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"Albus Dumbledore was never proud or vain; he could find something to value in anyone, however apparently insignificant or wretched, and I believe that his early losses endowed him with great humanity and sympathy. I shall miss his friendship more than I can say, but my loss is as nothing compared to the wizarding world's. That he was the most inspiring and the best loved of all Hogwarts headmasters cannot be in question." —Dumbledore's obituary[src]

Professor Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore, O.M. (First Class), Grand Sorc. , D. Wiz. , X.J. (sorc.) , S. of Mag.Q. [14] (c. Summer[1] 1881[3] – 30 June, 1997[3]) was an English half-blood wizard, who was the Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor, later the Transfiguration Professor, and later Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Professor Dumbledore also served as Supreme Mugwump of the International Confederation of Wizards (?–1995) and Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot (?–1995; 1996–1997). He was a half-blood, Muggle-supporting wizard, the son of Percival and Kendra Dumbledore, and the elder brother of Aberforth and Ariana. His father died in Azkaban when Dumbledore was young, while his mother and sister were later accidentally killed. His early losses greatly affected him early on, even at his death, but, in turn, made him a better person.

While initially unable to directly act against Gellert Grindelwald, due to their past Blood pact, the Ministry's surveillance of him, his lingering feelings of love toward Grindelwald, and his lingering guilt over Ariana's death, Dumbledore sent Newt Scamander to New York to release the Thunderbird Frank, and later sent Newt to Paris to rescue Credence Barebone. After the tragic death of Leta Lestrange in Paris, Dumbledore became determined to contribute helpful advice to the resistance against Grindelwald, notably Newt, Theseus, Tina, Jacob, Yusuf, and Nagini in the Global Wizarding War. Initially unbeknownst to Dumbledore however, Grindelwald intended to use the former's alleged Obscurial relative, Aurelius Dumbledore, as a weapon against him.

Following the Global Wizarding War, and end of the For the Greater Good revolution, Dumbledore became most famous for his defeat of Gellert Grindelwald, the discovery of the twelve uses of dragon's blood, and his work on alchemy with Nicolas Flamel.

It was through Dumbledore that resistance to the rise of Lord Voldemort was formed, as it was he who founded and lead the Order of the Phoenix against Voldemort for 11 years in the First Wizarding War. Following Voldemort's sudden return and the start of the Second Wizarding War after the resignation of Cornelius Fudge, Dumbledore swiftly formed and lead the second Order of the Phonix. He would also support Jacob's sibling in the latter's Cursed Vaults quest, as well as later consistently supporting the trio of Harry, Ron, and Hermione during their first six years at Hogwarts, and they would thus name Dumbledore's Army after him.

Due to the fact that he had a keen mind and legendary power, Dumbledore became the only wizard that Voldemort ever feared. He was the wielder and the master of the Elder Wand from 1945 until 1997 and considered by many as the greatest Hogwarts Headmaster. As he was about to die by a cursed ring, Dumbledore planned his own death with Severus Snape. Per the plan, Dumbledore was killed by Snape during the Battle of the Astronomy Tower.

Though he was no longer alive at the time, it was through Dumbledore's manipulations that Lord Voldemort was ultimately defeated and lasting peace finally restored to the wizarding world. Dumbledore is the only Headmaster that was laid to rest at Hogwarts. Albus Dumbledore's portrait still remains at Hogwarts. Harry Potter later named his second son Albus Severus Potter after him.

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Biography

Early life (1881–1892)

Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore was born to Kendra and Percival Dumbledore in the summer[1] of 1881, in the mainly wizarding village of Mould-on-the-Wold.[4] The early years of Dumbledore's life were marked by tragedy when his younger sister, Ariana Dumbledore, was attacked by a group of Muggle boys, who saw her performing magic and were frightened by what they saw.

Ariana was left mentally and emotionally scarred by the event and her magical powers were left severely altered and would manifest themselves on rare occasions usually in random or destructive ways. Albus' father, Percival Dumbledore, was heartbroken and set out in search of his own brand of justice. He located the Muggle boys and attacked them, as they had his daughter. For this, Percival was sentenced to Azkaban where he later died, choosing the sentence over explaining why he had attacked the boys as it would have meant Ariana being taken away.

To escape the accusing eyes of the wizarding world, Kendra Dumbledore moved her young family to the village of Godric's Hollow which, like Mould-on-the-Wold, was a mainly wizarding village. Kendra rebuffed all her neighbours, with the eventual exception of Bathilda Bagshot, preferring to be left alone: and Albus learned not to mention his sister or father in public.[15]

Hogwarts years (1892–1899)

"By the end of his first year, he would never again be known as the son of a Muggle-hater, but as nothing more or less than the most brilliant student ever seen at the school." —Dumbledore's years as a Hogwarts student[src]

Dumbledore began attending Hogwarts in the autumn of 1892 and was Sorted into Gryffindor house. Dumbledore's first year was met with much whispering about his father's crime. Many of Albus' fellow students mistakenly believed that, like father like son, Albus too hated Muggles. Some praised his father's actions, hoping to gain his trust, but they would not find favour with the young Dumbledore this way. Though later in his young life, under the influence of his love for Gellert Grindelwald, some anti-Muggle prejudice did develop, but he soon saw the error of his intent.[15]

He befriended a young Elphias Doge on his first day at Hogwarts; Doge was suffering from the aftermath of Dragon Pox at the time (greenish skin and pockmarks), which discouraged most from approaching him. Dumbledore, however, demonstrated his uncommon kindness and willingness to look past the surface and find inner beauty in people. Dumbledore also became very well-connected during his Hogwarts years, making notable friends such as Nicolas Flamel, Bathilda Bagshot, and Griselda Marchbanks, who marked him in his N.E.W.T.s for Charms and Transfiguration and later recalled that he did things with a wand that she had never seen before. He also had several of his papers published during his studies.[15]

During his school years, Dumbledore won the Barnabus Finkley Prize for Exceptional Spell-Casting, became the British Youth Representative to the Wizengamot, and received the Gold Medal for Ground-Breaking Contribution to the International Alchemical Conference in Cairo.[15]

In his third year, Dumbledore presumably took Study of Ancient Runes and at least one other subject, which is known not to be Divination.

During his fourth year, Dumbledore "accidentally" set the bed-curtains in his dormitory on fire (although he admitted that he had never liked them anyway).

Albus was made a prefect during his fifth year and was made Head Boy in his seventh year. He was considered the most brilliant student to have attended the school.

Tragedy and friendship (1899)

"So that, when my mother died, and I was left the responsibility of a damaged sister and a wayward brother, I returned to my village in anger and bitterness. Trapped and wasted, I thought! And then, of course, he came." —Dumbledore discussing his harsh past[src]

After graduating from Hogwarts in June 1899, Dumbledore planned to take the traditional "Grand Tour" of the world with his friend Doge. However, tragedy ensued on the eve of the departure when Kendra Dumbledore was killed by an outburst of Ariana's uncontrollable magic, leaving Albus the head of his own broken family and now in charge of his younger siblings.

Albus returned to Godric's Hollow full of bitter resentment at his situation, feeling trapped and wasted, although he refused to let Aberfoth quit school and insisted he complete his education first before taking care of Ariana. Fortune finally shone on Dumbledore in the form of Gellert Grindelwald, who was in Godric's Hollow to research the Deathly Hallows. Grindelwald was as talented and brilliant as Albus was. Dumbledore quickly became fascinated by Grindelwald's ideas of wizarding domination, obviously considering Grindelwald an unexpected new chance to show his own brilliance and come out of the local misery. They both made a blood pact swearing to never fight each other. They also harboured romantic feelings for each other and eventually became a serious couple, but Albus regretted his relationship with Grindelwald later in life.[15]

However, after two months, Albus's brother Aberforth, having been disgusted with Albus for his plans and concerned of the fact that he and Ariana will have to be dragged over, angrily confronted him over his neglect of Ariana over the past few weeks, bluntly telling him he couldn't carry out his plans with Grindelwald, as he would have to take her with him, which brought Albus back to reality despite not wanting to hear the truth of the words his younger brother shouted at him. Grindelwald then used the Cruciatus Curse on him. A violent duel erupted between the three teenage boys. Ariana herself tried to intervene in the fight, but couldn't due to her erratic abilities, and in the ensuing chaos was hit by a stray curse and died. No one knew whose curse it was that killed her, but Grindelwald fled immediately, as he already had a bad record back home, leaving the devastated Albus and Aberforth behind. Aberforth resented Albus and they had a strained relationship, with Aberforth punching Albus and breaking his nose at Ariana's funeral. Aberforth never knew of the great guilt and regret Albus would feel for the rest of his life about his part in Ariana's death.[15]

Early career at Hogwarts (?–1925)

Dumbledore: "I had proven, as a very young man, that power was my weakness and temptation. I was safer at Hogwarts. I think I was a good teacher." Harry Potter: "You were the best." — A discussion in limbo regarding power and leadership[src]

At some point after Grindelwald's flight, Dumbledore returned to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry to teach. Burdened by the secret knowledge of Grindelwald's imminent rise to power and wanting to rectify past mistakes, it was natural, perhaps, that he felt drawn towards the job of Defence Against the Dark Arts instructor, a position in which he could most easily prepare his charges for the dangers he knew one day would come[16]. Albus, who would henceforth come to be known to successive generations of students as ‘Professor Dumbledore’, were granted Classroom 3C located off of the Serpentine Corridor on the third-floor and an office.

