John Major had been told, when he had taken office as Prime Minister in November 1990, that there was a secret magical society within Britain, which was allowed by a 1642 treaty. John had been further told that the person in charge of the magical government of Britain was the "Minister for Magic." John had met this person, a month after John had taken office in 1990, and John also had met the headmaster of Britain’s one magical school "that is worth mentioning." John had never gotten a straight answer to his question, "How many magical schools does Britain have?"