One place. One wizard. One name.

Grindelwald’s namesake from the world of magic

History

Uh-oh, Grindelwald is being extradited to Europe. Wait, really? But Grindelwald is already in Europe. How can it be transferred there? Is that even possible? Can a place be extradited? That’s beyond our imagination. Well, at least that’s what The New York Ghost claims. Now that’s an unusual name for a newspaper. There must be magic behind it. Inexplicable.

Grindelwald Dorf Winter — © Jungfrau Region Tourismus AG. CC0 (OpenData)

Just a namesake – or something more?

Grindelwald. It’s a familiar name. In Switzerland, at least, it immediately brings to mind the village at the foot of the Eiger – and a beautiful place it is, too. But watch out: it’s easy to mix things up. The village now shares its name with a wizard. Harry Potter fans will know exactly who we mean. And yes, his name can be spoken. It’s only the one who later finishes him off who is the villain whose name must not be spoken – you know, You-Know-Who.

The village of Grindelwald had certainly heard of wizards – after all, Gandalf once wandered through the Lauterbrunnen Valley on the big screen – but none had ever made it all the way here. Until now. Magic has well and truly awakened, in the form of a fanatical wizard: Gellert Grindelwald.

Lord Voldemort comes later – before him, Gellert Grindelwald reigns.

Gellert Grindelwald believes that witches and wizards shouldn’t have to hide. Sounds good and noble enough at first. But in his ideal society, the naturally superior wizards are meant to rule over the less gifted Muggles. Not cool, Gellert. You clearly haven’t learned much from history. So this is him – the namesake of the Eiger village. Played by none other than Johnny Depp.

Although he’s the most feared wizard in the whole world, by the end of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them he has to make do with the inside of a prison cell. And not without reason – he’s hardly a shrinking violet, after all. But he doesn’t stay behind bars for long: as fans will know, Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald opens with the dark wizard’s daring escape.

Pretty old …

The name “Grindelwald” first appears in written records in 1146.

This refers, of course, to the village in the Jungfrau Region. There have been plenty of wizards before and since – but nobody has heard of Gellert yet.
At first, names like Merlin, Gandalf, Getafix, Nostradamus or Gutenberg spring to mind: fictional characters, but also real-life scholars who, for various reasons, were thought to be wizards.
The name Gellert Grindelwald only turns up in the archives much later – in the first book of the Harry Potter series. And even there, he gets just a brief mention on the back of Albus Dumbledore’s Chocolate Frog card. It’s not until the seventh book, published in 2007, that we learn more about this dark wizard.

Only found “Grinde ol Wald”.

The first lord of the land between Lake Thun and Lake Brienz sends his servants into the valley that stretches south from Interlaken into the mountains. Curious as he is, he wants to know what lies hidden there. Who hasn’t wondered the same thing? But then: disappointment. All the servants find is “Grinde ol Wald” – rock debris or forest. Et voilà! That’s the popular explanation of the name Grindelwald. A nice story. But will it satisfy the linguists? Probably not.

Here’s their explanation: the old Germanic-Celtic word “grindel” refers to a piece of wood that is said to have served as a barrier – in other words, a “bolt” or a “barrier”. The “grindel” forest would therefore be a wooded valley “bolted off” from the rest of the world. And who would have thought it? That was largely true of Grindelwald – at least until paths were opened up along the Schwarze Lütschine river.

Grindelwald Dorf — © Jungfrau Region Tourismus AG. CC0 (OpenData)

Rumour has it, though, that J.K. Rowling derived the name Gellert Grindelwald from Grendel, the monster in the Old English epic Beowulf.

Well, that seems a bit far-fetched. Surely the facts speak for themselves: the wizard’s name comes from the Eiger village. Beyond doubt. No question about it. And that’s certainly not just a claim. Absolutely not. It’s a fact. Grindelwald is the perfect place to have inspired the wizard – even if he’s evil to the bone. After all, the Eiger village has its dark chapters too.

Director, on Gellert Grindelwald

David Yates

«Grindelwald is a very sophisticated villain in the sense that what he really wants to do is win hearts and minds.»

Sunt lacrimae rerum. It was so obvious that the whole thing was going to go wrong.

What we’re talking about is his transfer to Europe in a thestral-drawn carriage. It would be a shame, after all, to let Johnny – alias Gellert Grindelwald – rot in a prison cell.

