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So, regarding wandlore. . . could Harry Potter have given Draco Malfoy Draco's hawthorn wand back to Draco without the allegiance of the Elder Wand switching from Harry to Draco?

We know that Draco Malfoy became master of the Elder Wand when he disarmed Dumbledore on the Astronomy Tower in Half-Blood Prince. Subsequently, Harry became master of the Elder Wand when he defeated Draco by physically taking Draco's wand from Draco while the trio was being held captive at Malfoy Manor in Deathly Hallows. Because Harry wrestled Draco's hawthorn wand from Draco, the hawthorn wand switched its allegiance from Draco to Harry, and the Elder Wand followed suit, for if one disarms another witch or wizard, one masters ALL wands that witch or wizard controls. From Deathly Hallows, pages 493 - 499, US Hardcover, the following information is given regarding wandlore and wand allegiance:

  • In general, where a wand has been won its allegiance will change.
  • Wands may be at least partially sentient: "The wand chooses the wizard." (Please see my thoughts on whether a wand is at least partially sentient here)
  • A person can still use a wand that hasn't chosen them to channel magic, although it may not yield the best possible results.
  • Subtle laws govern wand ownership, but a conquered wand will usually bend its will to its new master.
  • A conquered wand will better do a witch or wizard's bidding than another wand.
  • It is not necessary to kill the previous wand owner to take true possession of a typical wand.
  • Ollivander is unsure whether the allegiance of the Elder Wand must pass to its new master through murder.

Given this, would Harry have been able to gift the hawthorn wand back to Draco without the allegiance of the Elder Wand switching back to Draco as well? Or would the allegiance of the Elder Wand switch to Draco regardless of how Draco regained ownership of his original hawthorn wand?

