The recent releases of Fantastic Beasts: And Where to Find Them, in 2016, and the most current, Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, in 2018, have sparked my interest in the incredibly mysterious world of Harry Potter, or the Potter-verse.

I made it through the first four books when I was younger, but halted my reading of the series and didn’t really pay attention to the movies up until recently. Now I seem to have caught “Wizard Fever” and am devoted to the idea of creating a timeline of this vast universe.

With a recent binge-watch of all of the Harry Potter movies and the restarting of the book series, I am prepared to dive in.

Being such an intricate world, it is next to impossible to touch on every big situation or every mildly important person. Therefore, talking about the MOST important moments in the Potter-verse and the lives of only a few of the main characters, seems to be the best way to attempt to map everything out.

If you have not read all of the books nor seen all of the movies, then beware of SPOILERS.

A lot of the information mentioned here is drawn from The Harry Potter Lexicon.

The Early Days –

• Circa 990; Hogwarts is founded.
• Circa 1000; The creation of the Sword of Gryffindor.
• 11th cent.; Chamber of Secrets is created by Salazar Slytherin.
• Circa 1326; Nicolas Flamel is born. A.k.a the oldest dude ever.
• 1707; Ministry of Magic is formed.

Dumbledore & Grindelwald –

• August 1881; Dumbledore is born.
• Circa 1883; Grindelwald is born.
• 1899; Grindelwald is expelled from Durmstrang and while in Godric’s Hollow he strikes up a friendship with Dumbledore.
• Exact time unknown; Dumbledore and Grindelwald make the Blood Oath.
• Circa 1905; Grindelwald steals the Elder Wand from Gregorovitch.
• December 7th, 1926; Grindelwald is captured by Tina Goldstein and Newt Scamander.
• 1927; Dumbledore persuades Newt Scamander to protect ‘Credence’ from Grindelwald after he escapes from MACUSA’s prison.
• 1927; Nicolas Flamel (oldest. man. ever.) helps Newt Scamander and his allies contain the curse that Grindelwald casts.
• 1927; Credence finds out he is Aurelius Dumbledore, Albus Dumbledore’s brother.
• 1945; Dumbledore defeats Grindelwald and takes the Elder Wand.
• Circa 1966; Dumbledore becomes Headmaster of Hogwarts.
• July 1996; Dumbledore destroys the Ring Horcrux with the Sword of Gryffindor
• June 30, 1997; Dumbledore is killed by Severus Snape.
• March 1998; Grindelwald is killed by Voldemort.

He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named –

• December 31, 1926; Tom Marvolo Riddle is born and his mother dies during birth, leaving him in the care of an orphanage.
• August 1938; Dumbledore visits Tom Riddle in the orphanage and invites him to Hogwarts.
• September 1, 1938; Tom Riddle starts at Hogwarts.
• July 1942; Tom Riddle murders his father and grandparents, steals Marvolo’s ring from his uncle, and then proceeds to frame the same uncle for the murders. A great example of how kind and caring Tom was.
• August 1942; Riddle uses the murders of his family to turn the Ring into a Horcrux.
• Circa May, 1943; Tom opens the Chamber of Secrets.
• June 13, 1943; Tom uses Moaning Myrtle’s murder (I got tongue-tied from just typing that) to turn a diary into a Horcrux.
• 1945; Tom murders an Albanian peasant to turn the Ravenclaw Diadem into a Horcrux.
• Circa 1957; Riddle murders a muggle to turn the Slytherin Locket into a Horcrux.
• Circa 1957; Tom Riddle vanishes for ten years and dives into the Dark Arts.
• Circa 1970; Lord Voldemort rises to power.
• October 31, 1981; Voldemort kills Lily and James Potter before trying to kill Harry. Harry survives, left with his famous scar and a piece of Voldemort’s soul embedded in him, making him a Horcrux. No big deal.
• Circa September 8, 1992; Tom Riddle’s spirit leads Ginny Weasley to reopen the Chamber of Secrets.
• Circa July, 1994; Voldemort uses the murder of Bertha Jorkins to create a Horcrux using Nagini.
• June 24, 1995; Triwizard Battle. Voldemort is reborn.
• March, 1997; Delphini is born.
• March, 1998; Voldemort kills Grindelwald.
• May 2, 1998; Battle of Hogwarts. Voldemort orders Nagini to kill Severus Snape. Bellatrix is killed by Molly Weasley. Nagini is killed by Neville Longbottom, which ultimately leads to the death of Voldemort.
• October, 2020; The Wizarding World finds out that Voldemort has a daughter.
• October 31, 2020; Delphi is defeated.

