Seraphina Picquery

Seraphina Picquery was an American witch who lived in the 20th century. She was the President of the Magical Congress of the United States of America from 1920 to 1928.

Mohandas Alva

Article written by Mohandas Alva

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

Seraphina Picquery was born in Savannah, Georgia, before the year 1903. She was elected the President of the MACUSA in the year 1920. She was known for being a competent leader who prevented Gellert Grindelwald, the Dark Wizard, from inciting a war between Muggles and the wizarding world. Furthermore, President Picquery is also known for making the Thunderbird a protected species in the North American continent and later applying that status to all the magical beasts in North America. President Seraphina Picquery appears in the popular Harry Potter spin-off movie series Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them and plays a major role in the capture of Percival Graves, who is later revealed to be Gellert Grindelwald. 

Seraphina Picquery is played by Carmen Ejogo, and there is a toy collection inspired by the MACUSA president available in POP! Vinyl with small parts. It is among the many other toys that were inspired by the franchise Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, like toys inspired by Newt Scamander, Tina Goldstein, and others like a collectible wand box.

Early Life And Career

Seraphina Picquery was born in the district of Georgia, specifically the Savannah region, into the Picquery family. After she turned eleven, she joined the Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. She was one of the very few students to be offered a place in all four houses during the Sorting Ceremony. However, she chose to be in the Horned Serpent’s house. She was later chosen by the Violetta Beauvais wand, which was made by the American wandmaker Violetta Beauvais during the wand selection ceremony. This wand was believed to respond to dark magic as a vampire would to blood. Despite these speculations, Seraphina stayed true to her values and remained on the good side of the wizarding world.

President Of MACUSA

Seraphina Picquery was elected as the President of the Magical Congress of the United States of America in the year 1920. Throughout her career as the president, she was referred to as Madam President Seraphina Picquery. She was known for her tough stance on several integral issues, the most important of which was the opposition to Gellert Grindelwald. Picquery was also responsible for the continued use of alcohol despite a ban on it by the No-Maj American government called Prohibition. Seraphina Picquery, despite opposition among some in the magical community and in her cabinet, allowed the use of alcohol during her mandate. She is famously known for saying, “The gigglewater is non-negotiable” to her Chief of Staff and that living as a wizard or witch is hard enough as it is. The prohibition of booze in the USA was a monumental change in the history of the country.

Magical Career

One of the crowning achievements of Seraphina Picquery’s magical career is the arrest of Gellert Grindelwald during her tenure as the president of MACUSA. Seraphina and the Aurors of MACUSA were on a constant hunt for Grindelwald but the events unfolded when Newt Scamander, the magizoologist, came to New York in December 1926 with a suitcase full of magical beasts from Great Britain in Europe. As he entered the USA, his suitcase was accidentally exchanged with the suitcase of Jacob Kowalski, a No-Maj who had come to the Steen National Bank to get a loan to open a bakery. However, when Jacob opened the suitcase, several magical beasts were set loose in New York. 

The situation got tenser when the senator for New York, Henry Shaw Jr was murdered by an unknown creature. However, Tina Goldstein brought Newt’s suitcase with Newt and Jacob inside it to the International Confederation of Wizards meeting happening inside the MACUSA headquarters. When she revealed that some of the magical creatures in Newt’s suitcase had escaped into New York, Seraphina, acting as the President of MACUSA ordered Rupert Graves to arrest and investigate Newt Scamander and Tina for possibly trying to upset the Statute of Secrecy without warning. 

Newt and Tina were sentenced to death by the suspicious Rupert Graves for letting an Obscurial loose. It is later revealed that Rupert Graves is actually Gellert Grindelwald in disguise. Newt and Tina escape the guards who are tasked with killing them, and eventually, they try to catch hold of the Obscurial that wreaks havoc in the city. It is revealed that Credence Barebone is the Obscurial, and President Seraphina Picquery joins hands with Newt Scamander to catch Gellert Grindelwald and to obliviate the whole city.

Picquery, Fudge, and Scrimgeour – A Comparison

Seraphina Picquery, Cornelius Fudge and Rufus Scrimgeour all had one thing in common for certain – that they were all leaders who were responsible for their respective magical populations. They also shared a similar situation in that the Dark Wizards Gellert Grindelwald and Lord Voldemort were trying to attack the magical population and cause chaos in the community. 

Frankly, all three of these leaders failed to some extent to detect and neutralize the threats posed by the Dark Wizards. However, Seraphina Picquery was the most successful of them all, as she managed to capture Grindelwald eventually. Cornelius Fudge was obviously the least successful as he literally tried to prevent the people against Voldemort from voicing their opinions and also vanquished any news or talk about Voldemort’s return only to realize that he was wrong. 

Scrimgeour, although very fierce and capable, had a very difficult time convincing Harry and his allies to work with him, especially because of how easily the Death Eaters and Lord Voldemort had taken over the Ministry.

FAQs

Is Seraphina Picquery good?

Good is a very subjective term in general. However, Seraphina Picquery was a decent president of the MACUSA who tried her best to catch Gellert Grindelwald. However, Seraphina was also responsible for the wrongful accusation of Newt Scamander and Tina Goldstein who tried to convince Seraphina Picquery that the attacks were caused by an Obscurial and not by any of Newt’s creatures. However, in the end, Seraphina understood her mistake and they were all successful in together nabbing Gellert Grindelwald.

Who is the magic president in Fantastic Beasts?

Seraphina Picquery is the president of the Magical Congress of the United States of America. She was the one who tried to catch Gellert Grindelwald by sending her Aurors to follow the leads they had collected about Grindelwald’s location. Seraphina Picquery also sent away Tina Goldstein when she brought Newt Scamander to the MACUSA Aurors’ office when they were having an important meeting.

Who has the pink wand in Harry Potter?

Seraphina Picquery from the Fantastic Beasts series is said to possess a pink wand with a pink jeweled handle. It was a Violetta Beauvais wand and was considered a controversial wand, especially because most Violetta Beauvais wands were known to easily perform Dark Magic. In the Harry Potter series, Dolores Umbridge was known to possess a wand with a pink handle.

/28

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

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

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

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

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

6) What was the last Horcrux to be destroyed?

7) What does the incantation "Obliviate" do?

8) Who teaches Herbology at Hogwarts?

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

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 form does Hermione Granger's Patronus take?

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

13) 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?

14) What creature is Aragog?

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

16) What animal represents Hufflepuff house?

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

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

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

20) What is Dumbledore's full name?

21) What does the Mirror of Erised show?

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

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

24) What is the effect of the Cheering Charm?

25) Who is the Half-Blood Prince?

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

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

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

Your score is

0%

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.

Discover the secrets to learning and enjoying literature.

Join Book Analysis

Learn More

Share to...