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Slytherincess
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  • "Wands may be at least partially sentient" - Not really required. The explanation may be purely technological (Think gravity for a poor analogy - a large planet may wrestle the orbit of a satellite from a smaller one). Same thing with choosing first wand - may be some magical properties resonate between wand and wizard. Doesn't imply sentient conscious choice. – DVK-on-Ahch-To Dec 22 '11 at 14:03
  • It is implied in canon that wands may be at least partially sentient: Oh yes, if you are any wizard at all you will be able to channel your magic through almost any instrument. The best results, however, must always come where there is the strongest affinity between wizard and wand. These connections are complex. An initial attraction, and then the mutual quest for experience, the wand learning from the wizard, the wizard from the wand. Ollivander, Page 494, DH US HC. By the way -- did you get my inquiry to you regarding your question about a list of fan fic that foreshadowed canon? :) – Slytherincess Dec 22 '11 at 15:09
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    @Slytherincess False assumption in the question: Draco's hawthorne wand did not switch allegiance to Harry. Only the Elder Wand switches allegiances so readily, because it responds to power. All other known wands have a level of loyalty to the witch/wizard they originally chose. See http://scifi.stackexchange.com/questions/6910/why-does-everyones-wand-still-work-for-them – Izkata Dec 22 '11 at 16:08
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    As much as I love all the peeps at SE, I will always err on the side of canon. Harry disarmed Draco of the hawthorn wand at Malfoy Manor, thus mastered it. Since Draco was master of the Elder Wand as well at that time, both wands switched their allegiances (see page 742-743 in DH) to Harry. The Elder Wand cannot be mastered by a person who is incapable of facing death (see my answer in the question about wands being sentient for the source); it is not contingent upon the power of the wizard. All wands have the capability of changing allegiance to a new owner. – Slytherincess Dec 22 '11 at 17:52
  • @Slytherincess - Thats where you are wrong. Draco was never the master fo the elder wand if he had been then he could not have been disarmed. It requires more than possession to master the eldar wand. – Chad Dec 22 '11 at 19:48
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    @Chad -- According to canon Draco Malfoy was master of the Elder Wand prior to being disarmed by Harry. "The true master of the Elder Wand was Draco Malfoy." - Harry - Deathly Hallows - Page743, and you can read it in context. Anyone possessing the Elder Wand may be disarmed. – Slytherincess Dec 22 '11 at 20:32
  • According to my reading, this whole "master of the Elder Wand" business is a Deus ex Machina that Rowling pulled out of her a... out of nowhere when she had written herself into a corner. It really doesn't make sense. – Jürgen A. Erhard Dec 23 '11 at 22:19
  • It took me a really long time to make sense of the Elder Wand lore. And I still don't think it's written as precisely and informatively as it should have been. (Don't get me started on Harry killing Voldemort with Expelliarmus!) :) – Slytherincess Dec 23 '11 at 23:12
  • @Slytherincess - I know what you mean its almost like she was making it up as she went along :p – Chad Dec 28 '11 at 13:55
  • @Chad - It can sure seem that way, can't it? I think that JKR, in her own mind, knows her wandlore inside out, but did not translate all the necessary information to the story, which left the lore of the Elder Wand rather nebulous and unclear. – Slytherincess Dec 28 '11 at 23:17
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    @Slytherincess - I think that was intentional. It is a work of fiction. It is her creation and the nebulousness of the rules keeps her work from being picked apart like a star trek episode. – Chad Dec 29 '11 at 14:26
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    @Chad -- And yet here we are. . . picking her work apart like one might a Star Trek episode (which, I note for the record, is also, indeed, a work of fiction -- but, shh! Don't tell that to the Trekkies!) ;) – Slytherincess Dec 29 '11 at 14:49
  • @Slytherincess - I am pretty sure you are wrong that is a documentary about our future... where computers are blinking lights and there are hot green skin chicks waiting to indulge my every whim. – Chad Dec 29 '11 at 15:06
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    @Chad -- LOL, we can dream, can't we? You, about the hot green chicks, and me about the blinking computers (and Jean Luc Piccard) ;) – Slytherincess Dec 29 '11 at 16:32
  • Mr Ollivander states that "Wands develop an affinity to their owners that they will not give up easily; even when won, they will often retain some loyalty to the original owner..." http://harrypotter.wikia.com/wiki/Wandlore – Möoz Mar 27 '14 at 21:39
  • Relevant: http://scifi.stackexchange.com/questions/60635/how-can-ollivander-tell-a-wand-has-changed-allegiance?rq=1 – Adam Davis Jan 14 '15 at 12:57

5 Answers5

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The laws of wand allegiance are not universal and depend on the type of wand:

  • The Elder Wand (Threstal hair core) is extremely fickle and responds readily to power, with zero loyalty to its previous owner. The allegiance of this wand is won very easily using brute force, but never peacefully (For instance, Snape killing Dumbledore with Dumbledore's consent wouldn't make Snape the master of the Wand.)
  • Unicorn hair wands are very loyal; in fact they are the most faithful and don't care much about skill or power. They generally will always be attached to its original owner, regardless of current allegiance.
  • Phoenix feather wands are also very loyal because they are very picky when choosing their first owner. It can be quite difficult to win their allegiance because of this.
  • Dragon heartstrings wands are more similar to the Elder Wand; they appreciate power, so it is easier to win their allegiance from their previous owner.

We are lucky though, because Draco's wand has a unicorn hair core! So it's pretty much established that, despite it currently responding to Harry, it is still faithful to Malfoy and would "remember" him. I think we can safely speculate that Harry need only give Draco his wand back and that would be more than enough for the wand to accept Draco. And since this is a peaceful exchange, it wouldn't affect the Elder Wand's allegiance at all.

So the answer is: we don't know if Harry returned Draco's wand, but established canon very easily allows Draco to get his wand back peacefully.

