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.

Duel with Lord Voldemort

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.

Dumbledore and Voldemort duel

Dumbledore duels Voldemort

Near the end of the battle, Dumbledore himself arrived and swiftly captured all the Death Eaters
personally; 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. With Voldemort having arrived in the
Ministry, Dumbledore took this chance to give undeniable evidence to Fudge that the Dark Lord truly
had returned and fought him both to protect Harry and hold him at bay. Dumbledore quickly displayed
his extraordinary magical capabilities as he calmly countered Voldemort‘s attacks and returned with his
own assault that steadily forced Voldemort back, yet not trying to kill, which astonished Voldemort.
Soon enough, Dumbledore managed to trap the Dark Lord within an orb of water just after having
countered Voldemort's attempts to blindside him by calling upon Fawkes to take the Killing Curse from
his behind while he took care of the fiery snake Voldemort had unleashed. Realising that he was being
overpowered by his former teacher, Voldemort abandoned his effort and disapparated.
Order-of-the-phoenix-movie-screencaps.com-14891

Dumbledore telling Harry the whole prophecy in its entirety

Before Voldemort escaped however, he briefly possessed Harry, hoping that Dumbledore would
sacrifice the teenager in an attempt to kill him. However, Dumbledore did not take the bait as he cared
for Harry too much to do it and fortunately Dumbledore did not have to resort to whatever means he
would’ve needed to remove Voldemort from Harry himself, as the tremendous power of Harry's love,
dwelt on his grief for his late godfather, inflicted great pain upon Voldemort and the Dark Lord was
forced to remove himself and block his connection. With his failure to retrieve the prophecy and his
attempt on Harry’s life foiled, Voldemort fled the Ministry 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. Henceforth, Dumbledore successfully ensured that Fudge
removed Umbridge, pardoned Hagrid so he could return to Hogwarts and he 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 disbanded Inquisitorial Squad disbanded and reverted any
damage they did.

Training Harry Potter

Main article: Harry Potter and Albus Dumbledore's private lessons

"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]

Dumbledore-ring

Dumbledore trying on Marvolo Gaunt's ring activating a nasty curse

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.

Snape and Dumledore curse

Snape's skills manage to trap the curse on the ring in Dumbledore's hand

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.

Halfblood-01275

Harry and Dumbledore discuss memories of Tom Riddle

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.

Hunting for Horcruxes

Main article: Second skirmish at the Cave

Halfblood-03561

Dumbledore and Harry Potter in the Crystal 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,[5] 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.

Halfblood-03621

Dumbledore preparing to drink the Emerald Potion

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.

Dumbledore-fire

Albus creating a fire storm to ward off the attacking Inferi

Harry then attempted to summon water for Dumbledore with the Water-Making Spell, but this proved
ineffective as the water, for some reason, was scoop-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 the
Impediment Jinx and Sectumsempra curse, 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.

Battle of the Lightinng-Struck Tower

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.

Draco disarms dumbledore

Dumbledore being disarmed by Malfoy

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.

Dumbledore dies

Dumbledore's death

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, killed the Headmaster, blasting his body off the tower and falling to the
ground below.

"After all, to the well-organised mind, death is but the next great adventure."

—Albus Dumbledore regarding the afterlife[src]

HBP Dumbledore's Death - Exclusive @ Olumencia

Harry kneeling over Dumbledore's body

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.

B6C30M1 funeral of Albus Dumbledore

Dumbledore's funeral

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

1997

Hpbookdh

The Life and Lies of Albus Dumbledore

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.

1998

Normal face2face-pg-horizontal

Voldemort breaks into Dumbledore's tomb

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.

DumbledoreHarryLimbo

Harry Potter speaking with Albus Dumbledore in Limbo

After he had finished his talk, Dumbledore and Harry parted ways: Harry returned to the mortal world
and Dumbledore moved, as he would put it, "on." 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.

2020–2021 school year

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.

Dumbledore's reputation was so significant that even years after his death, the only reason Albus and
Scorpius avoided contacting him for help when they found themselves stuck in 1981 was because they
were concerned that even the knowledge of their existence would taint Dumbledore's future plans, as it
was agreed that he had always known enough to know what to do or not to do and awareness of details
such as Harry's future son might impact his plans.

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 (HBP promo) 2

Albus Dumbledore, a great wizard

18 year old Dumbledore

A young Albus Dumbledore

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 demeanour 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.

1253806314531 f

Dumbledore's flamboyant attire

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 Wizard
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.[10]

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. He once told Harry that he was fairly confident in his ability to defeat
Gellert Grindelwald despite the latter's own great skill and possession of the Elder Wand. Dumbledore's
portrait also professed to Harry that he had considered personally fighting Voldemort for Harry, further
showing Dumbledore's self-confidence. 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]

Tom-Dumbledore

Albus Dumbledore proving to a young Tom Riddle that the Headmaster is a wizard

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.

