Gryffindor Tower

• Type: Hogwarts House Living Quarters
• Location: Seventh floor, Hogwarts Castle, Scotland
• Owner/Residents: Gryffindor students, Head of House (e.g., Minerva McGonagall)
• Key Features: Entrance concealed behind a portrait, requires a password, circular common room, separate boys' and girls' dormitories, enchanted girls' staircase.

The Gryffindor Tower has served as the living quarters for the students of Gryffindor House since the founding of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry by Godric Gryffindor. It is located in one of the castle's main towers, and its entrance is situated on the seventh floor, concealed behind a large portrait of a woman in a pink silk dress, known as the Fat Lady. To gain entry, a student must provide the correct, frequently changing password to the portrait. In the 1993-1994 school year, after the Fat Lady's portrait was slashed by Sirius Black, she was temporarily replaced by the portrait of the eccentric knight, Sir Cadogan, who delighted in setting absurdly heroic passwords. The entrance hole leads directly into the Gryffindor Common Room, a cozy, circular room decorated in the House colors of scarlet and gold. It is furnished with squashy armchairs, tables, and a large fireplace that serves as a central gathering point. The walls are adorned with scarlet tapestries depicting lions or various magical feats. A bulletin board is prominently displayed, used for official school notices, student advertisements, and important announcements like the Educational Decrees issued by Dolores Umbridge. Two spiral staircases lead up from the common room to the dormitories above: one for boys and one for girls. The girls' staircase is enchanted to prevent boys from accessing it; should a boy attempt to climb it, the staircase temporarily transforms into a smooth stone slide. The boys' staircase does not carry a similar enchantment. The dormitories themselves are circular rooms, with each student sleeping in a large four-poster bed hung with deep red velvet curtains.

As Harry Potter's “home away from home” for six years, Gryffindor Tower is a central location throughout the series, serving as a sanctuary, a social hub, and a base of operations for Harry, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger.

• In Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, the common room is where the trio plans their attempts to protect the Philosopher's Stone and where the House celebrates its victory in the House Cup.
• In Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, the tower becomes a key site of tension and fear after Sirius Black attacks the Fat Lady and later successfully infiltrates the boys' dormitory using a list of passwords lost by Neville Longbottom.
• In Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, the common room is the setting for the fallout between Harry and Ron after Harry's name emerges from the Goblet of Fire, and later for the celebrations following the First Task of the Triwizard Tournament.
• In Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, the tower is a refuge from the oppressive rule of Dolores Umbridge. The bulletin board becomes a battleground of information, displaying her decrees alongside notices for the secret Dumbledore's Army meetings.
• In Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, the common room is the backdrop for significant romantic developments, including the intense relationship between Ron and Lavender Brown, and Harry's first kiss with Ginny Weasley following a victorious Quidditch match.
• In Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, former and current Gryffindors use the tower as a rallying point before and during the Battle of Hogwarts.

• Gryffindor Common Room: The main social area for the House, featuring a fireplace, armchairs, and a notice board. It is the primary setting for house-wide gatherings and the trio's planning sessions.
• Boys' Dormitory: A series of circular rooms accessed via a spiral staircase. Harry and Ron shared a dormitory with Neville Longbottom, Seamus Finnigan, and Dean Thomas.
• Girls' Dormitory: A series of circular rooms accessed via an enchanted spiral staircase that prevents boys from climbing it. Hermione Granger shared a dormitory with Parvati Patil and Lavender Brown.

• In an interview, J.K. Rowling explained that the enchantment on the girls' dormitory staircase, but not the boys', reflects the archaic view of the founders that girls were more trustworthy than boys, a “chivalrous but biased” notion. (J.K. Rowling interview)
• In the film adaptations, the location of the entrance to Gryffindor Tower is not always consistent. In Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, the portrait of the Fat Lady is shown hanging in the Grand Staircase area, rather than in a quiet seventh-floor corridor as described in the book. (film)
• The film set for the Gryffindor Common Room was one of the oldest on the production, built for the first film and used throughout the series. It was designed to feel worn-in and comfortable, filled with aged furniture and tapestries to create a sense of history and homeliness. (film)