Appendix 6: Extract from 'A Guide for Muggleborns' by Harold Moody (published 1985)
Institutions of Magical Learning
While this book is intended to be a guide for British Muggleborns certain to attend Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, it would be amiss of the author to not address some of the other schools of magic throughout the world. For those wishing to know more of this subject, I would recommend Robert Church's seminal work 'Calakmul to Uluru: An Odyssey of Learning'.
The first thing that I must address is the misnomer behind the phrase, 'Wizarding School'. What we have here in Britain is not remotely indicative of everywhere in the world – many institutions of magic, most prominently in India are heavily decentralised affairs where the main 'school' oversees many smaller institutions. Certain schools also operate on a larger scale in the community, catering to the needs of adult wizards in addition to those only beginning to learn magic. An excellent example of the other type is Vancouver Institute, the elder of North America's Great Schools.
The connection a Wizarding School has to a Wizarding Government is also something that widely varies throughout the world. While most schools operate under the oversight of one government (such as Hogwarts herself), several are administered by multiple cooperating governments – a key example of the latter would be the Dano-Norwegian School of Magic, which was originally founded and controlled by the Ministries of Denmark and Norway, prior to the formation of the Scandinavian Confederation. In addition, several schools are not run by a particular government at all, instead only answering to the ICW. This is the case with schools such as the Scandinavian Durmstrang Institute and the Cambodian Funan, though the former is under strong pressure to surrender part of its autonomy.
A common mistake made when discussing the existing wizarding schools is misunderstanding the geographical area which they cater to. No wizarding school in the world is able to insist on compulsory attendance for all students in a certain region. Such a thing would be against international law and doubtlessly provoke a response from the ICW. Parents are entitled to seek out any institution of their choice (or none at all, in the case of home-schooling) as the one to educate their child, though that does not mean the institution in question would accept – the Japanese School for instance is unlikely to accept students from anywhere outside the local region for a number of reasons, though there have been exceptions – in addition to transfer students, which most schools make a point of supporting. That being said, most schools do cater to their local region and it is considered 'odd' to insist on educating a child anywhere aside from the local school or schools.
In Europe, Durmstrang is an exception to the above comment, as it will happily accept students from everywhere bar Transylvania, provided they reach its backward requirements on parentage.
The question of how many wizarding schools exist is an awkward one, with several answers depending on how inclusive one is feeling. Does one include only those recognised by the ICW (often referred to as 'Great Schools') – thereby refusing to acknowledge great institutions of learning such as the Serbian Izdržljivost Institute – or does one include all places claiming the title of School of Magic – forcing us to recognise examples such as the shack currently being propped up by the Argentine Ministry. Neither option is truly fair, so I shall avoid claiming a definite number. At the very least, there are certainly upwards of 35 surviving Schools, regardless of which classification one accepts. If we include historical schools, that number rises past 50.
For a final point, it is worth noting that not all schools teach the same curriculum. Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry teaches a slightly altered version of the traditional European selection of subjects: these are Transfiguration, Charms, Potions, History, Astronomy, Herbology, Arithmancy, Divination, Ancient Runes and Care of Magical Creatures (on top of this, Hogwarts teaches Defence Against the Dark Arts, Flying and Muggle Studies). Neighbouring schools in Europe – as well as Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, the younger North American school - use altered versions of this curriculum, with adjustments for their own traditions and priorities. However, with schools further afield this is not usually the case. For example, most of the Middle Eastern schools use a modern variation of the curriculum first established by Hyrcanus' School (108BC – 624AD), while the Chinese schools use variations of the curriculum established at the enduring Jixia Academy.
The League of Eleven
While this guide is not the place to include a description of every school in the world, a few of them require special treatment. These are the elite league of schools known as the Eleven, comprising what are generally agreed to be the greatest and most prestigious schools in the world. The league has existed for over a millennium, originally consisting of eight schools with the membership being expanded over the centuries. Membership of the Eleven is highly contested among the schools of the world, due to the prestige and influence granted to a school present on the list. However, membership in the league is difficult to gain – the expansion of the list, addition of a new member or removal of an existing member requires a strong majority, currently of eight members. Only once in history has there been a unanimous result in a vote on membership – that being the outing of The Scholomance following the Incident of 1514.
