not categorised

The beheading of King Charles 1 in 1649 was arguably the most momentous event in English history in the midst of political and social turmoil which lasted for almost five decades. It was preceded by the English Civil War (1642 -1651) between Royalists and Parliamentarians, and followed by five years of Cromwell’s Protectorate after which the monarchy was restored with the absolutist and indulgent Charles 11 on the throne, embroiled in the bitter Roman Catholic-Protestant schism. A new book about his younger brother and successor for a brief three years, the last Catholic king of England and Scotland, King James 11 (V11 of Scotland), shines a spotlight on a largely forgotten figure in the midst of all this tumultuous change. His forced exit after the Glorious Revolution in 1688 because of his Roman Catholicism saw the Dutch William and his Protestant daughter Mary on the throne.

  The Private Lives of James 11 by Justine Brown describes James 11 as “handsome, courageous, loyal, pleasure seeking and determined” – a Restoration rake who headed the Royal Navy, fought the Fire of London with his brother Charles 11, and was a patron of the theatre, painting and music.

 He was born 14 October 1633 JC 11pm London, and like his ancestor King Charles 111 had a Scorpio Sun and Neptune in his 4^th house of family and roots. Most notably he had a controlling and influential 10^th house Pluto square a 1^st house Mars in Leo, reflecting the dramatic events of his life from the beheading of his father when he was in his teens, exile, return and final exile to France where he died. His friendly 11th house Jupiter would contribute to his popularity and take the rough edges off his bombastic 1st house Mars in a no-compromise square to Pluto. He would be inordinately stubborn with five planets in Fixed signs which gave him endurance but may also have contributed to his ultimate downfall.

  When his father was executed in 1649 there was a Saturn Pluto conjunction in Gemini opposition Uranus Neptune in Sagittarius square Mars in Virgo – extreme Mutability – nerve-stretched, war-like, overly volatile. At that point James 11’s Solar Arc Neptune was opposition his Pluto, undermining what he saw as his rightful lineage. With the tr Saturn Pluto conjunct his Solar Arc Pluto.

 The Monarchy was restored after Cromwell’s death as tr Saturn was opposition his 10^th house Pluto and when he acceded to the throne his Solar Arc Uranus was approaching the opposition to his Pluto for the brief reign that followed. His Pluto was his weather-vane. Tr Neptune was on the cusp of his 8^th as he was crowned which may have led his judgement astray in misreading the mood of the country in attempting to argue for religious tolerance and support his conversion to Catholicism.

  Protestant William of Orange (and Mary) reigned till 1702, then Protestant Queen Anne until 1714 at which point the Hanoverian Monarchy was established with George I.

  It makes present day ripples seem insignificant. There is nothing like history to put a calming perspective on events.

  Given the momentous nature of events back then I had a look at the three England charts to see which worked best against the influences. Given that older charts are set up on times of significant events you would expect there to be similarities between them and they will all reflect later events.  But there is usually one which is more illuminating than the others.

Oddly enough the 25 December 1066 is the least helpful. When the Civil War started in 1642 tr Jupiter Saturn in Pisces were opposition the 1066 Jupiter Saturn in Virgo and moving to square the 1066 Uranus – but that is mild enough.

 The 12 July 927 chart indicated much higher stress levels, with tr Pluto exactly opposition the Saturn which is often an indicator of war. Plus tr Saturn square Pluto, tr Uranus conjunct Mars Jupiter and the tr Jupiter Saturn conjunct the North Node.

 The 11 May 973 chart is most descriptive of the three with a Uranus Return; a panicky tr Neptune opposition the Taurus Sun Mars square Pluto at the start and tr Uranus rattling up major disruptions as it made hard aspects to the Sun Mars square Pluto through the course of the war. At the beheading of Charles 1 the Solar Arc Sun Mars was exactly conjunct the 973 South Node.  

Below – more detail on James 11 in interview below + Justine Brown’s History podcasts on youtube.

