Warning! At least some content in this article is derived from information featured in Harry Potter: Wizards Unite and Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery.

As such, spoilers will be present within the article.

"We are talking about a different breed of being. Dealings between wizards and goblins have been fraught for centuries ... There has been fault on both sides, I would never claim that wizards have been innocent. However, there is a belief among some goblins, and those at Gringotts are perhaps most prone to it, that wizards cannot be trusted in matters of gold and treasure, that they have no respect for goblin ownership." —Bill Weasley on the mindset of goblins[src]

Goblins are a highly intelligent race of small magical humanoid beings with long fingers and feet that coexist with the wizarding world. Their diet consists of meat, roots, and fungi. Goblins converse in a language known as Gobbledegook, and are adept metalsmiths notable for their silverwork; they even mint coins for wizarding currency. Due to their skills with money and finances, they control the wizarding economy to a large extent and run Gringotts Wizarding Bank.[4]

Goblins have their type of magic and can do magic without a wand. They are represented by the Goblin Liaison Office of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures in the Ministry of Magic. Goblins are considered to be inferior by many wizards, who foolishly believe that the goblins are comfortable with that arrangement.

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Description

Physical appearance

Goblins are short and fair-skinned, as they spend very little time outside. They have very long fingers and feet, dome-shaped heads and are slightly larger than house-elves. Griphook, one of the hundreds of goblins working at Gringotts, has a bald head, pointed nose, and pointed ears. Some have dark, slanted eyes, and some goblins even wear pointed hats.[4]

Intelligence

Harry Potter: "Hagrid, what exactly are these things?" Rubeus Hagrid: "They're goblins, Harry. Clever as they come, goblins, but not the most friendly of beasts." — Harry Potter's first experience of goblins[src]

Goblins are extremely clever and over the years have dealt with wizard-kind effectively. They are still subservient in the minds of most wizards, but they have established themselves as a vital part of wizarding society. The goblins run Gringotts, the wizarding bank.[4] Therefore, they control the wizarding economy to a large extent. It is unknown if Gringotts is the only bank in the wizarding world. Goblins are extremely clever and more than able to stand up to wizards. The fact that the wizarding population treats them poorly is evidence of the severe injustice built into wizard culture. Ironically, the Fountain of Magical Brethren in the Atrium of the Ministry of Magic shows a goblin, along with a house-elf and a centaur, gazing admiringly at a witch and wizard.[6]

Apart from their cleverness with money and finances, goblins are also very capable metalsmiths. Their silverwork is well known and prized (Sirius Black's wealthy family had dishes which were 'finest fifteenth-century goblin-wrought silver, embossed with the Black family crest').[7] When Rubeus Hagrid visited the Giants, one of the presents he brought was a goblin-wrought helmet which was described as "indestructible".[8] Goblins mint the Galleons, Sickles, and Knuts used in the Wizarding world; each coin is stamped with a serial number identifying the goblin who cast it. They are also able to tell the difference between genuine and counterfeit, as Griphook easily discerned the Sword of Gryffindor,[9] while Leprechaun gold cannot fool them.[10]

It is possible that part-goblin Filius Flitwick has inherited such cleverness since he is in Ravenclaw. He has also demonstrated such intelligence on many occasions, such as during the Battle of Hogwarts, with his successful charms work.

History

Ragnuk the First was the king of the goblins during the lifetime of Godric Gryffindor. As the king of the goblins was also their finest silversmith, he was commissioned by Gryffindor to forge a sword of pure goblin's silver, with rubies set into the hilt. By the time Ragnuk had finished the sword, he liked it so much that he sought to steal it back from Gryffindor. He sent a group of his subjects to retrieve the sword, but they were all fought off by Gryffindor. A legend persisted in the goblin community that Gryffindor had stolen the sword.[11]

Gringotts Wizarding Bank

"Gringotts is the safest place in the world fer anything yeh want ter keep safe — 'cept maybe Hogwarts." —Gringotts' top notch security[src]

Gringott was a celebrated goblin who founded Gringotts Wizarding Bank in 1474. For the Bank's founding and presumable management, Gringott was featured on a Chocolate Frog Card.[12]

Partway down Diagon Alley, near its intersection with Knockturn Alley, stands an imposing snow-white marble building: Gringotts Wizarding Bank. "Towering over the other shops", it is the place where British witches and wizards store their money and other valuables, in vaults miles below ground. The vaults are heavily guarded.[4][5]

The centuries-old bank is run by goblins, and they alone know the secrets of the twisting underground passages and the enchantments (and creatures) in place to defend against intruders. The goblins have a code that forbids them to speak of the bank's secrets and would consider it "base treachery" to break any part of that code. Dragons guard the bank's high-security vaults — a rumour that was later confirmed as true.[5]

Rebellions

Main article: Goblin Rebellions Throughout the history of the wizarding world, there have been rebellions where the goblins have fought against discrimination and prejudice. They are still considered subservient in the minds of most wizards, and they are forbidden by the Ministry from carrying wands, which has lead to deep-seated resentment. During the 16th Century, Yardley Platt was a serial killer of goblins.[13]

These rebellions were most prevalent in the 17th and 18th centuries. One rebellion, in 1612, took place in the vicinity of Hogsmeade; an unidentified inn was used as headquarters for the rebellion. The rebellions have been described as "bloody and vicious". The names of the rebels tend to run along the lines of "Bodrod the Bearded" and "Urg the Unclean", according to Ron Weasley.

