The assassination of Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme on a Stockholm street in 1986 sent shock waves through Scandanavia. He was an outspoken critic of the USA, Russia, South Africa, Pinochet’s Chile and elsewhere, supporting Third World governments including Cuba and other South American countries. So there were no shortage of conspiracy theories about who might have been responsible for having him gunned down as he walked home with his wife from the movies at midnight without a bodyguard. A small-time criminal was found guilty of his murder later but had his conviction overturned.
Recently Swedish prosecutors made a song and dance about announcing belatedly who the real culprit was but it turned into a damp squib with the announcement that a Swedish graphic designer, who died 20 years ago, with differing political views to Palme, was most likely responsible.
Palme was born 30 January 1927 5.15 am Stockholm and had a 2nd house Sun Mercury in Aquarius with a 1st house outspoken Sagittarius Moon; a full communicative 3rd house with Venus in Aquarius opposition an idealistic Neptune, as well as Jupiter and blunt-speaking Uranus. His Sun Mercury were widely square a pro-active and determined Mars in Taurus in his entertaining 5th which in turn was sextile an influential Pluto in his 8th.
When he was killed on February 28 1986 he was on his Second Saturn Return with his Solar Arc Moon and Solar Arc Uranus both in exact aspect to his idealistic, head-in-the-clouds 9th house Neptune. Tr Pluto was also hovering around the challenging square to his Sun Mercury and in a blocked square to his Solar Arc Saturn.
The alleged killer Stig Engstrom, 26 February 1934, was a Sun Pisces with a could-be-ruthless Mars Mercury in Pisces trine Pluto in Cancer. Engstrom’s Saturn in Sagittarius was square Palme’s Sun and his Saturn in Aquarius squared Palme’s Mars and sat on top of Palme’s Venus opposition Neptune – so it wasn’t good chemistry between them. Their relationship chart had an exact hostile, power-struggling composite Pluto square Mars and Uranus.
Not exactly startling, though it’s possible he was acting on behalf of others, since there seemed to be no obvious smoking-gun motive.
How incredibly fascinating this is…..an intelligent chart with many graces, especially in communication and a genuine feeling for democracy….., and socialism! almost certainly a political murder rather than personal, esp as Pluto Jupiter and Saturn (this last, at the exact MC degree) flanking it – is this the bliss, Marjorie, of an accurate birth time(please tell us how you got it, is it recorded automatically as in most northern European countries?…so impressed you found it. )
What I find significant is so much action on the natal and progressed angles, pr. MC conjunct natal Moon, t Uranus near ascendant equidistant with Saturn as well, those three planets at the top of the chart, and tr Node conjunct IC…and Chiron – whew! As well, Chiron squares Jupiter, the chart ruler! Leo rules the 8th house (of death) so the Sun ruler of it is progressed to 8 Aries, sextiles the natal Sun exactly, so tempting to believe he knew nothing….transits and progressions to angles stand out, especially 7th house ones which show how people regarded him highly and perhaps the fact that his wife was present at this awful event. He had many fixed planets so I’m wondering if this was their known habit to go to a late movie…..I find it amazing that your comments from people are so erudite and informed, but simply because of the phenomenal emphasis on the angles, this could qualify as a text-book astrological murder – now my interest is piqued by the book written about it, but far too strange to be a random target…..truly, its quite staggering. We live, and mostly, learn!
I personally think Stig Engström likely was quilty. But as lawyer, criminologist and mystery writer Leif GW Persson who has been following the case from the beginning and wrote a fictional series involving a storyline on it 10-15 years ago, this evidence would not bring a quilty verdict on trial. So, basically, this would be judged a “mistrial”. Persson’s fictional reconstruction was that Palme was recruited by CIA while studying in the US (and I’ve never truly been able to shake this idea out of my head since, it makes sense given what I know about their outreach in Europe post-WWII), but killed by a fascist conspiracy within Swedish intelligence services/military. Ironically, some “random” guy getting to Palme before a well organized conspiracy could, would also be twist from Persson’s fictional novel.
What’s interesting, too, is that violent death has given Palme maybe a more lasting fame he’d otherwise would have achieved as the Lodestar of Social Democracy. In reality, most of the lasting social changes in Sweden happened under Tage Erlander’s guide. I wonder if there’s something about “posthumous fame” on Palme’s chart?
Well he did have Pluto conjunct North Node in his 8th which might point to lasting influence.
Though I’m puzzled about CIA – why would they want someone who was vocal against the USA and pro- a good many socialist countries?
To subvert The Soviet threat, as strange as it sounds. Vocal leftish characters who were critical of both The US and The Soviet Union were found to be much more efficient in that than overtly pro-US politicians. Mind you, while against US policies, these critics often were known for their love of American Culture. Palme, for instance, would have been recruited in Kenyon College, where he studied on scholarship directly after War and was roomies with Paul Newman, who went to become one of the first prominent activist “stars” in Hollywood.
There’s obviously nothing to definitely tie Palme to CIA, and he may have had contrasting thought later (after Dag Hammarskiöld incident, in particular). But Finnish Social Democrats had a “right fraction” that was quite openly supported by The US, and there are mentions of both parties (as well as MI6) “recruiting” among Nordic politicians in Ben McIntyre’s wonderful Oleg Gordievski biography. Also, there’s an interesting story on CIA infiltrating Soviet International Youth Festivals, that were held in neutral Vienna and Helsinki in the late 1950’s and early 1960’s. Apparently, Gloria Allred is believed to have been a CIA operative in Vienna event.
Good Lord, America has it’s dirty little fingers in EVERYBODY’S pies, don’t they? What is with their obsession to infiltrate other countries? Noam Chomsky has also mentioned their meddling in other nation’s politics in shocking ways, specifically Latin America, in one talk of his. If countries don’t comply to their demands they will twist every which way to destroy them. And they have the nerve to call Cuba a dictatorship! If that really were true, the current president would have pandered all over them like a bad suit. Is there any other country that sticks it’s beak in to other people’s business to the extent the US does or do they solely have it down to an art form?
“A small-time criminal was found guilty of his murder later but had his conviction overturned.”
Interesting coincidence, “the small-time criminal” convicted and the prosecutor overseeing Palme Investigation (there have been several, over the years), are Christer Petterson and Krister Petterson. Essentially namesakes, with a small difference in spelling. Famous namesakes are not unusual in Sweden, with major part of surnames derived from patronyms in the 19th century, but Christer/Krister is not among the most common male names, and Persson is more common than Pettersson for “sons of Peter”.