Justine Brown’s Bookshelf. History Podcasts.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCX8t_TA3Qm6UiV9qDogG8NQ

Temperance movements, often driven by religious groups, have at various times attempted to ban the drinking of alcohol – temperance being a misnomer for abstinence. This in contrast to the ancient Greeks and Romans who regarded wine as the nectar of the gods, a divine elixir and a gift from the immortal ones. The festivals of Dionysus and Bacchus gave testament to its transformative power even in states of intoxication.

  The use of heavy machinery in the rise of the Industrial  Revolution gave rise to misgivings about the dangers of drink amongst workers. Though beer was often safer to drink than the contaminated water.  Methodist John Wesley spoke out against alcohol in the 18^th Century. He was born 28 June 1703, England, with (interestingly) Saturn Neptune conjunct in Aries square Uranus in Cancer and trine Pluto in Leo.  

   William Hogarth’s horrifying Gin Lane cartoon of the mid 18^th Century showing drunkeneness amongst London poor was not an argument for abstinence since it was coupled with a second engraving of Beer Street showing a happy city drinking the ‘good’ beverage, English beer. In Beer Street, people are healthy, happy and prosperous, while in Gin Lane, they are scrawny, lazy and careless. Mind you, given the conditions of the time drinking may have been the only escape for the poor from an unendurable life.

 The American Temperance Society founded 13 April 1826, had a prominent Uranus Neptune conjunction in Capricorn with Pluto just into Aries. There were two yods as well of Saturn sextile Sun Chiron inconjunct Mars in Scorpio; and Mars sextile Neptune Uranus inconjunct Saturn. A hard, unforgiving chart, with a fanatical streak from Uranus Neptune.

 Prohibition came into effect in the USA on 17 January 1920, when Uranus was about to enter Pisces and Neptune Jupiter were in mid Leo with Chiron in Aries, with Saturn in Virgo. As elsewhere in the world the  temperance movement started to wane in the 1930s, with prohibition being criticised for creating unhealthy drinking habits, encouraging criminals and discouraging economic activity. It was lifted in the USA in 1933 when tr Neptune in Virgo was conjunct the Prohibition Saturn.

  There is a (maybe coincidental) strand of Aries and/or Fire signs running through these charts. I would not have associated Fire or Aries in particular with abstinence or the kill-joy sanctimony which is often what the abstinence lobby reeks of.

 Wesley born in the middle of the Saturn Neptune conjunction in Aries did have a positive effect in his abolitionist (anti-slavery) campaigning and his introduction of women preachers into his movement which latter certainly fits Neptune Saturn.

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Ukrainian forces are on the offensive attacking across the border into Russia in order to “stretch” and “destabilise” Russia. The Kremlin has declared a federal emergency in the Kursk region and said it was transferring extra forces to try to snuff out the incursion that has damaged its credibility. More than 76,000 civilians have been evacuated from border areas. Zelensky said it was a “fair” response to the nearly 2,000 cross-border strikes into Ukraine by Russian forces over the summer.

  Zelenskiy also posted that Russian forces appeared to have started a fire in one of the cooling towers of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant that it has occupied since the early days of the war.

 The Ukraine country chart, 24 August 1991 2.31pm Kiev, always did look in line for some cheer through the middle of this year and beyond with tr Uranus square its Jupiter and several Jupiter midpoints extending on into spring 2025. That won’t magically remove all problems since tr Pluto continues to conjunct the Saturn till late 2025 which is a discouraging slog; with a jolting tr Uranus square Sun from mid 2025 and a confused/devastating SA Neptune square Pluto late 2025/early 2026.

  The Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, 1 April 1980, looks edgy in the extreme with the Uranus opposition Venus square Mars North Node being jolted by tr Uranus hard aspects right through into 2026. The Aries Sun is also catching this October’s Libra Solar Eclipse and next March’s Aries Solar Eclipse. So is at a crisis point.

  Zelensky’s Term chart, 20 May 2019 is on highs and lows this year and moving into an undermining phase from June 2025 onwards with tr Neptune square the Mars; with indications of a destabilizing phase from 2026 though 2027 with tr Pluto square the Uranus. Though that could be for any number of reasons since he must be beyond exhausted.