In the 1910s, Dumbledore taught Hufflepuff Newton Scamander and Slytherin Leta Lestrange. One of his lessons involved confronting a Boggart and learning the spell to banish it. When Newt's Boggart turned into a desk, Dumbledore commented on its unexpected nature and kindly inquired why it took this form: Newt confessed that his greatest fear was being stuck working in an office. After Newt succesfully dispatched the Boggart, Dumbledore encouraged Leta to take her turn, reassuring her that being afraid of something wasn't shameful; everyone was afraid of something. The form of Leta's Boggart surprised both Dumbledore and the entire class: a white sheet containing an undistinguishable, slight form floating through a dark blue glow. The event badly shook Leta.[16]

In 1913, one of Leta's experiments with a Jarvey went too far endangering the life of another student. Newt decided to take the blame and was sentenced to expulsion by Headmaster Phineas Nigellus Black. Dumbledore, however, argued strongly on his behalf and whether Newt's expulsion was enforced or not is unknown but Dumbledore succeeded in at least allowing Newt to keep his wand.[17]

During his time at Hogwarts, Dumbledore also developed close relationships and friendships with wizards and witches throughout the world. Among these friends, he counted the French alchemist Nicolas Flamel and Ilvermorny Charms Professor Eulalie Hicks. He maintained close contact with these friends in the form of enchanted books they all possessed which allowed them to speak despite the distance. The British Ministry of Magic was weary of these relationships, believing that Dumbledore used these contacts as spies to allow him to act as an independent authority to theirs, and maintained a close watch on Dumbledore and his allies. Chief among Dumbledore's rivals within the Ministry was Torquil Travers, the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, who never tried to hide his dislike for the Hogwarts teacher.[16]

Global Wizarding War (1926-1945)

Newt Scamander's 1926 visit to New York

In 1926, Dumbledore received word that strange events were occuring in New York, events that had also caught the attention of the International Confederation of Wizards. These events came as the European wizarding communities had been suffering a series of attacks conducted by Grindelwald and his cadre of followers. Dumbledore, suspecting other circumstances that might nevertheless interest his old friend, wanted to arrange for his plans to be thwarted.

He contacted his old student, Newt Scamander, who had become a Magizoologist and had been travelling throughout the world, locating and rescuing magical creatures from wizard hunters who believed that these creatures represented a threat to their secrecy. Dumbledore told Newt of a Thunderbird that was being held captive in Egypt, knowing he would not stand for such an injustice and would not only rescue him but also return him to his native Arizona. To accomplish this, Newt would have to pass through the Muggle customs in New York.

Newt's visit to New York resulted not only in the discovery of Credence Barebone, the most powerful Obscurus ever recorded (the only one to survive into adulthood), but also in the capture of Grindelwald, who had been disguised as MACUSA Auror Percival Graves to find the Obscurus. For his role in the incident in New York, Newt was banned from travelling internationally by the Ministry of Magic, a ban they offered to lift if he confessed that Dumbledore had been the one to send him to New York. Although he realised that Dumbledore had covertly sent him to New York, Newt remained loyal to his old teacher and refused to confess his role in the affair.

In the same year Dumbledore became a regular columnist for Transfiguration Today, with the Daily Prophet quoting him as saying he was "enraptured!" to be writing for the magazine.[11]

Moving against Gellert Grindelwald

In 1927, when Grindelwald escaped, Dumbledore, feeling that he would not be able to fight him, met with Newt in London to ask him for help. He send his former student to Paris to rescue Credence Barebone, who survived battle in New York, from Grindelwald. He also gave him the address for a 'safe house' where he can go if he needs to hide for a time.

The rumours of Newt's potential travel to France reached the British Ministry of Magic, and a delegation of Aurors, including Newt's brother Theseus Scamander and Torquil Travers, was sent to Hogwarts Castle to question Dumbledore. Travers demanded from Dumbledore to fight Grindelwald for him, but Albus refused it, which angered Travers to this point, that he cuffed Dumbledore into Admonitors, and forbade him from ever teaching Defence Against the Dark Arts again.[16]

Moments later, in one of classrooms, he met Leta Lestrange, who also was in delegation, but she separated herself from the group of Aurors. He discussed with her about rumours about her brother Corvus Lestrange, who supposed to be Credence Barebone, and a Dumbledore's dead sister, Ariana.

After the Battle of the Lestrange family Mausoleum, Dumbledore met with Newt at Hogwarts Viaduct. Magizoologist gave him, stolen by Newt's niffler, the pendant of his blood pact with Grindelwald so he can destroy it, henceforth allowing him to finally participate in the war and defeat Grindelwald.

Meeting Tom Riddle

Dumbledore also served in recruiting students for Hogwarts. Most prominent among the students he recruited was Tom Riddle, whom he found in Wool's Orphanage in 1938.[18] Alone of all the professors at Hogwarts, Dumbledore was not charmed by the natural charisma and cunning of Tom Riddle. In their first encounter, Dumbledore became immediately suspicious of his "obvious instincts for cruelty, secrecy and domination"[18] and resolved to keep a close eye on him during his studies at the school. As Dumbledore was not so easily taken in by his charming façade, Riddle came to despise and fear him.[18]

Professor of Transfiguration

At an unknown point in or before 1943, Dumbledore became the Professor of Transfiguration.

In 1943, several Muggle-born students were mysteriously petrified by a beast rumoured to have been released by the Heir of Slytherin from the mythical Chamber of Secrets. Indeed, the final victim of the beast, Myrtle Warren, was actually killed; this act seemed likely to ensure the permanent closure of the school, forcing Riddle to go back to the orphanage. While Dumbledore rightly suspected Riddle was behind the attacks, the aspiring Dark Wizard expertly framed Gryffindor student Rubeus Hagrid as the perpetrator.

Riddle was able to pass off Hagrid's tamed Acromantula, Aragog, as the beast attacking students, resulting in Hagrid's expulsion and ensuring that Hogwarts remained open. Dumbledore was never able to uncover hard evidence implicating Riddle, however, he nonetheless kept a very close watch over Riddle, preventing him from opening the Chamber of Secrets again during his remaining years at Hogwarts. He was also able to convince the Headmaster to allow Hagrid to remain at the school as the groundskeeper-in-training.

However, as Dumbledore was educating young wizards and witches, Gellert Grindelwald was still at large in Europe, building up his army, and had already found one of the Deathly Hallows, the Elder Wand, which he used to continue terrorising the continent. Dumbledore feared facing Grindelwald, not because he thought he couldn't defeat him, not only because his past Blood pact with Grindelwald made him unable to directly face the dark wizard, and not only because of his lingering love for the man Grindelwald had been, but mainly because Dumbledore was afraid that Grindelwald could reveal to him who had truly killed Ariana. However, by 1945, the blood pact was somehow abolished, making Dumbledore unable to turn a blind eye to Grindelwald's deeds any longer, and so he finally tracked his old friend down. Upon finding Grindelwald, Dumbledore duelled one of the most powerful dark wizards of all time in what later became known as the most legendary duel ever fought between wizards. Dumbledore ultimately defeated Grindelwald, despite the latter's mastery of the Elder Wand, mainly due to being a "shade more skilful" than Grindelwald. Dumbledore then brought Grindelwald before the authorities of the magical world, and Grindelwald was imprisoned in Nurmengard, while Dumbledore kept the Elder Wand for himself.[15] Celebrated worldwide as the hero who finally defeated what was then regarded to have been the most powerful Dark Wizard of all time, put to rest the Global Wizarding War, and ended Grindelwald's For the Greater Good revolution of wizarding dominance over Muggles, Dumbledore was awarded the Order of Merlin (First Class), by Leonard Spencer-Moon's administration.[19]

Aftermath (1946-1969)

Turning down power

Resuming his career following this legendary event, Dumbledore taught several other students over the years, some of which would become staunchly loyal to him and what he stood for, whereas others would become enemies, allying themselves with Lord Voldemort in the latter's rise to power. Among these students were future Order of the Phoenix members Arthur Weasley and Molly Prewett, Death Eaters-to-be Bellatrix Black and Lucius Malfoy, as well as neutral parties, such as the one-day world-famous Curse-Breaker Patricia Rakepick. During this time, he was offered the position of Minister for Magic several times, but he turned down the offer every time, remembering how his quest for power had been his weakness in the past.

Becoming Headmaster of Hogwarts

Around the same time, Dumbledore was appointed Headmaster by the Hogwarts Board of Governors sometime between March 1965 and March 1971[12], succeeding Armando Dippet in this position. True though it might be that being entrusted the stewardship of the school in and by itself was an honour and a privilege, it also meant that he was henceforth expected to shoulder the responsibility of making all the difficult decisions that came with leadership as well. On such occasions, Dumbledore would step out in the Clock Tower Courtyard, where he found the quiet night and crisp air helpful in regard to putting one's troubles in perspective.[20] He also developed a habit of pacing around his new office a lot, especially in dire times of trouble.[21][22]

Lord Voldemort's request

Shortly after Dumbledore became Headmaster, Tom Riddle, now known exclusively as Lord Voldemort, approached Dumbledore with the same request he had proposed to Armando Dippet before him: to be allowed to return to Hogwarts as a teacher of Defence Against the Dark Arts. Dumbledore, who knew of Voldemort's illicit activities since he left Hogwarts, denied his application. This led to Voldemort angrily cursing the position of Defence Against the Dark Arts, preventing anyone from holding the position for more than a single school year.

Defence of Remus Lupin

When Remus Lupin became of age to attend Hogwarts, he was afraid that he would be unable to due to being infected by the werewolf Fenrir Greyback. However, Dumbledore, being fair, believed that as long as special precautions were taken, there was no reason why Remus should be deprived of his education. As such, Dumbledore prepared the Shrieking Shack as a place for Remus' monthly transformation, with the Whomping Willow as the guard. This would forever earn Dumbledore Remus' gratitude, as many other headmasters would simply forbid the boy from even setting foot into the school. When Severus Snape found out Remus' secret, Dumbledore forbade him from repeating it to anyone.

As headmaster, Dumbledore would help students more directly. Albus Dumbledore Homework Help would meet every Friday in Classroom E-13.[23]

First Wizarding War (1970–1981)

Severus Snape: "Hide them all, then. Keep her — them — safe. Please." Dumbledore: "And what will you give me in return, Severus?" Severus Snape: "In — in return? Anything." — Snape pleading with Dumbledore to protect Lily Potter[src]

After Lord Voldemort started his first rise to power in 1970, Dumbledore founded the Order of the Phoenix, a secret organisation of witches and wizards willing to risk their lives to fight Voldemort and his Death Eaters. As the only wizard Voldemort was ever truly afraid of, Dumbledore was the perfect leader of the organisation and was a significant contributor to the fight against Voldemort.

Later on in the war, Dumbledore was approached by another person who also wanted a job at Hogwarts: Sybill Trelawney, who applied to become the new professor of Divination, lessons that Dumbledore disliked and barely considered a part of necessary education for young wizards and witches. Dumbledore gave her a chance because she was the great-great-granddaughter of the celebrated Seer Cassandra Trelawney. To his disappointment, when he was interviewing Sybill at the Hog's Head, he came to the conclusion that she was not a real Seer. However, as Dumbledore was about to leave, Trelawney fell into a real trance and made a prophecy about the birth of the one that would have the power to vanquish the Dark Lord, who would be born to those "who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies".[24] This astonished Dumbledore, but as it turned out, the Death Eater Severus Snape had overheard most of the prophecy but had been caught in the act of spying and ejected from the tavern by Aberforth Dumbledore.[18] Dumbledore hired Trelawney in order to protect her from the Death Eaters.

