On Monday, February 4, 2013, scientists at England’s University of Leicester announced that the skeletal remains found in September at an archeological dig under a parking lot had been identified as those of Richard III, Shakespeare’s villainous, nephew-murdering monarch. The skeleton, which showed signs of severe violence causing death, and a spinal curvature which may account for Richard’s “hunchbacked” reputation, was positively identified using a comparison of its mitochondrial DNA with that of Michael Ibsen, a Canadian cabinetmaker who is a direct descendant of Richard’s sister, Anne of York.
Richard III ruled England for just two years at the end of the fifteenth-century period of kin strife and civil conflict known as “The Wars of the Roses.” He was killed in battle by challenger Henry Tudor, father of Henry VIII, who overthrew this last king of the Plantagenet line which had ruled England for over 300 years, and established the Tudor dynasty.
Richard was the last king of England to die in battle, and Shakespeare in his historically-based tragedy paints a vivid account of his fall, as the unhorsed Richard desperately seeks another mount to escape the fiasco (“A horse! A horse! My kingdom for a horse!”). By local tradition, Richard’s crown rolled from his head in his death agonies, coming to rest under a furze bush, from where it was retrieved and placed on the head of his victorious rival.
Richard’s body was stripped, desecrated, and brought back from Bosworth Field to be buried in the graveyard of the Greyfriars Church. Subsequent commercial development and urban sprawl over centuries caused the body’s exact location to be lost. A team of archeologists from nearby Leicester began an excavation of a parking lot deemed to be atop the former site of the Greyfriars cemetery in August of 2012, and the remains were discovered two weeks later. Analysis required several months, until the results confirming Richard’s identity were released February 4.
Richard Buckley, lead archaeologist on the dig, stated that the body had been crammed into a grave too small for its size, with the head craned awkwardly and the hands possibly tied together. The skull showed knife or dagger damage to the jaw, the cheek, and was missing a portion at its base, presumably cut by an axe or sword. The body is expected to be reinterred in Leicester Cathedral, but the town of York is disputing this final resting place, as for most of his life, until becoming king, Richard was known as the Duke of York.
Lois Rodden’s Astro-Databank gives Richard’s birth data as 2 October 1452, at 9:02 AM, with a “C” rating, meaning the time of birth is unsourced, but traditional. However, that chart shows some very strong connections to the press conference on February 4, 2013, when the results of the DNA testing were announced.
Principally, for the press conference date, a conjunction of Saturn (ruling skeletons, death and burial) at 11 Scorpio with asteroid Rey (#13647, Spanish for “King”) at 16 Scorpio falls on the purported 15 Scorpio Ascendant of Richard’s chart, indicating a very personal, dynamic connection to the events. Additionally, Saturn/Rey are squared the transit Sun at 15 Aquarius, marking it as a day of importance for the subject of a King’s (Rey) death (Saturn) generally, and tying to Richard specifically in the exact solar square to his Ascendant. Transit Mercury (ruling news and press conferences) at 28 Aquarius lies exactly on a Black Hole, indicating an altered reality, the emergence of something startling and unexpected, and is conjoined Richard’s natal Jupiter (renown, royalty) at 27 Aquarius, with transit Atropos (named for the mythic Greek Fate who severs the thread of life at death) at 26 Taurus in square, also conjunct Richard’s natal 28 Taurus Moon (the physical body).
Transit asteroid Richard (#3972) falls at 2 Sagittarius, forming a Grand Cross by an exact square to a pairing of transit Mars (battles, violent death) and Neptune (mysteries, disappearances) at 2 Pisces, an opposition to transit Jupiter at 6 Gemini, and a square to Richard’s natal Midheaven (reputation, worldly status, and his “career” as king) at 3 Virgo. (Asteroid Richard here is also representative of the lead archaeologist on the dig, Richard Buckley.) Asteroid King (#2305) joins the Mars/Neptune pair from 3 Pisces, and also represents the head of the genetics department at the University of Leicester, Turi King, who released the findings. This puts the Mars/Neptune/King grouping closely on Richard’s natal Nadir at 2 Pisces, a foundational point representing family and genetic origins, which factor prominently in the story.
Transit asteroid York (#28220, for Richard’s former title of Duke of York) at 25 Capricorn conjoins transit Osiris (named for the Egyptian god of the dead) at 29 Capricorn, and these in turn are within orb of transit Venus at 3 Aquarius and asteroid Requiem (named for the funeral mass for the dead) at 4 Aquarius. Along with appearance (the skull was used to reconstruct an image of Richard’s face), Venus rules crowns, which form a memorable part of the legend about Richard’s death. York is also exactly squared by transit asteroid Lachesis, named for the Greek Fate who determines the span of life, at 25 Aries.