  Putin’s original presidency chart, 31 December 1999, is certainly rattled exactly now with tr Uranus square the Mars and that runs on and off till March 2026. It is likely to test his nerve and may provoke an over-reaction. 2025 into 2026 also see a confused tr Neptune Saturn square the Mercury and tr Uranus in an emotionally upsetting opposition to Venus. Maybe not terminal, but nerve-stretching.

 The Russia 8 December 1991 7.45pm chart, looks depressed this year with tr Saturn square the Sun and Mercury and an explosive and disruptive Solar Arc Mars conjunct Uranus also in 2026.

  The Russia 8 November 1917 chart will also be affected by tr Neptune Saturn moving into Aries square its financial Venus; with jolts and jangles and one piece of luck in 2026. Be interesting to see whether the Saturn Neptune which over Stalin’s death and the Russian Revolution of 1917 has a similarly momentous effect.    

Elon Musk, always regarded as an off-beat, contrarian genius, has decided to ‘rebrand himself lord of misrule’ in the words of one commentator. ‘Until now, we’ve never watched a plutocrat go full Bond villain, cackling from his lair as he spreads discord and fear.’ He is pro-Trump, has spread a deep-fake video of Kamala Harris, posted inflammatory posts about the far-right riots in the UK. “Civil war is inevitable,” he posted on X, and has engaged with Tommy Robinson, boosting the visibility of the founder of a British far-right group, and posted fake news from the co-leader of another, Britain First.

   Now he has declared war on advertisers who have retreated from X/Twitter because of questionable online material along with a goodly chunk of users. Even Tesla appears to be feeling the knock-on effect of his unpopularity. Bumper stickers are available for purchase online featuring slogans such as: “I bought this before we knew Elon was crazy.”

  His daughter Vivian coming out as transgender and changing her name, declaring that she no longer wanted to “be related to my biological father in any way, shape or form”, has also caused a Musk explosion as he declared his son “is dead, killed by the woke mind virus”.

  He was born 28 June 1971 7.30am (biography) in Pretoria, South Africa, a week before Julian Assange. That gives him a Cancer Sun Mercury square Uranus. If his birth time is accurate, Jupiter Neptune is in his 5^th house of creativity and children opposition Saturn in Gemini – he has 12 offspring at last count; Jupiter Neptune can be scandal-prone due to instability; and opposition Saturn will give mood swings from high to low as well as a neurotic temperament. He also has a deeply buried 8^th house Mars and North Node in Aquarius trine a 12^th house Venus which also suggests a fair number of inner demons and subconscious anger driving him.

 His 8^th house North Node and Mars was rattled by tr Uranus square around the time he bought twitter; and Uranus was also starting to tug at his Jupiter Neptune opposition Saturn. His Solar Arc Uranus was conjunct his Jupiter three years ago, moving on to conjunct his Neptune this year and oppose his Saturn in 2025. Which is a good deal of highly-strung pressure being put on an already unstable opposition. And as if that was not enough tr Uranus moving into Gemini will oppose his Neptune and conjunct his Saturn in 2025/26 – so his misjudgements and over-reactions are only likely to increase.

    Plus his yod of Pluto sextile Jupiter Neptune inconjunct Midheaven has moved by Solar Arc direction to focus its energy on his 12^th house Venus in Gemini – bringing more emotional flare-ups. The second half of this decade will not ben kind to him since in addition to the above, tr Neptune Saturn in Aries will square his Sun and oppose his Uranus.

  He has described his father Errol Musk as “evil” and “a terrible human being”, but they seem in agreement over their political views. Errol is a Sun Gemini which is conjunct Elon’s Saturn and opposition his Neptune so a cold and uncertain chemistry between them. With Errol’s ferociously determined and dominating Mars Pluto in Leo conjunct Elon’s South Node; and his Neptune square Errol’s Sun.  

