BEASTS (III) - CENTAURS, HIPPOGRIFFS & THESTRALS

Firenze, The Centaur

Today, The Stones and The Grandma have met some magical creatures that live in Hogwarts or near there, in the Forbidden Forest. They are centaurs, hippogriffs and thestrals and they have helped to protect Hogwarts many times.

A Centaur is a magical creature whose head, torso, and arms appear to be human and are joined to a horse's body.

They are, however, their own individual species, and thus are not half-breeds. They also have a rich history and are known for being naturally talented in Healing magic, Divination and Astronomy. Despite possessing human intelligence, centaurs are classified as Beasts by the British Ministry of Magic, at their own request, as they were unhappy at having to share Being status with Hags and Vampires, known dark creatures.

Like horses, centaurs can come in a variety of colours, ranging from deep black to white. A centaur by the name of Firenze had white-blonde hair, a body light in colour, and possessed astonishingly blue eyes. Magorian on the other hand possessed black hair and was chestnut in colour. Centaurs have the body of a horse, and the torso, arms, and head of a human. Also Lavender Brown and Parvati Patil found the centaur Firenze physically attractive.

More information: Wizarding World

Centaurs are not in fact half-breeds, but an entirely different species on their own. They are not very pleased to be insulted, particularly where their lineage is concerned, as Dolores Umbridge found out to her cost.

Centaurs are also natural born Seers, in particular the Centaur Firenze who taught alongside Sybill Trelawney in Divination class at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

Centaurs are known to be gifted in Divination. Indeed, the centaurs of the Forbidden Forest regularly made vague allusions to seeing the future, as when the centaur Firenze told Harry Potter that they were fated to meet again, and when he and Bane spoke of the intermission of sorts, between the First and Second Wizarding Wars. He also mentioned to his class at Hogwarts, that centaurs spend years trying to master their particular art of divining the fates.

The Centaurs

Centaurs on the whole seem also to be rather proud of their species, which was evident in their testiness whenever anyone even accidentally alluded to them being used or in any way employed by humankind, as when Firenze was chastised for allowing Harry Potter to ride to safety on his back, after the young wizard encountered Lord Voldemort in the Forbidden Forest -his fellow centaurs considered allowing such a thing tantamount to becoming a 'common' mule.

They attempted to murder Firenze for his decision to enter into human servitude, which was seen as a great and base betrayal. Centaurs also decided to be placed in the Beast Division instead of the Being Division in the British Ministry of Magic archives, because they wished to not be associated with hags and vampires, whom the Ministry designates Beings.

Centaurs also seem to favour nature over technology, the extent of their tools visibly in use being their bows and arrows. Instead, they cast their attention upon reading signs in nature, and living in forests appropriated by the Ministry of Magic.

They are territorial creatures by nature, as Rubeus Hagrid mentioned, upon seeing a herd of centaurs in the Forbidden Forest, whose land was being consistently reduced, and that they might revolt against the Ministry as a result. 

Later the same year, they proclaimed that even Rubeus Hagrid was no longer welcome within their forest, as he had forfeited the friendship of the centaurs, and that their tolerance was waning, in reference to Rubeus Hagrid's half-brother, Grawp, whom Hagrid was hiding in the forest at the time.

More information: Greeks Legends & Myths

Centaurs do have a sense of honour, being unwilling to harm the young, as the herd within the Forbidden Forest refused to harm Rubeus Hagrid due to the young Harry Potter and Hermione Granger accompanying him at the time. However, this patience and generosity can wane, as later they saw Harry and Hermione deliberately lead Dolores Umbridge into the forest to use the centaurs to eliminate her; this, along the fact that both teenagers are nearing their adulthood, led the herd to attempt to attack the two.

Centaurs do not use wands for magic, but are known to be well-versed in magical healing, Divination, archery, and Astronomy.

Centaurs burn herbs such as mallowsweet and sage to refine their stargazing findings. In fact, the centaur Firenze taught Divination at Hogwarts. They also can perform non-verbal magic while duelling, as shown when Torvus duelled against Jacob's sibling without a wand or an arrow.

Centaurs are forest-dwelling, and, in each country where colonies exist, the wizarding authority has set aside land exclusively for their use. One such colony exists in the Forbidden Forest, at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. However, centaurs have their own methods of concealment and avoid contact with both wizards and witches and Muggles, as they are not fans of humans. They generally live in herds of ten to fifty individuals.

