Charles Weasley's wand

Ronald Weasley's first wand
Historical information
Made	before 1984
Master(s)	Charlie Weasley Ron Weasley (inherited) Gilderoy Lockhart (possibly)
Owner(s)	Charlie Weasley Ron Weasley Gilderoy Lockhart
Material information
Wood	Ash
Core	Unicorn hair
Length	12"

The first wand of Ronald Weasley was 12" ash with a core of unicorn hair. It originally belonged to his older brother Charlie. The wand was old and part of the unicorn hair stuck out of the end.

This wand was snapped in half in September of 1992 in a run-in with the Whomping Willow, barely held together by a strain of the wood. Ron attempted to hold it together using Spello-tape, but its magical capabilities were damaged beyond repair. It subsequently started malfunctioning. When Ron attempted to hex Draco Malfoy for calling Hermione Granger a "filthy little Mudblood," the spell backfired, causing him to vomit slugs. When he tried to transfigure beetles into buttons in class, he instead created smoke that smelled like rotten-eggs, and accidentally crushed his beetle. During the first meeting of the Duelling Club, the wand once again malfunctioned, injuring Seamus Finnigan.

Despite its negative effects it had all year against its master, its one positive deed was at the end of the school year. When Gilderoy Lockhart stole it, he attempted to wipe the memories of Ron and Harry Potter, the charm backfired, causing Lockhart permanent and drastic memory loss, thus saving Harry and Ron from Lockhart's scheme while apparently exploding with "the force of a small bomb" at the same time. Ron's father, Arthur Weasley subsequently purchased a new wand for him.

Behind the scenes

• J. K. Rowling used a Celtic calendar to assign Ron's first wand wood, ash, based on his date of birth. She did the same for Harry's wand and Hermione's wand, as "a hidden connection" between the three friends although by coincidence, Draco Malfoy's wand, made from Hawthorn also corresponded to his date of birth 5 June.
• In the film version of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, when Ron was supposed to transfigure Scabbers into a goblet, the wand's damaged power caused the transformation to be incomplete, which left the cup with fur and a tail.

"Backfire!" trading card.

• It has also been speculated that, had the wand not been broken, Lockhart's attempt to erase Harry and Ron's memories may have still backfired due to the concept of wand allegiance expanded upon in the final book's discussion of the Elder Wand. However, as Lockhart had stolen the wand from Ron by force, he might have won its allegiance.
• Why Ron had Charlie's old wand is likely due to the Weasley family being relatively poor, and therefore unable to purchase a new wand for Ron when he entered school.
• In LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1-4, Ron's wand is shown to malfunction in an optional scene in Hagrid's garden.
• As it is described on Pottermore , Ash wood "cleaves to its one true owner and ought not to be passed on or gifted from the original owner, as it would lose power". It can be speculated that, while this wand was in Ron's possession, he was not able to demonstrate his magical skills to full capacity.

Appearances

• Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (First appearance)
• Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (film)
• Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (video game)
• Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
• Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (film)
• Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (video game)
• Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Mentioned only)
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Mentioned only)
• LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1-4
• Harry Potter Trading Card Game