Origin
Born in the summer of 1881, Albus Dumbledore was raised in a magical household by his parents Percival and Kendra alongside his younger siblings Aberforth and Ariana. When Ariana was young she was seen performing magic by some Muggle children, who attacked panicked and attacked her, causing her severe mental and emotional damage. After hearing of this, Ariana’s father, Percival, went into a rage and attacked the boys who had hurt Ariana, resulting in his being imprisoned in Azkaban, thus leaving Dumbledore and his siblings to be raised by their mother in relative seclusion from the wizarding world. An extremely intelligent child, Dumbledore excelled once he was enrolled in Hogwarts, becoming perhaps the most brilliant student ever to study there. He was made Prefect in his fifth year, and Head Boy in his seventh. He graduated from Hogwarts at the age of seventeen, but his visions of future glory were cut short by the accidental death of his mother at the hands of his sister. He returned to the family home at Godric’s Hollow to care for his siblings, but grew resentful of the responsibility that had been thrust upon him. He cultivated a friendship with Gellert Grindelwald, a brilliant, yet somewhat twisted young wizard who had recently been expelled from school and sent to stay with his great aunt. The pair became obsessed with finding the Deathly Hallows and remaking the world so that Muggles were subservient to witches and wizards. Dumbledore fell in love with Grindelwald, but it is unclear if these feelings were returned. Their plans were cut short and friendship dissolved when the pair got into a duel with Albus’ younger brother which resulted in the accidental death of Ariana. Extremely remorseful and terrified of his own involvement in Ariana’s death, Albus gave up on his dreams of wizard domination and sought employment at Hogwarts, where he became professor of Transfiguration. He met Tom Riddle for the first time while a professor there, and was one of the few to not trust the boy. In 1945 he was called upon to duel Grindelwald, who had become a notorious Dark Wizard. Dumbledore defeated him in what would come to be a legendary duel, and took possession of the Elder Wand. He was made Headmaster of Hogwarts around 1956. He founded the Order of the Phoenix in response to Voldemort’s rise to power, and lead the forces opposed to Voldemort in the First Wizarding War. During this time he witnessed a prophecy given by Sibyll Trelawney about the one who would defeat the Dark Lord. He did his best to protect the Potter family and, when this failed, ensured that Harry Potter would be cared for by his aunt and uncle.
Creation
Dumbledore was originally created by JK Rowling for her Harry Potter series of books, making his first appearance in the first book in the series, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. He made his first appearance in comics in Mad #391
Major Story Arcs
The Philosopher’s Stone
Dumbledore orchestrates the arrival of the newly-orphaned Harry Potter on the steps of the Dursley’s home, where Harry is protected by powerful magic. Ten years later, Dumbledore sends his trusty gamekeeper, Hagrid, the go inform the boy of his magical ancestry and escort him to Hogwarts. Once at Hogwarts, Dumbledore tells Harry about the Mirror of Erised, and later secretly returns his father’s invisibility cloak to him. He enchants the Mirror to hide the Philosopher’s Stone, a powerful magic artifact that would grant the user unlimited gold and immortality, from everybody save the person who sought to find but not use it. He is called away from the school on a false errand to the Ministry on the night that Professor Quirrell and Lord Voldemort attempt to steal the Stone, but realizes that he is needed at the school and returns in time to rescue Harry, who was the last line between Voldemort and the Philosophers Stone. He then explains to Harry the nature of the magical protection left behind by his mother: love.
The Chamber of Secrets
After a particularly exciting first year, all the happiness of the second year is quickly evaporated by lethal attacks staged against school faculty members and several students. These attacks consist of the victim being paralyzed to the point where they lose all body heat, become transparent, and takes several days to fully cure them. What’s more, it constantly seemed that Harry Potter was at each and every crime spot, leading the suspicions that he was behind all the assaults. Dumbledore was one of the few that did not believe Harry was responsible, but rather suspected the influence of Voldemort in the attacks at Hogwarts. Despite the suspicions, he is unable to pinpoint He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named’s influence or find any evidence. He is later suspended by the school’s governors due to the basilisk attacks, and is forced to leave Hogwarts. However, Harry soon journeys into the Chamber of Secrets, and discovers that a Basilisk and a fragment of Voldemort’s (Riddle’s Diary) soul is behind it all. After defeating The Horcruxe with the aid of Fawkes, Harry reveals it to the Ministry, and Dumbledore is reinstated.