The film is set in 1927. Interesting. What would Johnny Depp’s “getaway car” have looked like in Grindelwald back then? Thestrals and magic carriages probably weren’t on the market yet. Or were they?

There’s plenty of room. The evil wizard could have been transported in this along with a few other shady characters. The Aurors are already standing guard in their black coats. No chance of escape, Johnny. In between, of course, the Hotel Grand Eiger uses its very own hotel carriage to ferry distinguished guests, their families and their luggage to and from the station.

Another option: in winter, Gellert Grindelwald could be strapped to a sledge for his transfer – but only in between the milk deliveries, of course. Or …

… hitched up behind an ox. Cattle make willing draught animals, after all, especially on the flat valley floor. No spell would stand a chance against that.

OK, this works too: just put Gellert on a pair of skis and tie him behind a horse. He definitely won’t have time to cast any curses.

Grindelwald’s “thestrals” may not be able to fly, but they look a whole lot sweeter. In the Eiger village, they’re used for clearing snow rather than transporting prisoners – here, a team of four pulling a snow roller.

And if all else fails, magic has to be called upon, of course. There’s magic in Grindelwald, too – how else can you explain this contraption? Was it really built by Muggles?

Dark magic grips the Eiger village

Could Gellert Grindelwald have had a hand in this?

One house after another goes up in flames. Even the sun is blotted out.

That would certainly suit Gellert Grindelwald. OK, at the time he’s only nine years old – but still, he’d have enjoyed it. No doubt about it. Because on 18 August 1892, Grindelwald goes up in flames – not the wizard himself, but the village.
Once again, the rain has taken a long break, and the result is scorching heat. Everything is baking. And then, of course, a föhn storm has to blow in, making things all too easy for the fire. The first smoke from the roof of the Gasthof Bären is already swirling through the heavy air. Fire! Too late. The surrounding buildings and houses are already ablaze as the föhn storm sweeps through the village with hurricane force.

Today, Gellert Grindelwald would surely be capable of something like this too – but at nine years old, he can only marvel longingly at the power of the fire. Such force.

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buildings were reduced to ashes within two hours in the fire of 1892, leaving more than 400 locals homeless.

The Grand Hotel Bear rises from the ashes – construction begins just a year after the fire, and the hotel opens its doors in 1894.

The locals definitely learned their lesson from the fire. In fact, it marked a turning point. The poor village fountains were no longer needed, because the water supply was now handled by hydrants. Onwards into the future! The picturesque turreted Gasthof Baer, catering to wealthy individual families, was no longer in fashion either. The new place to be was the Grand Hotel Baer with its spacious function rooms. And of course, the village church received a new bell in memory of the disaster. A very important touch. It still hangs there today.

There’s still no motorised fire engine – but the money has already gone into a new church organ.

The Grand Hotel Baer would surely appeal to the fanatical wizard too. Not because it’s gloomy – oh no – but because it looks so imposing. Yet four years before the legendary duel between Grindelwald and Dumbledore, the hotel goes up in flames. Again.
A bitter cold grips the night of 15 to 16 January 1941. Suddenly, the sirens wail. Fire alarm. Old memories come flooding back. The cause: a discarded cigarette. Probably. Or perhaps it was dark magic. Who knows?

Luckily, a year earlier, a church organ had been bought instead of a motorised fire pump. Huh? Well, there’s no undoing that decision now. And sure, putting out a fire with a church organ is a little awkward. Still, everyone inside is rescued, and a disaster like the one some 50 years earlier is averted. Thanks to the organ.

Today, the sports centre stands on the site of the former Grand Hotel Baer.

As feared as Gellert Grindelwald

The dark wizard has a formidable rival: the Eiger North Face.

“If the face can be climbed, we’ll climb it – or stay up there for good!”

For Edi Rainer and Willy Angerer, who said these words about the Eiger North Face in 1936, they tragically came true – they never came back down. Their attempt at the first ascent in the summer of 1936 became probably the best-known drama in the history of the North Face. The two Austrians died on the face together with Andreas Hinterstoisser and Toni Kurz from Germany. Without magic, the face is all but impossible to climb, because it has two dark allies: rapidly changing weather and rockfall. Admittedly, Gellert Grindelwald would simply have Apparated onto the summit and then convinced everyone he had climbed the North Face – what a cheat. Many non-wizards, on the other hand, have lost their lives on the Eiger.

