Master of Death

"*The true master does not seek to run away from Death. He accepts that he must die, and understands that there are far, far worse things in the living world than dying.*"
— Albus Dumbledore

The **Master of Death** (also known as **Conqueror of Death**, **Vanquisher of Death** and others) was the one who had in their possession all three of the legendary Deathly Hallows, which were the Elder Wand, Resurrection Stone, and Cloak of Invisibility. While it was generally assumed that becoming the Master of Death referred to some form of immortality, according to Albus Dumbledore and Nathara Prince-Slytherin, the true Mistress of Death truly accepted the fact that death was inevitable, and that there were other things much worse than death.

Nathara once told the members of The Dominion, "*Even though it makes us sad, all living things have to die eventually, regardless of the cause. Everything happens for a reason, and if your parents sacrificed themselves so that you could live, Harry, then I think they knew what kind of wizard you would be. Death can be quick and simple, like the Killing Curse, or torturous and agonizing, like the curse in my great-grandfather's ring; with the victim having only a year. The point is, no matter what you try to do to prevent death, Thanatos will always come for you. They didn't call him the Undead Slytherin for nothing; he was nothing if not cunning."*

## History

There were two different beliefs concerning how the Deathly Hallows came to be. According to legend - as noted in TBB - they were created by Death]] himself as a reward to the Peverell brothers for having evaded him. However, according to Albus Dumbledore, they were probably made by the Peverells themselves.

The legend went that in the 13th century, the Peverell brothers managed to trick Death himself by using magic to conjure a bridge to cross a dangerous river. Death stopped them because most travellers would have drowned. He offered them a reward each which was secretly a way to corrupt them and lead them to their deaths in another way. This was true in the case of Antioch Peverell, who was the original owner of the Elder Wand, and Cadmus Peverell, who was the original owner of the Resurrection Stone. However, while his brothers asked for something which gave them power, Ignotus Peverell asked for the Invisibility cloak so he could hide from Death. Ignotus eventually accepted that he must die and greeted Death as an old friend.

Over time, the Hallows fell into legend. Very few knew they truly existed and because of this, very few tried to search for them. Out of this sprung a legend which said that whoever united the Hallows by possessing all three at the same time would become the Master of Death. Many had incorrectly assumed that becoming the "Master of Death" would grant a form of immortality.

## Known searches for the Hallows

Main article: Hallows Quest

**Ron Weasley**: "*When you say 'Master of Death' -*"
**Xenophilius Lovegood**: "*Master. Conqueror. Vanquisher. Whichever term you prefer.*"
— Xenophilius tells Harry, Ron, and Hermione about the Deathly Hallows

In their youth, both Gellert Grindelwald and Albus Dumbledore had been obsessed with the dream of uniting the Hallows and becoming the Masters of Death. Grindelwald managed to lay claim to the Elder Wand by stealing it from its previous master, Mykew Gregorovitch, but never found the other two Hallows. Albus Dumbledore and Harry Potter are the only known people to have held each of the three Hallows, although neither possessed all three simultaneously (the closest was Harry being the Elder Wand's master, though not in physical possession of it, while having both the Stone and the Cloak in his physical possession). Dumbledore regarded Harry as the "true master of death," not because of the fact that he had united the Hallows, but for truly accepting death and not fearing it.

## Known Masters of Death

"*You are the worthy possessor of the Hallows. From an extremely young age, my little heiress, you accepted that death and life are one and the same. Add in the fact that you would do anything, including laying down your life, you, Nathara Azula Prince-Slytherin, daughter of Marvolo and Severus Prince-Slytherin, have proven that you are worthy of being called my Mistress.*"
— Death talking to Nathara Prince-Slytherin

* Ignotus Peverell mastered only one of the Hallows, but accepted the inevitability of death, which would make him an honorary Master of Death as per Albus Dumbledore's interpretation of the title's meaning.
* Albus Dumbledore possessed all three Hallows, but not at the same time. He mastered the Elder Wand, borrowed the Cloak of Invisibility from James Potter before giving it to Harry during his first year at Hogwarts, and found the Resurrection Stone in the Gaunt shack. He accepted his own death, also qualifying for his own definition.
	+ However, it can also be implied as Dumbledore tried to bring his deceased family back with the help of Resurrection Stone so he didn't consider himself as true master of death because he felt he didn't accept death as inevitable. Though it could be possible Dumbledore wanted to see his parents and sister to make peace with them before he died.
* Nathara Prince-Slytherin possessed all three Hallows and accepted her inevitable death. First, she inherited the Cloak of Invisibility from her cousin, Harry, who didn't want any link to the bully his father was. Then, she inherited the Resurrection Stone from Dumbledore, which was inside a snitch. Finally, she won the Elder Wand from Draco Malfoy. Due to Death himself coming to the young Slytherin in a dream and deeming her the only one worthy of being called his Mistress, Nathara used the Hallows only when necessary, and even then, only used them to end one suffering from a slow death.

* All wands with Thestral tail hair cores, including the Elder Wand, would only work at their best for a wielder who had accepted death. Thus, one would need to be an honorary Master of Death (per Albus Dumbledore's interpretation of the title's meaning) in order to wield *any* Thestral tail hair wand at its best.