Corvinus Gaunt

Corvinus Gaunt was a pure-blood witch and a member of the House of Gaunt. As such, he was one of the direct descendants of Salazar Slytherin, as well as presumably being very inbred and rich.

Biography
In the 1700s, there was a proposal to install an elaborate plumbing system at Hogwarts Castle. This, of course, threatened the secrecy around the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets which, all the time, still had its original appearance and which was located on the site where a girls' bathroom would be set up.

Corvinus Gaunt was, at the time, a student at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and, as a descendant of Salazar Slytherin himself, knew where the entrance to the Chamber was and how to open it. Corvinus was responsible for secretly protecting the entrance, having concealed it behind plumbing fixtures and a sink, so that those who knew how could still access the Chamber.

Personality
Corvinus appeared to be sufficiently intelligent, as he was able to learn the location of the Chamber of Secrets that has not been found by centuries of searching. He was also able to adapt the new plumbing system into hiding the Chamber from the school staff in a discreet manner. Likewise, he seemed to be mentally stable despite inbreeding, enough to attend Hogwarts that his later descendants within the 20th century did not.

His willingness to hide the Chamber was meant to drive off all non-pure-blood witches from Hogwarts indicate his belief in pure-blood supremacy.

Relatives

 * Salazar Slytherin (ancestor) †
 * Cadmus Peverell (ancestor) †
 * Marvolo Gaunt (descendant) †
 * Morfin Gaunt (descendant) †
 * Merope Gaunt (descendant) †
 * Tom Riddle, Jr. (descendant) †
 * Delphini Rowle (descendant)
 * Gaunt family (distant relatives)

Powers
Witchcraft: As a direct descendant of Salazar Slytherin and Cadmus Peverell and, as such, was born with vast amounts of magical power and natural skill in the craft. Along with his great intelligence, Corvinus quickly developed his skills in witchcraft and was capable of concealing an entire hidden chamber within the Hogwarts Castle from more experienced witches while still a student at the school.

Zoopathy: Like all descendants of Salazar Slytherin, Corvinus had the ability to communicate with snakes. While doing so, Corvinus spoke with hissing sounds, similar to that of a snake and, as such, other humans cannot understand. Corvinus' skill in communicating with snakes is unknown.