Then, in 1938, four Muggles finally made the first ascent of the Eiger North Face.

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metres high: that’s the Eiger, which together with the Mönch and Jungfrau forms the famous trio.

Grindelwald and the beasts

As we said, the film is set in 1927. Newt Scamander, Grindelwald’s adversary, carries around a suitcase full of fantastic beasts. A magical suitcase, of course, in which he keeps these creatures hidden. Small on the outside, huge on the inside. Handy, a case like that. There are certainly a few things we’d love to toss in there. But alas, we’re “only” Muggles. Fortunately, the animals in Grindelwald aren’t hidden away in luggage like that – here, the “beasts” have been put to better use since time immemorial.

And yes, a cow in a wheeled suitcase really would look a bit silly. Still, there are said to be Muggles who carry their “beasts” around in their handbags – in Grindelwald too, of course.

You’d need one massive suitcase for that. Because in 1906, Grindelwald’s 543 farmers owned a good 3,000 head of cattle and more than 1,000 goats.

Newt Scamander would certainly approve: in the Eiger village, animals are looked after like members of the family.

A donkey is a genuinely useful animal – even if its name is sometimes used as an insult. “You silly ass …” Nobody says that to Gellert twice. Avada Kedavra. Done. Over. Finished.

Admittedly, from a distance, these two could pass for “beasts” as well. The donkey doesn’t do all the work, after all – every now and then, you have to carry the hay yourself.

Grindelwald knows the Jungfrau Region

The last few minutes of Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald provide the proof.

Austria? Not really. That was definitely modelled on the Lauterbrunnen Valley.

At the end of the film, Gellert Grindelwald is at Nurmengard Castle – a fortress he has built for himself and which, after his duel with Dumbledore in 1945, becomes his prison until Lord Voldemort puts him out of his misery. Grindelwald should have told him more about the Elder Wand. The film reveals Nurmengard’s location: Austria. Seriously? It looks more like somewhere else. Somewhere strangely familiar.

OK, maybe Gellert Grindelwald spent geography lessons staring out of the window – maybe he really believed he was in Austria. He did have other things on his mind, after all. World domination and all that. But the images are unmistakably Swiss. Or, to be more precise, they show the Lauterbrunnen Valley. Gellert, you built your castle in the Jungfrau Region. Well done.

Looks like Hagrid built himself a giant Firebolt in the Forbidden Forest – and then flew it straight into the ground. Don’t drink and fly – not even in the Eiger village.

So this is where it’s hiding: the Obscurus. Pretty dangerous. Let’s hope Gellert doesn’t find out about it. It’s great to see what the Land Art Festival in Grindelwald brings to light.

The white wizard of Grindelwald: every evil wizard needs an adversary … as seen at the World Snow Festival.

plays Yusuf Kama, on Gellert Grindelwald

William Nadylam

«It’s the charisma. You want to be his friend. You want to be with him. He looks like a winner.»

Does Grindelwald have that kind of powerful charisma too (if a place can even have charisma)? A captivating aura that never lets you go? Well, that’s a question everyone has to answer for themselves – it’s just too personal. Grindelwald still lies at the foot of the Eiger today. Lucky us – it was never extradited. The wizard, on the other hand, is killed in 1998 by You-Know-Who. There can be only one.

Gellert Grindelwald lived to the age of 115. In this picture, he no longer looks quite so dangerous – after all, it’s the last photo ever taken of him. Probably not a selfie. May he rest in peace.

For that reason alone, Grindelwald deserves a namesake from the world of magic.

Like its namesake, today’s tourist destination of Grindelwald has its battles to fight. Unfortunately, that comes with the territory. Conflict isn’t confined to the magical world of Muggles and wizards – in the real world, too, it takes understanding and acceptance from both locals and visitors. Still, in the end, it shouldn’t take any spells for people to stand together and decide what’s right and what’s wrong.

But then again, the magic of the place hovers over everything anyway. Admittedly, these are just letters that make up words, and words formed into sentences. Black on white. What does that really tell you? The charisma has to be experienced first-hand – and that’s only possible on the spot. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.