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Torquil Travers: "You and Grindelwald were as close as brothers."
Albus Dumbledore: "We were closer than brothers."
Albus Dumbledore talking about his relationship with a young Gellert Grindelwald[src]
Closer than brothers

Albus Dumbledore and Gellert Grindelwald, who were "closer than brothers"

Sexual orientation is a pattern of romantic and/or sexual attraction to other people.[1] Some orientations are: heterosexuality (attraction to people of the opposite sex), homosexuality (attraction to people of the same sex), bisexuality (attraction to two sexes, male and female) and asexuality (lack of sexual attraction or desire).

While homosexuality often made people the target of discrimination, harassment and violence in the Muggle world, witches and wizards tended to be tolerant of or indifferent toward gays and lesbians.[2][3] Wizarding prejudices were instead concerned with a person's blood status and magical prowess.[2][3] Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry was considered a "safe place" for LGBTQ+ individuals.[4]

There were many known LGBTQ+ individuals in the wizarding world.

The two witches Nora Treadwell and Priya Treadwell were married in the 19th century, showing that same-sex marriage was legal in the wizarding community of at least some countries at that time.[5]

Known LGBTQ+ individuals

Simon Talmadge

Simon Talmadge, a Hogwarts student in the 1820s, was attracted to Gwydion Idris after he stood up for him against the bully Mabel.[6]

Mirabel Garlick

Mirabel Garlick, a Herbology Professor at Hogwarts in the 1890s, was attracted to other witches.[5]

Sirona Ryan

Sirona Ryan, the proprietary of the Three Broomsticks Inn in the 1890s, was transgender.[7]

Nora and Priya Treadwell

Nora Treadwell, a witch who attended Hogwarts, met fellow female student Priya and married her by the 1890s.[5]

Albus Dumbledore

Albus Dumbledore and Gellert Grindelwald

Albus Dumbledore and Gellert Grindelwald together in 1899

In his youth, Albus Dumbledore fell in love with his best friend, Gellert Grindelwald.[8] His feelings initially blinded him to the harmfulness of Grindelwald's anti-Muggle views and caused him to "[lose] his moral compass completely".[8][9] Due to the love he had for Grindelwald, Dumbledore agreed to make a blood pact with him, which would make them unable to fight one another, and would keep them working together on their For the Greater Good plans. Grindelwald eventually revealed himself to be a Dark wizard willing to use any means to achieve his ends, and Dumbledore's love for him only magnified his horror at this revelation.[8]

Dumbledore's sexual orientation was seemingly not a secret in the wizarding world decades later, since Department of Magical Law Enforcement Head Torquil Travers questioned whether or not it was Dumbledore's past love that was keeping him from facing Grindelwald directly, and Dumbledore openly described their relationship as one that was "closer than brothers".[10] Afterward, Dumbledore mistrusted his own judgement in matters of the heart and "became quite asexual", leading a "celibate and bookish life",[9] not being interested in anyone else romantically.

Gellert Grindelwald

Albus Dumbledore: "Well, I was young, I was..."
Gellert Grindelwald: "Committed, to me. To us."
Albus Dumbledore: "No. I went along because..."
Gellert Grindelwald: "Because?"
Albus Dumbledore: "Because I was in love with you."
— Albus Dumbledore confessing his love for Gellert in a future meeting[src]

In his youth, Gellert Grindelwald fell in love with his best friend, Albus Dumbledore and entered a sexual and romantic relationship with him. Due to their bond, they both agreed in making a blood pact, which would make them unable to fight one another, and would keep them working together on their For the Greater Good plans. Grindelwald eventually revealed himself to be a Dark wizard and that he knew his plans could be considered evil, but believed them to be for the greater good and had no problem with using evil means to reach this goal, and he expected his lover to join him in evil; Dumbledore's love for him only magnified his horror at this revelation.[8] Grindelwald's sexual orientation was seemingly not a secret in the wizarding world decades later, since Department of Magical Law Enforcement Head Torquil Travers questioned Dumbledore whether or not it was his past love for Grindelwald kept him from facing him directly. Dumbledore openly admitted to Travers that he and Grindelwald had been "closer than brothers".[10]

Tulip Karasu

Tulip Karasu, a Hogwarts student in the 1980s, was attracted to Merula Snyde.[11][12]

Ruby Honeysuckle

Ruby Honeysuckle, an agent of the Rare, Obscure, and Confounding Case Division in the early 1990s, had a girlfriend.[13]

Mathilda Grimblehawk and Aisha

Mathilda Grimblehawk, a witch who worked as a Magizoologist for the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, was in a romantic relationship with another witch called Aisha, in the early 2020s.[14]

Behind the scenes

Appearances

Notes and references

  1. WP favicon Sexual orientation on Wikipedia
  2. 2.0 2.1 J. K. Rowling interview on PotterCast #130, 17 December 2007
  3. 3.0 3.1 Twitter favicon J.K. Rowling on Twitter: "@_Paaulaisadora Only by ludicrous Muggles. The wizards don't give a damn - it's all about the magic for them."
  4. Twitter favicon J.K. Rowling on Twitter: ".@claraoswiin But of course."
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 The Art and Making of Hogwarts Legacy
  6. Harry Potter: Magic Awakened (see this video)
  7. Hogwarts Legacy
  8. 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 "J. K. Rowling at Carnegie Hall Reveals Dumbledore is Gay; Neville Marries Hannah Abbott, and Much More" from The Leaky Cauldron
  9. 9.0 9.1 "New J. K. Rowling Interview: Confirms Working on "Scottish Book", Reflects on Dumbledore, Homophobia, Fundamentalism, Future Writing Projects and More" from The Leaky Cauldron
  10. 10.0 10.1 Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald - The Original Screenplay, Scene 64
  11. Twitter favicon Matt London on Twitter: "@EvelynDarque I don’t control how the story will be taken now but I wrote this as canon from Tulip’s original concept."
  12. Twitter favicon Matt London on Twitter: "@XWnHIST @DavidNakayama Beatrice was part of my initial Penny pitch. Allen deserves all the credit for the genius that is Barnaby. A ton of the Tulip/Merula origin got left on the cutting room floor."
  13. Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery, Beyond Hogwarts, Volume 1, Chapter 11 (Good Grief)
  14. Harry Potter: Wizards Unite - "Brilliant Event: Unforgivable Truth"
  15. "Every So Often, Remus Lupin Is Gay" from Tor.com
  16. "Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery might let witches and wizards date, but not until they’re older" from Polygon
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