Hogwarts Legacy setting: When is Hogwarts Legacy set?

Curious about the Hogwarts Legacy setting or when Hogwarts Legacy is set? Well, we thought we’d write up a brief explanation about the time period that Hogwarts Legacy is set in, and how the characters fit into the Harry Potter lore.

Hogwarts Legacy takes place long before the adventures of Harry, Ron and Hermione, but that doesn’t mean the game doesn’t feature one or two characters the trio crossed paths with.

So when is Hogwarts Legacy set? Read on to find out everything we know about the Hogwarts Legacy setting, and how it fits into the wider Harry Potter universe.

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Hogwarts Legacy setting: When is Hogwarts Legacy set?

• Roughly 100 years before Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone

Hogwarts Legacy is set in 1890-1891. This is roughly 100 years before the events of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. This means that while almost all of the human characters that exist at the time of Hogwarts Legacy would likely have died by the time Harry’s adventures began, however, this does mean a very young Albus Dumbledore would have been alive during the events of Hogwarts Legacy, as Pottermore says he was 115 years old when he was killed during Harry’s sixth year in school, in 1996.

In fact, as Hogwarts students are traditionally admitted when they are 11 years old, Albus Dumbledore was likely admitted to Hogwarts the year following the events of the game.

Hogwarts Legacy setting: Phineas Nigellus Black

The character with the largest connection to the Harry Potter story is the headmaster, Phineas Nigellus Black. While he serves as the unpopular headmaster of Hogwarts during the events of Hogwarts Legacy after his death in 1925, he became a pivotal figure in Harry Potter’s later years.

Not only did a portrait of Black hang in the headmaster’s office in Hogwarts, as is the case with all deceased headmasters, but being a part of the Black family meant that a portrait of him also hung at 12 Grimmauld Place, the headquarters for the Order of the Pheonix.

During Harry Potter and the Order of the Pheonix, Black delivered a message to The Order of the Phoenix that Arthur Weasly was being attacked.

Hogwarts Legacy setting: Matilda Weasley

A name that will be familiar to any Harry Potter fan, several Weasleys makes their presence known in Hogwarts Legacy. Matilda, Gareth and a mysterious G. Weasley all appear in the game, ancestors of the family that would later give us Ron, Ginny, Fred, George, Charlie, Bill and Percy.

It’s currently unknown how the Weasleys in Hogwarts Legacy relate to the Weasley family we know from the book and the films, whether it be distant cousins or closer familial relations. It’s stated that the Weasley family is one of the largest wizarding families in the world, so introducing new members of the clan doesn’t effect canon too drastically.

Hogwarts Legacy setting: Ominis Gaunt

Ominis is a Slytherin student at Hogwarts during the events of Hogwarts Legacy, where he is also in the fifth year along with the main character and  Sebastian Sallow.

Ominis is a large part of Sebastian’s questline and is the main driving factor in exploring the Unforgivable curses in the game, as his family has personal experience with them being used with devastating results.

The main thing that connects Ominis to the larger Harry Potter canon is his second name, Gaunt. His family, which is one of the largest wizarding families, are direct descendants of Salazar Slytherin, the founder of the Slytherin house.

This also means that Ominis is directly related to Lord Voldemort. Due to the timing of when the game is set, it’s possible that Ominis is a sibling of Marvolo Gaunt, the maternal grandfather of Tom Riddle.