The Wizarding World Geocache Series
"Upon the signature of the International Statute of Secrecy in 1689, wizards went into hiding for good. It was natural, perhaps, that they formed their own small communities within a community."
— The secrecy surrounding the wizarding world
The Wizarding World, also referred to as the magical community, is the society in which wizards and witches live and interact, separate from non-wizarding society. The two communities are kept separate through the use of charms, spells, and secrecy. Wizards and witches are forbidden to reveal anything about magic to Muggle society due to the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy, but that does not mean that the two worlds live entirely apart.
Welcome to London
Harry Potter: "But what does a Ministry of Magic do?"
Rubeus Hagrid: "Well, their main job is to keep it from the Muggles that there's still witches an' wizards up an' down the country."
Harry Potter: "Why?"
Rubeus Hagrid: "Why? Blimey, Harry, everyone'd be wantin' magic solutions to their problems. Nah, we're best left alone."
— Purpose of the Ministry
The Ministry of Magic, the primary governing body of the magical community in Great Britain and Ireland. Headed by a Minister for Magic, a Ministry of Magic is responsible for regulating and enforcing laws for the magical community, as well as keeping said community hidden from the Muggle world. The headquarters of the Ministry is under the HM Treasury building and Whitehall, in central London, deep underground.
Within the Ministry of Magic are several Departments.
The Department of Magical Law Enforcement, which is a combination of police and justice facilities, is located on the second level of the Ministry of Magic. It includes the Auror Office, Improper Use of Magic Office, Wizengamot (the wizard high court of law), Magical Law Enforcement Squad, the Misuse of Muggle Artefacts Office, the Detection and Confiscation of Counterfeit Defensive Spells and Protective Objects Office.
The Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes, located on the third level of the Ministry of Magic, is responsible for repairing accidental magical damage in the wizarding world. It includes the Accidental Magic Reversal Squad, The Obliviator Headquarters, and the Muggle-Worthy Excuse Committee.
The Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures, located on the fourth level of the Ministry of Magic, is divided into three divisions, the Beast Division, the Being Division, and the Spirit Division, and contains the Goblin Liaison Office and Centaur Liaison Office.
The Department of International Magical Cooperation is an agency that attempts to get wizards from different countries to cooperate in wizarding actions both political and public. It works through the headquarters of the International Magical Trading Standards Body, the International Magical Office of Law, and the British seats of the International Confederation of Wizards. This department is on the fifth level of the Ministry of Magic.
The Department of Magical Transportation is located on the sixth level of the Ministry of Magic and is responsible for various aspects of magical transport, and includes the following offices: the Floo Network Authority, responsible for setting up and maintaining the network, and distributing the greenish floo powder; the Broom Regulatory Control, that controls the traffic of broom travel; the Portkey Office, the regulation of Portkeys; and the Apparition Test Centre, that grants licenses to witches and wizards so that they can apparate.
The Department of Magical Games and Sports deals with organizing sports events like the Quidditch World Cup and the Triwizard Tournament. The department is located on the seventh level of the Ministry of Magic, and includes the British and Irish Quidditch League Headquarters, Official Gobstones Club, and the Ludicrous Patents Office – other sports and games-related aspects of t he Harry Potter world.
The Department of Mysteries, located on level nine of the Ministry of Magic, with no windows or doors within except a plain black door set at the end of the corridor is a department in the Ministry of Magic which studies particular enigmas (death, time, space, thought, and love) and stores copies of prophecies made in the wizarding world. Most of its operations are carried out in total secrecy and few wizards within the Ministry (or out) know what is located within this department.