According to the Daily Prophet, even today there are subversive goblin groups who work in secret against the Ministry, although the validity of these claims is uncertain.[14]

The reasons for starting some of the varied Goblin Rebellions include all but one of the following (according to the 3rd W.O.M.B.A.T. test, all but one of the following are true): an allegation by Ragnuk the First that Godric Gryffindor stole his sword; the pursuit and imprisonment of Ug the Unreliable, who was peddling leprechaun gold; the accidental death of Nagnok, Gringotts Wizarding Bank goblin, at the hands of an untrained Security troll sent by the Ministry of Magic; imprisonment of the notoriously violent Hodrod the Horny-Handed, who attempted to kill three wizards; the public ducking in the village pond by a gang of young wizards of goblin activist Urg the Unclean; and the Ministry of Magic decree of 1631 preventing magical beings other than wizards and witches from carrying a wand.[15]

Wizarding Wars

The goblins suffered their share of losses during the first rise of Lord Voldemort in the 1970s. A family living near Nottingham had been murdered by Voldemort. Bill Weasley has been approaching the goblins, appealing to their sense of belonging to the Wizarding community. This proved problematic, however, because a Ministry official, Ludo Bagman, swindled a group of goblins out of a large amount of gold at the Quidditch World Cup in the summer of 1994,[10] leading the goblins to distrust both sides and became neutral during the war. When the trio broke into the Lestrange Vault in 1998, Voldemort personally murdered many goblins present in the bank in fury and to eliminate witnesses of those who knew of his cup Horcrux.[16]

Human relations

"Gold, filthy gold! We cannot live without it, yet I confess I deplore the necessity of consorting with our long-fingered friends." —Travers's distaste of goblins[src]

Despite this troubled history, they have established themselves as a vital part of wizarding society. Being in charge of Gringotts, they control the wizarding economy to a large extent. Apart from their cleverness with money and finances, goblins are also very capable metalsmiths. Their silverwork is well known and prized. Sirius Black's wealthy family had dishes which were 'finest fifteenth-century goblin-wrought silver, embossed with the Black family crest'.[7] When Hagrid visited the giants, one of the presents he brought was a goblin-wrought helmet which was described as "indestructible".[8] At her wedding to Bill, Fleur Delacour wore a goblin-made tiara owned by the Weasley's Auntie Muriel.[17]

Goblins mint the Galleons, Sickles, and Knuts used in the wizarding world; each coin is stamped with a serial number identifying the goblin who cast it. Perhaps the most famous goblin-made artefact was the Sword of Gryffindor.[11]

There were rumours, almost certainly unfounded, that Cornelius Fudge was plotting ways to wrestle control of the money supply and the economy from the goblins while in office. Ludo Bagman, got on the wrong side of a group of goblins when he swindled them out of a large amount of gold at the Quidditch World Cup in the summer of 1995.[10] This exacerbated the anti-Ministry feeling, which made it difficult for Bill Weasley who was tasked with the job of trying to persuade the goblins to side with wizards against Voldemort.[18]

When the Death Eaters started rising in power, people feared the goblins would have joined Voldemort, as did other oppressed such as werewolves and giants. However, this did not happen, as Voldemort even murdered a Goblin family near Nottingham, leading to them standing at a neutral point.[18] Death Eater Travers even made it clear he disliked the goblins as a whole, and only tolerated them for their ability to maintain the wizarding currency in check.[16]

Goblins can use magic without the aid of a wand, although they are insulted by the refusal of wizards to allow them to use wands. In turn, goblins conceal the secrets of their magic from wizards. Their weaponry and armour are nearly indestructible when created and have their kinds of magical properties.

Wizard jobs at Gringotts

There seem to be several jobs available at Gringotts for wizards, in addition to those positions held by goblins, though they are largely behind-the-scenes. Bill Weasley took a job as a Curse-Breaker, hunting treasure in Egypt after his graduation from Hogwarts. The job was described in a pamphlet available to Hogwarts students.[19]

When he wanted to do work for the Order of the Phoenix, Bill transferred to a desk job in England to be near home. That same year, Fleur Delacour took a job at Gringotts as well, to improve her English, though she only works part-time. There also seems to be a full-time security force that is comprised of wizards, and that rushed to the scene when the Lestranges vault is broken into. They also employ Dragon Feeders, a job with a high mortality rate, at 7 Galleons per week.[5]

Goblin values

"To a goblin, the rightful and true master of any object is the maker, not the purchaser. All goblin-made objects are, in goblin eyes, rightfully theirs." —Explanation of goblin notions of payment and ownership[src]

Overall, goblins' idea of payment and repayment are not the same as humans. Goblins dislike theft but use a different definition of the word. By goblin standards, the maker of an item, not the purchaser is the rightful owner; the item is required to be returned to its maker after the death of the purchaser. Goblins believe that the wizard paying for a goblin-made artefact is merely renting it, not owning it. Goblins consider the passing of an item from one wizard or witch to another without further payment to its maker "little more than theft", as Bill Weasley put it.[11]

Goblins also hold the debt to extremes, as they hunted down Ludo Bagman after he lost a bet with them, and even though they took everything of value from him after he cheated them with Leprechaun gold, they still hounded him due to it being not enough to cover his debt.[10] When Bagman ran out on his final loss against the goblins, they refused to side with the humans due to this cheat.

Known Goblins

Known Part-Goblins

Behind the scenes

Appearances

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Notes and references