 It is a trait that appears to have come down the family line with Vivien Jenna Wilson, Elon’s now estranged daughter,  15 April 2004, having a prominent Mars opposition Pluto, hinting at a controlling father.

ADD ON: 13 August. The tecno-challenged interview between Musk and Trump yesterday was described by a commentator (after Oscar Wilde) “as the incoherent in full pursuit of the unendurable.” “ A display of two planet-sized egos, toxic masculinity and breathtaking mendacity. More surprisingly it was also dull.” “If Trump doesn’t win the election, and if Musk doesn’t become the emperor of the universe, you’re not going to have a country anymore.”

  Their relationship chart has a cool, workmanlike composite Sun Saturn in Gemini – which is being undermined throughout this year and in particular over the election from mid October to early February 2025 by tr Neptune in square to the Sun and Saturn. This coincides with tr Neptune opposition Musk’s Pluto undermining his power and influence.  Musk will not, naturally, be down and out but will bounce back with yet another initiative in early 2025 – but in terms of Trump it does look less than celebratory.

Reaching out for a deeper connection to the inner planets in everyday living, Julian Venables’ latest book The Divine Order is written for the non-specialist.  He only includes the celestial ‘wanderers’ as they were once called, that can be seen with the naked eye – Moon to Saturn – to focus on a humanocentric approach. And works through them in an untypical but interesting order. Moon for babyhood,  Mercury as the mind develops, Venus at adolescence for romance and relationships, the Sun in the twenties for the phase of ‘I am’. Then onto Mars, Jupiter at the pinnacle of life and Saturn for old age.

  Each is listed with associations, colours, parts of the body, appearance, occupations, animals, plants and gemstones to connect to the  ancient wisdom that ‘the spiritual can be read through the physical.’

 The days of the week – more obvious in French – from Lundi (Moon Monday) through Mardi (Mars Tuesday), Mercredi (Mercury Wednesday), Jeudi (Jupiter Thursday), Vendredi (Venus Friday), Samedi (Saturn Saturday) are also highlighted as a focus for daily meditations and activities on a theme.  

 Well-laid out with pleasing illustrations and historical references, it will be a valuable self-help book for those wishing to ground their knowledge of the planets and pursue a different route to inner exploration.

 Reviews in Amazon:

‘I am really enjoying this book – it is allowing me to connect with the planets and forming a relationship with the energy of the day.’

‘I’ve been trying to get the essence of the planets for some time and this book has helped enormously. It’s a book I will keep referring back to.’

Muhammad Yunus, the Nobel Peace prize winner, has been handed the momentous task of restoring peace in Bangladesh after the autocratic Sheikh Hasina was ousted by a student revolution. An insider commented: “This will be a superstrong combination: young people leading the way, and his old age and wisdom coming together.” He now has the fate of the world’s eighth-most populous country in his hands with a daunting to-do list — restoring law and order, fixing the economy and reforming corrupted institutions. What the FT described as “the job from hell.”

 Known as a micro-lending pioneer, he started in 1974 when a  famine struck Bangladesh in 1974, and he began studying ways to help farmers, fixating on access to credit after noting that people’s fate was being decided by pennies a day.  Yunus began building what was to become Grameen Bank (derived from the word gram, or village), starting with a micro-loan of $27 to 42 people, prioritising lending to women. By 2003 Grameen was working with 36,000 villages.

 Born 28 June 1940 in Bangladesh,  he is a charming Sun, Venus in Cancer with an Aries Moon. He is well-grounded in the material world with an Earthy Jupiter Saturn conjunction in Taurus and Uranus also in Taurus in an inventive trine to Neptune in Virgo. His Jupiter is square his Pluto Mercury conjunction Leo giving him confidence.

  He is on his Uranus Return this year and will be embroiled in intense discussions with tr Pluto opposition his Mercury Pluto in Leo in January 2025 and later in the year. Even before then September to later November this year look high risk and aggravated as well as blocked with tr Pluto opposition his Mars/Pluto and Saturn/North Node midpoints.

