Books

Things You Probably Didn't Know About The Black Family

Saim Cheeda
Updated November 9, 2023 15 items
Voting Rules
Vote up the most sinister details.

Pureblood families see themselves as the backbone of the Wizarding World in the Harry Potter series. Only Ron Weasley of the main trio has a long wizarding family history, but the Weasleys don't put much of any focus on their ancestry. Fanatically devoted pureblood families tend to keep records of where they come from and have sketchy pasts that they seek to hide. Sirius Black was the final member of the Black family, and their family was one of the oldest to exist in the Wizarding World.

While Sirius was ashamed (rightfully so) of the actions of his ancestors, it's worth looking into points of interest related to them as a way to see just how different Sirius was. It's also interesting to see the ties the Blacks have to other pureblood families and the way the Wizarding World is connected.

  • 1
    29 VOTES

    The Portrait Of Sirius' Mother Is Deranged Because It Was Painted After Her Husband's And Regulus's Deaths

    The Portrait Of Sirius' Mother Is Deranged Because It Was Painted After Her Husband's And Regulus's Deaths

    Walburga Black, mother to Sirius and Regulus, had a portrait of herself made near the time of her death to essentially remain at 12 Grimmauld Place after her physical demise. Wizarding portraits need to be taught who the person they are modeled after is supposed to be - Walburga had pretty much lost her mind by that point.

    Walburga wasn't a deranged and addled person during her younger days, and her screaming portrait is an exaggeration of her personality. The elderly Walburga was wracked with grief over the deaths of her husband and Regulus, which led her to teach her portrait to be a representation of her final days.

    29 votes
  • 2
    19 VOTES

    The Black Family Does Not Come From Royalty But Pretends They Do

    The Black Family Does Not Come From Royalty But Pretends They Do

    The Blacks' obsession with their family name was such that they made the Wizarding World believe they were descendants of royalty. The family's official name is "The Noble and Most Ancient House of Blacks," which is a way to further the notion that the name is supposed to mean something.

    The Blacks used their wealth to portray themselves as noblemen and their descendants simply continued with the facade. It's very likely that the Blacks believed their own lies because their justification was that being a Black made them "practically royal."

    19 votes
  • 3
    29 VOTES

    Phineas Nigellus Black's Sister Married A Muggle And Was Disowned

    Phineas Nigellus Black's Sister Married A Muggle And Was Disowned

    Phineas Nigellus sure had multiple direct family members who defied his views of pureblood supremacy, and his own sister was cast out of the family for her association with Muggles. Iola Black fell in love with a Muggle named Bob Hitchens and went on to marry him; this was the gravest insult to the Black family.

    Iola was promptly disowned, with her name in the family tree burned off to signify that she was permanently cut off. Iola is the only known Black who married a Muggle and she's doubly unique as a former Slytherin who went against her house's pureblood teachings to be in union with a non-magical person.

    29 votes
  • 4
    25 VOTES

    The Black Family Supported Voldemort But Weren't All Death Eaters

    The Black Family Supported Voldemort But Weren't All Death Eaters

    Contrary to popular belief, the Black family was not directly involved in Voldemort's inner circle. The Blacks openly supported pureblood supremacy and endorsed anyone who went to great lengths to preserve it; however, only two members of the family were actual Death Eaters.

    Bellatrix became the first family member to join Voldemort's supporters but she had already married Rudolphus Lestrange by then; she took up the Lestrange name over her maiden name. Regulus is the only person with the Black name who joined Voldemort's inner circle, although he quickly betrayed Voldemort and perished soon after. 

    The Black family never had any influence with the Death Eaters, and even Sirius and Regulus' parents, who were staunch endorsers of Voldemort's cause, never became affiliated with the dark wizard faction.

    25 votes
  • 5
    22 VOTES

    Female Family Members Were Required To Marry Pureblood Family Males Or Be Disowned 

    Female Family Members Were Required To Marry Pureblood Family Males Or Be Disowned 

    The upbringing of girls in the Black family was archaic - their sole purpose was to marry into a pureblood family. Black family women weren't expected to get jobs or encouraged to follow personal passions; they were told to find pureblood husbands.

