A good day for a queen to die

Virgo 2022

What an extraordinary life Queen Elizabeth II had. Her state funeral and everything that happened after her death, is a testament to how many people appreciated her service. I know that, in this day and age, having a monarchy seems ridiculous to some. However, I have always admired the queen’s steadiness in fulfilling, what you could say from her horoscope, was her calling. I think she must have seen it this way too.

As a good Taurus, she was down-to-earth in her approach and her humour, and used common sense to exude a kind of soft power world-wide. Her knowledge and wisdom were appreciated by many leaders, both at home and abroad. She never seemed to complain and just ‘got on with it’, advice she also gave to the New Zealand Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern, when she asked the queen about combining motherhood and leadership.

Old fashioned duty and service

Queen Elizabeth was born with Saturn directly above her, a placement that reflects a mission and reputation of hard work and duty. This was also emphasised by her Capricorn rising, an image of responsibility and authority. You do what you promise to do. And she did that for seventy years. I can’t imagine how anyone would cope with being in the spotlight of the world for even longer than that. But Saturn helped her put up boundaries around her private life. And I think her Moon, being in the sign of Leo – the sign of royalty – may have meant she liked the attention. Not to mention the bright colours and the hats! She will be an impossible act to follow.

Virgo season

It is very fitting that she died at this time of year. And in rural Scotland – her favourite place. Virgo loves nature and ritual, and her mourning period and funeral services, both the state one and the more private one at Windsor, where she is buried, were rich in both symbolism and ritual. When such a leader dies, it affects everyone who knew them, and for the queen, this was pretty much the entire world. We resonate with fields of ancient symbols and many myths and stories are reanimated with such an outpouring of emotion.

A spiritual queen

The Christian faith was very important to her late majesty and her funeral services reflected that, as she had a hand in everything that was agreed. The funeral had been planned for many decades. Her horoscope shows a deeply spiritual side to her nature. According to some, she was unafraid of death and believed in the resurrection. I wonder how you follow that life if you come back again!

Resonating queues

‘The Queue’, as with typical British humour it became known, was very much a reflection of the queen’s values. At times the queue to see her lying in state was more than twenty-four hours long and stretched for about ten miles. People stood for hours, night and day, to pay their respects. No complaints! They too just ‘got on with it’ and apparently many made friends along the way. Some comments were – ‘We are British, we have practised our whole life for just this event’, and ‘If she can do service for 70 years, a day is the least we can do!’

The Queue

The Queue became an event in its own right. Even though many people were clearly grief-stricken, Twitter went crazy with funny comments. Gotta love the Brits. I think the queen would have been amused! I found it truly remarkable. And true to the archetypal nature of this event everything was brilliantly organised and controlled. The pomp and ceremony in the UK really can’t be matched. It was spectacular, and at times very moving. And hats off to the police as well. It can’t have been easy to keep everyone safe, especially considering all the foreign dignitaries who were in attendance. Even Joe and Jill Biden had to wait at one point! This was due to their ‘Beast’ transport being late and you can’t do that! That’s very un-Saturnian! Most other dignitaries came in a bus and were on time.

Symbolism and Myths 

There has been much discussion among astrologers regarding the time of the queen’s passing, not least because that is one time that can be used for the start of King Charles III’s reign. More on that below. However, the thing that caught my eye was, of course, Ceres. On the afternoon of September 8th, Ceres was making some of the closest aspects between planets. A sign that her myth and symbolism is relevant and being activated. The Moon and Saturn (a female authority figure) were very close together on that afternoon in Scotland and were closely opposing Ceres, the nature goddess, who understands the cycles of life and death. It was time to end a cycle and begin a new one. A natural era ends. And a new monarch takes over.

Ceres royalty

Both Queen Elizabeth and Charles have Ceres strongly emphasised. Looking first at the queen.

Being a Taurus, of course the queen loved nature. She also has the Moon, Ceres and Neptune together in the sign of Leo. This shows her love of animals and a need to connect with them. It also suggests a desire for spirituality to comfort her and be part of her life. She was known to favour homeopathy and natural healing methods. Healing times for her would also have included enjoying her family (Moon), which for her included her dogs and horses. Ceres also picks up Jupiter and Mars, showing a philosophy of protecting the earth and all her creatures. She was very aware of the cycles of life and death and had faith in the rituals that celebrate these events.

Plant symbols

The wreath on her coffin included symbols from nature. The new king played a big part in its making, selecting the flowers and plants from royal gardens. According to Buckingham Palace it included: Rosemary, for remembrance, Myrtle, an ancient symbol of a happy marriage, and English oak, a symbol of love. The myrtle was cut from a plant that was grown from a sprig of myrtle from the bouquet she carried at her marriage to the late Prince Philip. She will be glad to be reunited with him.

No surprise that Ceres was present at her death!