The Centaurs

Starting in 1811, centaurs were offered Being status, when Grogan Stump decreed that a being was any creature that has sufficient intelligence to understand the laws of the magical community and to bear part of the responsibility in shaping those laws. However, they declined because of the associations with other creatures, such as vampires and hags, that being status would give them. The merpeople made the same decision a year later. Subject teaching material thus notes on why they are classed as Beasts and that they should be treated with great respect.

Despite being highly intelligent creatures, centaurs were still officially classified as of near-human intelligence by the Ministry of Magic, per the text of Law Fifteen B, as laid down by the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. Centaurs take this phrase to be a great insult, as Dolores Umbridge found out the hard way, as they find that their intelligence, thankfully, far outstrips humans.

A Centaur Liaison Office still exists in the Ministry of Magic's Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, though no centaur has ever used it. In fact, the phrase Being sent to the Centaur Office has become an in-joke at the Ministry, meaning that the person in question is about to be sacked. A centaur was also represented in the Fountain of Magical Brethren at the Ministry of Magic, at least before the fountain's destruction during the battle between Albus Dumbledore and Lord Voldemort.

Centaurs have also been known to save wizards from harm, one instance being Firenze saving Harry Potter, when Lord Voldemort was in the forest, though this was highly looked down upon as centaurs were not supposed to interfere with what is to come.

When Harry Potter and Hermione Granger ended up leading Dolores Umbridge into the Forbidden Forest, a group of centaurs appeared with some of them carrying off Dolores while the rest were scared away by Grawp in an event known as the Skirmish in the Forbidden Forest. It was mentioned that Albus Dumbledore negotiated for Dolores' release when he was rehired by the Ministry of Magic.

The centaur herd in the Forbidden Forest also fought against the Death Eaters in the Battle of Hogwarts.

More information: Greek Mythology

 Forest-dwellers who have the torso

of a human but the body of a horse,

and who are gifted in Divination.

J.K. Rowling

A Hippogriff was a magical beast that had the front legs, wings, and head of a giant eagle and the body, hind legs and tail of a horse. It was very similar to another magical creature, the Griffin, with the horse rear replacing the lion rear.

The breeding of fancy Hippogriffs was an established wizarding career, with known breeders including Newton Scamander's mother. Images of fancy Hippogriffs were sometimes put onto calendars.

A hippogriff was one rare possible corporeal form of the Patronus Charm.

Hippogriffs had the bodies, hind legs, and tails of horses, but the front legs, wings, and heads of giant eagles, with cruel, steel-coloured beaks and large, brilliantly orange eyes. The talons on their front legs were half a foot long and deadly-looking.

The Hippogriff

Hippogriffs were carnivorous and were extremely dangerous until tamed, which should only be attempted by a trained witch or wizard.

The diet of the Hippogriff consisted mainly of insects, birds, and small mammals such as ferrets. They would sometimes paw at the ground for worms if no other food was readily available.

When breeding, Hippogriffs built nests on the ground, and laid only a single, fragile egg. The egg usually hatched in twenty-four hours. Infant Hippogriffs were capable of flight within a week, but it took many months before they were strong enough to accompany their parents on long journeys.

It was stated that, once you get over the initial shock of seeing something that's half horse, half bird, you start to appreciate the hippogriffs' gleaming coats, which changed smoothly from feathers to hair. Hippogriffs came in several different colours, including: stormy grey, bronze, pinkish roan, gleaming chestnut, and inky black.

When Humans approach Hippogriffs, a proper etiquette must be maintained to avoid danger. Hippogriffs were intensely proud creatures, and an individual must show proper respect by bowing to them, and waiting for them to bow in return before approaching. Eye contact should be maintained at all times, without a single blink.

More information: All You Need to Know about The Hippogriff

The Hippogriff should be allowed to make the first move, as that was polite. If offended, it might attack. Hippogriffs were tamable, but only by experts in their care, such as Rubeus Hagrid, Care of Magical Creatures Professor and Gamekeeper at Hogwarts.

Although proud, Hippogriffs could also be fiercely loyal and protective of those who had earned their trust, as demonstrated by Buckbeak on at least two occasions: when he attacked Severus Snape in defence of Harry Potter during the Battle of the Astronomy Tower, and again when he led Hogwarts' Thestrals in attacking Lord Voldemort's giants during the Battle of Hogwarts.

