One of the founders of Hogwarts. The darkest and most controversial of them. Many years later, his faculty will remain with double significance - purebreds will proudly call the name of their House, while the others will only speak with contempt about "vipers." What was he like, this greatest sorcerer? And what is hidden behind his magnificent name? Salazar Slytherin is the founder of the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry of the same name.
Basic information
Salazar Slytherin is a magician who is one of the four founders of Hogwarts. According to legend, each of the four, Rowena Ravenclaw, Godric Gryffindor, Helga Hufflepuff, and Salazar, after the establishment of the School of Witchcraft and Wizardry decided to accept students to their faculty, given their outstanding character traits. Slytherin agreed to teach those who were cunning, purposeful, and dodgy. These qualities openly resonate with the properties of the symbol of the same named faculty and its founder - the snake.
It is known that Salazar Slytherin, among other things, was the first registered serpentine. He was fluent in the art of legalization. The same abilities also appeared in his heir - Tom Riddle (Lord Voldemort), who later transferred them to Harry Potter with the help of a particle of his soul.
Attributes of the Slytherin Faculty
In addition to the fact that the symbol of Slytherin, as already mentioned, is a snake, Salazar, like the other Founders, had their own colors. For this faculty, it is emerald green and silver. Salazar is often depicted in robes of this color, the Slytherin coat of arms is also made in them.
Discord among the Founders
No wonder Salazar and his faculty are ranked on the Dark side. Such fame has been preserved for them since ancient times.
Salazar Slytherin was an ardent supporter of pure blood. He did not want to accept half-breeds, and even more so Muggle-born, even if they fit his criteria, and the rest of the Founders first put up with this order of things. But the tension between them grew. Passions between Slytherin and his main rival, Gryffindor, began to glow more and more. Gathering a joint council between Godric, Rowena and Helga, the three Hogwarts founders forced Salazar to leave school forever. The magician was forced to obey, but he could not leave at all without meekness.
Chamber of Secrets
Those qualities that Slytherin valued among his students fully manifested themselves in him. He was a proud cunning, power-hungry and treacherous. He left Hogwarts at the request of the rest of the Founders, but did not restrain himself from leaving a small gift.
This gift was the Secret Room hidden deep in the castle. And in it, Salazar imprisoned his terrible monster, designed to kill unclean wizards in the walls of the School. Slytherin nightmare - a basilisk, a huge snake born from a chicken egg hatched by a toad, could be called only by the Slytherin Heir (another option is considered to be the Heiress of Salazar Slytherin), and the Chamber of Secrets itself could also be open only to him (her).
That is why the legend from were soon turned into a fairy tale, which scared the kids. They tried to find the Secret Room more than once or twice, and could not. Salazar's spell worked flawlessly - only the Descendant of Salazar Slytherin could be a serpent-hunter, and only he could open the Room and let out the Slytherin Horror crawl around the castle, killing unclean ones.
This happened when Tom Riddle (Lord Voldemort) not only fulfilled the prophecy, but also used it for his own purposes. His plans, as always, were interrupted by Harry Potter.
Slytherin Relic
Salazar Slytherin’s medallion, in spite of what outstanding magician he belonged to, could have remained just an ancient decoration, if it had not been used by Lord Voldemort to create the crucifixes on the way to infinity.
It is not known for certain what properties the medallion had, but after the transformation, of course, it began to possess all the characteristics of a horcrux.
For example, it was possible to destroy an ancient relic only with the help of very powerful means: the poison of the Basilisk or the spell of the Wild Flame. In addition, the medallion of Salazar Slytherin contained a particle of the soul of the Dark Lord. The jewelry itself was already a threat - it affected the will and mind, which Harry Potter and Ronald Weasley experienced when they wore it. This tiny part of the soul possessed truly great power, subjugated and broke.
Harry Potter and Salazar Slytherin
The connection between the Boy Who Survived and the most famous powerful snake-eater is very strong and, among other things, it is easy to trace. Slytherin influence haunted Harry Potter from the first year - even then the Sizing Hat indicated how strongly the boy suits this faculty. It contained enough qualities that Salazar Slytherin valued so much, but, as Albus Damboldor, director of the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry correctly noted: "It is not the character trait that determines a person, but the choice made by him." Harry opted for Gryffindor.
But on this connection did not break off - not in vain because it is called so strong. In his second year, Potter discovered that he was a serpent-eater, and for some time there was even a possibility that he was the Slytherin Heir. In the end, it turned out that this was not entirely true, although the ability to speak serpentargo was transferred to him precisely from the Founder, although it happened indirectly.
Another notable property of Salazar - legalization, the Boy who survived, however, did not possess. Harry did not have the zeal and effort to master it. Ultimately, legalization (“reading minds,” as the Muggles put it) is not an innate talent.
The strong connection between Potter and Slytherin is most likely responsible for the part of Voldemort who settled in the boy’s soul when Tom Riddle unintentionally made him his crucifix.
Myths and Reality
The name of Salazar Slytherin is shrouded in many legends and tales. The magician lived so long ago and became famous for so many that it is difficult to say what actually was and what was not. The article sets out who Salazar Slytherin was in the canon of the series of books by Joan Rowling. Fanfiction of any authorship can offer even more refinement, exciting the minds of fans. Unknown relics, novels with the Founders - Rowena and Helga, sudden resurrections, and even Merlin knows what. None of this will be true, but it can be quite entertaining.
In turn, we can add the final version of the origin of the name of Salazar Slytherin. Perhaps Joan C. Rowling chose this name for a very controversial hero in honor of the Portuguese dictator António de Oliveira Salazar (tyrannical from 1932 to 1968). The writer, as you know, at one time lived in this country and, of course, was familiar with her story, including its bloody pages.