(the wand core info comes from Pottermore)

Arthur
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  • How would you say that the hawthorn wand could be loyal to Harry and Draco at the same time? I agree that the hawthorn wand would likely remember Draco if Draco could get his hands on it again. Yes, re: unicorn hair -- it's the least likely to turn to the Dark Arts and is loyal to it's first owner. I like your answer, especially the Pottermore info re: wand cores and allegiances. +1 :) – Slytherincess Oct 29 '12 at 00:05
  • PS - If you're inclined to, maybe take a look at this question and see if you want to give it a go. There's a +100 reputation points bounty on the question. :) – Slytherincess Oct 29 '12 at 00:11
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The Elder Wand did not switch allegiance because Harry had taken Draco's hawthorn wand, it switched because Harry had beaten its owner. There is a subtle but important difference.

Therefore, I think Harry could have voluntarily given Draco his wand back without it having any impact on the Elder wand. However, as you make clear, wandlore is not a precise science.

Kevin
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Schroedingers Cat
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  • Yeah, I get what you're saying. I'll edit my question to be more clear, because by "taken" I meant defeated/beaten. Harry disarmed Draco by physically taking his wand, hence beat him and mastered his hawthorn wand (and, unknowingly, the Elder Wand). – Slytherincess Dec 22 '11 at 15:03
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Consider that Dumbledore's plan was for Snape to kill him so that he would never have been defeated. If killing someone can be considered not "defeating" them as long as it was desired by the current master of the Elder Wand, I'd say that willingly giving someone their wand back would certainly not count as being defeated, so it would be perfectly safe for Harry to give Draco his wand back. And that's probably what happened, though it's not stated in the book.

Kevin
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I think that in the text, Olivander says to Harry at Shell Cottage (when he is identifying the wands the group have taken from Malfoy Manor) that, 'This USED to be the wand of Draco Malfoy' meaning that Draco's wand has indeed switched allegiance to Harry.

Magical
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No. You all have it wrong! Draco Malfoy disarmed Dumbledore using Expelliarmus shortly before Snape Killed Dumbledore. Unknowingly, Draco became the master of the Elder Wand.

A year later, Harry physically disarms Draco. When he does that, Draco's hawthorn wand changes allegiance to Harry, and the Elder Wand follows suit. Yes, Draco's hawthorn wand DID in fact switch allegiance to Harry, contrary to what some people may say.

Yes, Harry can give Draco his old hawthorn wand back, but it won't work for him the same way it did before because the wand technically belongs to Harry now. If Draco were to win it back from Harry (ie defeat him somehow) then the hawthorn wand would belong to Draco once again, and the Elder Wand would switch its allegiance back to him.

Simply put, Harry simply giving the hawthorn wand back to Draco will not affect the allegiance of any wands, because there was no defeat involved. Even if he gets it back, the hawthorn wand will no longer work for Draco like it used to before Harry won it. It will be unpredictable and erratic.

Bob Smith
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    -1 - There is no reference in canon that says this is what happened as definitively as you state. While the logic for this may be sound there is still the assumption that the hawthorn wand did switch allegiance. There is also the possibility that the hawthorn wand would have acted normally for Draco had it been given back. We will never know. – Chad Dec 28 '11 at 14:01
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    @Chad: I agree that "it won't work for him [Draco] the same way it did before because the wand technically belongs to Harry now" is speculation. However, canon says that Draco's hawthorn wand works much better for Harry than that blackthorn wand he got from Ron. This, together with Ollivander saying "In general, however, where a wand has been won, its allegiance will change", strongly indicates that the hawthorn wand did switch allegiance. (Also Hermione explains how Bellatrix' wand doesn't work that well for her - it didn't switch allegiance.) – Hendrik Vogt Feb 27 '12 at 07:52
  • @Chad: More details from Ollivander: "the conquered wand will usually bend its will to its new master." "Yes, if you won it, it is more likely to do your bidding, and do it well, than another wand." – Hendrik Vogt Feb 27 '12 at 07:55
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    -1 Mr Ollivander states that "Wands develop an affinity to their owners that they will not give up easily; even when won, they will often retain some loyalty to the original owner..." http://harrypotter.wikia.com/wiki/Wandlore – Möoz Mar 27 '14 at 21:38