Educational Decree Number Twenty-Six

• Type: Educational Decree, Magical Legislation
• Owners: Ministry of Magic
• Maker: Dolores Umbridge (as Hogwarts High Inquisitor)

Educational Decree Number Twenty-Six was a formal proclamation issued on a piece of parchment. Like other Educational Decrees, it was posted on notice boards throughout Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, including the Gryffindor common room notice board. The document was officially framed with the heading, “By order of the High Inquisitor of Hogwarts,” and was signed by its author, Dolores Jane Umbridge, High Inquisitor.

The primary function of this decree was not magical but legislative, imposing a strict rule upon the faculty of Hogwarts. The text of the decree stated: Teachers are hereby banned from giving students any information that is not strictly related to the subjects they are paid to teach. The decree was a tool for Dolores Umbridge to exert control and suppress the flow of information within the school. Its “use” was to legally gag any teacher who might discuss matters the Ministry of Magic wished to keep quiet, most notably the return of Lord Voldemort. It created a chilling effect, forcing teachers to stick rigidly to their approved curriculum and preventing them from offering students advice, comfort, or information on other matters.

Educational Decree Number Twenty-Six was enacted by Dolores Umbridge in the autumn of 1995, during her tenure as Hogwarts High Inquisitor. Her authority to create such decrees was granted to her by Educational Decree Number Twenty-Three. The immediate catalyst for its creation occurred after Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger visited the Three Broomsticks Inn in Hogsmeade. During their visit, Umbridge covertly listened to their conversation, in which Harry mentioned being warned by Arthur Weasley and also made a reference to Sirius Black. Viewing this as Harry spreading “tales” and consorting with a known fugitive, Umbridge created this decree to prevent him and other students from receiving any information from teachers that she did not personally sanction.

This decree was a significant element in the escalating oppression at Hogwarts during the 1995-1996 school year. It exemplified the Ministry of Magic's paranoid efforts to control the narrative surrounding Lord Voldemort's return and to isolate Harry Potter and Albus Dumbledore. The decree had a direct impact on Harry's interactions with his teachers. After Umbridge banned Harry, Fred Weasley, and George Weasley from playing Quidditch for life, Professor McGonagall was forced to cite this specific decree as the reason she could not discuss the matter with Harry. She warned him, Ron, and Hermione to be extremely careful about what they said within Umbridge's hearing. By severely restricting communication and learning, this decree, along with the many others, reinforced the students' belief that they had to take matters into their own hands. This sense of necessity was a key factor leading to the formation of Dumbledore's Army, an organization created specifically to defy Umbridge's regime and learn practical Defence Against the Dark Arts.

In the film adaptation, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, the numerous Educational Decrees are shown being magically added to a large “Proclamation Wall” in a montage. The specific content and numbering of individual decrees, such as Number Twenty-Six, are not detailed as they are in the novel, but their oppressive and cumulative effect is visually represented (film).