True though it might be that his stewardship of Hogwarts effectively ensured that the Dark Lord and his followers never strayed too close to the school, Dumbledore was ultimately unsuccessful in preventing the security of the castle from being breached when one of the students embarked on a foolhardy quest to find the Cursed Vaults at the school, presumably in order to get his hands on the gold, prophecies and various other powerful magical artefacts myth would have it had been sealed within them. Not alone in this endeavour, a mysterious individual going by the initial of R also attempted to reach the vaults, whose involvement became known to the faculty and even some of the students at the school. As a result, several curses were unleashed upon the school.

Among other things, cursed ice began to appear and spread throughout the castle, turning whole rooms into crystalline prisons, threatening to encase the whole school and severely injuring several students. A hoard of Boggarts was let loose on Hogwarts, terrorising the students with nightmarish transformation of their deepest, darkest fears all over the school. A Sleepwalking curse was also triggered, placing students in a deep sleep: Whereas some began to mindlessly sleepwalk into the Forbidden Forest, where those whom the staff failed to stop were, due to their condition and inability to defend themselves, ravaged and devoured by the dangerous creatures within, others, Madam Pomfrey observed, simply never woke up again. By the time the threat had been contained, the damage had already been done and Dumbledore had no other choice but to expel Jacob for his involvement, and the young man had his removal from the school covered prominently in the Daily Prophet. Quite possibly hoping to dissuade other students from pursuing the vaults, thus potentially endangering themselves as well as the school, Dumbledore and the staff denied any knowledge that the vaults actually existed, doing the same while trying to quiet down the attention around the vaults roused by the claims of former student Patricia Rakepick.

Still, the wizarding war raged beyond the walls of Hogwarts: Shortly before the Potters' deaths, Dumbledore discovered that James's Cloak of Invisibility was, in fact, one of the Deathly Hallows. Although Dumbledore had long given up his desire to unite the Hallows and become Master of Death, he could not resist the thought of studying the Cloak. To that end, he borrowed it from James while James and Lilly were in hiding. Later, Severus Snape approached Dumbledore, having already told Voldemort about the Prophecy. Snape was shocked by the fact that Voldemort had concluded that the prophecy was about Harry Potter, the son of James Potter, and Snape's own loved childhood friend, Lily Evans. Dumbledore agreed, on the basis that Snape worked as a double agent for the Order.

Dumbledore made arrangements to ensure the safety of the three; he advised them to stay hidden in their house in Godric's Hollow, which was protected by a Fidelius Charm. However, their Secret-Keeper (believed by Dumbledore and everyone else to be Sirius Black, but was in truth Peter Pettigrew) betrayed them, resulting in James and Lily's deaths at Voldemort's hands. However, as Voldemort attempted to murder Harry the curse backfired due to Lily Potter's love for her son and destroyed his body. This unfortunate occurrence provided Dumbledore with ownership of two of the Hallows, who had already confirmed James' old cloak was indeed one of legend.

Presumably well aware that Lord Voldemort wasn't truly vanquished, Dumbledore made sure that Harry would be kept safe with his family, the Dursleys, despite them not being selected as his guardians in the event of James and Lily's death, as his spells ensured that Voldemort could not harm Harry there as long as he could have a home with those with whom he was related by blood. He convinced Snape to help him protect Harry, although years later Dumbledore secretly planned to allow Voldemort to kill Harry in the end, which would destroy the piece of Voldemort's soul inside Harry. However, he also hoped to influence Harry into such a person who would willingly sacrifice his life for the greater good, allowing him the chance to choose between life and death in the end, guessing correctly the significance of such an act. Shortly thereafter, Dumbledore gave Snape employment at Hogwarts as the Potions master, and later defended Snape against the Ministry of Magic, who were rounding up and arresting remaining Death Eaters. Dumbledore attended many Death Eater trials, including that of the Lestranges and Barty Crouch, Jr. He was also a witness to Igor Karkaroff's testimony which secured his release from Azkaban in return for the names of fellow Death Eaters. With Harry safe and certain members of the Order of the Phoenix and allies of their cause keeping watch over him and reporting back to Dumbledore, continued his work as the brilliant if eccentric Headmaster of his beloved school.

Between the wars (1981–1995)

At the Start-of-Term Feast during the 1984–1985 school year, Professor Dumbledore were seated in the magnificent golden chair at the centre of the High Table in the Great Hall, looking on with interest as Professor McGonagall presiding over the annual sorting ceremony and the most recent addition to the student body as they were placed in their allotted houses: Among the newcomers, he observed, was the second oldest son of Arthur and Molly Weasley and the daughter of Andromeda Black and her Muggle-borns husband Edward Tonks. The former, to no one's surprise, was placed in Gryffindor House, whereas the latter defied her mother's long history of notoriously pro-pure-blood fanatics by being sorted into Hufflepuff. The new patch also included Tulip Karasu, the young daughter of two members of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement at Ministry of Magic, whom Dumbledore presumably would be familiar with given his ties to said institution and affiliation with the Wizengamot. Merula Snyde and Barnaby Lee, both of whom had parents who had earned notoriety as Death Eaters during the wizarding war and been sent to Azkaban for their many atrocities, found their way to Slytherin House. Rowan Khanna, the next in line of a family that owned a rather well-known tree farm that supplied high-quality wood for the manufacture of wands and broomsticks.

When a young student, was found entering the room where the Cursed Ice was located, they were sent to Dumbledore for their punishment. However, rather than punishing Jacob's sibling, Dumbledore instead at first talked with them about their brother and the beauty and uses of stars before giving them 100 house points due to their display of courage, compassion and resourcefulness. He also told them that they will have a chat on the Cursed Vaults.

Dumbledore was later said to have left Hogwarts to search for information on the Cursed Vaults, as Snape and McGonagall said and they could not ask him to help free Ben Cooper as Dumbledore is away from the school. After Jacob's sibling broke the curse on the Vault of Ice, he was sent to meet Dumbledore. Instead of punishing them, Dumbledore once again rewarded their efforts to save the school with 50 house points and also revealed that the Cursed Vaults origins were rumoured to be either created by one of the Founders or a paranoid Headmaster. However, Dumbledore still asked them to leave the search of the Cursed Vaults and Jacob to him and said they would talk on something important next year.

Indeed, next year, Dumbledore included a grim warning on those trying to find the Cursed Vaults and even briefly rose his voice. He left school to search for Patricia Rakepick in hopes that her time researching the Vaults will help the faculty deal with them. This made Hogwarts particularly vulnerable to the Boggarts unleashed by the Vault of Fear, although it was once again thwarted by Jacob's sibling. Going to Hogsmade to confront them, easily recognising that they were the ones responsible for it, Dumbledore scolded Hagrid for revealing the Boggarts decreasement and summoned Jacob's sibling to his office. After a discussion regarding Boggarts and the one he had been looking for while out of school, Dumbledore berated Jacob's sibling for disobeying him and warned them he would not be able to save them from serious punishment if they broke the rule again but still gave them 100 house points.

In the next year, Dumbledore welcomed Patricia Rakepick and confessed the faculty's lack of knowledge regarding the Cursed Vaults. The end of the year saw Dumbledore finally punishing Jacob's sibling by giving them detention under Pitts.

1991–1992

Dumbledore: "Harry, do you know why Professor Quirrell couldn't bear to have you touch him? It was because of your mother. She sacrificed herself for you. And that kind of act leaves a mark... This kind of mark cannot be seen. It lives in your very skin." : " Harry Potter: "What is it?" Dumbledore: "Love, Harry. Love." — Professor Dumbledore regarding the power of love[src]

Ten years later, Harry Potter started attending Hogwarts, not as happy as Dumbledore might have hoped, considering the neglect he had faced at the hands of his intolerant aunt and uncle, but alive and well. That year, Lord Voldemort formulated a plan to regain human form. Dumbledore and his friend Nicolas Flamel (the only known maker of the Philosopher's Stone) began to suspect that the disembodied Dark Lord was plotting to steal the invaluable object, which would be capable of restoring him to full power. Dumbledore had the stone moved to a medium security vault at Gringotts Wizarding Bank, but later had it moved to Hogwarts itself; coincidentally, on the same day that an attempted break-in was made upon the vault. It was retrieved by Hagrid, who was also taking Harry to buy his school supplies.

Dumbledore and several teachers (McGonagall, Flitwick, Sprout, Snape and, dubiously, Quirrell) at Hogwarts planted magical security methods to protect the stone. Dumbledore was behind the final, and most powerful protection placed upon the stone. He enchanted the Mirror of Erised to contain the Philosopher's Stone, only to be removed by someone who did not intend to use or possess it, but only to keep it from the hands of evil. Dumbledore suspected that the Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor Quirinus Quirrell was behind the plot to steal the Philosopher's Stone, while working for the weakened Lord Voldemort, and as such he asked Snape to keep an eye on him. He also anonymously returned James's Cloak of Invisibility to Harry as a Christmas present.[25]

Over a series of nights, Harry Potter proceeded to visit the Mirror of Erised as often as he could to see his parents' faces. Dumbledore found Harry visiting the mirror one night, and after explaining to Harry what the mirror was all about, told him that the mirror was to be moved and requested that Harry not go looking for it. Before heading back to bed, Harry asked Dumbledore what he saw when he looked into the mirror. Dumbledore claimed to see himself holding a pair of thick, woollen socks, telling Harry that "one can never have enough socks."[25] However, Dumbledore was joking — the matter being a very personal one. At first, still yearning for Grindelwald’s love, Albus saw himself with his former lover in the Mirror. However, after Grindelwald’s defeat and having come to terms with his past guilt over his sister’s death, Dumbledore would see his family whole and intact, free of any pain or suffering.[15] It is unknown if Grindelwald, as a redeemed man, was included in these later reflections.

In the end it was Harry who protected the Philosopher's Stone from Quirrell and Voldemort. Voldemort failed for the same reasons he had failed to murder Harry previously: due to Lily Potter's love for Harry. When Voldemort, who had possessed the body of Quirrell, ordered his servant to attack the young boy, the sacrificial protection instilled within him at the point of his mother's death killed him and forced the Dark Lord's spirit to flee. When Harry recovered from the ordeal in the hospital wing, he questioned Dumbledore about why Voldemort had tried to murder him as a baby. Dumbledore did not believe that Harry was ready to know the truth about the Prophecy Sybill Trelawney had made, and told him he would know when he was older (although this would actually later turn out to be a mistake).

