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Evangeline Orpington was a British witch who served as the seventeenth Minister for Magic of the British Ministry of Magic, in office from 1849 to 1855.

She was a celebrated politician and is remembered for being the one who first thought of creating a concealed platform at King's Cross Station, to house the Hogwarts Express.[3]

Biography[]

Early life[]

Evangeline Orpington was born no later than 1832 into the Orpington wizarding family.[1] In her younger years, she purchased her wand, made of poplar wood, from Ollivanders Wand Shop in Diagon Alley.[2]

Garrick Ollivander, the famous wandmaker, went on to write that the "tired old joke" among lesser wandmakers that no poplar wand had ever chosen a politician was utterly unsubstantiated, given that two of the most accomplished Ministers for Magic had fine, Ollivander-made poplar wands: Evangeline Orpington and Eldritch Diggory.[2]

Later life[]

Platform Nine and Three-Quarters barrier entry

The concealed entrance to Platform 9¾

Ms Orpington was appointed Minister for Magic in 1849.[3] She was elected Minister at least once.

When one of her predecessors, Ottaline Gambol, authorised an operation to acquire the Hogwarts Express, the Ministry had seen fit to build a railway station at Hogsmeade. The Ministry was not so keen, however, on building another station, in plain sight, in Muggle London, as it would be in all likelihood a serious breach of the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy.[3]

King's Cross Station was opened in 1852,[4] during Orpington's time in office. It was only after its opening that the Minister hit upon the idea of adding a concealed platform at King's Cross Station that could only be accessed by witches and wizards: Platform Nine and Three-Quarters.[3]

Minister Orpington was also good friends with Queen Victoria, who never realised that she was a witch or Minister for Magic. She was also believed to have illegally intervened magically in the Crimean War.[5]

Minister Orpington left the office in 1855, to be regarded as one of the most accomplished Ministers in British history.[5]

Appearances[]

Notes and references[]


Minister for Magic of Great Britain
Ministers for Magic
MinistryOfMagicLogo - Cursed Child
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