Malfoy Manor

"He always did himself well, Lucius. Peacocks..."

- Yaxley while entering Malfoy Manor

Malfoy Manor is the home of the wealthy pure-blood Malfoy family, located in Wiltshire, England. It was mainly used as the base of operations for Lord Voldemort and the Death Eaters during the Second Wizarding War, much to the immense discomfort of Lucius, Narcissa, and Draco Malfoy.

Founding
The land that Malfoy Manor would be built on was once owned by other landowners. After his conquest of England, King William I seized this property and gave it to Armand Malfoy in return for some shady (and almost certainly magical) services. Later generations would expand the lands owned by the family by annexing the holds of their Muggle neighbours.

Death Eater headquarters
By the summer of 1997, Lucius Malfoy and many other Death Eaters had escaped Azkaban prison, and the Dark Lord had made the Malfoys' home his headquarters, replacing the Riddle House in Little Hangleton. While the Malfoys were very uncomfortable with this, Bellatrix Lestrange, Lucius's sister-in-law, who also resided there, claimed there could be "no higher pleasure" than having Lord Voldemort stay with them.

Shortly before Harry Potter's seventeenth birthday, Death Eaters Yaxley and Severus Snape entered the Manor to bring news of how the Ministry of Magic was being infiltrated and of the activities of the Order of the Phoenix, respectively. The resulting plans would lead to Voldemort's take-over of the Ministry using the puppet Minister for Magic Pius Thicknesse, and to the Battle of the Seven Potters. At this meeting, Voldemort also killed Charity Burbage, the professor of Muggle Studies at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and fed her to his snake familiar Nagini.

In 1998, the Manor was used to hold some prisoners of Lord Voldemort, such as Mr. Ollivander, Luna Lovegood, Griphook and Dean Thomas.

Skirmish


When Harry Potter, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger were caught by a group of Snatchers led by Fenrir Greyback around Easter of that year, they were brought to Malfoy Manor so that one of the Death Eaters residing there could signal Voldemort with the Dark Mark. However, Bellatrix spotted Godric Gryffindor's Sword among the prisoners' possessions and delayed calling the Dark Lord. Instead, she interrogated and tortured Hermione with the Cruciatus Curse to try to find out how the trio had obtained the Sword, which she believed to be in her vault at Gringotts. Bellatrix also threatened to kill Hermione with her knife when Harry and Ron came in with wands they had stolen. All the prisoners managed to escape with the assistance of the house-elf Dobby.

Post-War
After the Battle of Hogwarts and Lord Voldemort's defeat, the Manor was once more in the control of the Malfoys. The estate eventually became home to Draco Malfoy and his wife and son, Astoria and Scorpius Malfoy.

Driveway
"They turned right, into a wide driveway that led off the lane. The high hedge curved with them, running off into the distance beyond the pair of impressive wrought-iron gates barring the men's way...The yew hedges muffled the sound of the men's footsteps. There was a rustle somewhere to their right: Yaxley drew his wand again, pointing it over his companion's head, but the source of the noise proved to be nothing more than a pure-white peacock, sturring majestically along the top of the hedge"

- Description of Severus Snape and Yaxley walking along the driveway The gravel driveway to the manor house is wide and has a large hedge curving alongside it. The driveway and hedge go past a pair of wrought-iron gates. These gates permit select individuals (those who make some sort of salute) to pass through them as if they are smoke, and with others the iron contorts into a face which demands the purpose of the person trying to enter the manor. The yew hedge is known to have albino peacocks roving along the top of it.

The Manor
"A handsome manor house grew out of the darkness at the end of the straight drive, lights glinting in the diamond-paned downstairs windows. Somewhere in the dark garden beyond the hedge a fountain was playing...The hallway was large, dimly lit, and sumptuously decorated, with a magnificient carpet covering most of the stone floor. The eyes of the pale-faced portraits on the walls followed Snape and Yaxley as they strode past."

- Description of the manor and the entrance hall

Malfoy Manor is a "handsome manor house" surrounded by elaborate gardens, including a fountain. The front door swings inward at the approach of a person (or perhaps just a select group of people) without anyone visibly opening it. The hallway is large, dimly lit, and sumptuously decorated, with a magnificent carpet covering the stone floor. The walls of the entrance hall display pale-faced portraits lining the walls, and at the end of the hall is the bronze-handled door to the drawing room.

Drawing Room
"The drawing room was full of silent people, sitting at a long and ornate table...Illumination came from a roating fire beneath a handsome marble mantelpiece surmounted by a gilded mirror."

- Description of the drawing room The drawing room was a widely proportioned room. It had a long ornate table, where the Death Eaters and Voldemort sat during their meeting. Also, during the Death Eater Meeting, the usual furniture was pushed carelessly up against the walls. The drawing room has a handsome, ornate marble mantelpiece with a gilded mirror which has an intricately scrolled frame on top. Many of the known activities of the Death Eaters took place in the drawing room, which had dark purple walls with more portraits, and a large crystal chandelier, which was eventually destroyed by Dobby during the escape of several prisoners. It was probably restored (by magic) to where it was previously hung.



Cellar
These prisoners had all been held in the secret room below the drawing room. According to Draco Malfoy, the family's collection of Dark artefacts were hidden below ground level in this room so as to prevent any from being seized during Ministry raids, one such raid having been conducted in December 1992. During Lord Voldemort's stay in the manor, the function of this room changed to that of a holding cell for the aforementioned prisoners. This room is completely escape-proof and has no light; only house-elves can bypass the room's securities. It had nothing in it except a water jug and a food bowl.



Behind the scenes

 * J. K. Rowling has stated that there was a deleted scene, which was to take place either in Chamber of Secrets or Goblet of Fire, in which Draco Malfoy would be shown talking to fellow Slytherin Theodore Nott in the gardens of Malfoy Manor. Rowling said that she really liked the scene:
 * "Firstly because it showed the Malfoys' home, and the difference between the place where Draco has grown up and number four, Privet Drive; then because we rarely see Draco talking to anybody he considers a real equal, and he is forced to see Theodore as such, because Theodore is just as pure-blooded as he is, and somewhat cleverer. Together these two Death Eaters' sons discuss Dumbledore's regime at Hogwarts and Harry Potter, with all sorts of stories that the Death Eaters tell about how this baby boy survived the Dark Lord's attack."
 * In the film adaptations of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1, the exterior scenes of Malfoy Manor were shot at Hardwick Hall.

Appearances

 * 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 (film)
 * Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
 * Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
 * Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1
 * Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 (video game)
 * Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
 * LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7
 * Pottermore