Firenze’s the noblest centaur you’ll ever meet.
But most fans hardly even remember what he did in the story.
And it’s such a shame because he’s got an interesting plot too.
So to give him the attention he deserves…
It’s time we took a deep dive into Firenze’s story.
Continue reading to discover:
- Firenze in the films versus the books
- How Firenze predicted the future of Harry Potter
- Why Firenze’s 1 of the bravest centaurs in the series.
- What happened to Firenze during the Battle of Hogwarts.
- And so much more…
About Firenze
Born | Unknown |
Purity | Centaur |
House | N/A |
Character Traits | Courageous, Visionary, Friendly, Strong |
Patronus | N/A |
Wand | N/A |
Zodiac Sign | Sagittarius (Likely, but not proven) |
Firenze background
Firenze was a centaur.
Species that took on the form of a horse…
But the upper body of a human.
Firenze was part of the Forbidden Forest centaur colony.
A group of centaurs that lived close to Hogwarts.
Unfortunately, we don’t know much about his upbringing.
But according to the official Wiki…
Firenze’s been living there for at least part of his life.
Firenze occupation
As mentioned, Firenze used to be a member of the centaur colony.
But when Albus Dumbledore hired him to be a professor at Hogwarts…
The centaurs drove Firenze out of their colony.
In fact, they even attacked him…
And he wouldn’t be alive if it weren’t for Hagrid’s help.
On the bright side, Firenze enjoyed teaching at Hogwarts.
And he excelled at Divination.
Because centaurs were natural-born Seers. Gifted beings who could look into the future.
Fortunately, after the events of the 2nd Wizarding War.
Firenze reunited again with his colony.
And they welcomed him with open arms…
Understanding that his open-mindedness was the path to a better future.
Firenze character
Firenze was like any other centaur.
He had the lower body of a horse…
And an upper body of a human.
In the movies, Firenze looked more dark green.
But in the Harry Potter book series.
He had blonder hair and deep blue eyes.
On top of that, he wasn’t as intimidating as the rest of his colony.
Firenze was friendly and approachable.
And he was courageous enough to break away from the centaur’s unpleasant traditions.
More facts about Firenze
#1: Special part in the books
Firenze’s an unsung hero in the Harry Potter series.
And only very few people actually remember when he saved Harry from Voldemort too:
But as awesome as that scene was…
Did you know the film cut out a lot of important parts?
Well, it’s actually true.
You see, Hagrid doesn’t find Harry Potter.
Firenze let Harry ride on his back so he could return to his friends.
And before Firenze could set off into the night…
A few of his centaur buddies caught him letting a human ride him like a horse.
“It should be fine, right? Firenze’s just helping Harry Potter.”
Unfortunately, centaurs were a very proud race.
And they hated when humans ‘used’ them in any way.
In fact, Bane was quick to anger and said:
“Firenze! What are you doing? You have a human on your back! Have you no shame? Are you a common mule?”
On the bright side, Firenze didn’t let it bother him.
He was more concerned about the safety of Harry Potter.
And without his help…
The story would’ve ended much sooner.
However, it still sucked that we didn’t get to see this scene play out on the big screens.
Because it added more depth to Firenze’s character.
#2: Jealousy among professors
Sure, a bunch of us know that Firenze taught Divination…
And that he shared classes with Professor Trelawney.
But did you know that things weren’t as fine as they seemed?
You see, Professor Trelawney grew extremely jealous of Firenze.
Because a lot of students preferred his classes over hers.
In fact, she became so annoyed…
She couldn’t help but say this during their Christmas party:
“Oh, of course. Or Dobbin, as I prefer to think of him. You would have thought, would you not, that now I am returned to the school Professor Dumbledore might have got rid of the horse? But no… we share classes… It’s an insult, frankly, an insult. Do you know…”
On the bright side, research says a bit of jealousy can be good.
Because envy can spark some motivation to be better.
But in Trelawney’s case…
Let’s just say she still needed to work on her perspective on things.
“What about Professor Firenze? Did he dislike Professor Trelawney?”
As funny as it sounds…
Firenze actually found her quite amusing.
Because her talent at Divination was funny to watch.
Not to mention, her card-reading skills were “almost comical”.
And I think we can all take a page from Firenze’s book.
Because even research agrees that we should be more light-hearted about things…
Since laughter and fun have great benefits for our well-being.
#3: A brave warrior in the Battle of Hogwarts
Firenze was a centaur.
So it’s only natural for him to be a great fighter.
But his bravery showed off even more during the Battle of Hogwarts.
Because he kept fighting against the evil Lord Voldemort‘s dark wizards…
Even after getting severely injured.
You see, someone managed to hit his flank…
Causing Firenze to bleed a lot.
But did the centaur go down?
No, he stood his ground for almost an hour straight…
Until Firenze was shaking and couldn’t get himself back up.
Afterward, he had to sit out the 2nd half of the fight.
But that doesn’t take away from how big a badass he was.
In fact, that’s why I love Harry Potter so much…
Because the story gave many characters a chance to shine.
#4: Predicted the future
Do you remember when Firenze saved Harry Potter in the Forbidden Forest?
Well, the reasons behind it were actually much deeper than fans realized.
You see, the centaurs read the planets…
And their prediction showed that Harry Potter would die in that dark ancient forest.
So when Firenze intervened.
The other centaurs of his colony got mad…
Because they thought he was going against Divination.
But Firenze argued back and said:
“Do you not see that unicorn? Do you not understand why it was killed? Or have the planets not let you in on that secret? I set myself against what is lurking in this forest, Bane, yes, with humans alongside me if I must.”
However, at the end of the day…
It turned out the centaurs were right.
Harry Potter did die at the hands of Voldemort in the Forbidden Forest…
It just happened 6 years later.
And not the night when they first saw Harry in the forest.
#5: His looks leave a lot to be desired
If you thought Firenze looked odd in the movies…
You’re not alone.
A lot of fans were disappointed with his looks.
And they’re actually in the right.
You see, the books described Firenze as extremely handsome.
So the dark-green tone he’s got going on the big screens…
It’s not actually accurate.
In fact, Firenze was so attractive…
That even students found him handsome.
Like Lavender Brown and Parvati Patil.
#6: A connection to Galileo Galilei
It might seem like a stretch at first.
But Firenze’s another name for the Italian city of Florence.
And can you guess who studied there?
Well, it’s Galileo Galilei. The Italian astronomer who discovered the stars of the Milky Way and so much more.
That’s the exact city where he did his research in astronomy.
And this explains why Firenze in Harry Potter was so good with Divination…
Because he’s got a real-life connection.
#7: You’ve probably seen him in other films
Although centaurs popping up in other movies sounds hard to believe…
The actor behind Firenze has got quite the career.
For example, Ray Fearon played Père Robert in Beauty and the Beast.
And that’s just the tip of the iceberg for the shows and films he’s acted in.
But if you want to see him play as Firenze again…
You can always watch all Harry Potter films on Netflix.