  He is well placed as prime minister with his Sun and Venus falling in the Bangladesh 10^th house (start time of 6pm being accurate). Though his Sun Venus also oppose the Bangladesh 4^th house Mars for arguments  and perhaps political rivals. His bitter relationship with Sheikh Hasina resulted in what he and Norwegian authorities insisted were trumped up corruption charges.

 The Bangladesh chart, 26 arch 1971 6pm Dacca, has a yod of 12^th house Pluto inconjunct Venus in Aquarius sextile Mercury. This year and into 2025 tr Neptune is opposition the secretive (devious/corrupt) 12^th house Pluto and tr Uranus is square Venus on one leg of the yod so clearly the moment had come to shift the country onto a new trajectory. 

See previous post: Bangladesh – student Gen-Zers say enough

20th July 2024

“They seek him here, they seek him there

They try so hard but they try in vain

For he eludes them yet again.”

High comedy and maximum embarrassment in Spain following the appearance on a political stage and then disappearance of exiled separatist leader Carles Puigdemont under the noses of police and journalists. Described as Catalonia’s answer to Trump, he is “an egotistical and polarising rightwing election loser — casting himself as a victim and questioning democracy.” In the recent election most Catalan voters supported non-separatist parties, in line with the decline in support for independence since 2017. Puigdemont is still wanted on charges, which he denies, of embezzlement of public funds and for his role in the 2017 independence referendum deemed illegal by Spanish courts. He is now reportedly back in Belgium.

  What is intriguing is he was born on the same day as Butch Wilmore, the stranded astronaut, 29 December 1962 – in his case at 10.30pm Gerona, Spain. He has the same ambitious Capricorn Sun which is trine/sextile a Uranus Pluto Ascendant in Virgo opposition Jupiter Chiron in Pisces. Uranus Pluto is the archetypal revolutionary, keen to upset the status quo and on his Ascendant it is the brand he promotes with pride and panache. His Jupiter opposition Pluto will make him overly confident, leading to clashes with authority figures since he reckons rules don’t apply to him.

 His Jupiter conjunct Chiron is marked suggesting a ‘messianic’ tendency to see himself as on a mission, harbouring a dream which can expand beyond what is realistic, secretly harbours the idea that he is special, favoured by the gods. It can bring astonishing luck. Trump shares his Jupiter conjunct Chiron, not surprisingly; and his bombastic Mars in Leo in the 12^th.

  At the moment Puigdemont has the volatile and insecure, overly-reactive tr Uranus square his Mars through this year into spring 2025; and tr Saturn zig zagging in opposition to his Pluto this year which is blocked; with his Solar Arc opposition his Pluto by 2026 which will be even more log jammed. Plus a devastating SA Pluto conjunct his Neptune, exact in 18 months from now.

  Interesting to see how the same planetary aspects with Wilmore and Puigdemont can produce similar traits but live out in different ways – with houses making a difference.

Boeing mishaps strike again with two American astronauts on Starliner already stuck for two months at the International Space Station, on what was supposed to be a nine-day round trip, are now expected not to be able to return till next February.

The spacecraft is well-stocked but it is another nightmare for Boeing  after a year of headlines about doors and wheels flying off its jets in mid-air. And industry analysts say for NASA it looks worse: It seems to be falling back into the bungling ways that led to two space-shuttle disasters.

 The sums of money involved are eye-watering billions and the signs were not good from the start with problems before the launch which were written off by NASA and Boeing as trivial.

NASA, 29 July 1958, looks in a terminal panic and completely trapped at the moment with Solar Arc Pluto opposition their Mars this year; and had a devastatingly confused tr Pluto square Neptune earlier this year which influence returns in February 2025. With more hiccups and upheavals from mid 2025 onwards with tr Uranus square the Pluto.

 Boeing, 15 July 1916 is also labouring mightily with tr Pluto opposition its Neptune returning in February 2025 and December 2025 – which will be much of a muchness with NASA above. The new CEO will be pushing ahead with determination but ahead looks every bit as stuck as it has been in recent years when tr Pluto was opposing its Saturn Sun up until recently and moving forward in 2026 the Solar Arc Pluto squares the Boeing Saturn.

