when Riddle attempted to kill baby Harry the curse rebounded, destroying his body and ending the First Wizarding War.
Voldemort made his first reappearance in 1996 when attempting to murder Harry Potter in the Ministry of Magic. Foiled by Albus Dumbledore, he was unsuccessful and as a result his return became public knowledge. The Death Eaters won their first battle when Severus Snape killed Albus Dumbledore, one of Voldemort’s greatest threats. His next victory was when he managed to take over the Ministry and establish a totalitarian police state. Voldemort’s downfall began when he stole the Elder Wand from the tomb of Albus Dumbledore, which was bound to Harry Potter. Harry Potter, having destroyed most of Voldemort’s Horcruxes, sacrificed himself which destroyed one of the last remaining Horcruxes that was actually inside of himself. Like his mother had done for him, his sacrifice protected everyone he cared for. Under the protection Harry has granted them, Neville Longbottom was able to use the sword of Godric Gryffindor to kill Voldemort’s snake Nagini, the very last Horcrux. Voldemort, blinded with rage at the death of his lieutenant Bellatrix Lestrange and the loss of all seven of his Horcruxes, attempted to kill Harry once again but the Elder Wand would not kill its own master. The curse rebounded and killed Tom Riddle, ending the Second Wizarding War.
Dark wizards have always existed, and will continue to exist. For twenty years the world feared Gellert Grindelwald, thinking him to be the darkest, most dangerous wizard of all time. Tom Riddle grew up in the time of Grindelwald’s reign, and came to be who we now consider the most dangerous wizard in history, Lord Voldemort. In the spring of 1998, Grindelwald and Voldemort both perished once and for all. Today we celebrate a time of peace and harmony in the Wizarding World. Yet fear still exists, it still hides in people’s houses, forms in whispered tones, and as long as we do not allow fear to control us we will always have hope. So call him Grindelwald, and call him Voldemort, remember a darker past and look to a brighter future.