Abraham Lincoln’s election in late 1860 was held under an intense, pressured Scorpio Sun opposition Pluto and by the Inauguration in March 1825 there was an aggravated/enraged Mars Pluto conjunction. It led directly to the Civil War with secessionist states forming into the Confederacy after his election. Neptune was in late Pisces at that point with Uranus on its exact Return on the USA 1776 chart.

  Another Mars Pluto Inauguration was in 1825 4 March, after John Quincy Adams was elected president by Congress since none of the four candidates secured a majority of votes in the electoral college. At his Inauguration there was Mars conjunct Pluto in Aries trine Saturn; with the highly-strung Uranus Neptune in Capricorn. He is ranked as an average president, since his ambitious agenda could not get through Congress. Post-presidency he made a vehement stance against slavery, and fought for the rights of women and Native Americans.

  Two other Inaugurations where the electoral college apparently did not coincide with the popular vote were in March 1877 when Rutherford Hayes became president after a backroom deal. That happened with a downbeat Sun conjunct Saturn; and a disruptive and controlling Uranus opposition Mercury square Pluto.

 On 5 March 1889 Benjamin Harrison became president having received fewer votes than his opponent but carried the Electoral College, 233 to 168. That Inauguration had Sun inconjunct Saturn and a stressed Mars trine Saturn; as well as the Neptune Pluto conjunction.  

 More recent Inauguration charts prior to major military conflicts are mixed.

 The G.W. Bush Inauguration in 2001 leading onto 9/11, Afghanistan Iraq etc had an afflicted Mars in Scorpio opposition Saturn square Uranus; and a dirty-dealings 8^th house Pluto Moon conjunction.

Woodrow Wilson in 1913 pre WW1 – a Mars Uranus conjunction.

Franklin Roosevelt in 1941 pre-entering WW11 had a hugely stressful Pluto opposition Sun Mercury square Saturn Jupiter in Taurus opposition a Scorpio Moon; plus a ruthless Mars trine Pluto.

Harry Truman Inauguration 1949 before the Korean War – Mars opposition Pluto.

Joe Biden’s Inauguration was stark enough with a Mars Uranus conjunction square Jupiter Saturn. But although there were global conflicts of concern there was nothing that dragged the US into open conflict.

The 2029 Inauguration has a Mars trine (Sun) Pluto trine Uranus; with Mars opposition Neptune in Aries. The Neptune in Aries may help to soften the effects of Mars, Pluto, Uranus which looks tumultuous; though it is also undermining the USA Venus, Jupiter and moving to square the USA Sun before this term finishes. Uranus has cleared the Uranus Return on the USA chart by several months at the election.

The aftermath of the USA’s Pluto Return was always going to be a slow process of revisioning what comes next.

Michel Barnier, the tough Brexit negotiator and right-winger has been named as Emmanuel Macron’s prime minister after an extensive delay. Jean-Luc Mélenchon, the left wing politician, whose party and allies won most seats in the recent election said the election had been “stolen from the French people”, complaining that Barnier was “a member of a party that came last.”

  Political high jinks everywhere.

    What is interesting about Barnier is his chart. Born 9^th January 1951 4.40 pm La Tronche, France, he has a Capricorn Sun square Neptune but what dominates his chart is a beyond-stubborn Mars Moon in Aquarius in his 8^th opposition Pluto. He has two yods of Pluto sextile Neptune inconjunct Midheaven; and Sun sextile Midheaven inconjunct Pluto. Definitely a power player.

 His utterly immoveable Pluto opposition Mars sits on top of the France equally intransigent Uranus in Leo opposition Pluto in Aquarius and squaring the France Mars in Scorpio and Midheaven. If he survives politically it’ll be a mighty battle.

  The relationship chart with France has a controlling composite Pluto opposition Sun which will be seriously disrupted late December to mid March 2025 as tr Uranus opposes the composite Sun. There is also a highly-strung, nerve-stretched composite Uranus square Neptune which is being challenged now till late November.

 His relationship with Macron is comme ci comme ca, or at least half OK and half not. There is a friendly Sun Venus trine an enthusiastic Mars Jupiter on the positive side. But also an ego-clash with a composite Mars opposition Neptune; and tough, strong-willed, single-minded Saturn Pluto trine Mars trine Venus.

  He’ll have his work cut out with France suffering under the insecure jolts and jangles of tr Uranus opposition the France Mars (MC) till spring 2025; and an undermining tr Neptune opposition its Virgo Sun through till early 2026. With this October and next March Solar Eclipse rattling up France’s financial Venus at 11 degrees Libra; as well as this month’s  Lunar Eclipse and next September’s Solar Eclipse challenging the France Sun.