    Moreover, women in the Black household carried the burden of being ousted by the family because those who didn't follow through with marrying into a pureblood house weren't welcome anymore. Bellatrix Black had no love for her eventual husband, Rudolphus Lestrange, and only married him because it was expected of her. 

    Narcissa Black was considered a successful woman due to her status as a Malfoy family bride, a family even more fanatically devoted toward pureblood loyalty. Andromeda, the sister of Bellatrix and Narcissa, was disowned when she married the Muggle-born Ted Tonks, and Bellatrix eliminated Andromeda's daughter, Nymphadora, specifically because she was a child of her "traitor" sister.

    22 votes
  • 6
    27 VOTES

    Cedrella Black Is The Mother Of Arthur Weasley

    Cedrella Black Is The Mother Of Arthur Weasley

    Sirius mentions the fact that he and Arthur Weasley are related through marriage, and the association is a close one. Arthur is the son of Cedrella Black, who was one of the daughters of Arcturus Black II. Cedrella married Septimus Weasly but was disowned by the family because the Weasleys were seen as "blood traitors."

    Sirius's relationship with Arthur stems from Arcturus II - his nephew, Arcturus III, his Sirius' paternal grandfather. Cedrella's status as a Black is interesting where the matter of Hogwarts is concerned; she was a Slytherin who married into a family exclusively filled with Gryffindors. 

    27 votes
  • 7
    31 VOTES

    The Family Had The Practice Of Naming Children After Constellations And Reusing The Names For Later Generations

    The Family Had The Practice Of Naming Children After Constellations And Reusing The Names For Later Generations

    The Black family's obsession with keeping everything within the family extended to names as well, and several people were named after their ancestors. The names would be discontinued if a certain family member was disowned and following generations would refuse to acknowledge it; people in the family were also usually given names based on constellations.

    Alphard is the brightest star in the constellation Hydra - the name wasn't used again because he was disowned for supporting Sirius after the latter ran away.

    Andromeda is a constellation in the Northern Hemisphere - she was disowned for marrying a Muggle-born.

    There were three Blacks named Arcturus, which is the brightest star in the Boötes the Herdsman constellation. The Arcturus name remained popular and was used in three different generations; it was Regulus Black's middle name as well.

    Bellatrix is a star in the Orion constellation.

    Cassiopeia is a constellation in the Northern Hemisphere.

    Cygnus is a constellation in the Northern Hemisphere - there were three Black family members named Cygnus in different generations.

    Orion is one of the most well-known constellations in the Northern Hemisphere.

    Pollux is a star in the Gemini constellation - Pollux Black was the grandfather of Bellatrix, Andromeda, Narcissa, Sirius, and Regulus.

    Regulus is the brightest star in the Leo constellation - there were two men named Regulus in the family.

    Sirius is the brightest star in the Canis Major constellation and is also known as the "Dog Star" - Sirius' animagus form was a dog, as was his Patronus. There were three Black family men named Sirius in different generations.

    31 votes
  • 8
    21 VOTES

    Sirius Black's Parents Were Cousins

    Sirius Black's Parents Were Cousins

    Some pureblood wizarding families, like the Malfoys, don't practice inbreeding and seek out other pureblood families to marry into. Others, like the Gaunts and Blacks, began the tradition of marrying their cousins to preserve their blood purity.

    Sirius Black is the result of an interfamily marriage as his parents were second cousins. Orion Black married Walburga, both of whose grandfathers were brothers. Sirius mentions to Harry in Order of the Phoenix that Kreacher was devoted to his mother even though she married into the house where Kreacher served - he actually always knew of Walburga because she was a member of the same family.

    21 votes
  • 9
    25 VOTES

    A Black Family Ancestor Stole 12 Grimmauld Place

    A Black Family Ancestor Stole 12 Grimmauld Place

    The Black family considered 12 Grimmauld Place to be an ancestral home that they valued above all else. While the house was the place where centuries' worth of Black family members were raised, they didn't truly own the building. 