The Prisoner of Azkaban
Following so many unsuccessful attacks and the escape of Voldemort’s right hand man, Sirius Black, The Minister of Magic, Fudge, insists on posting more guards to protect Harry Potter, this time in the form of the unearthly Dementers. Dumbledore, though at first against the idea of posting such monstrosities on school grounds, later accepts this proposition against his will. However, the Dementers fail to stop Black from bypassing all defenses and sneaking into the school. As a result of this, Dumbledore has the grounds sealed and has large amounts of teachers escort each Hogsmeade trip. Later, the Dementers once again prove their negative side when they cause Harry to faint in the middle of a Quidditch match, resulting in Harry falling from off his broom and plummeting to his death. Dumbledore, who was in the audience at that time, saves Harry at the last second. Furious, the Headmaster then proceeds to scatter the Dementers, and later, banish them from school grounds altogether. Toward the end of the story, Harry, Ron and Hermione discover that Sirius Black is actually innocent, and the real culprit of Harry’s parents death is Peter Pettigrew. However, due to the maneuvering the Severus Snape, the trio are unable to prove Black’s innocence, and end up stuck in the hospital wind while Black awaits his execution. However, like numerous other times, Dumbledore steps in and helps Harry. Being one of the only people who believe Black isn’t guilty, he suggests to Hermione Granger that she might use her Time Turner to go back in time and rescue Sirius Black from meeting his doom. The plan succeeds, and Black escapes away from Hogwarts.
The Goblet of Fire
Dumbledore allows the Triwizard Tournament to take place at Hogwarts, and acts as judge for the entirety of the Tournament. Though he does not approve of Harry having been entered in the Tournament, he believes the boy when he says he did not enter or have himself entered. After the final task, when Harry returns from the graveyard where he had been very nearly killed by Voldemort, Dumbledore saves Harry from the false Moody, who is revealed to have been a Death Eater in disguise. He later has a falling out with Minister for Magic Cornelius Fudge, who refuses to believe that Voldemort has returned to power or to take any precautions with Voldemort’s return in mind
The Order of the Phoenix
Because of his continued support for Harry’s assertions about the return of Voldemort, Dumbledore loses many of his prestigious positions in the wizarding world. He manages to retain control at Hogwarts, but is forced to accept the oversight of Dolores Umbridge. He defends Harry at his trial for use of underage magic, but uncharacteristically refuses to look at or speak to the boy. When the underground student organization Dumbledore’s Army is uncovered, run by Harry, Hermione and Ron Weasley, Dumbledore accepts blame for the group to protect his students from punishment, and vanishes from the school. He reappears sometime later during the battle at the Department of Mysteries, single-handedly defeating most of the Death Eaters and preventing their escape. He engages in a duel with Voldemort, and is able to defeat him. He explains what has happened to Fudge, and is reinstated to all his former positions. He later explains the content of the prophecy to Harry.
The Half-Blood Prince
Dumbledore brings Harry along to persuade Horace Slughorn to return to his position of Potion’s Master at Hogwarts. Succeeding in this, Dumbledore returns to Hogwarts. After the school year begins, Dumbledore begins providing Harry with private lessons in which they examine Voldemort’s past, learning of his attempts at immortality by the creation of Horcruxes. Dumbledore explains that he has been hunting these Horcruxes, one of which caused his right hand to become shrivelled and blackened. He takes Harry along to retrieve on of the Horcruxes, which is located in a cave. There, he is forced to drink the Drink of Despair, a potion which causes great mental anguish and physical weakness. Eventually, he and Harry are able to retrieve the locket and escape the cave. They return to the school, where Dumbledore is confronted by a group of Death Eaters lead by Draco Malfoy. He prevents Harry from intervening and attempts to reason with Malfoy. He is killed by Severus Snape, who joins the Death Eaters shortly after their arrival and is secretly carrying out Dumbledore’s orders.
The Deathly Hallows
Much of Dumbledore’s past is revealed, as is the truth behind his death. Dumbledore appears to Harry when he is sent to limbo after being struck with a Killing Curse. He and Harry discuss regrets, and Dumbledore tells Harry that he has not yet died, and may return to life if he wishes. Harry later has a brief conversation with Dumbledore’s portrait, which hangs in the Headmaster’s Office.
Powers and Abilities
Dumbledore is an extremely powerful wizard, widely regarded as one of the most powerful of his generation, and is the only wizard whose magical prowess Lord Voldemort himself fears. Dumbledore is able to wield magic to a number of effects. He is capable of producing a fully fledged Patronus, which takes the form of a phoenix. He is an expert duellist and a notable alchemist, helping design The Philosopher’s Stone and finding the 9 uses for Dragon’s Blood. He is also notable for his ability to Apparate silently. He has been known to understand Mermish, Gobbledegook and Parseltongue. He possesses the nigh-invincible Elder Wand, and a Deluminator of his own design.
Other Media
Film
Harry Potter Series
Dumbledore appears in all eight movies in the Harry Potter series. He is portrayed in the first two films by Richard Harris, in the remainder by Michael Gambon, and as a youth by Toby Regbo.
Games
Dumbledore appears in numerous game adaptations of the Harry Potter series.
Literature
Harry Potter Series
Dumbledore was originally created for the Harry Potter series of books. He has appeared in all seven books in the series.
Parodies
Dumbledore features in numerous parodies and comedic works. Notable appearances include in the web series Potter Puppet Pals, in a sketch on charity program Comic Relief, and in the musical A Very Potter Musical, among a wide range of other appearances.