In no particular order:
1) Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, British Isles. I will not discuss Hogwarts again here, as I have already done so elsewhere in this guide.
2) Beauxbatons Academy of Magic (Académie de Magie Beauxbâtons), France and the Low Countries. The French school of magic, Beauxbatons was founded in 1127AD by the most famous wandmaker of the period, Joia Beauvais whose earlier profession eventually gave the school its name – literally, 'Crossed Wands'. The grounds and palace of the school are located on an enchanted plateau, high up in the Pyrenees, naturally invisible to muggle eyes. Students are brought to the school in magnificent blue carriages, each pulled by a dozen winged horses. The school is famed for highly regarded charms and alchemy programs, the latter implemented by the school's most famed headmaster, Nicholas Flamel. Beauxbatons enjoys close relationships with both Hogwarts and Durmstrang, which in the past involved participation in events such as the Triwizard Tournament.
3) Durmstrang Institute (Дурмстранг), much of Europe but most principally Scandinavia, Bulgaria and Romania. Located somewhere in the north of either Norway or Sweden, Durmstrang was founded in 1186AD by the famed Bulgarian witch Nerida Vulchanova; though much of the school's character can be credited to her successor, Harfang Munter. While the actual appearance of the school is a closely guarded secret, it is known that it takes the form of a large and chilly castle surrounded by mountains and lakes. Students travel to the school on the famed Durmstrang Galleon, that docks near the city of Stockholm at the start of each term and then travels underwater to reach the school. According to legend, the ship was won off the Headmaster of Uharte Zuria (the Spanish school of magic) in a game of chess. Durmstrang is known for having the best 'martial magic' program in the world, but unfortunately is a selective school that only accepts pureblood and halfblood students. Durmstrang has a long relationship with the other European schools, being close to Hogwarts and Beauxbatons while at the same time having a long rivalry with the Scholomance and more recently, Koldovstoretz.
4) Koldovstoretz (колдовсторец), Russia and North-eastern Europe. The Russian school of magic, Koldovstoretz was founded in early 1667AD by order of Tsar Alexis following the Russo-Polish War and the barring of young Russian wizards from the Instytucja Mityczna (the now defunct Polish and Lithuanian school of magic). This was prior to the establishment of the Statute of Secrecy and may have been a result of efforts on Alexis' part to fully secure the loyalty of Russian wizards. Despite the common assumption that Ilvermorny is the youngest school, Koldovstoretz is actually younger by about fifty years. The school is located close to the Black Sea, though the exact whereabouts are uncertain. Unlike most other schools, students are allowed to make their own way to the school – thought the Ministry does offer a portkey service to those living a great distance away. Koldovstoretz offers one of the finest potion programs in the world, along with a surprisingly excellent history curriculum. It maintains a close relationship with Jixia, the premier Chinese school which vouched for its addition to the Eleven following Casamanso, the Italian School of Magic being voted off. It also has a rivalry with Durmstrang.
5) The Bayt al-Hikmah (The House of Wisdom / بيت الحكمة), Persia and parts of Central Asia. The Persian school of magic, founded in 762AD by Caliph al-Mansur as part of his development of the city of Baghdad, where the school remains to this day (though hidden from muggles, naturally). The school was originally designed as a palace library for the Caliph and his court, eventually developing into the icon of learning and knowledge which it is known as today. It split off from the muggle institution during the reign of al-Mutawakkil, in approximately 848AD – this proved fortunate a few centuries later, when the muggle library was destroyed by the Mongol Empire. Students traditionally reach the Bayt al-Hikmah by flying carpet, though this is sometime abandoned if demanded by the situation. While this author slightly chafes to admit it, considering his own loyalty to Hogwarts, the school is usually considered the premier candidate for greatest school in the world, with its students receiving consistently exemplary results in every subject. It does however have a nasty snake infestation, which none of the headmasters have ever been able to solve. The school is close to the other Arabian schools but has a friendly rivalry with Yemīyabera (the Ethiopian school of magic) lasting a solid millennium.
