Level Four

• Type: Floor of the Ministry of Magic
• Location: Ministry of Magic, Whitehall, London, England
• Owner/Residents: Ministry of Magic
• Key Features: Houses the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures; Lift access; Described as having untidy, bare-walled corridors.

Level Four is one of the main administrative floors of the Ministry of Magic headquarters, accessible via the golden grilles of the Ministry lifts. When the lift arrives, a cool, dispassionate female voice announces, “Level Four, Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, incorporating the Beast, Being and Spirit Divisions, Goblin Liaison Office and Pest Advisory Bureau.” The level is depicted as somewhat rundown and chaotic. The corridors have bare walls with peeling paint, and the overall impression is scruffy. Unlike the bustling Atrium, this floor can seem deserted, though it houses numerous important offices. These offices are often mismatched and untidy, reflecting the underfunded nature of some of the departments located here. For a time, Arthur Weasley's Misuse of Muggle Artefacts Office was relocated to a cramped, windowless broom cupboard on this level. Historically, Level Four has served as the administrative center for all matters concerning magical creatures, from negotiating with sentient beings like Goblins to managing dangerous beasts and dealing with minor magical pests.

Level Four is first visited by Harry Potter in *Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix*, when he accompanies Arthur Weasley to his disciplinary hearing. They travel to this level via the lift before Mr. Weasley leads Harry to his temporary, comically small office. This visit highlights the disorganization and lack of funding for Mr. Weasley's department, which Lucius Malfoy had previously mocked. It is from this level that Arthur Weasley and Harry Potter depart to find the correct hearing location, eventually taking the stairs down to the dungeons and Courtroom Ten on Level Ten, as the lift does not descend that far. The brief time spent on Level Four serves to contrast the mundane, bureaucratic reality of the Ministry of Magic with the dark and serious purpose of Harry's trial. Following the Second Wizarding War, Hermione Granger began her successful career at the Ministry on this level, working for the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures in the Office for House-Elf Relocation, where she greatly improved the lives of house-elves and other non-human beings. (J.K. Rowling interview)

• Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures: The primary department occupying Level Four. Its main divisions located here include:

1. Beast Division: Responsible for the control and classification of magical beasts.
2. Being Division: Manages relations and laws concerning beings of near-human intelligence, such as Vampires and Hags.
3. Spirit Division: Deals with ghosts, Poltergeists, and other spectral entities.
4. Goblin Liaison Office: Tasked with managing wizard-goblin relations, a notoriously difficult job.
5. Centaur Liaison Office: An office that has been vacant for years, as Centaurs have consistently refused to cooperate with the Ministry, viewing any attempts at “liaison” as an insult to their intelligence and independence.
6. Pest Advisory Bureau: Advises wizards on how to handle minor magical pests like gnomes and Doxies.
7. Office for House-Elf Relocation: A sub-division where Hermione Granger began her Ministry career. (J.K. Rowling interview)

• Misuse of Muggle Artefacts Office: In 1995, Arthur Weasley's office was temporarily moved to a broom cupboard on Level Four, highlighting his department's lack of prestige within the Ministry at the time.

• In the film adaptation of *Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix*, the Ministry of Magic's interior is depicted with a more uniform and grand architectural style, losing the “scruffy” and “rundown” description of Level Four from the novel. The cluttered and bureaucratic chaos is toned down in favor of a more visually imposing set. (film)
• J.K. Rowling revealed in a post-publication interview that Hermione Granger's first job after Hogwarts was in the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, where she was instrumental in campaigning for the rights of non-human creatures, beginning with house-elves. This work started on Level Four. (J.K. Rowling interview)