The Grenfell Tower fire that killed 72 people in 2017 was the result of “dishonest” companies, successive governments, and a lack of strategy by the fire service, the official report out today concludes.  It says a cladding product manufacturer “deliberately concealed” fire risks, while coalition and Conservative governments “ignored, delayed or disregarded” concerns. All deaths were avoidable, the inquiry chair says. There will be no charging decisions until end of 2026, says CPS due to the “sheer volume of evidence and complexity of the investigation”.

 The fire broke out at 12.54 am on 14 June 2017 in London when Saturn and BML in Sagittarius were close to the Midheaven opposition the Sun and square Chiron. London was always supposed to be a Gemini city so that fits. Jupiter as per usual in a disaster was in play in an over-expansive square to Pluto and an opportunistic square to Mars. There was a Fire Grand Trine of Saturn, BML, Midheaven trine Uranus in Aries trine North Node which again can be arrogant, attention-seeking, a risk-taker and unrealistic. The Mars Pluto opposition moved to exact in following days as outrage grew. Neptune on the Ascendant squared Mercury pointing to the confusion in tackling the blaze.

 The previous Solar Eclipse of 26 February 2017 located to London put the accident-prone, explosive Mars Uranus in Aries exactly conjunct the Midheaven opposition Jupiter and square Pluto hinting at the scale of the disaster to come. There was also an intense New Moon and Neptune in Pisces in the Eclipse 8th.  And the Pisces New Moon of the eclipse was exactly conjunct the Ascendant of the fire outbreak.

Eclipses are often best guide to major catastrophes, man made or otherwise.

  Winning and losing is no simple matter in the USA elections. Al Gore bested G.W. Bush by half a million votes in 2000, and Hillary Clinton beat Trump by 2.9 million in 2016 – and both still ended up defeated. The Electoral College is the filter through which the votes are funnelled, with electors meeting in their respective states on December 17, the result of which is considered by Congress on January 6 2025. If the result is a tie, the popular vote is not the back-up; with the decision for president going to Congress, while the Senate votes on the vice-president. Evidently it is theoretically possible to have Trump sworn in as president and Tim Walz as his elected deputy, or vice-versa with Harris and JD Vance.

  The pros and cons of the Electoral College have been endlessly debated since its inception on 4 September 1787, today celebrating its anniversary. It has a Virgo Sun inconjunct Pluto, so has an uneasy approach to power and control. There is also an Air Grand Trine of Jupiter Mars in Gemini trine Neptune trine Saturn (Pluto) in Aquarius – wedded to an ideal but not always realistic about its application.

  On both Bush and Trump’s elevation to the White House the Electoral College Sun was under stress with a tr Pluto square Sun and tr Neptune opposition Sun respectively.  This time round tr Saturn will oppose the College Sun in late December; and the Solar Arc Uranus will be exactly squaring the Mars for a high-voltage disruption.   With more brickbats flying in the College’s direction in March/April 2025 with tr Saturn square the College Mars Jupiter – and jolts from tr Uranus square the Venus as it moves into Gemini mid 2025 onwards.

  The two key dates after the November election look fraught especially the 17^th December when the electors meet separately in their own states.  There is a confused and uncertain Sun square Neptune – and worse an enraged, frustrated, trapped Pluto opposition Mars. By 6 January 2025 the Pluto opposition Mars in still in place; with Mars in a can-be-paralysed, muddled trine to Neptune and square Mercury. The Jupiter in Gemini square Saturn in Pisces won’t help with its mood swings.

 By the Inauguration on January 20^th the Mars Pluto opposition will have weakened although is still in orb. There will also be a fraught Mars trine Uranus, sextile Uranus.

 None of which is indicative one way or another – since a Harris victory would send the pro-Trumpers into meltdown – and vice versa. But for sure tempers and anxiety will be running very high.

 The USA chart still has the aggravated and prone-to-setbacks Solar Arc Saturn conjunct its Mars throughout the election and beyond, moving on to an uncertain square to the USA Neptune by mid 2025 for several months.

Gary Oldman is back as the greasy, flatulent spy boss of the losers and rejects at Slough House in Season 4 of Mick Herron’s Slow Horses (Apple TV+). Despite a stellar career awash with awards and a position as one of the highest-grossing actors of all time – in Harry Potter; Tinker, Tailor; The Dark Knight Trilogy; Darkest Hour as Winston Churchill –  he has managed to remain low key. He evidently does not employ a publicist and avoids parties.