Albus Dumbledore (HBP promo) 1

Albus Dumbledore in thought

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.
[35] 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,[20] 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. In addition to being completely unintimidated but rather saddened by Harry's profound
bursts of rage regarding Sirius, in all the other times Harry unleashed his anger, Dumbledore proved
himself capable of quelling even Harry's anger with just a slight exertion of his dark side, as he silenced
Harry's questions regarding his judgement of Draco and Snape and even silenced Harry's anger with just
indicating he had crossed the line, showing even Harry's rage could not match the seriousness and fury
the old but extraordinarily powerful wizard was capable of.

Harry-potter-half-blood-movie-screencaps.com-14905

Dumbledore's grief

"Regret is my constant companion. Do not let it become yours."

—Albus Dumbledore on the nature of regret[src]

Dumbledore was haunted by his traumatic 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.

Albuson

Dumbledore's excitment

Dumbledore wasn't afraid of death as he believed "to the well organised mind, death is but "the next
great adventure." Even during his short time in Limbo, he expressed his excitment o Harry for what
awaits him. 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".

Possessions

Pensieve2

Dumbledore's Pensieve

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.[36]

Magical abilities and skills

Tumblr mlq0d7zOc01r3lpslo2 r2 250

Dumbledore casting a very powerful firestorm

"Albus Dumbledore is the greatest sorcerer in the world."

—Harry Potter 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 being recognised as the most brilliant student to ever attend the
school till that point, 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 become an
extraordinarily powerful and accomplished wizard of nearly unrivalled abilities and powers, to the point
that he was admired and feared by even others of outstanding magical talent, considered to be the
greatest wizard of all time by many. Indeed, Dumbledore was the only wizard capable of defeating
Gellert Grindelwald and later overpowering Lord Voldemort.

Magical mastery: After his first year at Hogwarts, Dumbledore was already known to be outstandingly
talented and prodigiously accomplished in the magical arts, and seen by some as nothing less than the
most gifted student the school had ever seen till that point, winning many awards and prizes that
required magical capability beyond his age. As an adult, Albus Dumbledore was considered by many to
be the greatest wizard in modern history, if not in all of wizarding history, and he lived up to this
assessment on many occasions with his exemplary mastery of magic. He returned to the school to teach
first Defence Against the Dark Arts, excelling to the point that he was considered by many of his pupils
as the best teacher in Hogwarts. During the earlier stages of Gellert Grindelwald's rise to power, even
former Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, Torquil Travers, begrudgingly admitted
that he considered Dumbledore the only wizard with the skill and power needed to defeat Grindelwald,
despite his own personal dislike of the Professor. Indeed; even Grindelwald himself acknowledged that
Dumbledore posed a bigger threat to his cause than any other living wizard and believed that only the
extremely powerful Obscurial Credence Barebone could possibly be capable of killing him. Ultimately, it
was Dumbledore's own, direct involvement that ultimately ended the Global Wizarding War when Albus
engaged Grindelwald and ultimately prevailed despite Grindelwald's mastery of the Elder Wand, with
their legendary duel being such an amazing display of power and skill that, according to the
eyewitnesses, it was as the greatest wizarding battle ever fought between two wizards, with Albus
admitting that he had ultimately been a "shade more skillful” and slightly more powerful than
Grindelwald. Later in his teaching career, he taught Transfiguration, a notably complex and difficult
branch of magic, and soon rose to the position of the Head of Transfiguration of the school. He would
eventually become the Headmaster of the highly prestigious wizarding school and soon established a
well-deserved reputation as the most capable headmaster to ever lead Hogwarts, with even Tom Riddle
acknowledging Dumbledore as being a worthy choice of the title of Headmaster and going as far as to
ask why would he not take the position of the Minister for Magic, which he openly admitted
Dumbledore to be fully capable of excelling in, with his ability to uphold the defences of the school
being such that not even Voldemort could have ever breached the school or even dared to attempt to
do so while it was under Dumbledore's protection, as Dumbledore being the only wizard that the Dark
Lord ever feared, and up until the arrival of Harry Potter, Hogwarts was considered the only safe place
left in the wizarding world that was safe from the most powerful dark wizard of all time. When they
faced each other in magical combat, Dumbledore proved quite capable of surpassing the Dark Lord's
terrifying magical powers and skill while, in Voldemort's own admission, not even fighting to kill, forcing
Voldemort on the defensive and to eventually disapparate. Dumbledore also expressed full confidence
he could easily break out from the notoriously secure Azkaban even if he was imprisoned. When
everything was said and done, Dumbledore had such a profound understanding and knowledge of how
magic worked, even at his younger days, that he stood above nearly every other wizard alive, and
earned the respect of many famously accomplished wizards, such as the magical theoretician Adalbert
Waffling and the magical historian, Bathilda Bagshot. and the alchemist, Nicholas Flamel. Throughout his
life, he greatly contributed to the advancement of magical knowledge in modern times and became a
famous contributor to many magical scholarly journals. Dumbledore also proved capable of overcoming
the powerful dark wards placed by Voldemort on the hiding place of his Horcruxes, effortlessly
bypassing the enchantments he placed on the Gaunt Shack and doing the same to all but the
enchantment on the Potion of Despair in the Horcrux Cave. In the latter, he showed the currently
unmatched ability to detect and analyse magic seemingly upon merely touching or laying his hands,
which he used to flawlessly pass through all of Voldemort's defences.