At the end-of-year feast, Dumbledore awarded an extra 170 house points to Gryffindor students, Harry Potter (60), Ron Weasley (50), Hermione Granger (50) and Neville Longbottom (10), respectively for bravery and logical skills, prompting Gryffindor to win the House Cup, ruining Slytherin’s chance of the cup for the seventh year in a row. This may have shown an unprofessional amount of bias towards Gryffindor to announce their win in such unusual circumstances.

Sometime before the next year began, Dumbledore, having never been fooled by Gilderoy Lockhart's tall tales, figured out the truth soon when Lockhart erased the memories of two wizards that Dumbledore personally knew. He realised that Lockhart had gone too far in his desire for fame and decided to track him down and make him pay for his crimes. Having the position of the Professor of the Defence Against the Dark Arts vacant proved to be useful for Dumbledore, as he offered Lockhart the job and altough Lockhart was reluctant as his career as an author was progressing very well, successfully convinced him by slyly hinting that Harry Potter was a second-year student in Hogwarts, causing Lockhart to accept.

Having intended for Lockhart to show his inappitude and fraudlence to the students and thus expose him to the public secretly, Dumbledore's decision was shocking to take by the other staff members as they never forgot Lockhart as the obnoxious attention seeker back then despite his achievements, with McGonagall saying what the students could possibly learn under a man as vain and celebrity-hungry man as Lockhart. Dumbledore, however, skillfully talked himself out by pointing out that Lockhart was the only one who was willing to take it and also saying that there was a lot to learn from even a bad teacher: what not to do, how not to be.

1992–1993

"It is our choices Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities." —Dumbledore's advice to Harry Potter[src]

Shortly into the school year of 1992, students again fell under attack from a beast allegedly released from the Chamber of Secrets. Under the influence of Lucius Malfoy, the Hogwarts board of governors voted to remove Dumbledore from his position as Headmaster when he proved unable to uncover the culprit; Minister for Magic Cornelius Fudge also had the groundskeeper Rubeus Hagrid taken to Azkaban, acting under the theory that it had been he who opened the Chamber in 1943.[26]

It was later revealed that first year student, Ginny Weasley, had come into possession of Tom Riddle's Diary, a bewitched object capable of interacting with whoever wrote in it. The diary slowly drained the life force from Ginny, and when the memory it contained was nearly strong enough to take physical form, it had her journey into the heart of the Chamber. However, Harry Potter was able to find the Chamber himself, and there, defeated the beast that dwelt within; Salazar Slytherin's basilisk. He also destroyed the diary with one of the basilisk's fangs, saving Ginny and defeating the nearly fully formed memory of Riddle. Harry was only able to achieve these feats by displaying an extreme amount of loyalty to Dumbledore; for only someone truly loyal to the Headmaster would be capable of summoning his pet phoenix Fawkes, who provided the tools needed for Potter to defeat Riddle and the basilisk.[26]

Dumbledore mysteriously returned to his position as Headmaster after the memory of Riddle was revealed as being behind the attacks. He commended both Harry and Ron for solving the mystery with the Special Award for Services to the School and two hundred points each for them. This secured Gryffindor for the House Cup for the second year running and again ruining Slytherin's chances, fuelling the hatred and rivalry between the two houses. He also secured Hagrid's release from Azkaban by having Ron deliver his release papers via owl and cancelled exams as a special treat,.[26] much to the delight of the students and the dismay of Hermione Granger. Lucius Malfoy was also sacked from his position as a governor of Hogwarts, much to Draco's dismay and Harry's glee.

However, Dumbledore was privately concerned by the phenomena that Harry described; a mere memory capable of taking physical form was unheard of. Dumbledore then began to suspect that Riddle's diary was in fact a Horcrux, and furthermore, considering the lack of care the Dark Lord had taken in protecting the diary, that he had created more than one.[26]

During his final talk with Harry in his office, Dumbledore came close to telling Harry about his connection with Voldemort but refrained from doing so as he felt that twelve years old was still too young to learn the truth and he wanted Harry to enjoy this night of triumph.[24]

1993–1994

"Now, pay attention. Sirius is locked in Professor Flitwick's office on the seventh floor. Thirteenth window from the right of the West Tower. If all goes well, you will be able to save more than one innocent life tonight. But remember this, both of you: you must not be seen. Miss Granger, you know the law — you know what is at stake... I am going to lock you in. It is — five minutes to midnight. Miss Granger, three turns should do it. Good luck." —Dumbledore giving instructions to save Sirius[src]

The year after, the Ministry of Magic took it upon itself to increase security around Hogwarts. Sirius Black, who had been sentenced to life in Azkaban for murdering Peter Pettigrew and twelve Muggles with a single curse, had escaped from the wizarding prison. The Ministry, afraid that he was going after Harry Potter, placed a large number of Dementors at Hogwarts to try to recapture him. Dumbledore reluctantly tolerated the Dementors on school grounds, but refused to allow them within the school itself.[27]

However, the Dementors violated Dumbledore's decree when they entered Quidditch match between Gryffindor and Hufflepuff, causing Harry to fall unconscious and fall from the sky. Dumbledore was able to prevent Harry from hitting the ground and repelled the Dementors with a Patronus.[27]

As the school year drew to its close, it became clear to Harry and his friends that Sirius Black had been framed for his crimes, commited by Pettigrew, who has been disguised as Scabbers for twelve years. But Sirius was captured, locked in the highest tower, and sentenced to the Dementor's Kiss. Dumbledore instantly believed Harry and his friends about Sirius's innocence, but the Minister did not. Dumbledore was incapable of over-ruling the Ministry's decision, despite him being Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot, this only granted him the power to order a trial.

Instead, Dumbledore told Hermione Granger to use her Time-Turner to save Sirius and in the process Buckbeak as well. Harry and Hermione's rescue mission was a success, Sirius escaped on Buckbeak. The Dementors were removed from the grounds for their attack on Harry and the attempted removal of his soul.[27] During the rescue Harry also conjured a powerful corporal Patronus , that Dumbledore later commented on.

Dumbledore saw Remus Lupin (the new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher) off after Snape leaked his identity as a werewolf to the school. Harry was also seeing Lupin off too and Dumbledore could tell that Harry was troubled. Harry explained how guilty he felt allowing Pettigrew, the real culprit who had framed Sirius, to escape, which coincides with a prediction Trelawney made. Therefore, he feared that he may have indirectly given Voldemort a servant to return him to power. Dumbledore assured Harry that he did a noble thing in saving Pettigrew's life, forging a deep, magical bond between them, and he promised Harry that one day he'd be glad he spared Pettigrew.

At the end of the year Dumbledore began to feel uneasy about concealing the truth of Sybill Trelawney's prophecy because even though Harry was still young, he had proven himself to be exceptional, and he would have to be told soon.[24]

1994–1995

It is my belief — and never have I so hoped that I am mistaken — that we are all facing dark and difficult times. Some of you in this Hall have already suffered directly at the hands of Lord Voldemort... A week ago, a student was taken from our midst. Remember Cedric. Remember, if the time should come when you have to make a choice between what is right and what is easy, remember what happened to a boy who was good, and kind, and brave, because he strayed across the path of Lord Voldemort. Remember Cedric Diggory." —Dumbledore giving Cedric Diggory's eulogy[src]

Before the beginning of the new school year, the first Death Eater activity in years broke out at the Quidditch World Cup, causing Dumbledore to suspect that the second rise of Lord Voldemort was near. Later, Hogwarts played host to the first Triwizard Tournament since 1792. It was decided that only students of age would be allowed to enter their names to the Goblet of Fire, because of the dangers the tournament represented and its high death toll. Dumbledore personally drew an Age Line around the magical artefact to ensure that this rule would be impossible to break. During this year, Dumbledore employed his old friend, Alastor Moody, an ex-Auror, as the new Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor. Moody took this position only as a personal favour to Dumbledore.

However, unknown to anybody, a day before Moody was set to arrive at Hogwarts, he was overpowered by Death Eaters Barty Crouch, Jr and Peter Pettigrew. On the orders of Voldemort, Crouch brewed Polyjuice Potion, which he used to impersonate Moody and take his place at Hogwarts. Crouch, in the guise of Moody, successfully fooled the Goblet of Fire and ensured that Harry Potter was chosen as the fourth champion of the Triwizard Tournament. Crouch secretly aided Potter throughout the tournament, so that in the final task it would be him to touch the Triwizard trophy first; which he had bewitched to become a Portkey.

When Harry and fellow champion Cedric Diggory touched the trophy at the same time they were transported to the graveyard of Little Hangleton. There, Diggory was killed on the orders of Lord Voldemort, and Harry's blood was taken as the final ingredient in a potion the Dark Lord used to return to full power. Using the Portkey, Harry was able to escape Voldemort and return to Hogwarts.

It was when Crouch, still in the guise of Moody, took Harry from out of Dumbledore's presence (something the real Moody never would have done in such a traumatic situation) that the headmaster realised that it was not Moody who had been at the school the whole year. Dumbledore, Snape and Minerva McGonagall quickly overpowered the Death Eater. It was in that moment that Harry realised exactly why Dumbledore was the only wizard that Voldemort ever feared. Barty then truthfully revealed the entirety of Voldemort's plot and his participation in it under the influence of Veritaserum.

Despite all evidence to the contrary, Minister for Magic Cornelius Fudge refused to believe that Lord Voldemort had returned to power and had Crouch subjected to the Dementor's Kiss before he could be forced to stand trial before the Wizengamot. Despite this, Dumbledore knew that Voldemort's return was real and, in response to Fudge's failure to act, reformed the Order of the Phoenix, an alliance brought together during the First Wizarding War to fight against Voldemort and his followers. Dumbledore chose to reform the Order as he feared that the start of the Second Wizarding War was lingering and inevitable to happen.