  Reviews are glowing for the latest season and his performance as Jackson Lamb – “Slough House’s monstrously jaded and dirty-mac-clad ruler, who shambles and roars like a bear dipped in chip fat.” Another remarked he “contaminates the screen beautifully.”

  Born 21 March 1958 10.56 am, London, with an alcoholic father who left when he was seven, he gave up school at 16, before eventually taking an acting training and starting his career on stage. He has a 10^th house Aries Sun and Moon (widely conjunct) with Mercury also in Aries in his career 10^th.

   He has an uncompromising Uranus opposition an 8^th house Mars square a creative Neptune in Scorpio. His Neptune is also on one leg of a yod sextile an intense 3^rd house Pluto inconjunct his Sun – a yod focal point Sun will make him awkwardly self-conscious, constantly trying to balance his ego-drives, too much and too little.  A hardworking, knowledgeable Saturn in Sagittarius in his 6^th trines his Mercury. His Venus in Aquarius opposition Uranus sits in his passionate 8^th house.  He has been married five times with a history of alcoholism.  His Sun/Moon midpoint is conjunct his Black Moon, perhaps a hint of one failed marriage where he was accused of abuse but later one of his sons said his mother had lied.

  He has tr Saturn moving across his Midheaven this year starting a high profile, hard working few years so he’ll be putting off retirement for a while. Tr Saturn Neptune conjunct his 10^th house Sun and tr Uranus in Gemini squaring his Pluto all in 2025 rattling up his yod could set him on a new path. Not necessarily an easy one initially since tr Pluto will conjunct his Mars in 2025/26 and square his Neptune.

Brad Pitt having not quite exfiltrated himself from the fallout of his Angelina Jolie marriage has set foot on a new partnership, showcased at the recent Venice Film Festival. Ines de Ramon is a jewellery designer, formerly married to Vampire star Paul Wesley.

 Brad Pitt, 18 December 1963 6.31 am Shawnee, Oklahoma, has a penchant for high-octane partners and with his Mars in Capricorn conjunct his Sun/Moon midpoint, the marriage significator, he will inevitably end up in drama-filled matches. His North Node in the 8^th house of deep cooperation also won’t help until he matures enough to understand the other point of view and leave behind financial tugs of war.

 Ines de Ramon, 19 December 1992, Los Angeles, no birth time, is a late Sun Sagittarius like Brad, with her highly-strung Mars in Cancer opposition Uranus Neptune in Capricorn falling across Brad’s 8^th and 2^nd house with her Uranus Neptune conjunct his Mercury. So it won’t be without a few ratchety moments as her Mars opposes his Moon Venus – plenty of sparks initially but could become heated later on.  Her Jupiter falls in his 10^th house of career which is positive for a business partnership and an improvement on Angelina and Jennifer Aniston, both of whom had their controlling Pluto in his 10^th which would get wearing.

 His relationship chart with Ines is tricky with a Mars Pluto conjunction square Jupiter which will bring up power issues.  Tr Neptune is squaring and undermining the composite Sun till early 2026 – so there will be a few disappointments ahead.

  Angelina Jolie has a Sun Gemini sitting in his 7^th house which is good for relationships but her Pluto in his 10^th opposition Mars Moon in his family 4^th squaring his Mars in Capricorn would make for high-noon standoffs. And her unyielding Saturn in his 8^th would not help on intimacy. His Chiron is closely conjunct her Black Moon – which does not sound a healing match.

 Angelina’s Uranus squared the composite Sun Mercury of his relationship chart with Jennifer Aniston which famously split after Brangelina got together.

 But Jennifer Aniston herself, 11 February 1969 10.22 pm Los Angeles,  is not an easy personality. Her Sagittarius Moon is conjunct Brad’s Sun which is good, but his Saturn is conjunct her Aquarius Sun, her Pluto is conjunct his Midheaven and her Saturn squares his Moon Venus = defensive, critical, over hard-working, controlling. She has two yods in her chart onto Pluto and Saturn respectively, with her Sun square Saturn so it will have taken her time to get comfortable with herself.

 The Brad/Jen relationship chart is horrible with a composite Uranus Pluto opposition Saturn square Mars – so no surprises it split, with or without Angelina. The relationship chart with Angelina has a composite Mars inconjunct Pluto and Pluto opposition Sun which is much the same – with anger and power issues to the fore.  This echoes the Uranus Pluto trine Mars on his chart which sets him up for these power-packed and melodramatic matches. And Ines will be no different but maybe he has mellowed with age and experience.