6) Great Nalanda (नालंंदा), North India. Ah Nalanda, Queen of Cities, one of the Seven Wonders of the Wizarding World. To call Nalanda a school is rather inaccurate, since it operates as a collection of schools throughout North and Central India governed by the main campus in the foothills of the Himalayas. Even that is a fair understatement for the sheer size of Nalanda, which caters to more students than any other school in the world – though the Ugandan School still claims the title of largest school by virtue of technicality. Nalanda began life as a Buddhist monastery in the ancient kingdom of Magadha, before the magical parts of the institution split themselves off from the muggle at an unknown date. The school proved popular enough that it soon attracted a large town of the same name, that eventually grew into a full city in its vicinity. It has at times operated as the de-facto government for Wizarding India, including in the aftermath of the Statute of Secrecy and the governing body still acts as a powerful voice in the Unified States of India. This is only partly due to the City of Nalanda operating as the capital of Wizarding India, containing the legislature and many other key departments of the Indian government. The school itself is known for providing a excellent and extensive set of courses dedicated to dealing with Magical Creatures, due to the magical side of North India's biosphere being particularly treacherous. This does however vary somewhat depending on what specific campus of the school one attends. In terms of relations with other schools, Nalanda is close to Jixia, Konai (the school in Laos) and Citraresmi (the larger of the Indonesian Schools) – but is especially close to the other Indian 'school', Pornnem Goem with which it frequently collaborates.
7) New Jixia Academy (稷下學宮), China. The largest and eldest of the Five Great Chinese Schools, with a history two and a half millennia in length. No one is quite sure who founded the original school of Jixia. Most scholars tend to place the actual founding of the academy at the feet of Duke Huan of Qi in 650BC (often referred to as 'Old Jixia'), though some insist on a date even earlier. The school's history only becomes clear during the Warring States period of Chinese History, when it is known the institution was temporarily not in operation for nearly fifty years until 237BC. This event was the cause of a bitter rivalry with the Ethiopian School of Magic, Yemīyabera – due to this period of fifty years, Jixia can only claim to be the eldest surviving school in the world, not the eldest continuously operating. It was in 237BC that the 'modern' school was founded, as a university supported by King Xuan, located in the capital of the kingdom of Qi, Linzi. Later in history the magical part of the university separated from the (doomed) muggle academy, and relocated onto the side of the sacred Mount Tai. Students are transported to the school atop a large assortment of flying magical constructs, some dating back to before the common era. In terms of subjects, the school is known for having an exemplary divination program, with a particular fondness for the art of pyromancy. The tendency of Jixia to have more rivals than friend is well known in the magical community; aside from Yemīyabera, it has long rivalries with every other Chinese School, Funan (the Cambodian school) and a recent one with Mahoutokoro, due to the resentments left behind by World War Two bleeding over into the wizarding world. It does however have a long friendship with Nalanda, and a younger one with Koldovstoretz.
8) Mahoutokoro School (魔法処), Japan. The Japanese school of magic, Mahoutokoro was founded in 1073 under mysterious circumstances, though the common theory is that it was founded either by or in memory of Emperor Go-Sanjō, 71st Emperor of Japan (apparently). It was founded on the volcanic island of Iwo Jima, where students could be trained in magic at a safe distance from the muggle population. Students travel to the school atop gigantic Storm Petrels, a species with a known fondness for terrifying acrobatics. Mahoutokoro is unique among wizarding schools for accepting students from as young as seven, though they do not board at the school until they have turned eleven. Despite this, it is the smallest of the Eleven, though they may be set to change due to the current situation regarding Wizarding Korea. Mahoutokoro is the mostly undisputed leader among magical schools in terms of sporting and athletic education, excelling at all the popular wizarding sports – including Quidditch, to the immense distress of Wizarding Europe. While the school has a small rivalry with Jixia Academy, it is on mostly good terms with the various other schools on both sides of the Pacific, competing with them in the Pacific Cup (and winning much of the time).