Another unusual celestial event which haunts this discovery is the ongoing series of lunar occultations of Pluto, occurring every month from April 2012 through August 2013. Occultations are essentially types of eclipses, with one body obscuring another from our perspective, and like the better known solar and lunar eclipses, they highlight and bring attention to the affairs they activate. The Moon rules the public, Pluto rules graveyards as well as DNA, and the archeological dig which uncovered the remains began on August 25, just two days before a Moon/Pluto occultation, while the DNA results were made public just three days before another.
Alex Miller is a professional writer and astrologer, whose website AlexAsteroidAstrology.com offers a trove of info on the role of asteroids in personal and mundane astrology. He is the author of The Black Hole Book (available on Amazon.com) and The Urban Wicca, former editor of “The Galactic Calendar,” and past president of The Philadelphia Astrological Society. His pioneering work with Black Holes in astrological interpretation began in 1991, when his progressed Sun unwittingly fell into one. Alex’s books and writings are available on his website. Alex can also be reached for comment or services at .
The dispositor of Richard’s stellium in Libra, Venus, is in its detriment in Scorpio in his chart, and Venus squares Jupiter. Therefore, since Scorpio means “other people’s money,” etc., I think this shows covetousness, the desire for what others have. Square to Jupiter makes it greed. Greed is a deadly sin and covetousness is in the Ten Commandments. This man had some deadly faults. And with Mars in Aries afflicting his stellium in Libra, he was aggressive and war-prone, also destructive. But to kill one’s own nephews is a heinous crime, especially w hen they are children. In the Shakespeare play, “Richard III, ” he is also implicated in the death of his brother, the Duke of Clarence, by persuading Edward IV to kill him. Ruthless greed for power. Was this man worse than Henry VIII or MacBeth?
Who is the worst?
I was talking about the historic changes that accrue when two outers are conjunct. Uranus/Pluto were conj. in Richard’s chart, in Leo. They were conj. in l963, when Kennedy was shot, and that was a momentous change, too, the overthrow of the government. Also, there was the Civil Rights movement in the sixties, the overthrow of the old servant (Virgo)-boss power structure. Also, the ideal of chastity and purity (Virgo) was overthrown in the sixties. Even cleanliness and propriety in speech (Virgo) came into question with the hippie “filthy speech” movement and the purported unkempt hygiene of the hippies.
When Uranus and Pluto were conj. in Virgo in the l960’s, there was the draft, Pluto meaning coercion, and Virgo representing the military service. Drafted to Viet Nam. Uranus being part of this conjunction, however, shows the widespread rebellion against the draft. Uranus conj. Pluto also means sudden or unexpected death, Uranus meaning suddenness, and Pluto meaning death. There were major assassinations in the sixties,
those of Pres. Kennedy, Bobby Kennedy, and Martin Luther King. The Uranus/Pluto conj. in Leo in Richard III’s chart shows the assassination of the sons of Edward IV by Richard, when, as legends tell, he killed his own nephews, one of them being the young uncrowned king, Edward V. Also, I think that the pious but mad Lancastrian king Henry VI, overthrown in war by the Yorkists, was secretly killed. Later, the killing of Richard III in battle was similar to an assassination of a king, since he was killed by unnatural causes. Having caused the violent end of several kings, he met a violent end as king himself. “He who lives by the sword will die by the sword.” “A house divided against itself cannot stand.”
Saturn and Pluto were conj. in l948, and this marked the start of Israel, the Cold War, the Berlin Airlift, the nuclear arms race (Saturn and Pluto being in Leo). Saturn and Pluto in Leo marked the fall of the Iron Curtain and the communization of Eastern Europe. This was the oppression of Eastern Europe by the Soviet Union. Saturn being in detriment in Leo, this conjunction showed abuse of power.
The conjunction of Uranus and Neptune in Capricorn in the l980’s marked the weakening of Communism, and the fall of the Berlin Wall, and the unraveling of the USSR. Uranus in Capricorn denoted the overthrow of governments and power structures, and Neptune being in its fall in Capricorn, Communism, which is governed by Neptune, was weakened. Capricorn being a sign of big business, the MBA became the degree of choice for yuppies, who displaced hippies as the in crowd.
Note that the Boston bomber, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, born in l993, has a conj. of Uranus and Neptune in Capricorn in his chart. Therefore, he is stamped with that consciousness of governmental overthrow and rebellion. He perpetrated an act of terrorism, which is a protest against what he must consider to be the unjust government of his adopted country, the US.