Alexander Grothendieck, a mathematical genius and latterly a hermit, who died last year, “revolutionised postwar mathematics in the 1950s/60s  as Einstein had physics a generation earlier. Moving beyond distinct disciplines such as geometry, algebra and topology, he worked in pursuit of a deeper, universal language to unify them all.”

  The publication in 2022 of his memoir renewed interest in his work with growing academic and corporate attention to how Grothendieckian concepts could be practically applied for technological ends. Chinese telecoms giant Huawei believes his esoteric concept of the topos could be key to building the next generation of AI. Which he would have disliked since his motivations were not worldly ones. A former colleague wrote: “He pursued a kind of monologue, or rather a dialogue with mathematics and God, which to him were one and the same.”

 Born 28 March 1928 12.45am Berlin, Germany, he was abandoned to foster care aged five when his parents fled Nazi Germany to fight for the socialist cause in Europe and was only reunited with his mother in 1939 when they went to live in a French internment camp. His Jewish father died in Auschwitz.

  He had a packed 3^rd house with his Aries Sun conjunct innovative Uranus on one side and Jupiter on the other square an 8^th house Pluto. His Pluto was further emphasised being on the focal point of a yod to Saturn in Sagittarius Ascendant sextile Mars in Aquarius. Such an intense and loaded Pluto can produce individuals way ahead of their time in discovering fundamental truths which are often ignored until later – and being in the 8^th his interest would lie beyond the rational world. His Neptune (often prominent in top level mathematicians) was in the intellectual 9^th house and that plus a packed 3^rd would give him an over active mind.

  He retreated from academia after 1970 when the tr Uranus Pluto were moving across his Midheaven into a reclusive existence in France and  latterly his studies were fixated on the problem of why evil exists in the world. He became more mystical and probably unbalanced living a hermit’s existence.

 His leaving-a-legacy-for-history 17^th harmonic was strong – as was Steve Jobs.

Add On: His mother Hanka was an anarchist communist activist along with his father. Their political aim was to create a system of free soviets that would manage the transition towards a stateless and classless society. Having left their son in foster care in Germany in 1933 they went to France and later to support the Republicans after the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War. After reuniting the family in 1939 and following the Nazi occupation of France, his father was arrested and deported to Auschwitz. In March 1940, Hanka and Alexander  moved within France to support a colony of Spanish refugees. She was then arrested by the Vichy regime and both were sent to an internment camp, though later he found refuge elsewhere. He dedicated his doctoral thesis to her – she died in 1957.

What a dreadful childhood for him.

  She was born 21 August 1900 in Germany and was an attention-seeking Sun Leo trine a well-read and travelled Saturn in Sagittarius; with a passionately enthusiastic Mars Venus conjunction probably close to her Cancer Moon.

  It was a Neptunian connection with Alexander since her hope-for-a-better-society Saturn opposition Neptune sat close to his Cancer Moon; and her Sun was conjunct his Neptune. Her Venus, Mars (Moon) was conjunct his 8^th house Pluto – a deep though conflicted connection.

 Their relationship chart had a cool, distanced composite Sun opposition Saturn and a Mars square Neptune – suggesting work came first; and by pursuing her ambitions, her son became the loser.

ADD ON 2:

Georg Bernhard Riemann considered one of the greatest mathematicians of all time, was born 17 September 1826, Germany, no birth time. He was a Sun Jupiter in Virgo trine Uranus – and also had a heavily emphasised Pluto being on the focal point of a Cardinal T Square to Saturn opposition Neptune; and on the focal point of a yod inconjunct Mercury sextile Venus.

According to wiki he made profound contributions to analysis, number theory, and differential geometry. Through his pioneering contributions to differential geometry, Riemann laid the foundations of the mathematics of general relativity.

Former East Germany has seen the first radical right-wing party to come first in a state election since 1933. Fears of a Nazi past being resurrected are misplaced but the success of the anti-immigration AfD party and failure of the present three governing parties is a sobering moment.

 Alternative fur Deutschland was founded on 11 March 2013 in the aftermath of the financial crisis with protests over  Germany’s efforts to bail out poorer countries in the EU. It was seen as an anti-Euro party but turned its focus on migration after the 2015 refugee crisis when Angela Merkel opened the door to more than a million refugees from war-torn countries such as Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq. High inflation and energy costs after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine – 55 per cent of Germany’s natural gas supply came from Russia – exacerbated economic issues for ordinary Germans.

 AfD has little hope of forming a government at state level because other parties are unlikely to work with it.

