The Harry Potter franchise is one of the most famous and successful media franchises that has spanned several books, Movies, and games along the way. Although the series ended with Harry Potter finally defeating the dark lord, aka Voldemort in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2, the Harry Potter franchise has continued to expand the lore of the Harry Potter universe by shifting its focus to events that occurred before the narrative of the Harry Potter books. The success of Harry Potter as a franchise naturally meant that anything set in its fictional world is bound to garner mainstream attention.
Five years after the release of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2, fans were treated to a new movie in the franchise, set up as a prequel, called Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them. The film was the first of five in a prequel spin-off series, and its existence proved that the fans were still interested in the franchise. The most recent addition to the universe of Harry Potter came with the release of the highly popular and successful video game in 2023, Hogwarts Legacy. The events of Hogwarts Legacy precede even those of the Fantastic Beast franchise and thus expand the known lore and timeline of the Harry Potter franchise even further.
The Complete Timeline of The Harry Potter Universe
Hogwarts Legacy is an action role-playing game developed by Avalanche Software, and is arguably the first Harry Potter game to do justice to the franchise. However, fans will not be able to see their favorite characters feature in the game, as it takes place approximately 100 years before the events of the first Harry Potter book, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, which is set in 1991. To be exact, the events of the game unfold in the year 1890, and see a young student being enrolled in the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, who then embarks on a quest to uncover ancient secrets of the Wizarding World. While the story of Hogwarts Legacy is not crucial for understanding the main events of the Harry Potter franchise, it does deepen the Harry Potter lore and provide more context about the series' fantasy world.
Next up is the spin-off prequel series, the Fantastic Beasts franchise, the events of which have been confirmed to take place between the years 1926 and 1945. The Fantastic Beasts series is set to have five films and follows a quirky wizard named Newt Scamander and his band of amateur friends as they attempt to face off against the dark wizard named Gellert Grindelwald. Albus Dumbledore is also prominently featured in these films as an ally of Newt and helps him stop the growing divide between the Wizarding and the Muggle worlds. The first Fantastic Beasts film is set almost 65 years prior to the events of the first Harry Potter book.
Finally, The main Harry Potter books and films are set between the years 1991 and 1998, and follow Harry Potter, the boy who lived, as he embarks on a quest of epic proportions to save the magical realm. On his eleventh birthday, Harry is sent an invitation to join the Wizarding School of Hogwarts which sets up a chain of events, the likes of which have never been witnessed by the Wizarding world before. Throughout his schooling Harry encounters various threats and faces off against many powerful enemies, all sent to him by the villainous Lord Voldemort. After years of conflict and many sacrifices, Harry is finally able to put a stop to Voldemort's plans and finish him off for good, with aid from his close friends and mentors.
The success of the Harry Potter franchise is a key indicator that the series will continue to grow. Currently, the entire timeline can be summarized to take place between 1890 and 1998. Hogwarts Legacy takes place in 1890, Fantastic Beasts between 1926 and 1945, and Harry Potter between 1991 and 1998.
Hogwarts Legacy is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S. A Switch version will release on November 14.