Again, Dumbledore was reminded of Harry's exceptional skill and knew that he would surely have to be told of the prophecy soon, but again he chose not to, out of a desire to spare Harry an additional burden.[24]

Second Wizarding War (1995–1997)

1995–1996

Main article: Campaign to discredit Albus Dumbledore and Harry Potter

They're trying to discredit him. Didn't you see the Daily Prophet last week? They reported that he'd been voted out of the International Confederation of Wizards because he's getting old and losing his grip, but it's not true; he was voted out by Ministry wizards after he made a speech announcing Voldemort's return. They've demoted him from Chief Warlock on the Wizengamot, and they're thinking of removing his Order of Merlin, First Class too." Daily Prophet —Dumbledore's discredit at the hands of the Ministry[src]

The Ministry immediately began to deny Dumbledore and Harry's claims that the Dark Lord had returned, starting a smear campaign designed to slander and vilify them; in particular, Dumbledore was removed from his positions as Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot and Supreme Mugwump of the International Confederation of Wizards as punishment for his refusal to stay in line with Ministry propaganda. However, Dumbledore professed not to care, so long as the Ministry did not eliminate him from Chocolate Frog Cards. He confessed that he believed that Fudge's persecution of him was of his own free will and not due to the Imperius Curse, though this was small comfort.

Before the beginning of the school year, Dumbledore was made Secret-Keeper of the headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix, and ensured that Harry Potter's friends did not divulge any information about the Order to him, as he did not want the Order to be compromised in anyway.

Dumbledore attended Harry's trial at the ministry, arriving three hours early at five a.m by a handy mistake. He presented Arabella Figg for Harry's defence and offered to call Dobby to testify that Harry had not used a Hover Charm in 1992, and reminded Fudge that he himself had pardoned Harry's accidental inflation of Marjorie Dursley. He also commented the unusual behaviour of the court holding a full criminal hearing for a simple case of underage magic. After the Wizengamot had ruled in Harry's favour Dumbledore left without having so much as spoken to Harry or looked at him.

When the time came to choose the Prefects from the fifth year Dumbledore considered Harry, but out of sympathy for the ordeals he had faced and the ones still to come, he chose to spare him the added responsibility and passed it on to Ron Weasley. This decision confused some people who had assumed Harry would naturally receive it, and would have shown solidarity with the young wizard.

Dumbledore had come to fear the connection that existed between the Dark Lord and Harry, and purposely avoided him throughout the school year. When signs of this connection became increasingly obvious, Dumbledore had Severus Snape attempt to teach Harry the art of Occlumency, rather than himself, as he feared that Voldemort may have been able to peer into his mind through his connection to Harry. The Ministry also began to interfere heavily at Hogwarts. They appointed Fudge's Senior Undersecretary (Dolores Umbridge) to the post of Defence Against the Dark Arts professor

Umbridge started her reign at Hogwarts by rudely interrupting Dumbldore's Start-of-Term Feast. Things got progressively worse from there. Umbridge and Fudge slowly passed rules and regulations that syphoned the powers of the Headmaster, while increasing those of Umbridge herself. Until finally Umbridge was granted the new position of High Inquisitor of Hogwarts. In response to Umbridge and the Ministry's refusal to teach practical defensive magic, Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, and Ron Weasley created a group of students that met secretly to learn defence against the Dark Arts. With Harry acting as the leader and teacher, this organisation was known as Dumbledore's Army, in order to frighten the Ministry.

When this illegal society was uncovered, Dumbledore willingly took the blame; pointing out that it was named "Dumbledore's Army, not Potter's Army." While Fudge ordered his arrest, Dumbledore stated that he would not come quietly and easily overpowered his would-be captors with a single spell, and went underground; working to aid the Order full-time. In Dumbledore's stead, Umbridge was named Headmistress of Hogwarts and took full advantage of her position and authority over students and staff alike.

Unfortunately, as Dumbledore had feared, Voldemort finally acted to use the connection between himself and Harry Potter. Using Legilimency, Voldemort created a vision that indicated that his beloved godfather, Sirius Black, had been captured by Voldemort personally and was being tortured by him within the Department of Mysteries. Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny Weasley, Luna Lovegood, and Neville Longbottom all rushed to the Ministry in the hopes of saving Sirius. However, the six students were ambushed by a group of Death Eaters, who hoped to force Harry to recover the record of the prophecy made about him and the Dark Lord. Voldemort perceived that it was too dangerous to enter the heart of the Ministry of Magic himself. Fortunately, Severus Snape was able to alert the Order to this and several members arrived in the Ministry where they battled with the Death Eaters.

Near the end of the battle, Dumbledore himself arrived and personally captured all the Death Eaters; except Bellatrix Lestrange, who murdered Sirius and evaded a spell cast at her by the revered wizard. After binding the Death Eaters with an Anti-Disapparition Jinx, Dumbledore went to the atrium of the Ministry where Lestrange had been joined by Voldemort himself, who attempted to kill Harry.

Voldemort's curse, however, was prevented; Dumbledore quickly animated a golden statue to cover Harry and shield him from the curse. He animated the other statues from the Fountain of Magical Brethren to immobilise Bellatrix and alert Ministry officials. Subsequently a fantastic duel erupted between Dumbledore and Voldemort; arguably the two most powerful wizards of their time. Despite Voldemort's overwhelming powers and skill, Dumbledore calmly blocked all of Voldemort's spells while pressuring the Dark Lord with his own assault despite not fighting to kill before he eventually overpowered Voldemort and imprisoned him in a cocoon of water, forcing him to flee.

As Voldemort fled, he briefly possessed Harry, hoping that Dumbledore would sacrifice the teenager in an attempt to kill him. However, as Harry dwelt on his grief for his late godfather, the power of his love inflicted pain on Voldemort, prompting the Dark Lord to remove himself and block his connection. Voldemort fled with Bellatrix, but not before he was seen by Ministry officials, including Minister for Magic Cornelius Fudge. With Dumbledore's credibility realised once more, Fudge's was permanently lost. Dumbledore demanded that Fudge remove Umbridge, pardon Hagrid so he could return to Hogwarts and that himself would be reinstated as headmaster. Once he was back at Hogwarts, Dumbledore consulted with a distraught Harry, explaining the meaning of his connection with Voldemort and asserting the meaning of the prophecy. Before the end of the year, he also had the Inquisitorial Squad disbanded and their damage reverted.

1996–1997

"I have been hoping for this piece of evidence for a very long time. It confirms the theory on which I have been working, it tells me that I am right, and also how very far there is still to go." —Dumbledore having witnessed the memory of Horace Slughorn[src]

During the summer of 1996, Dumbledore tracked one of Voldemort's Horcruxes to the house of the Gaunts. Dumbledore journeyed to Little Hangleton, where he found the remains of the shack hidden behind weeds and bush. Voldemort had placed many powerful enchantments around the former home of his ancestors; however, Dumbledore proved skilful enough to pass through them unharmed. When he found the Horcrux, a ring formerly owned by Marvolo Gaunt, he saw that the stone in the ring was one of the Deathly Hallows, the Resurrection Stone.

This stone, according to legend, had the power to revive the dead (but in reality, a spiritual form of the person was brought back instead, much like an echo). His desire to see his family overrode his common sense for just a moment and he placed the ring on his finger, forgetting that the ring had been cursed by Voldemort. The curse quickly spread, and were it not for his own prodigious talents, he would have died within moments. Despite this injury, Dumbledore proceeded to destroy the ring, and with it, a piece of Voldemort's soul, bringing Voldemort that much closer to defeat.

Dumbledore quickly returned to Hogwarts, where the skills of Severus Snape managed to trap the curse in Dumbledore's hand. However, both Snape and Dumbledore knew that it would eventually spread to the rest of his body. Knowing that the curse would kill him, Dumbledore asked Snape, that when the time came, that he be the one to end Dumbledore's life, rather than Draco Malfoy. Malfoy had been given the task of assassinating the headmaster, in order to spare Draco's soul from being torn Snape had to be the one to do it. Snape later objected to the plan, but was reminded by Dumbledore that it was the only way to spare him from great suffering. During this time, Dumbledore also shared his insights on Voldemort with Harry by showing him the various memories he had collected, giving Harry a greater knowledge of Voldemort's psychology that would help him in his future conflicts.

Throughout the 1996–1997 school year, Dumbledore passed on certain pieces of information to Harry Potter that would be important for the boy in his quest to destroy the Dark Lord. Dumbledore held private lessons with Harry, revealing in them much of what he had learnt about Voldemort's past, life and Horcruxes. Dumbledore revealed to Harry that he made it his business to try and find out about Lord Voldemort's past. He did this by questioning people who had known him as a child and a teenager, and obtained Voldemort-related memories from them.

He collected memories from Bob Ogden, Morfin Gaunt, Horace Slughorn, and the house-elf Hokey. Using these memories, along with some of his own, he discovered that Voldemort had created six Horcruxes, an unheard of event, been guilty of murders that he framed others for, and also figured out what the Horcruxes could be based on Voldemort's ego and his long interest in Hogwarts: Tom Riddle's Diary, Gaunt's Ring, Hufflepuff's Cup, Slytherin's Locket, Nagini, and an object of Rowena Ravenclaw's (later revealed to be her lost diadem). They dismissed the idea of a Gryffindor artefact as unlikely as only the Sorting Hat and the Sword of Gryffindor remained as items from Gryffindor himself and Voldemort did not have access to them.

Main article: Second skirmish at the Cave

After much searching, Dumbledore eventually tracked another of Voldemort's Horcruxes to a cave that as a young orphan, he had once visited. As he had promised, Dumbledore allowed Harry Potter to accompany him to the cave and help destroy the Horcrux. Setting off from Hogwarts on an evening in early June 1997, he and Harry Apparated to just outside the cave, being unable to enter directly due to its protective enchantments. Once inside, Dumbledore located the Horcrux's second line of defence; a hidden doorway which only opened when it received an offering of blood.

They next found themselves in a vast chamber containing an underground lake, with a solitary island at its centre from which a faint green light was visible. After a failed attempt by Harry at Summoning the Horcrux, Dumbledore located a carefully concealed boat that would allow them safe passage across the lake. During the crossing, Harry learned of the Horcrux's third line of defence; the lake was filled with Inferi, which would attack anyone who touched the lake's water. Dumbledore instructed Harry on the use of fire as the weapon of choice against the Inferi, should it become necessary.

Arriving at the small island, they found a basin filled with glowing green potion. This last defence could not be removed by Vanishing or being scooped out; someone would have to drink it to get to the Horcrux that lay within. Dumbledore ordered Harry to help him drink all of the potion, no matter what effects it caused, even if Harry had to force it down Dumbledore's throat.

Dumbledore drank and he saw a vision of the duel between him, Gellert Grindelwald and Aberforth Dumbledore and Ariana's death. The drink also was weakening him and made him extremely thirsty as well and caused him great pain (the whole purpose of the potion). He couldn't bear it, but Harry succeeded at getting it down this throat, by telling him it would be over soon. On his last drink he fell unconscious. After a failed attempt by Harry to revive him with Rennervate, Dumbledore woke up after his period of unconsciousness wanting water.

