Time To Draw A Line In The Sand, Harry

Harry: Mars in Sagittarius

Oh dear, the royal family is so much better when they are like proper icons – that is silent.

Prince Harry, the third in line to the throne, has given a disastrous interview about his life in the army. This is from the normally flag-waving Daily Telegraph:

“Take a life to save a life,” he said, before making an unfortunate comparison between his skill as an Apache helicopter gunner and his talent for computer games: “It’s a joy for me because I’m one of those people who loves playing PlayStation and Xbox, so with my thumbs I like to think that I’m probably quite useful.”

That may be OK in the mess room, but it sounds pretty dumb out here in the real world. Look at what Pluto is doing to his chart. The planet of death and transformation is crossing his ascendant, the face he shows to the world. We see him now as a bringer of death as well as the playboy prince. Transiting Chiron is opposing his Mercury, communications, as he damages himself with his own words. Transiting Jupiter is also conjuncting his Chiron – the hoof goes deeper in the mouth.

Harry's is a classic king's chart, unlike William's, with the two plants of rulership near the two key angles. He has Saturn on the MC in Scorpio and Jupiter near the ascendant, just like his granny the Queen. But the Queen's Jupiter is in the first house and Harry's is in the 12th house – that's a big difference. Jupiter is the royal planet, the king of the solar system. So the queen has personal power (first house)  – and Harry has ancestral power (12th house). His Jupiter is in Capricorn, power from the establishment, and hers is in Aquarius, power from the people.

Both the Queen and Harry are having Saturn Returns this year, a time of reckoning. In anyone's life these transits are when you look back at how far you have come and judge yourself. How am I doing? What have I made of myself so far? 

How many twentysomethings really know what they want to do with their lives? Only the lucky ones. The rest of us just drift around until we hit that Saturnian wall. This is what's happening for Harry now. For sure, he needs to take on more responsibility now.

Looking at the prince's chart, you can see that he is a natural-born soldier. His Saturn in Scorpio is a mark of military leadership. I expect he is brave (like his gran). With Mars, the warrior planet adventurous and athletic in Sagittarius, he may well be involved in more foreign wars, if he can stay alive through this one. What I fear is that this stupid interview will make him a personal target, and with Pluto on his Ascendant that seems quite possible. 

From the Parthenon

Mars in Sagittarius seems to perfectly describe the sort of character that might see battle as a game. Sagittarius is also the cavalry, of course. In ancient times, the centaur was the most feared warrior, galloping into battle. And today, with no horses, helicopters are the cavalry.

He also has the Moon in Taurus, another military sign.  It's in the fourth house of motherland and opposite that Saturn. This Moon is earthy, sensual, practical. Despite the weird world he lives in, it also explains how Harry has the common touch, because emotionally he is down-to-earth. There is the potential for depression there though. So you can see from this chart that he has the makings of a leader of men. He could command loyalty and lead with integrity.

(I am afraid the Charge of the Light Brigade springs to mind. But hey.)

This Saturn-Moon  opposition also fits his description of the tension in his life between duty to the family "firm" and his soldiering career. He may be forced to choose between the two. But his family needs to keep in mind that this man needs a proper job. He has Pallas, the asteroid of military strategy, in the second house of talent, trining his MC and sextiling his Ascendant very closely. Despite appearances, he's probably no dummkopf on the field of battle.

Right now that Pluto is putting him under much pressure. He will transform, or fall apart in the process. At the same time Pluto is on the midpoint of his MC-Saturn and Pallas trine, surely this is some change in career direction.

Harry is a perfect product of his class and culture. He's exactly what you'd expect from the less-academically gifted toff, but that does not make him by any means useless. Astrology shows us that every character has his place in the network of society, and Harry's is to be silent, strong and a leader. He needs to embrace his Saturn, or go the way of his great aunt Princess Margaret, the Queen's only sister, who's life unravelled as she failed to figure out what to do with herself.

Margaret also had Saturn conjunct the MC, but hers was in Capricorn (her sister surely), and she also has Moon in the fourth. She spent her whole life oppressed by the role the establishment had foisted on her. She half-rebelled, but never struck out enough to make her own way, and by all accounts was pretty miserable. 

For Harry, it's different. He's a man, and the times have changed. The media attention is worse, but his options are not as limited as he might think. For a start, if he decides now, he never has to do another interview ever again. He can simply decide that it is not part of the job description.