Buckbeak, The Hippogriff & Harry Potter

Owners of Hippogriffs were required by law to cast a Disillusionment Charm on the creature every day to prevent it from being seen by Muggles.

Using Hippogriffs for personal transportation was also illegal under the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy. A herd of Hippogriffs were kept at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and Rubeus Hagrid used them in his first Care of Magical Creatures class.

During the Yule Ball at Hogwarts, Hippogriffs were mentioned in the Weird Sisters song, Do The Hippogriff. The song encouraged listeners to do a dance that drew its inspiration from this creature, flyin' off from a cliff and swooping down to the ground...

In the winter, Sirius Black sang a Christmas Carol, God Rest Ye, Merry Hippogriffs.

A Hippogriff was discovered by Mathilda Grimblehawk and her partner to have attacked Gordon Horton, Quidditch keeper for the Chudley Cannons, while defending its nest and young in the Old Bell Tower. It was subsequently relocated.

Derived from the Greek word hippos meaning horse, and the magical creature known as the griffin. In this case, it has the body of a horse as opposed to a lion, but keeps the head of an eagle.

More information: Meet Buckbeak

 Now, firs' thing yeh gotta know abou' hippogriffs is, they're proud. Easily offended, hippogriffs are.

Don't never insult one, 'cause it might be the last thing yeh do.

Yeh always wait fer the hippogriff ter make the firs' move.

It's polite, see? Yeh walk towards him, and yeh bow, an' yeh wait.

If he bows back, yeh're allowed to touch him.

If he doesn' bow, then get away from him sharpish,

'cause those talons hurt.

Rubeus Hagrid

The Thestral is a breed of winged horse with a skeletal body, face with reptilian features, and wide, leathery wings that resemble a bat's.

They are native to the British Isles and Ireland, though they have been spotted in parts of France and the Iberian Peninsula.

They are very rare, and are considered dangerous by the British Ministry of Magic. Thestrals are, undeservedly, known as omens of misfortune and aggression by many wizards because they are visible only to those who have witnessed death at least once or due to their somewhat grim, gaunt and ghostly appearance.

Due to Thestrals' classification as XXXX, only experienced wizards should try to handle Thestrals. Breeding as well as owning these beasts may be discouraged or even illegal without Ministry consent; in fact, wizards that live in areas not protected against Muggles are forced by law to perform Disillusionment Charms on their Thestrals regularly.

A Thestral is also one possible corporeal form of the Patronus Charm.

Luna Lovegood & The Thestral

Thestrals have quite a disturbing appearance and the wizards who are capable of seeing them often only describe these creatures as being sinister and spooky. This is because they are seen as having big, bony figures and their dragon-like faces which bear white, glittering eyes that lack both expression and pupils. 

Additionally, they are lured by the scent of blood. Being a type of winged horse, most of their anatomy is identical to a horse, excluding their large wings that sprout from their back. Unlike the Abraxan, another breed of winged horses, Thestral's wings do not possess any feathers at all; they have vast, black and leathery wings that are more similar to those of bats.

Their fleshless, lustrous bodies are covered with a translucent and glossy coat. This smooth and dark skin is a bit slippery and so thin that Thestral's bones are clearly defined through the entire extension of their sleek bodies. These eerie horses have long black manes, as well as a large tail, either with flowing black hair, like horses or ending in a tuft, like zebras. Another distinction is their sharp fangs used to seize and slash their prey.

Thestrals are social creatures who live in herds. Professor Rubeus Hagrid states that they are dead clever. In fact trained Thestrals are smart enough to understand their rider's words when they ask to travel to a specific location.

More information: Wizarding World

These magical creatures can be found in dark environments and the forest is their natural habitat. They communicate with each other through a shrill and strange shriek that resembles some sort of monstrous bird. They appear to be loyal creatures, able to discern a friend from an enemy and offering help to humans in need of transportation.

Thestrals would forcefully attack anyone or anything they see as a threat and in the unusual case of domesticated Thestrals, any enemy of its owners.  

Thestrals are not marks of ill omen, nor their spooky appearance notwithstanding are they in any way threatening to humans, always allowing for the fright that the first sight of them tends to give the observer.