  Germany has been undergoing a massive disruption since Merkel’s exit in late 2021 which coincided with tr Pluto opposition the 10^th house Uranus. Tr Uranus in early Taurus crossing the 8^th house Moon and heading for the 8^th house Pluto. Both of which have astro-echoes to the 1930s when tr Pluto in Cancer was conjunct the 10^th house Uranus and tr Uranus was also in Taurus opening up a dark seam in the German psyche.

   Those two influences have now passed but with tr Pluto conjunct the Germany Mercury in Capricorn for the final time plus the end run of tr Pluto trine the Germany Mars till the end of the year, there will be heated debates and agitated frustration. And there is still the Solar Arc Pluto opposition the 7^th house Neptune in play at the moment causing confusion in relationships with neighbours. The tr Saturn Neptune in Aries will not add much to a spirit of optimism as it opposes the Germany Mars at zero degrees Libra and squares Saturn at one Capricorn for a highly uncertain and anxious 2025/2026.

  The Germany/EU relationship chart will be undergoing massive changes or at least be under immense pressure from now through till 2028 as tr Pluto is conjunct the composite Venus (2023/24), opposition Uranus (2024/25), square Mars (2025/26) and then square the composite Moon till 2028.

  The AfD, 11 March 2013 chart, shows disappointments and successes – with an undermining tr Neptune conjunct the Mars till early 2026 and an upbeat Solar Arc Jupiter square the Pisces Sun exact early in 2025. It has a grandiose yod of Saturn sextile Pluto inconjunct Jupiter – so there may be more highs to come in the near future, though the longer term is more troubled.

 The leader Bjorn Hocke, 1 April 1972, Lunen, Germany, is a rebellious, uncompromising Sun Mercury in Aries opposition Uranus and square an over-confident Jupiter. This October’s Libra Solar Eclipse and next spring’s Aries Solar Eclipse will both shake up his Sun, Mercury – so he’s likely to be talking up a storm. But his Mars Saturn in Gemini opposition Neptune won’t appreciate tr Uranus moving into Gemini, nor at a lesser level the tr Saturn Neptune in Aries – which along with tr Pluto in Aquarius will be adding further challenges.

Please add below. Older posts under News on top bar.

Keir Starmer has hit the ground running or tripping himself up depending on one’s viewpoint. Since politics in the moment is as much about perception as policies, there is a slight sense of a tone-deaf administration picking the wrong fights however sanctimonious the reasons behind their decisions. None is weirder (though admittedly trivial) than the decision to remove from the No 10 study the portrait of Maggie Thatcher, whom Starmer had previously praised and had been commissioned by Gordon Brown, because he found it “unsettling”. It was rehung elsewhere.

  What both Maggie and Starmer share is a prominent Jupiter opposition Pluto = super-confident, power hungry, good leadership material but tending to assume rules don’t apply to them. It also leads to oneupmanship tussles for the upper hand and last word. Maybe he thought she was glaring down at him, trying to outshine his achievements. Their charts in an odd way are fairly similar since she had her Sun and Mars tied into Jupiter Pluto. While Starmer has his Sun tied into Pluto and Jupiter.

  Starmer’s Uranus is conjunct Maggie’s Sun and his Sun Pluto falls in her 10^th – so if she was alive he would be determined to keep her under control. His Libra Moon clashes with her Mars in Libra square Pluto and Jupiter so he would in the flesh have found her overwhelming.  His prominent Neptune (in a Water Grand Trine) is conjunct her Saturn in Scorpio on her Ascendant – which may be a large part of the problem. Sakoian & Acker remark: “The individuals can have an oppressive or depressing influence on each other.”

  Their relationship chart has the signature composite Jupiter opposition Pluto; with the composite Sun conjunct Neptune square Saturn engendering doubt and suspicion; plus a gritty, aggravated composite Saturn trine Mars.

   What is intriguing about Starmer’s chart is the close Jupiter Chiron conjunction opposition Sun Pluto.

Jupiter Chiron can hint at messianic tendencies, the impulse to follow a vision. And it can suggest a wound to a sense of hope, confidence and optimism.

Pluto Chiron suggests the wound centres around power and powerlessness, gives an attraction to danger and darkness which his legal work would certainly fulfil; and can bring a fear of death.

 Sun Chiron can be afraid to shine as a personality.

He was such an odd colourless personality before stepping up – with no birth time but Neptune on a Scorpio Ascendant for a 12 noon birth looks feasible. A self-protective, private, creative though not always realistic Water Grand Trine channeling its energy into that reforming and very, very determined (and power hungry) Sun Pluto (Uranus) opposition Jupiter Chiron. More will no doubt emerge.

I wish Sue Gray would admit to a birth date – September 1957 is all that is known so far.