White Witch

Jadis, the White Witch
Narnia character
Jadis, the White Witch. Art by Leo and Diane Dillon.
Race	Humanoid (Northern Witch)– (rumoured by opponents to be half Jinn, half Giant)
Nation	Charn
Gender	Female
Title	Her Imperial Majesty, Jadis, Queen of Narnia, Chatelaine of Cair Paravel, Empress of the Lone Islands (Former: Her Imperial Majesty Jadis, Empress of Charn)
Birthplace	Charn
Family	Unnamed sister (deceased; killed by Jadis)
Major character in
The Magician's Nephew The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
Portrayals in adaptations
1988 BBC television: Barbara Kellerman
2005 Walden/Disney film: Tilda Swinton
2008 Walden/Disney film: Tilda Swinton
2010 Walden/Fox film: Tilda Swinton

Jadis is the main antagonist of The Magician's Nephew and of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe in C.S. Lewis's series, The Chronicles of Narnia. She is commonly referred to as the White Witch in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, as she is the Witch who froze Narnia in the Hundred Years Winter.

Some recent editions of the books include brief notes, added by later editors, that describe the cast of characters. As Lewis scholar Peter Schakel points out, the description there of Jadis and the Queen of Underland (the main antagonist of The Silver Chair) "states incorrectly that the Queen of Underland is an embodiment of Jadis". Beyond characterising the two as "Northern Witches", Lewis's text does not connect them. (See Lady of the Green Kirtle for further discussion.)

The White Witch was born before the creation of Narnia and died in battle in Narnian year 1000.

In The Magician's Nephew, Jadis is introduced as the Queen of Charn, a city in an entirely different world from Narnia. She was the last of a long line of kings and queens, who began well but grew evil over many generations and conquered the entire world of Charn. Jadis, a powerful sorceress, fought a bloody war of rebellion against her sister. On the point of defeat, Jadis chose not to submit, but spoke instead the Deplorable Word that destroyed all life on Charn except her own. She then cast a spell of enchanted sleep upon herself, to await someone who could rescue her from Charn.

Digory Kirke and Polly Plummer arrive in the ruins of Charn through Digory's uncle's magic, at a time when the planet's parent star has aged and become a dismal red giant, suggesting that as many as several million of years have passed. The children find the bell that Jadis left to break the spell. Despite Polly's warning not to ring the bell, Digory does so. Jadis is awakened and by holding on to them is transported with them back to London in the year 1900. She initially aims to conquer the world to which she is transported, but finds that her magic does not work there. Digory, seeking to correct his mistake, attempts to transport her back to Charn, but they end up instead in the world of Narnia at the moment of its creation by the lion Aslan. As Aslan approaches, she attacks him with the rod of iron she has torn by main strength from a London lamp post; but when this has no effect, she flees.