9) Uagadou the Beautiful, primarily Central Africa. The Ugandan school of magic, Uagadou was founded in approximately 890AD – though the exact circumstances are lost to history. The school is located deep within the Rwenzori Mountains (also known as the Mountains of the Moon), inside an immense stone edifice carved deep into a mountain of the same name. The school primarily serves central Africa – excluding Kenya due to a very nasty rivalry with Msikitimaji, the Kenyan school of magic – but will happily accept students from all corners of the continent. As a result, it can claim to be the largest school in the world – though as mentioned above, this requires excluding Nalanda and Pornnem Goem. Students travel to Uagadou via a number of means, as the school does not use any one method to transport students at the start of term. Indeed, the school encourages experimentation in how students reach the institution, with the student who arrives in the most impressive fashion receiving a large reward. Students of Uagadou tend to become skilled in Astronomy, Alchemy and Self-Transfiguration, to the point of causing open jealousy in other wizards and witches. Outside of the Kenyan school of magic, Uagadou is on good relations with the other African schools.
10) Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Eastern North America. Ilvermorny was founded in 1627 by the Irish immigrant Isolt Sayre, and her No-Maj husband James Steward, atop Mount Greylock in Massachusetts. It was originally merely a cottage built to house the Stewards/Sayres and their adoptive children, but very quickly grew into a large castle, fashioned after the Hogwarts Isolt had once hoped to attend. Students used to be transported to Ilvermorny aboard a series of dark green locomotives, but in 1970 this was changed after "the locomotive system got too damn slow" (their words, not mine). Since then, the school had instead employed a large fleet of magical vehicles designed for various regions of the country, including several of the old locomotives, two ailing paddle steamers, a Sherman Tank, several cars and a bus covered in thunderbird dung. Unlike the other schools on this list (bar the Bayt al-Hikmah), Ilvermorny does not specialise in any particular subject but prefers to cater them equally – though apparently the school's divination program is excellent. Ilvermorny has in recent years forged stronger ties with Hogwarts, rather ironically, as well as ties to Nuevo Calakmul (the Mayan School) and Castelobruxo/Itajubá. It historically has an awkward relationship with the other Great North American school however, that being Vancouver due to the latter's origins as a Native American institution and continued focus on their magical traditions. The school, as with most of the American continent is on very poor terms with the self-proclaimed school of 'technomancy', Harvard following the Incident of 1977 that provoked international condemnation.
11) Itajubá School of Magic/Castelobruxo School of Magic, Brazil. Itajubá was founded in approximately 990AD by the peoples of the Amazon Rainforest (presumably), who through an unknown branch of magic were able to grant their school minor sentience and the ability to shift its appearance around. Itajubá was the original name given to the school, but particularly from the eighteenth century onwards the Portuguese name for the building grew in popularity. Both named are now used in official purposes, making any argument over which is superior pointless. For the most part the school stays out of the affairs going on within its halls, but it has been known to award prices to those students who impress it – either by being extremely clean or exploring every nook and cranny of its current appearance. It (possibly a he, we're not sure) tends to shift shape between academic years so as to provide a surprise to students and staff at the beginning of each term. Several of its more famous appearances have been the a large pyramid (probably its favourite), a Spanish palace, an version of Hogwarts flying the Brazilian flag (which resulted in Wizarding Britain filing an official complaint at the ICW) and an gigantic version of the muggle statue 'Christ the Redeemer', endlessly singing terrible pop music. The only thing that reliably stays the same is the colour of the building, a somewhat pale yellow. The means by which students travel to Itajubá is a closely guarded secret, though may have something to do with Curupiras. The school specialises in herbology and magizoology, particularly the former. Itajubá/Castelobruxo is close to the other institutions of South America, as well as Ilvermorny and Nuevo Calakmul. It has a minor rivalry with Hogwarts however, due to disagreements over who is the better school founded in 990AD.
Credit to ByzantineCaesar for the other name for Castlebruxo.
Appendix 7: Memo from the Head Editor of 'Wizarding World News', dated to approximately November 8th, 1981
Dear All Staff,
Okay guys, let's all step back a moment and be serious here. We might be regarded as the worst newspaper in Britain – even worse than the jackasses over at 'Rumours!'. We might have a policy where you can write anything about anyone, provided its at least readable and the victim isn't one of the types of who would literally murder us for insulting them – this is why we have a rule about not picking on Adelina Zabini, for example. We might even be willing to ignore reporters using 'unofficial' means of gaining sources, provided no evidence can be found – otherwise, we will hand you over to the aurors in a gift basket, possibly bound and tied and naked to boot.
