"At ze Palace of Beauxbatons, we 'ave ice sculptures all around ze dining chamber at Chreestmas. Zey do not melt, of course . . . zey are like 'uge statues of diamond, glittering around ze place. And ze food is seemply superb. And we 'ave choirs of wood nymphs, 'oo serenade us as we eat."
-- Fleur Delacour describing Beauxbatons to Roger Davies at the Yule Ball (GF23)
Beauxbatons Academy of Magic is a European school of witchcraft and wizardry, one of at least three magical schools in Europe, Beauxbatons participated alongside Hogwarts and Durmstrang in the Triwizard Tournament.
Headmistress: Olympe Maxime
Location: A beautiful chateau in the Pyrenees Mountains, France (Pm)
Uniforms: robes of fine silk; attendants of the carriage wear pale blue (GF15)
Coat of Arms: two crossed golden wands on a powder-blue field, with three shooting stars coming from the tip of each (GF15)
Beauxbatons Academy is thought to be located in the mountains of the Pyrenees, which form the border between France and Spain. It has been described as an extremely beautiful chateau, called the Palace of Beauxbatons, and is surrounded by gardens, with a large fountain named after Nicolas and Perenelle Flamel, who met while attending the school (Pm).
Unlike Hogwarts Castle, it does not contain suits of armour. Rather than a Great Hall as at Hogwarts, the Palace contains a Dining Chamber, which is elaborately decorated at Christmastime but in a different style than that used at Hogwarts (GF23). The scholastic system at the Academy is also arranged differently than that at Hogwarts; instead of sitting Ordinary Wizarding Levels or their equivalent at the end of five years, Academy students sit exams after six years (HBP5).
The current headmistress of Beauxbatons is Madame Olympe Maxime, an elegant and awe-inspiring part-giantess, who commands discipline and respect from her students (GF15).
Famous pupils of Beauxbatons Academy include:
- Fleur Delacour, participant in the Triwizard Tournament with Harry during his fourth year (GF16) and who later fought in the Battle of Hogwarts (DH31)
- Gabrielle Delacour (presumably)
- Nicolas Flamel, the alchemist, and his wife Perenelle (PS13, JKR, Pm)
- Luc Millefeuille, baker and notorious Muggle poisoner (Pm)
- Vincent Duc de Trefle-Picques, a survivor of the Reign of Terror thanks to magic (Pm).
The large blue carriage in which the Beauxbatons students travelled to Hogwarts was pulled by twelve huge winged golden palomino horses, who drink only single malt whisky (GF15, GF21).
Students at Beauxbatons come from many countries from Western Europe, including Spain, Portugal, Luxembourg, Belgium, and The Netherlands. Beauxbatons has a larger student population than Hogwarts (Pm).
Commentary
Notes
The word(s) Beauxbatons, roughly translated from French, means "beautiful wands."
In the film, it is implied that Beauxbatons is an all-girls school, but this is not canon. Male students are mentioned in the books.
Also, the name of the school is mispronounced by actor Michael Gambon, who says "bow-BAT-tens" with the emphasis on the second syllable. In French, the emphasis is on the third syllable, and the correct pronunciation "bo-bat-TON." Dumbledore should know better after all the years he spent with Nicholas and Perenelle Flamel!
From the Web
Writing by J K Rowling on Pottermore: Beauxbatons
Pensieve (Comments)
Tags: beauty/beautiful blue culture (Wizard) education Fleur Remembrall flower fountain garden gold golden health learning mountains schools sky students