It was gorgeous: the frocks, the hats, the uniforms, the horses, the cars, the carriages; the music, the abbey, the sweet little choir boys – and a superb sermon by the Bishop of London.
"...Marriage is intended to be a way in which man and woman help each other to become what God meant each one to be, their deepest and truest selves..."
The Duchess already has the poise of a queen. (How Capricorn is that?) And the Duke looked delighted. It all went like clockwork.
Yep, they got married today and the also turned into the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, titles given to them by Granny Queen.
What did it all mean?
Well here it is – the chart for the wedding itself; the moment when the Archbishop of Canterbury said, "I now pronounce you man and wife." I made it 11.20am on the dot.
You can see it's a chart for a great public occasion with all that razzmatazz around the MC, and Leo, the sign of putting on the Ritz, rising. Venus and Mars, the lovers are conjunct on the Midheaven - what could be a better symbol of a wedding. Of course, Venus is weak in Aries, but Mars is strong.I don't think you can argue with the fact that the Royals are the most powerful family in Britain, so in comparison everyone else is weak. Mars (William) is supporting Venus (Kate) with the help of Mercury (hey, is that just Prince Harry or also Kate's siblings who were so much in evidence during the ceremony?) Mercury is also the media of course, which get in the middle of everything.
The stellium is joined by Jupiter (pomp and majesty) and Uranus is widely conjuncting Venus. The Duchess really is of the people, so an unusual choice.
The chart's ruler is the Taurus Sun (king of the planets), of course, in the 10th (the house of the monarch). Taurus is the first earth sign and fixed, so very stable. It's the sign of the good earth, of the garden, so it was appropriate to decorate the abbey with trees in fresh spring green.
But the Sun is wide of the main stellium in Aries and being trined by Pluto. The state occasion and the private event have slightly separate meanings.
For the prince (the Sun) this is a transforming (Pluto) moment personally. Catherine is, of course, a Capricorn Sun. She is changing him into a husband and I'm sure into a father. But the meaning of this wedding was wider than that.
The strongest planet in this chart is Saturn, which is exalted in the sign of Libra and precisely on an angle. Saturn is a planet particularly associated with the Royal Family. It's pivotal in the Queen's chart and that of the new Duchess of Cambridge. It's the planet of stability, continuity and tradition. Libra is the sign of marriage, so any vows taken now are unusually binding anyway, and with Saturn exactly on the IC, they are even more so. This private solemn promise was broadcast (Mercury conjunct MC) to millions.
What happened today was the marriage of two grown-ups and equals, old enough and wise enough to understand that marriage is serious. Both partners have natal Saturn in Libra, so this is a Saturn Return union. Anyone with William's childhood traumas is pretty careful about wedlock. It's hard not to draw parallels with the nuptials of Charles and Diana 30 years ago, during which Diana later described herself as feeling like "a lamb being taken to slaughter".
The nation itself has been through a full Saturn cycle (see my previous post) since Charles and Di, and perhaps we've done some growing up too – less fixated on the "fairytale" and happy to see a an heir to the throne get hitched to his long-term, live-in girlfriend. I can vaguely remember the total hysteria about Diana that preceded that earlier wedding.
The IC is the angle associated with roots, family and country. This pair were making a promise to each other, but also, I think, to the country. They must have discussed this, because as a royal, you are a person but you are also a figurehead, a symbol of the nation itself, and Catherine is now committed to being a queen as well as to being a wife.
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| Catherine's chart with the new birth time. I'm a little suspicious of this chart, because it seems almost too good to be true. Although it is via a reputable source. |
By carrying on the tradition of a great public wedding, the Duke and Duchess have made a vow to the nation. This was a wedding between two lovers but also between a future king and queen and their people.
(The embroidery on Catherine's perfectly chosen wedding dress included symbols for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland in a unified design. Just quickly on the question of style. The whole show was low-key for a royal event, suggesting that the future queen has got pretty classy taste. Again typical Cap. But also promising a less flashy future monarchy.) (Diana's train=25ft, Kate's=8ft, see what I mean.)
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| UK 1801 chart with transit of today. |
The Void of Course Moon
The Moon in this chart is at 26 Pisces and void of course, which means it's not going to make any big contacts before moving into Aries.
Most astrologers take this to mean that "nothing will come of the matter". Me too. Traditionally, it's a huge no no to schedule an event on a VOC Moon.
However, I just couldn''t believe that in this case. I mean, the wedding happened and we have a new royal, right - done and dusted. We know something will come of this marriage whether we like it or not.
So I found this excellent article by Jenni Stone in an old issue of The Mountain Astrologer, which seems to provide a good explanation for what's going on. Her work is also a real example of how research-based astrology can suddenly make things click into place.
Stone says that the VOC moon, among many other things, can be a moment when time stands still.
There is no better description of the atmosphere here in Britain today. It's a national holiday and everyone has simply stopped, downed tools and paused from their normal routine for a moment to just be here now. It's so quiet on my street, no traffic noise at all…lovely.
Stone also points out that events started under VOC Moon do seem to have unexpected consequences…
