Astrology has many tools in its toolbox when it comes to looking at love and relationships. One of the most common is synastry looking at which planets, signs and houses two people have in common can often show how a love affair will pan out.
This is the story of two lovers, whose identity will be revealed later…here are their horoscopes:
The lady has a kite formation (if you include the sextile of Pluto to Neptune which is within a nine degree orb). An Air trine, Sun in Gemini, Jupiter in Libra and Neptune in Aquarius. the Sun is opposite Pluto in Sagittarius (the synastry wil become obvious later.)
Her love planet (which rules the fifth house of love affairs) is Saturn which is in regal Leo in the twelfth house (of self undoing). Her marriage planet (which rules the seventh house) is extravagant Jupiter in Libra in the second house of money, she will be looking for a husband who can buy her all the pretty things Libra loves. Neptune, the co-ruler of Pisces is part of the Kite and Grand Air Trine.
The universal planet of love is of course, Venus, and how Venus is placed in a chart will show how the person expresses and experiences love. The Lady has Venus in Aries in the eighth house, from this we can deduce she will experience and express love selfishly (Aries) passionately (Aries/eighth house) and she will be interested in the power it gives her (Aries, eighth house).
Mars is the planet which shows how we express our desires, how we go about getting what we want. The Lady’s Mars is in Taurus, she will play a long, seductive game, Mars in Taurus can wait, Taurus is sensuality and physicality, she uses her body and beauty to get what she wants.
The Gent has a T Square of Jupiter in Gemini, square Mars in Virgo and opposite Neptune in Sagittarius as well as and opposition of Mercury in Leo to Saturn in Aquarius. His Love planet is also Saturn, and his Marriage planets are also Jupiter and Neptune. His Venus is in restless, changeable Gemini, conjunct his Midheaven. He uses words and his position in the world to love, but is fickle. His Mars is in critical and precise Virgo, he attains his desires strategically and through argument.
So what Synastry do these lovers have? and how will their relationship develop?
Firstly, they have what is described as a Sacred Marriage this is when two people share either the Sun, Moon or Ascendant. The Lady’s Moon (11′ Cancer) is conjunct the Gent’s Sun at 14′ Cancer. Cancer, one of the more romantic signs, suggests a deep, loving connection, based around the home.
Furthermore, her Ascendant at 4′ Virgo is conjunct his at 6′ Virgo. Besides being the physical appearance, the Ascendant shows how the world perceives you and as a consequence how it responds to you. Virgo rising shows some anxiety and critical thinking but also a love for nature and the natural world.
The Lady’s Sun is conjunct his Venus in Gemini which is on his Midheaven of public life showing their love (Venus) will impact his career or status. His Moon (in angry and sometimes cruel Aries) is conjunct her self-regarding Venus. Both of which suggest there is a great deal of passion but also selfishness and egocentricity (Aries). The softness of Venus and the Moon do not sit well with fire signs, and least well with Aries, the most individualist of the triplicity.
Separated by circumstances, he was ahem, already married-remember that selfishness, they began a correspondence, he expressed his love through words.
Love Letter #4
‘the pain of absence is already too great for
me; and when I think of the increase
of that which I am forced to suffer,
it would be almost intolerable, but
for the firm hope I have of your un-
changeable affection for me: and to
remind you of this sometimes, and
seeing that I cannot be personally
present with you, I now send you the
nearest thing I can to that, namely,
my picture set in a bracelet,’
What delight for Jupiter in Libra, a gift of jewellery-we can only hope it was of gold.
The Lady held out for marriage which was conducted secretly (just before dawn) with a handful of witnesses, after his first marriage was annulled, (the annulment was controversial).
It seems unlikely that astrologers were consulted (as was the custom among their contemporaries). As a marriage chart it makes rather grim reading. The marriage, shown by the ruler of the seventh house is the Sun (in fall in Aquarius) the Moon is fast applying to a conjunction with the Sun, both planets are in a weak condition (Sun is in Fall in Aquarius). New Moons are judged to be malefic in Horary Astrology (as the lights-the Sun and Moon are in disharmony). No astrologer would choose an applying New Moon to start anything, particularly a marriage.
Worse still, the chart ruler and the almuten (the most powerful planet) is Saturn, is both conjunct Uranus, the planet of splits and revolutions and opposite Mars, exalted in Capricorn and ruler of the ninth house, suggesting the law and religion would overturn the marriage (as Saturn is weak in Cancer, Mars has more power here). There is a mutual reception between the Moon in Aquarius and Saturn in Cancer, but if it is a mutual reception by degree, then the Saturn goes to a conjunction of Pluto-hardly an improvement. All of which suggests this was a spur of the moment decision (Uranus).
Also notice that Saturn Uranus is conjunct the Lady’s Moon and the Mars is opposite. While a strong Saturn is hoped for in lasting marriages (as it rules legal commitments, binding agreements and maturity), here it is conjunct Uranus which promises the opposite; breakups, arguments, splitting apart. Likewise the Saturn Uranus is conjunct the Gent’s Sun also suggesting a promise unfulfilled, or a commitment not kept.
The Sun Moon of the marriage chart also conjuncts the Gent’s Saturn, suggesting his desire for romance, or sex (it rules his fifth house remember) but not marriage. The Gent wanted to have sex with her, and she refused unless he married her, so he made a rash decision early one morning. The marriage is also about children, as a fifth house concern, but a weak Saturn and Uranus in the fifth suggests difficulties, either a weak child (debilitated Saturn) or miscarriage (Uranus).
Neither of their own natal marriage planets, Jupiter Neptune, are highlighted.
It did not end well.
Our Lovers were Henry VIII King of England and Anne Boleyn his second wife. She gave him one child, the future Queen Elizabeth I, caused the English Reformation where the Catholic Church (who refused his request for a divorce from his first wife) were kicked out of the country, their assets seized and Catholics hounded to death in many cases.
After three years of marriage, and desperate for a male heir, (Anne possibly suffered two miscarriages) the King began an affair with Jane Seymour. To marry Jane, Henry had Anne Boleyn convicted of High Treason (adultery was treason for a Queen) and she was executed in May 1536.
Although, they did have a Cosmic Marriage and there is no doubt there was a great love affair, arguably had it remained just that, a passionate affair, when it burned out (remember Aries blows extremely hot and cold) Jane would have been pensioned off and survived, and Henry would have moved on to the next big thing.
But then, the course of English history would have been different, no Reformation. If we go back to Henry’s chart, we notice the rulers of marriage (the seventh house) Jupiter and Neptune are part of a T Square with Mars in Virgo. Mars rules the ninth house of religion and law. His marriage would cause a fight (Mars) with the Church, which indeed it did. His desires (Mars) were at odds with the status of marriage (square to Jupiter, Neptune) and he used the law to cut her out (Mars).
While Anne allowed her desire for beautiful things (Mars in Taurus, Jupiter in Libra in the 2nd) to lead her to losing her head (Sun opposite Pluto).
Happy Valentines!
Data:
Anne Boleyn: 15.5.1507. 11h30 London
Henry VIII: 28.6.1492. 08h45 London.
Marriage: 25.1.1533. (recorded as just before dawn, I used 07:45) London.
Elisabeth Brooke 