Ekrizdis

Ekrizdis was a dark wizard who lived in the fifteenth century. He is believed to be the first inhabitant of Azkaban, which later became a prison to hold criminals from the magical world.

Mohandas Alva

Article written by Mohandas Alva

M.A. Degree in English Literature from Manipal University, India.

Ekrizdis was a dangerous dark wizard who practiced the worst kinds of dark magic on anyone who came to the island he inhabited in. Muggles, especially Muggle sailors, were most subject to his dark magic. When he lived on the island alone, he had placed a multitude of concealment charms, all of which seemed to fade after his death. Ekrizdis’s death is what made the British Ministry of Magic aware of the island’s existence. After his death, the island was captured by the Ministry and was used for the construction of the fortress that eventually became the Azkaban prison

Early Life 

Very little is known of Ekrizdis and his early life. It is believed that he developed very powerful dark magic skills and somehow came across the island and decided to reside on it forever. Since he stayed there alone, he went through a lot of despair and pain. Those years of solitude eventually caused a lot of misery, and he lost his sanity. He started committing atrocities, including luring several Muggle ships that frequented this island’s surroundings from the mainland and the sailors who were in it and began performing unspeakable acts of dark magic on them. Any wizards, witches, or Muggles who came across this island would never return. 

Ekrizdis’s Spellcasting Abilities

Ekrizdis, being an accomplished dark wizard, was capable of performing very strong magic which could rival that of later dark wizards like Gellert Grindelwald and Lord Voldemort. Ekrizdis immediately used his knowledge of concealment charms and enchantments to hide the island from the sight of Muggles, witches, and wizards. It was, therefore, an unplottable stretch of land known to none.

It was only after the death of Ekrizdis that the Ministry of Magic came across this island as the concealment charms laid by Ekrizdis began to fade. The atrocities committed by him and the evidence of Ekrizdis and his crimes only came to light after his death, and he, therefore, went unpunished.

His Crimes And Disappearance

The extent of Ekrizdis’s crimes is not fully known. It is believed that he practiced dark magic on several people, especially Muggles, during his time on the island, where he spent his time in solitude. However, the presence of creatures as dark as the dementors implied the possibility of Ekrizdis doing a lot of horrendous things on the island. His very presence on that island was a sign of criminal activity solely because he was a dark wizard and lured several people to perform his magic over the years. His disappearance only came after his eventual death, as until he died, nobody could willingly enter the island even if they wanted to, as it was clearly out of their reach.

Connection To The Prison

One of the direct connections of Ekrizdis to the Azkaban prison is that he inhabited that island and even built a fortress on it for his supposed dark magic. Furthermore, even though Ekrizdis is not directly mentioned in the novels, he is responsible for the continued use of dementors as guards in the Azkaban prison as they were the only beings found on that island after his death. Instead of getting rid of them, the Ministry of Magic decided to use them as guards for the newly constructed prison. This decision was primarily made to avoid any possibility of retaliation from these dementors when asked to leave the island.

The continued efficiency of dementors as prison guards only made it customary for the Ministry to use them as guards indefinitely until Kingsley Shacklebolt became the new Minister of Magic and freed the dementors from their guarding duties.

Azkaban

Ekrizdis’s direct connection to the Harry Potter novels comes from the Prison of Azkaban which is a fortress used for detaining the convicts and criminals of the wizarding world. Harry’s godfather Sirius Black was one of the wizards who was kept in Azkaban, although it was later proved to be a wrongful conviction. Even Rubeus Hagrid, the gamekeeper, and keeper of keys at Hogwarts were sent to Azkaban for a short while after being wrongfully accused of letting the beast in the Chamber of Secrets loose in the Hogwarts castle. Other characters from the Harry Potter universe who have been detained in Azkaban include Barty Crouch Jr, Bellatrix Lestrange, Lucius Malfoy, etc. While Azkaban was guarded since its inception by dementors, it was eventually made rid of them by the new Minister of Magic, Kingsley Shacklebolt.