That being said, WHO THE FREAKING FECKBALLS THOUGHT IT WAS A GOOD IDEA TO HIRE THAT LOVEGOOD IDIOT?! Do you guys realise how much mail I have got over that damn article on the Malfoys he wrote up? The Malfoys are threatening to sue the pants off us, the vast majority of Wizarding Britain considers us even more of a laughing stock than we already were, half our subscribers have cancelled their subscriptions and FRANCE CONSIDERS OUR COUNTRY EVEN MORE OF A LAUGHING STOCK THAN IT ALREADY DID!
I HAVE A NIECE AT BEAUXBATONS YOU JACKASSES, AND SHE'S ALREADY HAVING TO DEAL WITH HER BLOODY CLASSMATES QUESTIONING HER ABOUT 'GULPING PLIMPIES'! WHAT EVEN IS A GULPING PIMPY?!
WHY WOULD ANYONE WANT TO HEAR SOMEONE'S CRACKPOT THEORY ABOUT THE MALFOYS BEING BIRD PEOPLE?!
Seriously, anyone who tries hiring or inviting a guy like that ever again is going to be out the door before you can even think the word 'Fired'. We might not have many standards here, but we do have some for God's sake! Oh, and Lovegood is banned from the premises, as is his wife, as is the kid – I've told him to go find another paper to write for because we sure don't want him!
Signed, Stefan O'Meara.
P.S: I MEAN IT. F-I-R-E-D. ON THE SPOT.
Appendix 8: Extract from the Daily Prophet, November 7th, 1981
40th Anniversary of the Sinking of the Armenia
By Ernest Whip
In the midst of this time of celebration, it is my sad duty to remind readers of another tragedy in the shared history of Wizarding Europe. On this day 40 years ago, the Hospital and Transport Ship Armenia was sunk by a Muggle German submarine (a type of underwater craft) during the midst of the Second World War. Doubtlessly even the members of our community who prefer to stay distant from muggle affairs will remember that most terrible of wars, that saw large chunks of Europe and Asia cast into the charnel house and reminded us of how terrible men can be. While our kind was shielded from the vast majority of the conflict despite Gellert Grindelwald's efforts, only a sadist would be able to dismiss these events as unimportant or meaningless.
For our community specifically, the sinking of the Armenia holds special weight – for it is here and here alone that the 'muggle war' struck at the heart of the Wizarding Community. Along with her sister ships, the Armenia played a valuable role in evacuating refugees of war away from the direct fighting. On the wizarding side this was much of the German non-combatant population, fleeing the country in the wake of Grindelwald's massacre of the Wizard's Diet. On the muggle side, these refugees were civilians, medical personal and wounded soldiers from the Crimean Peninsula and further afield, fleeing the (Muggle) German invasion of the Soviet Union.
In the late evening of November 6th, the Armenia took on thousands of passengers at the city of Sevastopol, currently under siege by the German Army. They were bound for the town of Tuapse, 250 miles away on the north-eastern shore of the Black Sea. The ship was also to take on more passengers at the city of Yalta, despite already being overloaded. The ship's captain, Vladimir Plaushevsky was eager to get underway while darkness still provided limited protection from the German airforce (the branch of a muggle military containing aeroplanes) but was delayed waiting for a defensive escort.
Despite the (Muggle) German military and their allies having only limited naval presence on the Black Sea throughout the war, they did have almost complete air superiority. It was this fact that doomed the Armenia and the vast majority of its passengers.
At 11:30 on November 7th, a German plane discovered the Armenia and broke it two with a direct hit from a torpedo (a type of muggle munition). The ship was about 25 miles away from Yalta at the time and sank within four minutes. While several wizards and witches were able to apparate to safety, many more of them drowned, trapped within the sinking ship. We cannot be sure of the number of casualties on our side for a number of reasons; however conservative estimates place the number around 200. The muggle refugees were even more unlucky – only eight people out of possibly 7000 were rescued.
