Jadis' Castle (also known as the Witch's Castle) is a location featured in the 2005 Disney/Walden Media adaptation of The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. It was an enchanted palace located within the kingdom of Narnia ruled by the tyrannical Jadis before her death.
Background[]
Jadis' Castle is a large bastion built by Jadis herself through her control of cryokinesis. The palace was complete with tall towers and spires, as well as being filled with several dungeons as well as a throne made of ice. Through the gate of the castle entrance consists of Jadis' Courtyard, an area of the castle consisting of "statues" of petrified Narnians which Jadis turned into stone during the winter curse. Several of the petrified Narnians included Rumblebuffin, Tumnus, centaurs, gryphons, and several other creatures who were turned into stone. Since then, the victims of the petrified Narnians were freed by Aslan to help win the war against the White Witch.
Role in the film[]
As Edmund finds himself at Jadis' Castle, amongst the statues he encounters at the Courtyard are those of Rumblebuffin and several other petrified creatures such as centaurs, horses, fauns, bears, rhinoceroses, a lioness, and a gryphon. Upon arriving, Edmund encounters Maugrim who directs him to the palace at the castle. Telling him to wait, Edmund sits on the icy throne in Jadis' Castle where he encounters Jadis, confronting him for coming alone. Edmund tells her that Peter, Susan, and Lucy are at Beaver's Dam and as he asks her of having more Turkish delight, Jadis requests Ginarrbrik to feed him the food he requested her to give, just before Jadis commands Maugrim and his wolf pack to destroy the dam.
As the Pevensies and the beavers escape from an ambush at Beaver's Dam, they encounter statues of petrified Narnians and as they arrive on their way to Jadis' Castle, they stumble upon a talking Fox, warning them about the dangers the White Witch has cast upon as they are on their way to the Castle. The wolves part of Jadis' Secret Police arrive and confront him just before the Fox distracts them just before the Pevensies have a conversation with the Beavers and the Fox. Later, Tumnus is revealed to have been arrested just as Edmund engages in a conversation with him just before Jadis approaches Edmund who tells her about Aslan gathering his army to help fight against Narnia,as he claims to her that he wanted to see her. Jadis later approaches Tumnus who confronts him that Edmund turned him in for Turkish delight just before she commands her warden, an ogre, to take him upstairs. Ginarrbrik later brings Edmund to the courtyard where he sees the statue of Tumnus who was petrified just before Jadis gets her sleigh ready.
Later when a battle rages across Beruna, Aslan (who was revived from the dead) brings Susan and Lucy to Jadis' Castle in a plan for them to help win the war against Jadis. As they enter, the two stumble upon Mr. Tumnus who was petrified by Jadis. Aslan was able to revive him and save Tumnus from the curse, just as Susan and Lucy happily reunite with him. Aslan, who is accompanied by a gryphon, a leopard, a centaur, and a satyr, alerts Susan and Lucy, telling them to hurry and search the castle, explaining to them that Peter and Edmund will need reinforcements to help win the battle. All of a sudden, Aslan and a group of reinforcements from the castle arrive and help fight off Jadis' Army, followed by Aslan tackling Jadis and killing her.
The fate of the castle remains unknown after Jadis' death, even during the events of Prince Caspian. It is likely that the castle was destroyed or left into ruins.
Video game appearances[]
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe[]
The Witch's Castle appears in the console versions of the game as the eponymous thirteenth level, where Susan and Lucy must summon Aslan to find the statues of petrified Narnians to free them from their petrified forms to bring in reinforcements to help Peter and Edmund win the battle against Jadis and her Army. In order to summon Aslan, the player must interact with the statues of the petrified Narnians to collect them in order for a spot where Susan can summon Aslan to appear. Once done so, the player must have Susan use her horn to summon Aslan to rescue the Narnians and to continue their journey to find more reinforcements by pressing the buttons correctly in order. Once done so, it triggers a cutscene of Aslan rescuing Narnians (such as a centaur or satyr) opening a gate for Susan and Lucy, helping them find more reinforcements along the way. In addition to more statues appearing, some statues are covered by shadow beings which can harm the player if approached upon contact. The player must have Susan fire her arrows at the walls to bring in light to get the shadow beings off the statues while dealing with wolves. As soon as the player progresses, they must fight off against wolves and/or Boggles that appear in the level as they enter more rooms within the castle.
The last part of the level includes an ogre which suddenly appears and ambushes Susan and Lucy in this room which the two must avoid in combat due to Peter and Edmund absent in this level and the ogre itself wearing armor and thus, neither Susan or Lucy can defeat it. The player must move an empty torch out of the way, stand on the spot where Susan can use her horn, and then press the buttons correctly in order very quickly to summon Aslan for help. The player must be careful when doing so, especially when the ogre is next to Susan and Lucy, because the ogre can bang its club to harm Susan which can prevent her from summoning Aslan; thus, using Lucy to distract the ogre can help make it easier for Susan to summon Aslan for help.
Upon performing this method, Aslan is summoned to the rescue, causing the gates to be launched into the ogre, defeating it, followed by Aslan leading Susan and Lucy to Mr. Tumnus who is petrified which Aslan later rescues him throughout the events of the game to help bring reinforcements for Peter and Edmund.
Differences from source material[]
- In the film, Edmund and Tumnus shared a cell while Jadis taunted him of telling Tumnus that Edmund was the one who turned him in. In the original book, Edmund and Tumnus did not share a cell as the latter was already turned into stone when Edmund arrived at the White Witch's Castle.
- Some of the petrified Narnians encountered within Jadis' Courtyard included boars, gryphons, or even rhinoceroses, which did not appear in the original book nor did they exist in C.S. Lewis' workshop.
- Additionally, the lion statue in the original book was described as a male lion, unlike in the film where the lion was depicted as a lioness.
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