The Thestral

In the Battle of Hogwarts, Hogwarts' trained flock of Thestrals cooperated with Buckbeak, the Hippogriff, to attack the Giants fighting for Lord Voldemort. It's unclear whether or not wild herds can similarly cooperate with other species.

Thestrals are carnivorous animals and are attracted to the smell of blood. Professor Wilhelmina Grubbly-Plank mentions that they often attack birds. This indicates that, naturally, they hunt not only for food in the ground, but also to pursue flying prey.

The Thestrals that live within the Hogwarts grounds, in the Forbidden Forest, are properly fed and well trained. They don't attack other creatures or students unless seriously disturbed.

The Thestral tail hair is a powerful and tricky substance that can be mastered only by a witch or wizard capable of facing death. It should be noted that this substance can be used as a core in a wand's conception and it was used to create the most powerful wand known by wizards, the Elder Wand.

The most well-known ability of these beasts is their invisibility to those who have not seen death. In other words, they are only visible to people who have seen someone dying and fully accepted, understood and internalised the concept.

Thestrals have an extraordinary sense of smell and will easily recognise the smell of blood and fresh flesh, even if the source of the scent is rather distanced.

More information: Screen Rant

They also have quite a useful sense of direction. The Thestral can understand exactly where their riders need to go. If their riders have a certain destination in mind, they only need to say the destination and the creature will diligently carry them to the intended location -much like owls do with letters.

These gentle, winged beasts are very capable and fast fliers and can travel long distances hardly beating their large wings. For example, six members of the Hogwarts herd ridden by Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, Ron Weasley, Ginny Weasley, Neville Longbottom, Luna Lovegood were capable of flying from Hogwarts (Scotland) to the Ministry of Magic (London) in a brief amount of time.

It is possible that they were faster than even the fastest broomstick, as when Harry Potter rode his, he did not think he had ever moved so fast, and he was the owner of a top-of-the-line broomstick, the Firebolt. Their powerful wings are capable of lifting, at least, the burden of two humans plus their own weight.

Harry Potter, Luna Lovegood & The Thestral

Thestrals can be domesticated and mounted, so they are used as an alternative to brooms, Apparition, and other methods of transportation. Once trained, they are very diligent and will quickly carry their owners wherever they wish to go.

However, travel by Thestral is technically illegal, as it is a breach of the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy. Even with all their useful abilities, Thestrals are rarely used as methods of transportation due to their reputation as omens of evil and their somewhat dreadful and even distasteful appearance.

When riding a Thestral, the traveller usually holds the creature's mane to ensure balance. To aid the mounting, the wizards also place their legs behind the wing joints to provide safety.

Flying on the back of a Thestral during a long journey is frequently an unpleasant experience, particularly to those who dare riding them without seeing the creature. The high speed flight on an invisible steed can be terrifying. The wind will, eventually, cause a temporary deafness and will force the riders to close their eyes. It is often difficult to keep balance on their slick backs.

The Hogwarts herd is gentle towards humans, they react satisfactorily to caresses and avoid attacking owls. However, taking into consideration the Ministry of Magic classification as dangerous, this behaviour may be exclusive to well-trained Thestrals, or just mere prejudice from the Ministry.

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry has a very loyal flock of Thestrals used mainly to pull the carriages that lead elder students from Hogsmeade station to the gates of the Castle.

To people who cannot see Thestrals, it appears that the carriages are autonomous.

The herd at Hogwarts started with a male and five females. A number of them have been born since, beginning with one named Tenebrus, which is a special favourite of Rubeus Hagrid's, the Hogwarts gamekeeper.

Harry Potter and a group of students flew Thestrals from Hogwarts to the Ministry of Magic in an attempt to rescue Sirius Black. They were also used by Albus Dumbledore, when he needed to travel but didn't care to Apparate.

Rubeus Hagrid, the trainer and breeder of this specific herd, strongly suspects that this is the only trained large group of Thestrals in the whole of Great Britain.

The name thestral comes from the archaic English word thester, meaning dark or gloomy, and the suffix -al, meaning of or pertaining to. Together, the name ultimately means of/pertaining to the dark or to gloom.

More information: Thestrals

But they're really, really unlucky!

They're supposed to bring all sorts of horrible misfortune

on people who see them.

Wizarding superstition