Naturally, the sinking of the Armenia provoked widespread horror and fury throughout our world. Gellert Grindelwald made good use of the sinking for propaganda, as did muggle-hating groups throughout Eastern Europe and further afield. It triggered the one and only vote the ICW has ever held on the possibility of aggressive action against a muggle nation and further weakened Wizarding Germany, laying yet more groundwork for the eventual destruction of the Ministry and the final, brutal phrase of Grindelwald's War.
To commemorate the tragedy, it has been a tradition for the many of the Heads of State of Central and Eastern Europe to meet at an official memorial site close to the city of Yalta, where the ship began its final voyage. While our Ministry would usually send a representative for the fortieth anniversary, the current affairs have rendered that unviable. As such, the Minister of Flanders has agreed to place the British Wreath on this occasion, for which he has our gratitude.
Appendix 9: Extract from 'A Guide for Muggleborns' by Harold Moody (published 1985)
A Short Explanation of Wizarding Law
The organisation of the court in the British Wizarding World is similar to that of the Muggle World, though with noticeable differences, such as the complete absence of dedicated judges. The role of the judge is instead taken by a 'leading member of the establishment', who depending on the case can be anyone from the Minister of Magic, to the Chief Warlock, to senior members of the Department of Law Enforcement. Attempts to establish a proper system of judges have failed to pass the Wizengamot on multiple occasions. To counterplay the problems inherent in this system, 'Judges' are required to obey a strict set of guidelines at all times; with the threat of immediate dismissal in the event of a breach of conduct (or a Vote of No Confidence in case of a misbehaving Minister).
Wizards and Witches are able to seek legal advice from Solicitors, who are empowered to press claims (such as in matters of copyright) on their employer's behalf. Most of Wizarding Britain's Legal Practises are located in the vicinity of Diagon Alley or Hogsmeade, but for those seeking a more detailed explanation, Gringotts maintains an office to provide advise.
In the courtroom, the role of the Barrister is taken by an Advocate, who depending on the length of their career may gain the additional titles of 'High Advocate', 'Most High Advocate' and 'Honourable Advocate' (the latter honour is bequeathed at the whim of the Minister of Magic – currently there are three living holders of the title). However, Advocates are commonly referred to as lawyers or barristers in conversation even among the more conservative parts of the population, due to influence from the muggle community. Any person wishing to become an Advocate must first pass a long and gruelling course, administered by Hamer and Son on behalf of the Department of Law Enforcement.
In matters of defence (but not prosecution, following the passing of the derisively called 'Abraxas' Law'), the accused is also able to call upon a non-professional to defend themselves if they deem it more suitable or wise. A person acting in this capacity is known as a Witness for the Defence, as they are often involved as witnesses in the case in question themselves. Defendants are not allowed to defend themselves however, following a court case in the early 1900s that lasted three months without accounting for time paradoxes.
Until very recently, adult wizards and witches were expected to perform Jury Duty if requested by the Department of Law Enforcement. Naturally, those unable to stand in the jury for health reasons (magical or otherwise) or those with criminal records are not required to participate. However, in the latter days of Harold Minchum's tenure as Minister of Magic, this was suspended following significant amounts of corruption in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement being revealed when several known Death Eaters walked free due to packed juries. The Wizengamot has yet to reinstate this part of the legal system, but both they and the Minister have promised to do so.
Note: For reference, in regard to canon the Jury was reinstated following Voldemort's First Defeat. However, the Minister with the support of a majority of Wizengamot was allowed to suspend this, in trials of 'national interest'. This is what happened with Harry in Ootp, due to Fudge abusing his powers. Whether or not this becomes the case in Stag, Dog and Wolf is another question…
Appendix 10: Extract from 'A Brief Introduction to the Wider Wizarding World' by Christopher Vale (published 2000)
On the Statute of Secrecy
As any member of the Wizarding World knows, the implementation of the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy is almost certainly the most important event in our shared history. Even in the modern era, no other law has come close to exceeding its impact - without it, it is unlikely many wizarding states would even exist and the ICW would surely be a shadow of itself. The entirety of wizard and muggle history would surely be different.