It is the end of an era. Ceres in the sky at the time of her death was in Leo – crossing her Leo planets, including her own Ceres. With Saturn and the Moon opposite Ceres in the sky, this sky pattern triggers her Mars and Jupiter too. A cycle of rulership ends. Ceres (Demeter) was the goddess associated with the Eleusinian mysteries, along with her daughter Persephone. These were events that anyone could attend as long as they spoke Greek, where participants walked in procession to attend secret rituals about the cycles of life and death. Shades of The Queue! Perhaps the queen, together with her eldest son, was re-enacting a sacred ritual.

New beginnings

Ceres knew that after life comes death, and after death comes life – there is nothing to fear. At age 73, King Charles III is charged with the task of creating a new beginning. I wish him luck! It will be no easy task, even though he has been preparing for it all his life.  Although he will be a very different monarch, there are ways he can easily follow in his mother’s footsteps. Archetypally anyway.

King Charles III has the symbol of the mother, the Moon, in Taurus together with the North node, that karmic symbol, on his mother’s Sun. A remarkably close connection. He is his mother’s son in that he too needs to be in nature, and likes to talk about it. Where his mother had a Ceres connection to the Moon, Charles has a connection between Ceres and the Sun, showing a life purpose to treat all animals and nature with respect, and to honour natural processes, such as organic farming, for which he is well-known.

A passionate king

He IS a passionate (Sun in Scorpio) Ceres king. Ceres next to Pluto shows his passion for Ceres activities. I think as well as his passion for organic food and natural products, he will also champion the underdog. He values (Venus) and will fight for (Mars) things that respect the environment and the earth. Like his mother, he also has a deep love of the spiritual (Venus with Neptune). There is a link to an article below which makes this very clear.

A different king

King Charles III is a Scorpio, a deeply private individual. Although he has a Leo ascendant, coming across as a royal in the spotlight, I think he will struggle with his need for privacy, even though he will be deeply committed to the role into which he is born. The Scorpio archetype is strong in his chart, meaning he has black and white beliefs and opinions. I suspect it will be hard for him to stay silent on issues he cares about. However, Sun in aspect to Pluto shows a strong emotional leader, who has the ability to transform. I wish him luck.

The time of his mother’s death also highlights Ceres and a new cycle for him. Ceres is on his Ceres-Pluto conjunction which is opposite his Moon-Saturn. Through his mother’s death (Moon-Pluto) a new cycle (Ceres) of responsibility (Saturn) begins.

The start of a new era

There are several charts that could be used to describe the start of the new king’s reign. One that hasn’t happened yet is the coronation, which will likely be in 2023. As mentioned above, Charles became king when his mother died, but that time is unclear. The chart I really like is the proclamation, where, after the new king signed documents and took oaths, he was proclaimed the King of the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland in the State Apartments at St James’s Palace. The Principal Proclamation was read in public for the first time by David White, the Garter King of Arms, from the balcony above Friary Court at St James’s. As scheduled, this took place at 11am on September 10th.  There were trumpets, and gun salutes in Hyde Park and at the Tower of London, to mark the occasion.

The Proclamation

This chart for this vital moment, is one that describes the reign of King Charles.  So what might it say about his kingship?

What I find astounding about this chart, is that it shows a to-the-second time of the Pisces-Virgo full Moon. Something has come to fruition, perhaps at last, as the Moon is in the last sign of the zodiac – Pisces! The Pisces-Virgo axis is about service, both practical and spiritual. Across the 11th and 5th house using my choice of house system, I think this augurs well for the wider community, and perhaps in particular for younger people.

Trouble to come?

With both the Sun and Venus in Virgo, practical help is a norm for this monarch. Ceres is still opposite Saturn – a sign that conservation and the environment will be taken seriously. However, as Ceres has a lot to do with the democratic process, this might mean difficulties for parliament. I think it shows a compassionate and rebellious monarch who will try to call out politicians if there is irresponsible leadership and detrimental policies.

A true defender of the people?

It’s possible that he could champion the plebs, but that remains to be seen. With Scorpio and Leo again featured on the Ascendant and MC (the image, mission and reputation of this monarch’s reign), the passion for quality and all things royal will remain.

RIP Elizabeth

I hope Queen Elizabeth can finally put her feet up and rest. Hopefully her husband, The Duke, and the long-gone corgis came to meet her. What amazing stamina the queen had to be able to inaugurate another Liz as the new Prime Minister of the United Kingdom just two days before her death. Rest in peace Ma’am.

Faye Blake

Websites of the month

The article mentioned above –  ‘The Mystic Monarch: Charle’s Blakeian’  soul by Mark Vernon.

An article on ‘Why ritual is important’

Skyscript has a wonderful new website – an article on Virgo

More twitter fun from boredpanda

Quotes of the month

For astrologers

Queen Elizabeth II: 21 April 1926, 2:40, London, UK.

King Charles III: 14 November 1948, 21:14, Buckingham Palace, London, UK.

Death of Queen Elizabeth II: 8 September 2022, afternoon, Balmoral Castle, Scotland, UK.
Her death certificate, released after this post, shows a time of 15:10.

First Proclamation of King Charles III: 10 September 2022, 11:00, Westminster, UK.