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Gaol Academy of Witchcraft and Wizardry

American Magical Society

a part of “Gaol Academy of Witchcraft and Wizardry”, a fictional universe by Raisinette.

Hogwarts isn't the only notable school in the wizarding world. Welcome to Gaol Academy of Witchcraft and Wizardry, one of the top North American wizarding schools.

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American Magical Society

Tips: 0.00 INK Postby Raisinette on Thu Feb 27, 2014 7:19 am

In this thread, we will discuss what the American version of the magical society, government, and education looks like, in order to put everything into context. Feel free to ask questions and further explore this topic.

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Re: American Magical Society

Tips: 0.00 INK Postby Raisinette on Thu Feb 27, 2014 7:33 am

Magic Schools in the U.S.

East Coast

Gaol Academy of Witchcraft and Wizardy, located in New York, and Salem Witches Institute in Salem, Massachusets, are the oldest magic schools in the United States, both dating back to the mid 1670's. Mandated by the Ministry of Magic in order to educate the young witches and wizards in the British colonies of the New World, the schools were founded and organized in similar fashion to Britain's Hogwarts School.

Historically, Gaol was an all-boys wizarding academy while SWI, as its name would suggest, was all girls. During the Progressive Period of American history, there was pressure on Gaol and SWI to become Co-Ed. SWI didn't cater to this sentiment and remained a private, high-class single-sex school. Gaol, on the other hand, became Co-Educational in 1914 and is now celebrating their 100th year of Co-Ed learning.

West Coast

In 1816, during the Spanish colonization of California, a magic school by the name of La Escuela de Magia Hechicería de Isabella. After the Spanish colonies claimed their independence, Hechicería de Isabella was ceded to the Mexican government, which was eventually ceded to the American Magical Government, after the Muggle government of America acquired western territory from its wars with Mexico.

Mid West

As the overall population of the US increased, the schools on the East and West Coasts became overcrowded. The US Department of Magic's Division of Magical Education decided a new school would be constructed, this one in Oklahoma. Named for the Secretary of Magic at the time of its founding in 1976, Kazikel Institute of Magical Learning & Advancement is the youngest of the US's wizarding schools, but is steadily gaining respect for its achievements.




US Magical Government

The US Department of Magic is headed by the current Secretary of Magic, Gretchen Haleshire. The Department is a part of the International Confederation of Wizards and is responsible for enforcing international agreements including the Statute of Secrecy.

The Department is organized into divisions, including the Division of Magical Law Enforcement, which includes both the Auror office and the Bureau of Magical Investigation (BMI); the Division of Magical Transportation; the Division of Foreign Affairs; the Division of Commerce; the Division of Magical Education; and the Division of Magical Health Care.

The Senatorium

In place of a Wizengamot, the American Department of Magic has an organization called the Senatorium. It is a democratically elected body of Witches and Wizards who make the laws of Magical America. As of the year 2013, its current roaster includes 152 Witches and Wizards, each one representing a district of the various magical cities and communities of America.

The Senatorium itself, as of 2013, is made up of a mixture of Halfbloods, Muggleborns, and Purebloods, with the first two having a majority in the Senatorium. There are still powerful Pureblood families of varying influence and importance in America, but the Purebloods, or anyone in general, are forbidden from having a guaranteed and permanent seat in the Senatorium. In addition, the Pureblood Families of America are forbidden by law from having more then one family member serving in the Senatorium at a time.

The members of the Senatorium can serve a maximum of four 7 year terms, and the Secretary of Magic can serve a maximum of three 6 year terms, as decreed by the Constitution of the Department of Magic.

There aren't any true political parties in the Senatorium, per say, but there are many major factions, each with their own goals and political views that they seek to promote. The current faction in charge is the group headed by the current Secretary of Magic, Gretchen Haleshire. She and her supporters promote a moderate view on most hot-button issues of America, but they are quite liberal in their view that sentient Magical Creatures deserve more rights and liberties.

The Secretaries of Magic

The Department of Magic was officially founded in 1783, when it and the rest of Magical America won full independence from the British Ministry of Magic after the end of the Colonial Rebellion, the war between a rebelling Magical America against its British overlords.