Harry then attempted to summon water for Dumbledore with an Aguamenti Charm, but this proved ineffective as the water, for some reason, was scooper-resistant. In desperation, Harry filled a cup with water from the lake. After Dumbledore drank it, the Inferi climbed up from the lake and attempted to kill them. Harry panicked and attempted to fight back with a multitude of spells and curses, including Impedimenta and Sectumsempra, but none of them worked since the Inferi were too numerous and did not feel pain. Dumbledore, having regained consciousness, created a ring of fire around them that repelled the Inferi, driving them back into the lake while he and Harry escaped in the boat with the Horcrux. Harry used a small cut on his arm to reopen the hidden doorway, and once outside the cave they Disapparated back to Hogsmeade.

Main article: Battle of the Astronomy Tower

They would find no rest there, however, as the Battle of the Astronomy Tower had already begun. Harry and Dumbledore took brooms from behind Madam Rosmerta's bar and flew to the Astronomy Tower. Once at the Astronomy Tower, Dumbledore and an invisibility-cloaked Harry were confronted by Draco Malfoy. Before Harry could reveal himself, Dumbledore immobilised him with a silent Full Body-Bind Curse, making it so he could only watch the upcoming event.

Malfoy disarmed Dumbledore, and admitted that he, Draco, was behind the series of attacks on Hogwarts students, and that Voldemort had ordered him to kill Dumbledore. Dumbledore revealed that he knew of Draco's mission and of the attempts on his life with the Opal Necklace and poisoned mead, but allowed him to remain in Hogwarts for knowing Voldemort would kill him if he was exposed and expelled. Dumbledore offered Draco protection, and promised to hide Draco and his mother where Voldemort would never find them. Draco ultimately could not bring himself to kill the Headmaster, even after the arrival and encouragement of several Death Eaters, whom were smuggled into the castle by Draco.

However, Snape — who had been called by Filius Flitwick to assist the Order of the Phoenix, sometime previously — arrived into the Tower and after Dumbledore pleaded with him, in a way that did not expose Snape's true intentions, cast the Killing Curse, killing the Headmaster and blasting his body off the tower and falling to the ground below.

A while later after the battle was over, Harry found Dumbledore’s body lying dead on the ground in front of hundreds of staring people, his body broken from the fall. Harry found the locket and read a letter written by R.A.B. and realised that it was not a Horcrux, meaning the locket was a fake. Harry neither knew nor cared what this message meant and he felt that he and Dumbledore had accomplished nothing that night and that the latter had weakened himself by drinking the potion for nothing. Harry started crying over Dumbledore’s corpse as well as straightening his half-moon spectacles upon his crooked nose and Harry wiping a trickle of blood from the dead Headmaster’s mouth with his (Harry’s) own sleeve.

Sometime in early July, a funeral was held for him, attended by Hogwarts students and staff, Ministry of Magic officials (including Cornelius Fudge, Rufus Scrimgeour, Dolores Umbridge and Percy Weasley), centaurs, members of the Order of the Phoenix (except Severus Snape, due to his covert status, and Mundungus Fletcher, due to his imprisonment in Azkaban), Hogsmeade residents including Dumbledore’s brother Aberforth, Fawkes, Hagrid’s half-brother Grawp, Merpeople, Tom the landlord of the Leaky Cauldron, Madame Maxime from Beauxbatons Academy of Magic, Bass player of the Weird Sisters Donaghan Tremlett, driver of the Knight Bus Ernie Prang, Madam Malkin of the robe shop in Diagon Alley, the lady who pushed the trolley on the Hogwarts Express, as well as many other witches and wizards.

Post-mortem and legacy

"After all, to the well-organised mind, death is but the next great adventure." —Albus Dumbledore regarding the afterlife[src]

After his death, Dumbledore's reputation was smeared somewhat by Rita Skeeter, who wrote an insulting biography called The Life and Lies of Albus Dumbledore. This depicted him in several nasty ways, including suggesting that he delayed his attack on Gellert Grindelwald because he still held lingering affection for him.

In 1998, shortly prior to the start of the Battle of Hogwarts, Lord Voldemort attempted to force the whereabouts of the Elder Wand out of its previous owner, the same Gellert Grindelwald. Despite Grindelwald's refusal to disclose its location, Voldemort deduced that it would have been won by Dumbledore after he defeated Grindelwald in the 1940s. He broke into the White Tomb and stole the Wand in hopes of gaining access to its full power.

As it turned out, the night of Dumbledore's death was not the last time Harry saw him. After finding out he was one of Voldemort's Horcruxes (Voldemort having accidentally made him one the night he tried to kill him), Harry bravely walked into Voldemort's camp to be killed, just as Dumbledore had (reluctantly) planned. But Voldemort's Killing Curse once again failed to kill Harry. Instead, Harry entered a limbo state, where he spoke with Dumbledore's spirit. Dumbledore explained to Harry everything he had not told him when he was alive: the nature of the Deathly Hallows, his friendship with Gellert Grindelwald and a number of other things.

Most significantly, he revealed that Harry was not dead because, when Voldemort had used Harry's blood to restore his body, he had unintentionally linked Harry's life to his own, with the result that Voldemort's curse had 'killed' only the fragment of his soul that had remained in Harry all these years. Harry also attempted to console Dumbledore when his old teacher asked if he had been any better than Voldemort in his quest for power; Harry pointed out that Dumbledore had never killed if he could avoid it, and argued that Dumbledore's search for the Hallows, as opposed to any attempts to create Horcruxes, made him completely different from Voldemort.

After he had finished his talk, Dumbledore and Harry parted ways: Harry returned to the mortal world and Dumbledore boarded a train to leave the limbo state. He was the only Headmaster to be laid to rest on the Hogwarts grounds, after Hagrid argued that no other Headmaster had ever given as much to the school as Dumbledore had. His portrait also remained at Hogwarts. After Voldemort's death and Harry revealing that he was the true master of the Elder Wand, he said to Dumbledore's portrait that he was going to return the wand to his tomb where it would remain until he died and should he be undefeated, he would be the wand's last master which would break its power. He only used the wand for one feat: to repair his own wand which had been broken earlier.

Harry and Ginny Potter's second son was named Albus Severus Potter, after Dumbledore and Severus Snape.

After his son, Albus Potter, got injured due to using a prototype Time-Turner to save Cedric Diggory, Harry visited the portrait of Dumbledore. He gave Harry advice of trying to see his son the way he is rather than make him be something he cannot be and later departed.

Harry approached him again after hearing Albus and Scorpius Malfoy, the son of Draco Malfoy, are kidnapped by Delphini, the daughter of Lord Voldemort, where he asked Harry what he was doing and answered Harry's questions. Feeling like he was left "cleaning after the messes" Dumbledore left after he died, Harry asked him to leave. In response, Dumbledore tried to justify his actions. He stated that he wanted to fight Voldemort on his behalf but he "felt like he loved Harry too much to not realise that he should had trusted Harry more". He later gave Harry advice and left his portrait once more.

Physical appearance

"He was tall, thin, and very old, judging by the silver of his hair and beard, which were both long enough to tuck into his belt. He was wearing long robes, a purple cloak that swept the ground, and high-heeled, buckled boots. His blue eyes were light, bright, and sparkling behind half-moon spectacles and his nose was very long and crooked, as though it had been broken at least twice." —Dumbledore's physical appearance[src]

Albus Dumbledore was tall and thin, with silver hair and beard (auburn in his youth) so long that they could be tucked into his belt. He had a very long and crooked nose that looked as if it had been broken at least twice. (It appears and is implied that his brother's punch during their sister's funeral played a role in shaping his nose.) He was also said to have long and skilful fingers. His eyes were described to be a brilliant, soul-piercing shade of blue, and usually twinkled with kindness and mischief.

When he became genuinely angry, however, Dumbledore would transform from a benign-looking, bright-eyed old man into a wizard even more terrifying than Lord Voldemort himself, with a face that was a classic portrait of cold fury and an aura of power that made him seem as if he was giving off burning heat. Indeed, Harry had — after witnessing a rare moment of Dumbledore's furious rage — confessed to fully understanding why people always said that Dumbledore was the only wizard Voldemort had ever feared.

Dumbledore wore half-moon spectacles and a colourful array of robes, ranging from purple to crimson-red. He once claimed to have a scar above his left knee in the precise shape of a map of the London Underground, but whether or not he actually did is unknown. His demeanour was often — if not always — serene and ethereal, and he usually spoke in a calm, pleasant voice even when Harry thought that he was actually furious.

During the last year of his life, Dumbledore's right hand was scarred when he donned the cursed Marvolo Gaunt's Ring. Had Severus Snape not intervened with a counter-curse, Dumbledore would have died within minutes. Regardless, the curse left his hand blackened and dead-looking and no amount of healing could repair the appearance. According to Snape, the curse would eventually spread itself from the contained hand and Dumbledore was doomed to die in no more than one year's time. Whether this means the blackening dead-look appearance would spread throughout the entire body is unknown.

Death, however, served to restore him to full health and strength: his spirit was described as walking sprightly and upright, with hands that were both whole and white and undamaged, and looking exactly how Harry remembered him to be.

Personality and traits

Albus Dumbledore: "Welcome! Welcome to a new year at Hogwarts! Before we begin our banquet, I would like to say a few words. And here they are: Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak! Thank you!" Harry Potter: "Is he — a bit mad?" Percy Weasley: "Mad? He's a genius! Best wizard in the world! But he is a bit mad, yes." — Harry Potter and Percy Weasley about Albus Dumbledore[src]

Considered by many to be the most powerful wizard of all time, Dumbledore was benevolent and wise, a great wizard in the vein of Merlin. He had an almost unearthly calm and relaxed demeanor and almost constantly gave off an aura of serenity and composure, rarely displaying intense emotions of anger or fear. He was known for typically speaking in a calm, collected voice, and being firm, but reasonable and kind. He was always courteous, even to people who he found rude or in the case of Fenrir Greyback, disgusting. However, despite his benign nature, it is said that Dumbledore was the only wizard Lord Voldemort ever truly feared.

