Educational Decrees

The Educational Decrees were a series of legally binding regulations imposed upon Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry during the 1995-1996 school year. Issued by the Ministry of Magic through its representative, Dolores Umbridge, in her capacities as Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor, Hogwarts High Inquisitor, and later Headmistress, the decrees were designed to assert Ministry of Magic control over the school, undermine the authority of Albus Dumbledore, and suppress any discussion or activity related to the return of Lord Voldemort.

Following Lord Voldemort's return at the end of the 1994-1995 school year, the Minister for Magic, Cornelius Fudge, adopted a policy of denial. He feared that Albus Dumbledore was plotting to overthrow him and viewed Dumbledore's claims about Voldemort's reappearance as a direct threat to his power. To gain a foothold inside Hogwarts and monitor its staff and students, Fudge used his authority to install Dolores Umbridge, his Senior Undersecretary, as the new Defence Against the Dark Arts professor. To grant Umbridge the power she needed to enforce the Ministry's will, a new law, Educational Decree Number Twenty-Two, was passed. This was followed by Educational Decree Number Twenty-Three, which created the new position of Hogwarts High Inquisitor, a role bestowed upon Umbridge. As High Inquisitor, she had extraordinary powers over her fellow teachers and the authority to create further Educational Decrees to control every aspect of school life.

Each new Educational Decree was magically posted on the notice board in the Hogwarts Castle's Entrance Hall. The proclamations appeared on framed pieces of parchment, signed by Umbridge, and were magically nailed to the wall. They were enchanted to be irremovable by unauthorized persons, as demonstrated when Fred Weasley and George Weasley failed to remove one with mundane tools. The decrees systematically stripped students of their freedoms and teachers of their autonomy. The most significant of these was Educational Decree Number Twenty-Four, which disbanded all student groups and clubs. This act directly led Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger to form Dumbledore's Army, a secret group dedicated to learning practical defensive magic, in direct defiance of Umbridge and the Ministry of Magic. The decrees became a symbol of the Ministry's oppressive regime, with the wall in the Entrance Hall eventually becoming covered in dozens of framed regulations.

While it is known that at least ninety-eight decrees were passed, only a few are explicitly detailed in the text.

1. Educational Decree Number Twenty-Two: Mandated that in the event of the Headmaster being unable to appoint a new teacher, the Ministry of Magic would select a suitable candidate. This was used to place Dolores Umbridge at Hogwarts.
2. Educational Decree Number Twenty-Three: Created the position of Hogwarts High Inquisitor to oversee the standards of education at Hogwarts and granted the role to Dolores Umbridge. This gave her the authority to inspect and potentially dismiss other teachers.
3. Educational Decree Number Twenty-Four: Disbanded all student organizations, societies, teams, groups, and clubs. Any group wishing to reform required permission from the High Inquisitor.
4. Educational Decree Number Twenty-Five: Gave the High Inquisitor ultimate authority over all student punishments, decisions, and sanctions, superseding the authority of other teachers and Heads of House.
5. Educational Decree Number Twenty-Six: Prohibited teachers from giving students any information that was not strictly related to the subjects they were paid to teach. This was aimed primarily at preventing staff from discussing Lord Voldemort's return with students.
6. Educational Decree Number Twenty-Seven: Decreed that any student found in possession of the magazine The Quibbler would be expelled, following Rita Skeeter's interview with Harry Potter being published in it.
7. Educational Decree Number Twenty-Eight: Appointed Dolores Umbridge as Headmistress of Hogwarts after Albus Dumbledore's flight from the castle to avoid arrest.
8. Unspecified Decrees: Other decrees were implemented but not numbered. One notable rule stipulated that boys and girls were not permitted to be within eight inches of each other, later revised to six inches.

Following the Battle of the Department of Mysteries, where the return of Lord Voldemort was publicly confirmed, Cornelius Fudge was forced to resign as Minister for Magic. Dolores Umbridge was removed from her post at Hogwarts. Under the new Minister, Rufus Scrimgeour, all of the Educational Decrees were repealed before the start of the 1996-1997 school year.

• In the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, the Educational Decrees are featured prominently on a large “Proclamation Wall” in the Entrance Hall. The visual of the wall becoming progressively cluttered with dozens of plaques became an iconic representation of Umbridge's tyrannical control over the school (film).