Who Would Win in a Duel Between Ekrizdis and Voldemort?

As far as most comparisons of strength between wizards of different periods in history go, there is no definite answer as to who would win in a duel. However, we believe that given Ekrizdis resided on his island all alone but eventually died, it is most likely he died of old age or some other cause that wasn’t attached to an enemy killing him. On the contrary, in his prime, Lord Voldemort had eight Horcruxes, which would render his defeat almost impossible in the hands of Ekrizdis. However, this is not the only possibility. Since we know very little of Ekrizdis’s past or the exact nature of his dark magic, it is not entirely unlikely that Ekrizdis would have some strange powers to attack Voldemort despite his Horcruxes.

FAQs

Who is Ekrizdis in Harry Potter?

Ekrizdis was a dark wizard responsible for creating the fortress on an island that later became known as Azkaban prison. Ekrizdis lived around the fifteenth century and was the first to come across the island. He placed several concealment charms on the island to make it untraceable and unplottable. He also lured several Muggle sailors into the island and performed dark magic on them.

Did Ekrizdis create dementors?

While the origin of dementors is not fully known, it is probably not true that Ekrizdis created them. According to an old story, another dark wizard, Raczidian, resided with the dementors in his castle long before the time of Ekrizdis. When he went on a war against the villagers of a village in which he saw a beautiful girl, the dementors were defeated by the Patronus of Illyius and banished from the village. It is possible that they then came in contact with Ekrizdis somehow.

Who built Azkaban?

Ekrizdis, the dark wizard who lived in the fifteenth century, is credited with building the fortress, which was later used as the wizarding prison of Azkaban. The British Ministry of Magic found the island on which Ekrizdis had constructed the fortress, and they decided to convert it into a prison for detaining criminals.

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Harry Potter Quiz

Summon your wit and wisdom—our Harry Potter Trivia Quiz awaits you! Do you have the knowledge to claim the title of Master Witch or Wizard? Take the challenge now!

1) What potion is known as "Liquid Luck"?

2) Which character is killed by Bellatrix Lestrange in the Battle of Hogwarts?

3) What does the Mirror of Erised show?

4) What is Dumbledore's full name?

5) What is the core ingredient of the wand owned by Harry Potter?

6) Which spell is used to open the Marauder's Map?

7) Who is the Half-Blood Prince?

8) Which creature can transform into a person's worst fear?

9) In the "Order of the Phoenix," who is NOT a member of the original Order of the Phoenix shown in the old photograph that Moody shows Harry?

10) What is the name of the goblin-made object that is supposed to bring its owner prosperity, but also brings them into conflict with goblins?

11) What is the name of the train that takes students to Hogwarts?

12) What specific type of dragon does Harry face during the Triwizard Tournament?

13) What was the last Horcrux to be destroyed?

14) What creature is Aragog?

15) Who teaches Herbology at Hogwarts?

16) What is the effect of the Cheering Charm?

17) What form does Hermione Granger's Patronus take?

18) Which potion did Hermione brew in her second year that allowed her, Ron, and Harry to assume the identities of Slytherins?

19) Who was the Peverell brother that owned the invisibility cloak?

20) What does the incantation "Obliviate" do?

21) What is the name of Harry Potter's pet owl?

22) Who originally owned the Elder Wand before Dumbledore won it?

23) In which Harry Potter book does Harry first speak Parseltongue?

24) Which object is NOT one of the Deathly Hallows?

25) What animal represents Hufflepuff house?

26) What is the name of the goblin who helps Harry, Ron, and Hermione break into Gringotts?

27) What are the dying words of Severus Snape in both the book and the film "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows"?

28) What is the name of the book Hermione gives to Harry before his first ever Quidditch match?

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Mohandas Alva

About Mohandas Alva

M.A. Degree in English Literature from Manipal University, India.

Mohandas is very passionate about deciphering the nature of language and its role as a sole medium of storytelling in literature. His interests sometimes digress from literature to philosophy and the sciences but eventually, the art and craft of narrating a significant story never fail to thrill him.

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