I forgot to mention that Richard’s MC was conjunct Regulus, the king. Also, his four-planet stellium in Libra means power, as conjunctions always do. Furthermore, when outer planets are conjunct, like his Uranus and Pluto conj. in Leo, there is often something of historic importance about the native. Check out the o uters conjunct in the chart of Martin Luther. The Neptune-Pluto conjunction in Gemini in the late l800’s belonged in the charts of many who fought and died in WWI. Gemini meant the youth, and Neptune meant the sacrifice of these youth, and Pluto, their death. However, this was a brilliant conjunction for oratory and writing. Note that Adolf Hitler had this conjunction in his chart, and what an orator he was! I have read that the IQ of the world has been lower since WWI, since the flower of E urope’s universities got killed in t he trenches of France. What about the Saturn/Uranus conjunction in Gemini in 1941, during WWII? Historic events of great importance led to inventions of an intellectual type. In particular, computers, the atom bomb, rockets, etc. What about t he conjunction of two outers in 1914, at the beginning of WWI? Saturn was conj. Pluto in Cancer. And this war led to the destruction (Pluto) of hereditary (Cancer) power structures (Saturn), namely, many royal dynasties of Europe. The Romanov Dynasty of Russia, the Hohenzollern Dynasty of Germany, and I think the Hapsburg Dynasty of Austria, all fell. And in Richard’s case, the Uranus/Pluto conj in Leo, sign of royalty, the changeover of a dynasty happened because of Richard. His defeat at Bosworth not only overthrew the York Dynasty, but he was also the last Plantagenet.
Well, I went and looked at his chart on astro.com. Uranus and Pluto conjunct in Leo, elevated, opposing Moon in Aquarius, is interesting. Uranus in Leo implies the overthrow of a king, and Pluto, the death of a king, with Uranus, the unexpected death of a king by overthrow. And opposed to Moon in Aquarius, something dreadful for his family is implied. Moon opp. Pluto–the murder of his family members? Death of his family or dynasty? Mars in Aries is aggressive and warlike, and this opposes his Saturn and Mercury in Libra. Aggressive thoughts? With Mars opposing so many planets in Libra, it implies his upsetting of the peace. By transition of light, can we consider Mars to be also opposite his Sun? When both luminaries are afflicted by a malefic, especially Mars, which rules death, it does not bode well for length of life. Mars opp. Sun would show arrogance as well as aggression. Sun conj. Neptune would show devious plotting and sneakiness. Now, question is, where was the black hole in 1452 which is at the beginning of Libra now? I mean, Black Hole Adonis, supermassive black hole? Was his Neptune in this hole?
Does the Uranus/Pluto conjunction in Leo opp. Moon show afflictions to the back, ruled by Leo? Also, Saturn being afflicted by Mars, since Saturn rules the bones and skeleton, may be an indication of a flaw in the skeleton of the man, in his back. And his Sun in Libra, the fall of the sun, being conjunct Neptune, can show a weakness in the back.
“Now is the winter of our discontent made glorious summer by this sun of York.”…………
I am astonished that after all these centuries, they could still
link the DNA of Richard’s skeleton to that of a modern descendant, who was descended from his sister. That means that if they disinterred the bones of King Edward III and took a sample, they could link him to little ol’ me. You know, those snooty Brits on youtube, when I was looking at a vid of the Battle of Towton, and I told them I had an ancestor killed in that battle, and was an American, they did not believe me. But I have it traced through every generatin on ancestry.com. They seem to forget that British lords ruled the American colonies until American independence, and these lords left descendants over here. My eleventh great grandpa, George Calvert, Lord Baltimore, founded Maryland. His son, Leonard Calvert, was the first governor of Md., and he was my tenth ggpa. Those Brits think we are a bunch of cretins and peons over here. I guess they think we are all descended from Bigfoot.
Dear Alex, What an interesting article! The face is not as good-looking as Laurence Olivier, who played him in the movie. I thought Richard was the Duke of Gloucester. At least, in the Shakespeare play, he was. The portrait looks a bit like the skull face reconstruction. What irony, to be buried beneath a parking lot. Well, if he really killed t he princes in the Tower, he had some really bad karma. My ancestors were the House of Lancaster, as I am descended from John of Gaunt, the Duke of Lancaster, son of Edward III. They usurped the crown from Richard II, son of Edward the Black Prince. The Lancastrians only ruled for three generations, Henry IV and V, and then Henry VI was overthrown by the Yorkists. But t he Yorkists only had two kings to rule, Edward IV and Richard III. So everyone had bad karma. The Battle of Towton in 1461 changed the dynastry from Lancaster to York, and 28,000 men were killed in that one battle, 2 per cent of the w hole population of England at that time. Battle axes, up close and personal, and this was a gory battle. Where was Richard III born? We need to do a chart for him, to see if brutality is clearly seen there. Off to astro.com I go.