 Kelly Ortbeg takes over as Boeing CEO, no birth date apart from April 1960.  But his Term chart from 8 August 2024 has an accident-prone Saturn square Mars and Jupiter so setbacks are likely.

 The two beleaguered astronauts:

Butch Wilmore, 29 December 1962, a Sun Capricorn trine Uranus Pluto in Virgo and sextile Jupiter with Moon and Saturn in scientific Aquarius is a confident personality, keen on pushing back boundaries. His Venus in Scorpio is conjunct Neptune. His Jupiter conjunct Chiron will give him confidence in his super-powers and should bring him luck.

Suni Williams, 19 September 1965, is a Sun Virgo in a confident square to Jupiter, also with the Uranus Pluto in Virgo opposition Saturn in Pisces. She also has planets in Scorpio – Venus, Neptune, Mars trine Saturn and trine a Cancer Moon in probably  a Water Grand Trine, focused onto the leading-edge Uranus Pluto.

 I cannot imagine anything worse frankly than being stuck in a spacecraft (or submarine) – and then it going wrong!! Aaah.  Still I suppose they pick the temperaments that can cope. But all that jitterbug Uranus Pluto? Not easy.

The US election, although it happens on a challenging, frustrated and aggravated Mars opposition Pluto, is nowhere near as heated as the last one.  In 2020 at the election tr Pluto was opposition the US Mercury, triggering the demagogic, fanatical USA Mercury opposition Pluto – with the fast approaching Pluto Return (from February 2022) adding to the pressure-cooker mood. And on top of that there was a high tension, inclined-to-eruptions Saturn square Uranus which was bolstered by tr Mars conjunct the Uranus on the Inauguration. Quite a storm.

  It won’t be sweetness and light and calm serenity but not as bad.  Though the destructive Solar Arc Saturn conjunct the US Mars is still in place and aiming for the uncertain square to the Neptune by spring 2025 and beyond for a few months. Late November to end of December look odd on the US midpoints – hyper-sensitive and paralysed – and blown around by events, with perhaps losses and calamities (though that is Ebertin who tends to be a touch melodramatic).

 If the Inauguration happens on the expected date and time there is a controlling Sun Pluto in the 10^th opposition Mars on the IC – so not entirely happy electorate and a tough administration. With Uranus in the 1^st hinting at a new image (determination to walk an independent road?).

Kamala Harris does have tr Jupiter square her Venus, Pluto Uranus from the election to the Inauguration which although minor will be helpful. Tr Saturn is also opposition her Uranus Pluto at the same time. The imponderable is her tr Uranus conjunct her Jupiter late November to late December which is lucky and successful but running alongside it is tr Uranus square her Mars/Saturn midpoint which is accident-prone and can accompany considerable setbacks, a test of strength. Plus the fact that her Jupiter does oppose her Neptune.  However having said all that, looking back to the last time tr Uranus shook up her Fixed planets she was elected DA for San Francisco in late 2003 when tr Uranus was conjunct her Saturn and tr Jupiter in Virgo was conjunct her Uranus – so it may be she handles tough influences better than some.

 Donald Trump, having had a near brush with destiny and a surge of adrenaline as tr Uranus squared his Mars over his shooting appears to have subsided into confused grumbles. Tr Jupiter is moving through his 10^th this year which is generally successful career-wise and is conjunct his Uranus late November. But he also has his Progressed Moon square his 12^th house Pluto which his SA MC is moving to conjunct at the election and beyond – which feels very logjammed.  Plus his SA Neptune exactly conjunct his South Node over the election and moving on in 2025/26 to conjunct his Moon and oppose his Sun. None of which look helpful. In January tr Pluto is moving into his 6^th house (birth time being accurate) which may be health related and he has tr Pluto opposition his Saturn/Pluto midpoint throughout January which is an uphill slog, discouraging and depressing.

That is my best shot – make of it what you will.