Maugrim

Maugrim is a literary creation of C. S. Lewis appearing in the 1950 novel The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. Within Narnian cosmology he is one of the Talking Animals — animals that possess speech, agency, and moral choice — who allied himself with the White Witch during her Hundred-Year Winter. Editorial history of the text records that in early American editions Lewis altered the name to "Fenris Ulf" (an explicit allusion to the Norse wolf Fenrisúlfr), but later editions restored the original name and since 1994 the character has been consistently presented as Maugrim. He recurs in the narrative as the White Witch's chief enforcer until he is slain by Peter Pevensie, an event that functions narratively as both martial defeat and symbolic restoration of order (Peter is thereafter styled "Sir Peter Wolfsbane").

The book describes Maugrim as "a huge grey beast – its eyes flaming – far too big to be a dog." Adaptations emphasize or vary this base image: the 1988 BBC production depicts a humanoid wolf-like form in scenes of speech and combat and a more natural wolf when standing guard or mortally wounded, while the 2005 film presents him as a very large, aggressive wolf in action sequences. Canonical textual detail centers on great size, grey fur, and flaming eyes.

Maugrim's recorded abilities in the sources are martial and social rather than supernatural in the cosmic-altering sense. He functions as the Captain of the White Witch's Secret Police and commands subordinate wolves, carrying out orders to arrest and kill (for example, raiding and effecting the arrest of Mr. Tumnus, being sent with wolves to the Beavers' house, and taking positions at the Stone Table). He is a Talking Animal with fluent speech used for intimidation and issuing commands (he conveys Edmund's message to the Witch and interrogates other creatures in adaptations). He demonstrates physical strength and combat skill sufficient to threaten human children and other creatures but is vulnerable to and ultimately slain in armed combat by Peter Pevensie.