    In actuality, 12 Grimmauld Place was once the most beautiful house in the neighborhood that a Black ancestor came to covet. He decided to take the house by force and used magic to "persuade" the Muggle owner to hand the place over to him. Harry wonders why the house is in a Muggle neighborhood - it's the Blacks who aren't actually supposed to be living there.

    25 votes
  • 10
    22 VOTES

    The Black Family Is Part Of The Sacred Twenty-Eight

    The Black Family Is Part Of The Sacred Twenty-Eight

    The Sacred Twenty-Eight are families who are considered to have all pureblood family members. The Blacks fall under the twenty-eight families that qualify and their ancestry can be traced back to over a century and back.

    According to Sirius, the Blacks are not legitimately pureblood and have the habit of disregarding family members who aren't magical. Regardless, the Blacks are no longer part of the Sacred Twenty-Eight because the family is extinct with no heirs left.

    22 votes
  • 11
    16 VOTES

    The Family's Motto Is All About Blood Purity

    The Family's Motto Is All About Blood Purity

    Pureblood families that are aware of their roots from centuries back have the practice of preserving a family motto. The House of Black was no different, and members of the family would teach their children to uphold the values that the motto was meant to communicate.

    The motto is Toujours pur - it's French for "Always pure," which alludes to the family's obsession with blood purity. In fact, the motto is written on the Black family tree tapestry that has recorded the members for the last seven centuries. 

    16 votes
  • 12
    22 VOTES

    Phineas Black Was A Muggle Rights Activist

    Phineas Black Was A Muggle Rights Activist

    Phineas Nigellus Black was the former Headmaster of Hogwarts whose tenure is considered to be the worst in the school's history. He wasn't popular at home either because his son, Phineas Black, didn't respect his father's pro-pureblood ideology.

    Phineas Black was the opposite in mentality to his family's beliefs and became a staunch supporter of Muggle rights. The Blacks wanted non-magical people to be eradicated, so a member of their own family who actively encouraged pro-Muggle tolerance was not welcome - Phineas Black was disowned from the family and he never reconciled with them.

    22 votes
  • 13
    15 VOTES

    The Family's House-Elves Were Beheaded When They Became Old

    The Family's House-Elves Were Beheaded When They Became Old

    Kreacher was lucky that the other members of the Black family didn't live long enough to see him get old. The House of Black had the tradition to behead their house-elves when they became "too old to carry tea trays," and the ultimate fate of their servants was to have their dismembered heads hung on display in the halls of 12 Grimmauld Place.

    Elladora Black, the sister of Phineas Nigellus Black, was the one who started the tradition of executing old house-elves; her decision was revered by the family and later generations remembered her as "Aunt Elladora" for her supposed wisdom.

    15 votes
  • 14
    25 VOTES

    Sirius Black Is The Only Known Gryffindor In The Black Family

    Sirius Black Is The Only Known Gryffindor In The Black Family

    Sirius Black was the last remaining member of the Black family prior to his demise and it's ironic considering the family placed such emphasis on Slytherin house. Sirius was sorted into Gryffindor, which brought in much anger from his mother in particular.

    Sirius's ancestors would have had the same reaction as his mother because none of them were in any house at Hogwarts other than Slytherin. It's known for certain that the Black family was exclusively in Slytherin House throughout the 20th century - Horace Slughorn taught all of them and mentions he was their head of house in Half-Blood Prince. As it happened, the family that was fanatically devoted to Slytherin House ultimately ended with a Gryffindor member.

    25 votes
  • 15
    17 VOTES

    Kreacher's Entire Family Has Served The Blacks

    Kreacher's Entire Family Has Served The Blacks

    House-elves are legacy creatures, in that they were originally taken in as servants a long time ago and their descendants continue to serve the same family. Kreacher comes from a long line of house-elves devoted to the Black household and it is the reason why he's so loyal toward the family's history.

    Kreacher's mother willingly gave up her life to be beheaded when she became too old and her head was among the ones that were hung in 12 Grimmauld Place's halls. Kreacher was raised to believe that his life's purpose was to serve the Blacks until his death and having his head on the walls was an honor he dearly wished to accomplish.

    17 votes