A Captain, or Quidditch Captain at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry was a student and member of a House Quidditch Team who was appointed to be in charge of his or her House team.
Oliver Wood, Gryffindor captain
Head of Houses appoint one member of their House Quidditch Team to be the Captain. The student would continue to be Captain until he or she graduates.
It is unknown whether there is an age requirement for choosing Captains (as Prefects are chosen only from the fifth year students of each house), but as Harry Potter was appointed Captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch team in his Sixth Year, and Oliver Wood was appointed Captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch team in his Fifth Year, an age requirement might not have existed. However, it is possible that Quidditch Captains are only chosen from House Quidditch Team members who are Fifth Year students (or possibly Fourth, Third, or Second Year) or older. However, Fred and George Weasley said that they knew Oliver Wood's speech by heart, but this might only mean that Oliver gave pep talks to the team before the games and or practices. It is also proven that Quidditch Captains are not chosen from the oldest member of the team, as shown in the case of Harry Potter. Harry Potter was made Quidditch Captain in his 6th year, while a member of his team, Katie Bell, was a year older than him.
Only one Quidditch Captain exists in a House at a time (Unlike Prefects, as one boy and one girl are chosen from the Fifth Year, and remain as Prefects in their Sixth and Seventh Year, there are approximately six Prefects per house).
Badge
Oliver Wood with his Captain's badge on his uniform
Like Prefects, Captains are given a silver badge to wear on their school uniform, and on their Quidditch Robes when they are playing in a match or practicing. However, a Prefect in the Quidditch Team would not be required to wear his or her Prefect badge on his or her Quidditch Robes when playing or practicing Quidditch. The Captain's badge is suspected to have the letter 'C' on it for 'Captain', as the Prefect's badge has 'P' for 'Prefect', and the Head Boy's and Head Girl's have 'HB' and 'HG' respectively.
Role
- "That gives you equal status with Prefects! You can use our special bathroom now and everything!"
- — Hermione Granger to Harry Potter when he was made Captain[src]
Captains are required to organize and plan training sessions for their House Teams, and are also responsible for almost anything regarding their House Team activities and members.
Captains are also given equal status as Prefects, and are also allowed to use Prefect bathrooms, ride in the Prefect carriage on the Hogwarts Express and other things. However, unlike Prefects, Captains are not allowed to dock points.
Second team position
Captains also play one other position on their team: Beater, Chaser, Keeper or Seeker. When a Quidditch team member is appointed Captain, they retain their previous position as well as Captain responsibilities.
Known Captains at Hogwarts
Hufflepuff Quidditch team
- Cedric Diggory (1993-1994) (Seeker)
- Zacharias Smith (1995-1996) (Chaser)
Gryffindor Quidditch team
- James Potter I (1974-1977) (Chaser)
- Charlie Weasley (1990-1991) (Seeker)
- Oliver Wood (1991-1994) (Keeper)
- Angelina Johnson (1995-1996) (Chaser)
- Harry Potter (1996-1997) (Seeker)
Ravenclaw Quidditch team
- Roger Davies (1993-1996) (Chaser)
Slytherin Quidditch team
- Marcus Flint (1991-1994) (Chaser)
- Montague (1995-1996) (Chaser)
- Urquhart (1996-1997) (Chaser)