Dumbledore was notably eccentric. He was quite fond of knitting patterns and frequently wore flamboyant clothing (at one point, he is seen wearing a flowered bonnet that he received from a Christmas cracker). In particular, he had a somewhat odd taste in sweets: he enjoyed Muggle sweets relatively unknown in the wizarding world (particularly sherbet lemons) and the password to his office, supposedly that of his current favourite sweet, was often peculiar choices such as Acid Pops and Cockroach Clusters. In addition, he had a liking for chamber music as well as ten-pin bowling. He often used humour to make people feel comfortable in his presence. Dumbledore has been known to be quite philosophical; often, very few people have the understanding (or patience) to comprehend his philosophies.

As a supremely talented wizard, Dumbledore showed numerous examples of extraordinary abilities. His capabilities as a wizard were combined with his extraordinary intellect and extremely cunning and subtle mind that allowed him to comprehend human nature and turn the better aspects of humanity (trust, love and friendship) to Voldemort's disadvantage in particular. Due to this, Dumbledore wielded extraordinary powers of deduction that allowed him to be completely unfooled by any charades who could fool even the entire wizarding world and recognise instantly any deception that may have initially fooled him at the slightest of slip ups, as shown repeatedly when he quickly figured out Quirell was distracting him with a letter he faked was from the Minister of Magic, was never fooled by Lockhart's books due to having knew what he truly was and quickly realised the truth, and deduced that Moody was actually Crouch Jr the moment he asked Harry to be brought to his office. During his Hogwarts career, especially as headmaster Dumbledore always maintained his composure, even in situations that would terrify others. Being attacked by Ministry officials, the opening/re-opening of the Chamber of Secrets, having Dementors at the school, being surrounded by a plethora of Inferi and soon thereafter, staring death in the face (although they may have made him uneasy for the safety of others) did not frighten him. This was shown best at his duel with Voldemort, when he engaged in small talk with him in a calm, almost sardonically humorous way, despite Voldemort's tremondous duelling prowess and his attempts to murder him. Dumbledore was verbally and utterly unafraid of death and was obviously never scared of Voldemort himself, but rather what he may/could do to those he cared for and he was also not afraid of being exposed to great torment. An example of this was in The Cave, when knowing that the Potion would cause him severe pain and distress without knowing exactly what would happen to him, Dumbledore did not hesitate to drink it. Despite this, Dumbledore was capable of fear and feared, above all else, that he had actually cast the spell that ended his sister Ariana's life. However, he was capable of facing his fears, as shown by how he indirectly confessed his guilt to Leta Lestrange, and by how he later ultimately mustered the strength to confront Grindelwald and end the Global Wizarding War after years of watching Grindelwald's rampage. Therefore, Dumbledore's Boggart is said to be his sister's corpse.[9]

While Dumbledore (at least in his later years) never displayed arrogance or conceit, he had no use for false modesty either, and if a situation warranted it, was perfectly willing to acknowledge his virtually peerless intelligence and power. However, Dumbledore also understood that he had his weaknesses and blind spots just as any other man, and worked hard to keep them in check.

"As I have already proven to you, I make mistakes like the next man. In fact, being — forgive me — rather cleverer than most men, my mistakes tend to be correspondingly huger." —Dumbledore talks to Harry about his Horcrux theory, and the possibility of his making a mistake[src]

More than anything else, Dumbledore was motivated by his belief in the power of the human spirit. He also had a deep capacity for love, frequently reminding Harry that love was the greatest magic of all. Dumbledore believed in the good in everyone and insisted on giving second chances. He notably argued strongly against the expulsions of Newton Scamander, and later Rubeus Hagrid, as well as refraining from expelling Jacob's sibling, despite the latter repeatedly breaking school rules. Dumbledore also allowed Remus Lupin to be a pupil at his school and later a professor, despite the fact that Remus was a werewolf. He had a great friendship with Hagrid, despite many not trusting the half-Giant. The greatest example of this, however, is Dumbledore's relationship with Severus Snape, in whom Dumbledore was willing to hold a considerable amount of faith after Severus had shown remorse. Dumbledore even saw a possibility for good in Tom Riddle as a child, and was open to giving him a second chance, despite the fact that Tom had already revealed himself to be a cruel sociopath and bully even at a young age, though he kept a careful eye on Tom Riddle during his Hogwarts career rather than simply hoping for the best. Although he was devoted to Riddle's defeat after he became Voldemort, Dumbledore was genuinely regretful on how the days he could have easily intimidated Riddle into admitting his wrongdoings and taking responsibility for them were long gone, proving he felt a level of remorse for never managing to do anything significiant to change Riddle. In addition, Dumbledore also believed the rumours of Grindelwald showing remorse for his crimes during his time in prison and showed a level of respect and gratitude for Grindelwald's concealment of the true location of the Elder Wand for a shred of redemption even if it was in vain.

Dumbledore was highly perceptive and emotionally intelligent; his knowledge of people's true personality went beyond being simply a good judge of character. This is never more apparent than in his complex insights into Voldemort's psyche, which he pieced together with Harry to deduce where the Horcruxes were hidden. However, this insight also made him extraordinarily good at manipulating people, which he was perfectly willing to do if he thought it necessary. Perhaps the most blatant example of this was with regard to Severus Snape, as he used Snape's love for the late Lilly Evans to manipulate him into helping him protect Harry Potter, her son, despite all the risks it entailed and despite Snape's bitterness and hatred towards Harry's father. Another note worth mentioning in this area, is Dumbledore conjured a bottle of gin to help ease Mrs Cole during their conversation. He did not offer her a glass, but simply produced it, knowing she would drink it. A lesser note of his emotional insight was with Gilderoy Lockhart: despite Lockhart having fooled every inhabitants in the wizarding world with his books, Dumbledore, having knew what he truly was, was completely unable to be tricked by Lockhart and he was able to effortlessly manipulate Lockhart into taking the job of DADA Professor by slyly hinting Harry Potter was in Hogwarts attending his second year so he can expose him.

In spite of Dumbledore's many extraordinary qualities, he was also a somewhat Machiavellian figure.[28] He could be stoically pragmatic and was extremely prone to secrecy. He spent a short portion of his youth concocting plans with Gellert Grindelwald for global domination over Muggles, in the process treating his ill sister with neglect. Whilst Dumbledore was never a deliberately cruel man, at times, he was too far-sighted, making choices that he believed to be for the benefit of humanity even if it deeply hurt some of the people around him. For example, he placed Harry Potter with the Dursley family despite knowing that they would be unlikely to treat him well, as pointed out by Professor McGonagall, all for the sake of keeping him alive.

"I knew my brother, Potter. He learned secrecy at our mother's knee. Secrets and lies, that's how we grew up, and Albus... he was a natural... How can you be sure, Potter, that my brother wasn't more interested in the greater good than in you? How can you be sure you aren't dispensable, just like my little sister?" —Aberforth Dumbledore bitterly describes his brother's inner nature[src]

Dumbledore's greatest personality flaw, which he explained to Harry in 1998,[15] was his desire for power. Particularly in his younger days, he acknowledged that he had been quite selfish and that because of his extraordinary abilities, he had wanted fame, power, and glory for himself. When he and Gellert Grindelwald were in school, they made plans to enslave Muggles and re-establish wizards as the natural rulers of the world. However, when his sister Ariana Dumbledore was killed during a duel between himself, Aberforth Dumbledore, and Grindelwald, any desire to accomplish this goal left him. The incident led to him declining any attempts by others to offer him positions of great political authority, and he refused to take the post of Minister of Magic at least three times.

Dumbledore, while often kind and calm, did have a very serious side of himself and was capable of a terrifying wrath. This was rarely seen, but appears to be well known and combined with his exceptional magical abilities, made very few of his allies willing to cross him and almost all of his enemies feared him, to the point that even Lord Voldemort and Gellert Grindelwald were known for fearing him, despite their own incredible magical powers, wrath and status as the two most dangerous dark wizards in history. Just a slight exertion of Dumbledore's serious side and anger could intimidate the likes of Harry Potter, and even the Minister of Magic Cornelius Fudge, evidenced when they both were shocked when Dumbledore made it clear quite firmly that Hagrid did not open the Chamber of Secrets, despite Dumbledore not openly showing anger. At the apex of Dumbledore's wrath, which happened extremely rarely, such as when he apprehended Barty Crouch Jr, who impersonated Moody and almost killed Harry, Dumbledore was described as "being struck with cold, ancient fury". In fact, during this rare moment of intense anger (caused by Dumbledore's realisation that, not only had Voldemort been resurrected, but also that he had been expertly deceived for an entire year), Dumbledore was so terrifying, that even Minerva McGonagall and Severus Snape, both extremely powerful and stern wizards who rarely displayed emotions, were clearly uneasy. Harry himself (who was also slightly terrified of his reaction) fully understood then why Dumbledore was the only wizard that Voldemort ever feared.

Dumbledore was haunted by his sad family history. In particular, he was riddled with guilt over the circumstances surrounding the death of his sister. He felt enormous remorse for his selfishness and was tortured for the rest of his life by the possibility that he might have been the one who cast the spell that killed his sister, to the point that he delayed facing Grindelwald until there was no other choice, due to him fearing what his former friend might have known about the death of Ariana. However, he had enough sense to realise that he will inevitably have to duel Grindelwald and therefore he took the position as the Professor of DADA to prepare students for the upcoming dark times. Additionally, Dumbledore's own guilt allowed him to comfort Leta Lestrange over her own guilt in the role she had in her brother Corvus' death. Indeed, it was Dumbledore's advice to Leta that induced her to save Credence Barebone from Yusuf Kama's revenge.

At time Dumbledore could feel the pressure of his role in the world acutely, and relied on his Pensieve to deal with them. He kept vials of memories which he could view in his Pensieve, some of which were his own. He often used this to find connections he might have missed before, and also when he felt he had "too many memories".

When asked by a fan if Dumbledore ever found true love, J.K Rowling said she always thought Dumbledore to be gay, but after reflecting that falling in love with Gellert Grindelwald in his youth had led him to lose his moral compass, he no longer trusted his own judgement in such matters.[29][30] As a result, he became "quite asexual," and lead a celibate and bookish life."[30]

Possessions

Dumbledore's office houses "a number of curious... instruments." Among them is a Pensieve, a stone receptacle used to store and review memories, which witches and wizards are able to extract from their heads as a type of fluid. Harry first discovers this device to witness Dumbledore's memory of Igor Karkaroff's trial before the Wizengamot, and also uses it to view Severus Snape's memories of childhood. During the private lessons between Harry and Dumbledore, the Pensieve was used to view a variety of memories about Tom Riddle's past.