The first Secretary of Magic was a popular figure in both the Muggle and Magical governments of America, Benjamin Franklin. Franklin had long straddled both sides of the two worlds, and had championed for the independence of Muggle and Magical America from Great Britain. Franklin was also a popular alumni of Gaol Academy, and Gaol still values Benjamin Franklin as one of its most prestigious graduates.

When Magical America gained its independence and formed the Department of Magic, Franklin was elected by unanimous vote to serve as the first Secretary of Magic. Franklin graciously accepted, and served a full six year term, and was elected for a second term...but, tragically, Secretary Franklin passed away in 1790, before he could live out the rest of his second term. A special election was held to determine who would serve out the rest of Franklin's term. In the end, a respected Wizard who had served as a military strategist in the Rebellion, a man named Bernard Chesterfield, was elected. He served out the rest of Franklin's second term, but declined to run for reelection.

The full list of the Secretaries of Magic are as follows:

1: Benjamin Franklin* (1783-1790)
2: Bernard Chesterfield (1790-1795)
3: Milliard Davis (1795-1813)
4: Charles Heirin (1813-1825)
5: Xavier Verns (1825-1831)
6: Alistair Maharial (1831-1849)
7: Clifton Reginald (1849-1855)
8: Henry Kendalls IV** (1855-1860)
9: Merek Althalos* (1860-1878)
10: Eleanor Dain (1878-1891)
11: Fendrel Mirabelle (1891-1897)
12: Hadrian Drake (1897-1903)
13: Mallory McKinnon (1903-1915)
14: Favian Leofrick (1915-1933)
15: Arianna Angmar (1933-1945)
16: Cedric Verns (1945-1951)
17: Bryce Peyton (1951-1957)
18: Cedric Verns (1957-1963)
19: Adelaide Althalos** (1963-1973)
20: Gavin Kazikel (1973-1993)
21: Edmund Cedany (1993-1999)
22: Aldous Chesterfield (1999-2011)
23: Gretchen Haleshire (2011-)

*Died of natural causes in office
**Assassinated in office


Trivia of the Secretaries of Magic

Only five Secretaries have been successfully elected for their allotment of 3 terms: Milliard Davis (3rd Secretary of Magic), Alistair Maharial (6th Secretary of Magic), Merek Althalos (9th Secretary of Magic), Favian Leofrick (14th Secretary of Magic), and Gavin Kazikel (20th Secretary of Magic). Of the remaining Secretaries, 9 have served two terms, and the other 8 have served one term.

Four Secretaries have died in office; two of natural causes, and two from assassination. The two that died of natural causes are Benjamin Franklin and Merek Althalos. The two that died from assassination are Henry Kendalls IV and Adelaide Althalos.

Cedric Verns is the only Secretary to serve non-consecutive terms, being both the 16th and 18th Secretary of Magic.

As of 2013, there have been four female Secretaries of Magic: Eleanor Dain (10th Secretary of Magic), Arianna Angmar (15th Secretary of Magic), Adelaide Althalos (19th Secretary of Magic), and Gretchen Haleshire (23rd and current Secretary of Magic).

Of the Secretaries, ten have been Halfblood, seven have been Pureblood, and five have been Muggleborn. The Halfbloods are Secretaries Franklin, Davis, Mirabelle, Leofrick, Kazikel, Maharial, Drake, A. Alathalos, Reginald, and C. Verns. The Purebloods are B. Chesterfield, Heirin, A. Chesterfield, M. Althalos, X. Verns, Haleshire, and Kendalls. The Muggleborn are Dain, McKinnon, Angmar, Peyton, and Cedany.

The first Halfblood Secretary of Magic was Secretary Franklin (1st Secretary of Magic), the first Pureblood Secretary of Magic was Bernard Chesterfield (2nd Secretary of Magic), and the first Muggleborn Secretary of Magic was Eleanor Dain (10th Secretary of Magic).

The Three Giants

Of the American Secretaries of Magic, there are three leaders that are remembered and revered the most. These figures have withstood the test of time, and are remembered by Magical America as the three greatest Secretaries of Magic that the Department has ever had.

1: Benjamin Franklin

Unsurprisingly, the 1st Secretary of Magic, Benjamin Franklin, is considered one of the best Secretaries of America. Franklin is credited as being the main Founder of the Department of Magic, and an instrumental figure overall that helped secure Magical America's independence from Great Britain. While he only served one full term, his time as Secretary is well remembered, and he is considered a key figure in Magical American history.

