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Albania is a country in southeastern Europe. It borders Greece, Macedonia and Montenegro.

Magical History

When Rowena Ravenclaw's daughter, Helena, stole her mother's diadem, she hid it in an Albanian forest. It remained hidden for several centuries, until Tom Marvolo Riddle discovered that Helena was the Grey Lady, the House Ghost of Ravenclaw, and managed to get the information about its resting place from her. He recovered it, and turned it into one of his Horcruxes.^[1]

Following his downfall in 1981, Tom Riddle, now known as Lord Voldemort, fled to Albania in his weakened state. In 1991, he encountered Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry's Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, Professor Quirrell, who was looking for him, so that he could at the very least try to capture him or at best learn from him. Voldemort twisted his mind and subjugated him to his will, allowing him to return to Hogwarts in Scotland.^[2]

Following his failed attempt to steal the Philosopher's Stone, Voldemort returned to Albania, where he was discovered by his former servant, Peter Pettigrew in 1994. Voldemort also broke the mind of Bertha Jorkins in Albania after she ran into Pettigrew at a wayside inn, learning of the Triwizard Tournament and setting into motion a plan to kill Harry Potter and return to full vitality.^[3]