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harry potter - Why did people remain at Hogwarts after Dumbledore's death?


From what I’ve read on here, people remained at Hogwarts after Dumbledore’s death, mainly in Dumbledore’s Army. But why wouldn’t the parents just have their children come home?


Also, I know the Ministry was largely controlled by Death Eaters, but how did Snape remain Headmaster, especially with someone like McGonagall still present?




Answer



They probably didn’t have much of a choice.


Some parents did remove their children after Dumbledore’s death. In Half-Blood Prince, shortly after Dumbledore’s death, we have this passage:



Some students were hurried away from Hogwarts by their parents over the next couple of days – the Patil twins were gone before breakfast on the morning following Dumbledore’s death and Zacharias Smith was escorted from the castle by his haughty-looking father. Seamus Finnigan, on the other hand, refused point-blank to accompany his mother home; they had a shouting match in the Entrance Hall which was resolved when she agreed that he could remain behind for the funeral.


– Half-Blood Prince, chapter 30 (The White Tomb)



But in Deathly Hallows, Voldemort has control of the Ministry of Magic. He can make whatever laws he like, and in particular, he can force attendance at Hogwarts. We learn from Lupin:



“Attendance is now compulsory for every young witch and wizard,” he replied. “That was announced yesterday. It’s a change, because it was never obligatory before. Of course, nearly every witch and wizard in Britain has been educated at Hogwarts, but their parents had the right to teach them at home or send them abroad if they preferred.”



– Deathly Hallows, chapter 11 (The Bribe)



This is tied to the blood cleansing regime happening alongside the war:



“This way, Voldemort will have the whole Wizarding population under his eye from a young age. And it’s also another way of weeding out Muggle-borns, because students must be given Blood Status — meaning that they have proven to the Ministry that they are of Wizard descent — before they are allowed to attend.”


– Deathly Hallows, chapter 11 (The Bribe)



This makes sense, and it’s why there are some students who don’t go back to Hogwarts for school in Deathly Hallows. We meet Dean Thomas while on the run, and Colin Creevey comes out of hiding for the final battle. Both Muggle-borns, and both known to have associated with Harry. There will be plenty of other Muggle-borns who didn’t attend that year.


Not sending your children to Hogwarts would be considered a crime and an act of rebellion. Keeping your child at home would probably earn you a visit from Snatchers or Death Eaters. If Voldemort really does have total control (and remember, there’s so much smoke that you’re really not sure), then you probably want to avoid that.


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