2: Merek Althalos

The 9th Secretary of Magic, Merek Althalos oversaw a violent and rocky patch of Magical American history. His predecessor had been assassinated, and the country was in a full-fledged Civil War, led by the infamous Dark Lord Aelius. The Civil War itself lasted only five years, but despite its brevity, Magical America was left in ruins by the war's end. Secretary Althalos oversaw the recovery of his country, and led Magical America back into prosperity once again. He was elected to three terms, but died in 1878 before he could complete his third term. Secretary Althalos is a fondly remembered figure of Magical American history, and many postulate that if he hadn't been Secretary at the time of Aelius' War, then there would be no Magical America as we all know it today.

3: Favin Leofrick

The 14th Secretary of Magic, Secretary Leofrick ascended into power just as tensions once again started to rise high in Magical America: a Vampire coven in southern Florida had started attacking nearby Muggle settlements, Centaurs, Goblins, and Dwarves were protesting for more civil rights, the Portkey Speculator Bubble had finally popped, and Great Britain had been caught trying to fix the American Secretary Election of 1915.

While not as troubled a time as Secretary Althalos' time in office, it was still a dark moment of American history. Still, Secretary Leofrick took all of this in stride, and over the course of his administration, solved all of these problems to the best of his ability. Out of all the Secretaries, Leofrick has been considered the most approachable and 'human' of them, striking the public as a very sincere and caring figure. Thus Secretary Leofrick is considered one of the three greatest Secretaries of Magical American society, alongside Secretaries Franklin and Althalos.

Magical American History: Major Wars and Conflicts

The Colonial Rebellion (1775-1783)

The Magical side of the bid of the British Colonies in North America to gain independence from Great Britain. Magical America largely rebelled against the Ministry of Magic for much of the same reasons as its Muggle counterpart. The main leaders of the Magical side of the conflict were Benjamin Franklin and Bernard Chesterfield. Both of these figures helped gain Magical America's freedom from the Ministry, succeeding in that goal in the year 1783.

Alistair's Grand War (1846-1848)

Alistair's Grand War, the magical side of the Mexican-American War, saw a brief period of conflict between the Mexican and American Magical Governments. This resulted in the transference of the Mexican Wizarding school of Isabella to the Department's hands, where it became a hall of learning for American Witches and Wizards out in the Western Territories.

Aelius' Uprising (1860-1865)

Around the time that the Muggle American Civil War began, a similar conflict in its Magical Counterpart occurred. The Dark Lord Aelius, a powerful and influential Pureblood, created a schism in the Department of Magic. He claimed that the government of Magical America had failed, that it was a pathetic and weak form of ruling a country, and that only a rule by the privileged few would truly create a nation that was just and righteous. Lord Aelius rallied many disenfranchised people to his cause, and started a full-fledged civil war in 1860, after he personally assassinated the then Secretary of Magic, Henry Kendalls IV.

Aelius' Uprising lasted five years in total, and in the end Dark Lord Aelius was defeated in personal combat by an elite team under the direction of Secretary Althalos, when Aelius's last act of desperation had him holding the students of Gaol hostage to use as a bargaining chip to save his own life. By the time this revolution had been crushed, however, the damage had been done. Magical America had been left in tattered ruins, leaving Secretary Althalos and his allies to pick up the pieces.

Since Aelius' Uprising, Magical America has not been plagued by a Dark Lord of any sort. It is fortunate in that aspect...but that fortune cannot last forever.

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Raisinette
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Re: American Magical Society

Tips: 0.00 INK Postby LawOfTheLand on Thu Feb 27, 2014 4:49 pm

Just popping in to drop some knowledge.

1. Aquila is Latin for eagle, not phoenix. If you're going to have ursus be the bear, be consistent, darn it.
2. You do realize "gaol" is an old-timey word for "prison" right?
Image

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Re: American Magical Society

Tips: 0.00 INK Postby Raisinette on Thu Feb 27, 2014 5:01 pm

Thanks for the input. qb. Another interesting tidbit: Gaol is also the Iroquois personification of wind, and Iroquois people once occupied the land that the school is on, where magic students now fly around the air on brooms. I thought it was fitting. Words have different meanings in different languages and contexts. You do, however, make a valid point about Aquila. The original concept was to have an Eagle represent that house and somewhere between idea and implementation that got skewed.

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