A Triwizard History: Beauxbatons Academy of Magic

By Arabella Blackwood & Marz Marchant

[editors note: due to certain circumstances surrounding the Great Pumpkin this article comes slightly delayed, A thousand apologies.]

Hidden and unplottable, but located in the vicinity of glamorous Cannes in southern France, lies the glittering Palace of Beauxbatons; home of L’académie de Magie Beauxbâtons. Soon we will open our doors to welcome its students, our esteemed European friends from the south. We can but hope they are as impressed by our moody skies as we are by the amount of sunshine they have at home!

Founded before the 1290s, Beauxbatons Academy of Magic is one of eleven known Wizarding schools in the world. With a long and illustrious history, it has been home to some of the best and brightest Wixen. Among its many noteworthy alumni, we find Nicolas Flamel, the brilliant alchemist who discovered the Philosopher’s Stone. His wife Perenelle was also a gifted Beauxbatons student, and a stunning fountain (purported to have beautifying and healing properties) is named after the couple and situated in the centre of the school’s park. 

During the period of revolution and mass execution between 1793 and 1794 (in French history, known as La Terreur or The Terror), the wizard Vincent Duc de Trefle-Picques, another graduate of the Academy, escaped. He cleverly cast a Concealment Charm on his own neck and avoided death by making it seem as though he had already been decapitated. On the darker side of the Wizarding spectrum, Beauxbatons alumnus Luc Millefeuille was an infamous pâtissier who was known to “Muggle-bait” and deliberately poison Muggles. In sharp moral contrast, Fleur Delacour, who fought on our side during the Battle of Hogwarts and received medals of bravery from the British and French Ministries of Magic, was also the 1994–1995 school year Beauxbatons Triwizard Champion. 

The name Beauxbatons seems to be a fairly straightforward derivation from the French “beaux” (beautiful) and “bâtons” (wands, in this case). Though the French school is located in the Pyrenees mountains, it has a multicultural and diverse student body and it accepts pupils from other European nations, including the Netherlands, Spain, Luxembourg, Portugal and Belgium. Cultural refinement is a part of daily school life at the Academy. The food at Beauxbatons is known to be of excellent quality and wood nymphs have traditionally serenaded students while they dine. Beauxbatons share similarities with our own Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. It too has a long history of co-educational excellence and our schools have shared friendly relations dating back several hundred years.

The exact whereabouts of Beauxbatons Academy of Magic is concealed. Though we do know it is a beautiful, bright palace surrounded by formal gardens, lawned areas and a mountainous backdrop, the Academy is disguised and cannot be found on any map.

Académie de Magie Beauxbâtons (Beauxbatons Academy of Magic) – facts in brief:

Coat of Arms- Two crossed golden wands, each emitting three stars
Location- Rumoured to be in the Pyrenees mountains of southern France
Headmistress- Madame Élodie D’Avignon
Uniform- A chic powder blue silk uniform (plus grey pants and tailored vest), worn neatly and elegantly at all times
Educational style- Diplomatic and serious, with a strong focus on respect, presentation (personal and collective), reputation, tradition, academic excellence and social graciousness.