Severus Snape –

• January 9, 1960; Severus Snape is born.
• 1980; Snape tells Voldemort about the Prophecy.
• Circa August, 1980; Snape meets with Dumbledore and begs him to keep the Potter family safe from Voldemort.
• July, 1996; Severus makes the Unbreakable Bond to Narcissa that he will aid in, and even finish if necessary, Draco’s task to kill Albus Dumbledore
• June 30, 1997; Snape, as promised to the Headmaster, kills Dumbledore so Draco doesn’t have to.
• May 2, 1998; Snape is killed by Nagini but before he dies, he gives Harry important memories. Harry discovers Severus Snape is low-key the realest one out there.

The Marauders Club –

• September 1, 1971; The Marauders; Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, Peter Pettigrew, James Potter, Lily Evans, and Severus Snape, start at Hogwarts.
• Circa 1975; Sirius Black runs away from home and lives with the Potter family.
• Circa 1975; Marauder’s map is written.
• June, 1978; The Marauder’s leave Hogwarts.
• 1979; Lily Evans and James Potter are married.
• Circa 1980; Peter Pettigrew passes information on to the Dark Lord while he is disguised as a pet rat living with the Weasley family.
• Circa October 24, 1981; Peter Pettigrew is made Secret Keeper while the spell to hide the Potter family from Voldemort is cast.
• November 1, 1981; Sirius black is found at the Potter murder scene and sent to Azkaban.
• Circa July 30, 1993; Sirius black escapes from Azkaban.
• June 6, 1994; Sirius Black and Remus Lupin explain Sirius’ innocence, the story of Pettigrew’s betrayal and the Marauders to the trio.Harry and Hermione ride Buckbeak to save Sirius from his execution.
• June 18, 1996; Sirius black is killed by Bellatrix.
• 1998; Peter Pettigrew is strangled to death by his own hand.
• May 2, 1998; Lupin is killed in the Battle of Hogwarts.

Harry Potter –

• July 31, 1980; Harry is born.
• October 31, 1981; Harry survives Voldemort’s attempt to kill him and is accidentally made a Horcrux.
• July 31, 1991; Hagrid tells Harry he is a Wizard and invites him to Hogwarts.
• Circa May 26, 1992; Harry encounters Voldemort for the first time while the Dark Lord is nothing but a hooded figure.
• June, 1992; Harry defeats Voldemort for the first time.
• May 29, 1993; Harry goes into the Chamber of Secrets and destroys the Diary Horcrux.
• June 24, 1995; Triwizard Battle. Harry escapes the Dark Lord’s wrath.
• October 5, 1995; Harry and Hermione create Dumbledore’s Army.
• June 18, 1996; The Battle of the Department of Mysteries. Harry leads Dumbledore’s Army in a fight against Death Eaters.
• September 2, 1996; Harry obtains the Half-Blood Prince’s old Potions Book.
• June 30, 1997; Harry and Dumbledore retrieve the fake Locket Horcrux from inside Voldemort’s sea cave.
• July 27, 1997; Battle of the Seven Potters.
• September 2, 1997; The Three-Amigos recover the Slytherin Horcrux from inside the Ministry of Magic.
• December 26, 1997; Ron Weasley uses the Sword of Gryffindor to destroy the Slytherin Horcrux.
• May 1, 1998; The Great Gringotts Robbery.
• May 2, 1998; Battle of Hogwarts. Harry finds out that he is a Horcrux, Harry and Ron destroy the Diadem Horcrux, and Hermione uses a Basilisk fang to destroy the Hufflepuff Cup Horcrux.
• 2020; Hermione is Minister of Magic and Harry heads the Department of Magical Law Enforcement.
• October 31, 2020; Harry and his family watch Voldemort kill his parents and try to kill baby Harry.

