Dumbledore. A name known to all of those enjoying the magical universe of J.K. Rowling. While most are well acquainted with Albus Dumbledore, the headmaster of Hogwarts during the time of the Harry Potter movies, the history of his family was a mystery yet to be discovered. With the Fantastic Beast movies, new revelations about Albus Dumbledore’s family and background were discovered, and not only were we taken on a journey to follow the young Albus, but we met a new relevant personality - Aurelius Dumbledore. In this blog we will explore the mysteries surrounding this man.
DISCLAIMER: The following text will include spoilers to the Fantastic Beast movies.
Those of you who remember the story of the Dumbledore family from the Harry Potter series, whether it be books or movies, know that Albus Dumbledore (Jude Law) only has two siblings. One of which was his older brother, Aberforth, and the other being his deceased sister Ariana. So, where does Aurelius Dumbledore suddenly come into play?
The premiere of Fantastic Beasts 2 answered a lot of questions, but also raised new ones. Right at the end, Grindelwald (Johnny Depp) informed Credence Barebone (Ezra Miller), an Obscurial, that his real identity was Aurelius Dumbledore. Many fan theories followed this statement, such as that the Obscurus of Ariana Dumbledore possessed Credence after her passing. This, however, would mean that while he would have a relation to the Dumbledores, the name Aurelius would have been made up.
Ariana, Aberforth, and Albus Dumbledore (from left to right) from the Harry Potter and Fantastic Beast movies
We already know that an Obscurial lives on after leaving its host, as seen in Fantastic Beasts 1 when Newt Scamander showed off the one housing in his suitcase. But how much of Ariana is really in Credence, if that was the case?
There were a few more fan theories, such as Credence/Aurelius being Ariana’s child and therefore Albus’ nephew, or him being his half-brother. It took until Fantastic Beasts 3 for all the questions to be answered.
The biggest mystery in the Fantastic Beast series was uncovered by the premiere of the third installment, Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore. As the title of this movie already gives away, the focus of the movie was answering all those questions left unanswered.
Aurelius Dumbledore as obscurus (by Hitalo Augusto)
Grindelwald was correct. Credence true name was in fact Aurelius Dumbledore. But unlike fan-theories suggested, he was not his brother, and Ariana’s obscurial did not possess him. Aurelius was Aberforth’s son, meaning that Albus Dumbledore was his uncle. However, Grindelwald chose to lie about quite important aspects and told the young man that Albus wanted to kill him, which was not the truth.
"Do you know what it's like to have no one? To always be alone? I'm a Dumbledore. You abandoned me. The same blood that runs in my veins, runs in yours."
— Aurelius to Albus Dumbledore in Berlin
But how come that we never heard about Aberforth’s son? Aberforth, just as Albus, found love in the same summer as his brother. However, this girl from Godric’s Hollow would later bare Aberforth’s child as a result from their quick romance. The girl was sent to America, and because of Leta Lestrange, who swapped her behated brother Corvus Lestrange jr. with Aurelius, the young Dumbledore survived the sinking of the ship. It is unknown whether Albus and Aberforth knew about the baby, but even if they did, they would now assume it had died with its mother.
While it is highly debated whether or not we will ever see a fourth installment of the Fantastic Beasts series, many fans are speculating over the future of Credence/Aurelius. This young wizard carries a lot of pain, trauma, and unresolved mysteries, despite all the reveals from Fantastic Beasts 3. But why was he never mentioned in the Harry Potter movies? Why was he not present? How did his life with Aberforth go, or did he choose a different path? What happened to his phoenix, and more importantly, was his phoenix actually Fawkes? How do the lose ends tie up?
We can only hope for more revelations as time passes, but until then, we can take all the information we have and theorize over this intriguing character.
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