The Head of Hogwarts

• Type: Leadership Position, Academic Title
• Location: Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry
• Appointing Body: Hogwarts Board of Governors
• Key Features: Ultimate authority over the school's administration, staff, and students; access to the secure Head's office; counsel from the portraits of previous Headmasters and Headmistresses.

The Head of Hogwarts, a title held by either a Headmaster or Headmistress, is the chief administrator of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. This position holds immense power and responsibility within the school and carries significant influence in the wider wizarding community. The Head is responsible for the day-to-day operation of the school. Their authority includes:

• Staff Management: Hiring and, if necessary, dismissing teachers. For example, Albus Dumbledore hired Remus Lupin and later fired Sybill Trelawney, though he allowed her to remain at the castle.
• Student Discipline: The Head has the final say in all matters of student punishment, including the authority to expel students, as Armando Dippet did to Rubeus Hagrid.
• Curriculum and Policy: Overseeing the educational direction and internal policies of Hogwarts.
• School Security: The Head is responsible for the safety of the students and the castle itself, often employing powerful protective enchantments.

Traditionally, the Head of Hogwarts is appointed by the twelve-member Hogwarts Board of Governors. The Governors also possess the power to suspend or dismiss the Head, as they did to Albus Dumbledore in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. However, the Ministry of Magic has shown it can usurp this power through legislation, as seen when it installed Dolores Umbridge as Headmistress via Educational Decree Number Twenty-Eight. Upon their death, a portrait of the Headmaster or Headmistress is magically created and hung in the Head's office. These portraits retain the personality and memories of their subjects, serving as an advisory council to the current Head.

The position of Head of Hogwarts is central to the narrative of the series, primarily through its most notable occupant, Albus Dumbledore. Dumbledore used his authority to protect Harry Potter, guide the fight against Lord Voldemort, and maintain Hogwarts as a bastion of safety and tolerance. The instances where he is removed from his post—in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets and Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix—directly precede periods of great danger for the students. The corruption and subversion of the role serve as powerful symbols for the state of the wizarding world. The appointment of Dolores Umbridge marks the Ministry's tyrannical overreach and the transformation of Hogwarts into a place of oppression. Similarly, Severus Snape's installation as Headmaster signifies Lord Voldemort's complete control over the magical community following the fall of the Ministry of Magic. The reclaiming of the Headship by Minerva McGonagall after the Battle of Hogwarts symbolizes the restoration of order and light.

While the complete line of succession is unknown, several Headmasters and Headmistresses are mentioned in the novels or supplementary materials.

• Everard: A former, celebrated Headmaster whose portrait hangs in the Head's office and at the Ministry of Magic.
• Dilys Derwent: A former Headmistress who served from 1741 to 1768. Her portrait also hangs in the Head's office and at St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries, where she was a Healer.
• Phyllida Spore: A former Headmistress, known for her book One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi. (Chocolate Frog Card)
• Dexter Fortescue: A former Headmaster whose portrait advises Albus Dumbledore and later Severus Snape. (Pottermore)
• Armando Dippet: The Headmaster immediately preceding Albus Dumbledore. He was the Head during Tom Riddle's time as a student and was in charge when the Chamber of Secrets was first opened.
• Albus Dumbledore: The Headmaster for the majority of the series and considered one of the greatest wizards of all time. He held the position for several decades until his death.
• Dolores Umbridge: Illegitimately installed as Headmistress by the Ministry of Magic during the 1995-1996 school year. She was the first and only “Hogwarts High Inquisitor.”
• Severus Snape: Appointed Headmaster in 1997 by a decree from the Voldemort-controlled Ministry of Magic. He used his position to secretly protect the students, following Dumbledore's final orders.
• Minerva McGonagall: Served as Acting Headmistress on three separate occasions: after Dumbledore's suspension in 1993, after his death in 1997, and during the Battle of Hogwarts in 1998 after ousting Severus Snape.

• J.K. Rowling has confirmed that Minerva McGonagall became the official and permanent Headmistress of Hogwarts after the events of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. (J.K. Rowling interview)
• In the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, the portraits in the Head's office are shown to applaud Severus Snape when he enters the room after Dumbledore's death, a detail not present in the book.