Big ol’ Fights –

• June, 1992; Mirror Mirror on the Wall: Harry finds out Voldemort is hidden under Professor Quirrell’s turban. The Mirror of Erised gives Harry the Sorcerer’s Stone. Harry defeats Quirrell/Voldemort.

• May 29, 1993; The Chamber of Death Wishes Battle: Harry enters the Chamber of Secrets and kills the Basilisk with the Sword of Gryffindor. He uses a fang from the Basilisk’s mouth to stab the Diary Horcrux, therefore destroying one Horcrux and sending Tom Riddle’s spirit away.
• June 24, 1995; The ‘I Thought This was Supposed to be a Fun Game’ Battle: Third task of the Triwizard Competition. In order to win, they have to reach the Triwizard Cup first while navigating through an extremely difficult maze. Cedric Diggory and Harry make it to the Cup at the same time. Harry injures his leg but Cedric refuses to win alone, so he helps Harry and they both touch the cup at the same time, not expecting to be transported to a graveyard miles away from Hogwarts. Cedric is killed and Voldemort is reborn. Voldemort and Harry duel but the cores of their wands create a “Reverse Spell Effect” and spirits from Voldemort’s past victims come out of his wand to protect Harry. They help Harry escape the Dark Lord.
• June 18, 1996; The ‘I’m Better Than You Because I have Friends’ Battle: The Battle of the Department of Mysteries. Harry leads Dumbledore’s Army, who are also being aided by the Order of the Phoenix, in a fight against Death Eaters. Bellatrix kills Sirius Black. Voldemort shows up and tries to kill Harry AGAIN, but fails AGAIN, and instead battles Dumbledore. Dumbledore wins and Voldemort tries to possess Harry, but Harry resists because of the happiness he feels with his friends.
• June 30, 1997; The Sad Battle: Draco brings Death Eaters into Hogwarts using the Vanishing Cabinet and they enter a battle against the Order of the Phoenix and some of Dumbledore’s Army. When Dumbledore and Harry return from retrieving the fake Slytherin Locket, Dumbledore immobilizes Harry while the boy is hidden. Draco arrives to kill dumbledore and he disarms him, but that’s all he can do, so Severus Snape steps in and kills Albus Dumbledore.
• July 27, 1997; The ‘You Look Alot Like Me’ Battle: Battle of the Seven Potters. The Order of the Phoenix attempts to move Harry from Privet Drive to the Burrow, but they were ambushed by Voldemort and his Death Eaters. But thanks to the Polyjuice Potion, six of Harry’s accomplices disguised themselves has him so nobody knew who the real Harry was. Voldemort kills Mad-Eye Moody and Hedwig dies in the cross-fire (saddest death of the entire series). Everyone else makes it to the safe house.
• May 1, 1998; The ‘Backstabbing Elf’ Battle: The Great Gringotts Robbery. Griphook helps the trio break into Gringotts but later betrays them. While in Gringotts, they steal Hufflepuff’s Cup Horcrux, lose Gryffindor’s Sword, and escape on a Dragon. Just another Friday night for them.
• May 2, 1998;  The ‘There’s Like Ten Different Things Happening’ Battle: The Diadem and Cup Horcruxes are destroyed. Harry finds out that he is a Horcrux so he allows Voldemort to ‘kill’ him, but for the upteenth time, he survives the attempt. There’s an odd scene where we are are disgusted by a dying fledgling Voldemort which represents the piece of the Dark Lord that went into Harry. Harry wakes up and the final battle between himself and Voldemort commences. Nagini is killed by Neville Longbottom which eventually kills Voldemort because she was the last Horcrux. In the end, Voldemort’s followers retreated but Fred Weasley, Tonks, Lupin, and Colin Creevey, along with 46 other Hogwarts defenders died.
• October 31, 2020; The Future Battle: Harry and his family use the time-turner and transfigures himself into Voldemort so Delphi meets him instead of the actual Dark Lord. In the end, Delphi is defeated.