Dumbledore was also seen using the Deluminator, a device for removing and later returning light, and for use as a homing device. It is confirmed when the object is inherited by Ron that the Deluminator was of Dumbledore's own design. Dumbledore was the possessor and master of the Elder Wand, an extremely powerful object known also as the "Wand of Destiny" or the "Deathstick", and one of the Deathly Hallows, until he was Disarmed by Draco Malfoy at the top of the Astronomy Tower. The wand's allegiance was then transferred to Harry Potter nearly a year later. Unlike many of the wand's previous owners, Dumbledore kept its identity a closely guarded secret.

He also had a pet phoenix named Fawkes, who left Hogwarts Castle after Dumbledore's death. It is revealed in that two of Fawkes' feathers form the magical cores of both Harry's and Voldemort's wands.

Professor Dumbledore kept a journal in which he would have written in regularly. He also kept a pocket watch with twelve hands, but instead of numbers it had little planets moving around the edge.[31]

Magical abilities and skills

"Dumbledore has been a great wizard — oh yes, he has, the Dark Lord acknowledges it." —Snape regarding Dumbledore's magical skill[src]

Dumbledore was an outstandingly talented wizard, even while still only a student of Hogwarts, excelling in many fields of magic to the point of quickly being recognised as the most brilliant student to ever attend the school, possibly rivalled only by the prodigiously brilliant Tom Riddle, and attaining many awards and prizes that required incredible magical capability to obtain. As an adult, Dumbledore had became an extraordinarily powerful and accomplished wizard of nearly unrivalled abilities and powers, being admired and feared by even others of outstanding magical talent, to the point of being considered to be the greatest wizard of all time by many.

Career accomplishments

In addition to a long career as a teacher of at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, first as its Defence Against the Dark Arts instructor and later as a Transfiguration Professor, (and eventual promotion to Head of the Transfiguration department), making contributions to such learned, scholarly publications as Transfiguration Today, Challenges in Charming and The Practical Potioneer, and ultimately rounding it all off by becoming arguably the finest and most revered Headmaster the school had ever seen, Albus Dumbledore was also a famous alchemist who worked with Nicolas Flamel, the only known maker of the Philosopher's Stone, and was credited with discovering the twelve uses of dragon's blood.

Dumbledore became the Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot, and Supreme Mugwump of the International Confederation of Wizards. He was removed from these posts during his conflict with the Ministry of Magic under Minister for Magic Cornelius Fudge, but was reinstated when the Ministry was forced to acknowledge that he had correctly warned that Voldemort had returned. He held the Order of Merlin, First Class, for Grand Sorcery.

Relationships

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Family

Parents

"Do not misunderstand me. I loved them. I loved my parents, I loved my brother and my sister, but I was selfish" —Albus Dumbledore[src]

Albus' relationship with his parents was not very clear. However, it can be theorised that he most likely did not hold his father in high regard, as he was imprisoned in Azkaban for magically attacking three Muggle boys who had inflicted permanent psychological damage on Ariana. According to Aberforth, their mother taught Albus secrecy. Given that she read stories to him, it can be assumed that Albus had a good relationship with her, or at least a better one than the one she had with Aberfoth. Her death made Albus feel angry and bitter, as it left him with the responsibility of a damaged sister and a wayward brother, and he thought himself trapped and wasted.

Later on, during his conversation with Harry in limbo, he confessed that he truly loved each and every one of his family, but was blinded by his ambition and his madness. He had originally intended to use the Resurrection Stone to bring back his parents, so that the heavy responsibility on his shoulders would be lifted. After Ariana's tragic and unexpected death, he planned, instead, to use the stone (if he ever found it, that is) to bring back his parents and his sister to apologise to them. This desire, however, ultimately caused his death: the Resurrection Stone had become part of a ring whose curse infected him the instant he put in on, and slowly killed him.

Ariana Dumbledore

"Not as well as I should have done." —Albus Dumbledore to Leta Lestrange when asked if he had loved Ariana.[src]

Albus Dumbledore was Ariana Dumbledore's eldest brother, and was not nearly as close to his younger siblings as they were to each other. Although he loved his younger sister, Albus was resentful when he had to take responsibility for her after their mother's death, which forced him to stay at home, and thus abandon his ambitious plans. When he and Gellert Grindelwald made plans to subjugate Muggles and take power in the wizarding world, Albus planned to bring Ariana with them, but Aberforth pointed out that she was in no state to go. This launched a three-way duel between the brothers and Grindelwald, and Ariana was accidentally killed in the fray. Albus was devastated by his sister's death and for the rest of his life, Albus never forgave himself for the part he played in her death and always felt tremendous guilt and remorse over it. While he hardly ever spoke of this guilt to anyone, Dumbledore admitted it to Leta Lestrange in an effort to get her to open up about her own guilt, and admitted that he had not loved Ariana enough during her life. Dumbledore was also haunted with the fear that it had been him to kill Ariana, to the point that he delayed facing Grindelwald for years.[37]

From then on, Albus' Boggart would be Ariana's corpse.[9]

Aberforth Dumbledore

They were not alike: Aberforth was never bookish and, unlike Albus, preferred to settle arguments by duelling rather than through reasoned discussion... In fairness to Aberforth, it must be admitted that living in Albus' shadow cannot have been an altogether comfortable experience." —Description of the Dumbledore brothers[src]

Aberforth Dumbledore was Albus' younger brother. Although Albus loved him, the two brothers were not close to each other, as they were very diffrent persons in both personality, with Aberfoth resenting being in Albus's shadow. Despite not being close, it cannot be doubted that Albus loved and cared for him dearly, evidenced by the fact that even though he resented having to stay at home, Albus still refused to allow Aberfoth to stop his education out of concern of his brother's future. While Albus likely alienated him, along with Ariana, during his obsession with Gellert Grindelwald, when Grindelwald attacked Aberforth, Albus immediately came to his brothers aid and fought against his crush, clearly displaying that even at the height of his worst years, Albus cared for his brothers' well-being more than Grindelwald's and his own pride. After Ariana's death, Albus and Aberfoth's relationship becomes very estranged, as Aberfoth blamed Albus for the death of the sister he and his mother spent so much time caring for. Although they eventually established a cordial relationship with each other, with Aberfoth joining the Order of Phoenix when Albus founded it and attending Albus's funeral, Aberfoth and Albus still remained distant as Aberfoth was never able to forgive Albus. Albus himself made no attempts to change his brother's opinion about him, apparently acknowledging that he deserved it and accepting it as his punishment for their tragic family past, which Albus had a hand in. However, Albus was nevertheless saddened that he and Aberfoth never could reconcile and he did had a strong desire to make peace with him, as whenever he saw the Mirror of Erised, Albus always saw he and Aberfoth reconciled and all of his family returned to him. Albus also came to believe that Aberforth was a better person than he was due to his much greater devotion to Ariana, which Harry Potter disagreed with. Aberfoth himself however, eventually changed his opinions of his brother when Harry Potter helped him realise what Albus' intention really was and had forgiven him, as he chose to participate in the Battle of Hogwarts, helping the students and faculty of Hogwarts and the Hogsmeade residents to protect the school where Albus served as Headmaster for almost half of his lifetime, from Lord Voldemort, as well as to allow Harry time to find what he thought to be the last Horcrux.

Gellert Grindelwald

"Did I know, in my heart of hearts, what Gellert Grindelwald was? I think I did, but I closed my eyes." —Albus Dumbledore to Harry Potter, about his friendship with Gellert Grindelwald[src]

Dumbledore first met Gellert Grindelwald when he was seventeen. They were introduced by Grindelwald's great aunt, Bathilda Bagshot. They got along almost instantly, according to Bagshot. They were ultimately united by their desire to have the Deathly Hallows. They also made a blood pact and they swore an oath never to fight each other. It is also known that the two were romantically involved. It is said that their relationship was intense and passionate. This was so much so that Dumbledore would, for a time, see Grindelwald in the Mirror of Erised as his greatest desire.

Gellert —

Your point about Wizard dominance being For the — this, I think, is the crucial point. Yes, we have been given power and yes, that power gives us the right to rule, but it also gives us responsibilities over the ruled. We must stress this point, it will be the foundation stone upon which we build. Where we are opposed, as we surely will be, this must be the basis of all our counterarguments. We seize control for the greater good. And from this it follows that where we meet resistance, we must use only the force that is necessary and no more. (This was your mistake at Durmstrang! But I do not complain, because if you had not been expelled, we would never have met.)

Albus" For the Muggle 's own good —One of Albus Dumbledore's letters to Grindelwald in their school years as they plotted Muggle domination[src]

They got along for two months until Aberforth, Dumbledore's brother, confronted them over the neglect of Ariana Dumbledore. Grindelwald lost control during the argument and attacked Aberforth. Dumbledore rushed forward to defend his brother, and during the duel his sister, Ariana was killed. Grindelwald fled and Dumbledore ended their friendship.

"Oh we were closer than brothers." —Albus Dumbledore to Torquil Travers, about his bond with Gellert Grindelwald[src]

Grindelwald spent a number of years gaining power in Europe while Dumbledore spent his time teaching young wizards at Hogwarts. While Grindelwald and his army terrorised Europe, Dumbledore remained in Britain and refused adamantly to face Grindelwald. While this was partially due to the Blood Pact, which also kept Britain safe as Grindelwald couldn't attempt an attack as it would mean a duel with Albus, which would violate the Pact, Dumbledore showed he still had lingering affection for Grindelwald, as when he looked at the Mirror of Erised at this time in his life, he saw Grindelwald. Nevertheless, Dumbledore tried to indirectly participate in Grindelwald's defeat and he used Newt to do it by sending him to America with the injured Thunderbird Frank, knowing somehow Grindelwald had infiltrated America in search for the Obscurial there, which Dumbledore knew he intended to use against him. However, after the death of Leta Lestrange, Dumbledore put aside whatever affection he had for Grindelwald and was determined to break the Blood Pact.

While not having the vial destroyed, he made sure that the wizarding world would survive Grindelwald's reign of terror by providing whatever intellectual and possibly magical assistance he could. After finally succeeding, Dumbledore directly tracked down Grindelwald. Upon finding each other, Dumbledore and Grindelwald, arguably the greatest wizards who had ever existed, initiated the legendary duel of 1945, unleashing all of their extraordinary magical capabilities on each other, the display being so amazing that it remains unmatched as the greatest magical battle ever in history. Although not without extreme effort, Dumbledore eventually triumphed in the end, despite Grindelwald's mastery of the Elder Wand, becoming the wand's new master and he then brought in Grindelwald to the