Template:HP Character

Cornelius Oswald Fudge is a fictional character in the Harry Potter book series written by J. K. Rowling. As Supervising Director to the Ministry, he was the Minister for Magic of Great Britain from 1990 to 1996. Fudge first appears in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, but is first mentioned in Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone.

He wears more conventional clothes than most Wizards (wearing a Pinstriped Suit in Chamber of Secrets and a green one in Half-Blood prince.

Fudge initially seems kind to Harry, and inadvertently provides some valuable information, namely that Sirius Black was James Potter's best friend and was believed to have betrayed the Potters to Lord Voldemort. During his tenure he also has Rubeus Hagrid put into Azkaban, due to the belief that he is controlling Tom Riddle's Basilisk; and he allows the removal of Albus Dumbledore as Headmaster, and the near-execution of Buckbeak, both times influenced by Lucius Malfoy. Nevertheless through all this he had proved to be fairly kindly and compassionate, if somewhat weak as a leader.

His relationship to the major characters changed suddenly in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire and continuing into Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. When Harry emerges from the Triwizard Maze after having seen the rebirth of Voldemort, Fudge refuses to believe it, and orchestrates a smear campaign to discredit Harry and Albus Dumbledore, portraying Dumbledore as a senile, confused old man, and Harry as a mentally unbalanced, attention-seeking teenage liar. He also passes a law allowing him to place Dolores Umbridge, a faithful but vindictive follower, as a teacher at Hogwarts; he then appoints her "High Inquisitor," in effect giving her (and by extension, himself) primary control of how Hogwarts is run. Fudge is particularly paranoid that Dumbledore is a threat to his power, and that he is, in effect, planning to train the Hogwarts students loyalty to himself rather than the Ministry and in effect overthrow Fudge. Ultimately Fudge manages to have Dumbledore removed as Headmaster and Umbridge put in his place, but this is overturned after Voldemort appears in the Ministry of Magic, which destroys Fudge's political career.

When his failure to admit Voldemort's return comes to light, Fudge is forced to resign as Minister of Magic and replaced by Rufus Scrimgeour in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, though he stays on as a powerless advisor.

According to Hagrid, after Millicent Bagnold (Fudge's predecessor) left office, Dumbledore was the most popular man to succeed her, but recused himself, preferring to remain at Hogwarts. Fudge thus knew for his entire tenure that he was less popular, and also apparently that he was less qualified---Dumbledore was apparently an informal advisor to Fudge, with Hagrid claiming Fudge sent numerous owls asking Dumbledore for advice. This knowledge of Dumbledore's superior popularity and skill was likely one of the reasons for his actions after Voldemort's rise^{[citation needed]}; in addition, it is implied that Fudge simply did not want to believe that Voldemort could return, knowing that that would be the end of the Wizarding world's years of peace, and decided to merely ignore all of the evidence rather than accept the truth.

Little evidence has been given as to whether Fudge is married. At one point, Bartemius Crouch Sr refers to "Mr and Mrs Fudge", but he may be deluded (he is having that conversation with a tree as though it were Percy Weasley, and also spoke of his wife and son as though all was well with them); he may also have been referring to Fudge's mother and father, it is possible that Fudge's wife is deceased.

There is evidence to suggest that Fudge is a pure-blood (or at least, has few muggle relatives) as at the end of Goblet of Fire Dumbledore comments on his obsession of blood purity.

• Cornelius Fudge on Harry Potter Wiki, an external wiki