While certain countries retreated into isolation from their muggle counterparts prior to the Statute (such as Constantinople and the Mayan Confederation) along with certain cultural groups (such as the Jewish Diaspora in Britain), the total retreat of the Wizarding Population only became a matter of international discussion in the mid-17th century. Throughout the world and in Europe in particular, the rising tensions between wizardkind and the rest of humanity had gotten to a point beyond that wizards were willing to tolerate. Chief among the countries calling for 'something to be done' were the British Isles, the Holy Roman Empire, Cambodia, and the wizarding communities of North America. They and many others had found themselves the victim of Muggle aggression and suspicion, which while not usually a threat to a prepared adult witch or wizard was certainly a danger to magical children and those unready to defend themselves. Despite many attempts to convince the non-magical rulers to extend protection for magicals under law - granting wizardkind a pretext to arrest hostile muggles without drawing further aggression - these were for the most part not successful; though of course there were exceptions such as a brief period in the Mughal Empire under Dara Shikoh. Now this is not to say that wizards only sought diplomatic solutions to the problem; any student of wizarding history will be aware of the 'Nightmare of Vojvodina' and the short-lived Varman Dynasty, examples of occasions in which wizardkind sought to force muggles into submission through threats or outright conquest.
That is not to say all wizards everywhere were faced with aggression. A sizable number of regions saw better interaction between wizards and muggles towards common goals; such as Ireland (despite being under the rule of Muggle England), Sweden and rather ironically, China under the Qing Dynasty. They were among the loudest voices voicing support for continued peaceful interaction with Muggles in the debates that were to follow.
The International Conference of 1688 (held in Luxembourg) was the culmination of discussions over what to be done about the Muggle problem, after a majority voted to deal with the situation. Three large delegations presented their cases before the assembled ICW, gathered in its entirety for the first time since the Conference of Bécs almost two centuries earlier. The largest of these delegations (though not larger than the others combined) was led by Chinese wizards and argued for continued peaceful interaction with Muggles, with the possibility of an international task force (akin to the one that dealt with the Assassin Order) being assembled to deal with 'problematic cases'. Their argument was that hatred and suspicion could only be overcome through continued interaction and that a withdrawal would only delay any potential catastrophes for a few centuries. The second largest delegation was led jointly by the Wizengamot of Britain and the Wizard's Diet of the HRE and proposed a solution similar to the eventual Statute, that being the complete retreat of the Wizarding World into isolation; though notably without the addition of a requirement for Muggles to firstly be deprived of any useful knowledge about magic and Wizardkind in general. This solution also did not extend to preventing muggle interaction with Magical Creatures or abandoned magical locations - such as Old Calakmul. Their argument was that the security of the Wizarding Population could not be ensured without an international commitment, lest certain states recruit wizards to carry out acts of aggression in other regions. The last and smallest delegation was led by wizards from France, who were chafing under the reforms of Louis XIV (many of them were either members of or were sympathetic to the plight of the Huguenot Minority). This delegation argued for a worldwide war against the 'Muggle World', that would see existing governments and rulers disposed and an 'Intellectually Superior' Council of Wizards being installed to govern the affairs of 'those unable to govern themselves'. As one would expect, today's Wizarding France would rather everyone forgot that their ancestors were calling for that.
The debate over which solution should be implemented waged for several months, well into the new year. The slow progress did little to calm tempers across the globe, with even the muggles picking up that something was happening. Debates over the influence of certain parties in spurring events such as the Nine Years War continue to this day. Eventually, the British and HRE delegation was able to convince enough defectors from the other two parties to support their implementation of an altered version of their original proposal and see it passed. Allegations of bribery, murder and large amounts of peer pressure are unproven, but probably happened. A large number of European members were also convinced to support their suit in the wake of the Third Durmstrang Incident - including those from Sweden, previously second only to Chinese Wizards in supporting continued interaction with Muggles. Among the amendments to the original proposal was a requirement for each region of the Wizarding Population to assemble a Government or Ministry separate from the Muggle world, if that was not already the case - this included states such as China, Cambodia, Turkey and Britain herself. These governments or existing ones would be given responsibility for enforcing international law in their territory, as well as the protection of local muggles from anything of a magical nature - this requirement included the concealment of any magical beasts, locations and artifacts in the territory.
If the mass establishment of governments around the globe was not enough however, the wizarding world as a whole was also faced with another challenge on a worldwide scale - that being the almost-complete erasure of their existence from Muggle knowledge. This was a ridiculously large task, and one that the gathered representatives might not have truly appreciated the scale of. This was not a matter of simply wiping the memories of muggles throughout the globe, though that was itself a difficult arrangement due to obliviators being in relatively short supply and the modern Memory Charm not yet existing (it was only refined from the existing charm developed by Mnemone Radford in 1712, by staff at the Bayt-al-Hikmah). This would be a matter of altering the literal history of their muggle counterparts; by removing and replacing the records of certain battles, marriages, murders, dynasties, wars and any number of things from any sources in which they could be found - including events such as the Iberian Campaigns, the War of the Twenty-One Kingdoms and much of the Macedonian Empire's history. Certain cultural traditions were also listed for erasure, such as the annual festival held by the people of Java (at the time mostly ruled by the Mataram Sultanate) at Citraresmi Academy of Magic.
This was not a lightly taken decision by the ICW. Many wizards and witches protested the decision as inhumane and bordering on cultural genocide. It was such a sticking point for many members, that here is where the delegation was forced to concede on several other points - including a requirement for many of the richer states providing aid to poorer countries to assist them through this period, several territorial concessions, and a requirement for any alterations to muggle culture and history to stick as closely as possible to those previously existing. European wizards also agreed to provide additional support to the Instytucja Mityczna and establish a secondary Scandinavian school of magic to take the strain off Durmstrang Institute and provide education to muggleborns. There was also a worldwide provision for wizarding governments to have limited interaction with their counterparts if the Statute could be overwise upheld - this is where the allowance for Heads of Muggle States to be allowed knowledge of the wizarding community comes from.
The Statute was officially signed in 1689, then properly established over the latter months of 1692. Most wizarding communities ratified the law on the same day, including those in Britain, the HRE and France; however, others such as most of the wizarding community of China withheld their acknowledgement for a full week in protest. The final region of the world to be 'de-magicfied' was Tierra del Fuego on the 3rd of December, a part of modern day Chile and Argentina. Records from the time record the process of altering muggle society as being 'disturbingly easy'.
Focusing specifically on Britain for a moment, the enforcement of the statute saw many wizarding families migrate closer together, forming small communities hidden among muggle villages and towns. In England and Wales these were mostly located along 'the Wizarding Crescent', stretching eastwards from Cornwall to Wiltshire and then back westwards to Pembrokeshire. In Scotland, these were mostly located in the general vicinity of Hogwarts, including the country's only completely wizarding settlement of Hogsmeade. In Ireland, these were mostly located in Connacht Province, close to the looming spectre of the first Maevath.
Obviously, the Statute of Secrecy is still in effect to this date. Over the three centuries since its implementation, there have been a few attempts to overturn it through both legal and illegal means. The most famous of the illegal is surely the campaign of Gellert Grindelwald against the Ministries of central Europe. Of the legal attempts, the only one that drew close to gaining any success was that of the Scandinavian Confederation, who have consistently placed down proposals for renewed interaction with the muggle world every year since 1976. These have so far been defeated, though the one time they were successful in causing an actual a vote to examine this issue (in 1992) was enough for the ICW to establish a committee on possible courses of action in the event of the Statute being repealed either through vote or failure. The latter is not expected to be remotely likely until at least the mid-21st century, as several tests conducted by the Unified States of India in the vicinity of Nalanda have proven the success of concealment charms in the face of muggle technology.
If the Statute is broken, the Wizarding Governments of the world are faced with a number of possibilities over how to proceed. The best would of course be the establishment of peaceful relations, including such actions as a Wizarding Ambassador to the United Nations to represent the ICW. Discussions over other possibilities have been held however, including those relating to possible hostile muggle states and how to deal with them. In that event, the members of ICW would prefer a solution brought about by diplomacy but is prepared to use espionage or harsher methods to ensure the future of the international wizarding community, such as through the threat or usage of mass destruction.
Credit to Joshua Ben Ari for the idea of the Jewish Diaspora in England.