The 'Black Munday' Eclipse of April 8th, 1652: Astrological Judgements in Uncertain Times
Anybody can make history. Only a great man can write it.*
In modern times eclipses came and went without much comment. Then came The Great American Eclipse of April 8th, 2024. I'm not sure exactly why this one was so special compared to the last one in 2017. Perhaps it was because it would last longer, the sky would be darker, and millions more would be able to see it. It would also be the last major North American eclipse for the next 20 years. Then there was also the possibility of being able to see the Pons-Brooks comet during totality. CERN scheduled itself to come out of hibernation, just in time for the eclipse, to look for theoretical dark matter. Some speculated that what they were really up to were experiments in time travel that might open a portal to future descendants or maybe even ultra-terrestrials. Meanwhile NASA blasted off three rockets, into the Moon’s shadow, in a salute to their favorite dark lord serpent master APEP. Yes, it seemed we were being primed for a big event while squadrons of planes flew overhead leaving behind a blanketing haze of contrails. A very odd day it was indeed
Eclipses in the past were taken more seriously, especially those eclipsing the entirety of the sun. In chapter one of the book Eclipses by Derek Appleby and Maurice McCann (1989) one eclipse in particular seems to have created quite a stir and reportedly provoked near panic, in all classes of men, throughout the country of England (p. 11):
On ‘Black Munday’, April 8th, 1652 at 10:30AM the Sun was eclipsed in the 19th degree of Aries and this phenomenon provoked something akin to panic throughout the country. The rich loaded up their coaches and fled from London while mountebanks did a thriving trade in cordials which purported to allay the effects of the eclipse. At Dalkeith, the poor were said to have thrown away their possessions, ‘casting themselves on their backs, and their eyes towards heaven and praying most passionately that Christ would let them see the sun again, and save them’. Panic and terror was not universal, however; the contemporary diarist John Evelyn, who seems to have spent much of his time listening to sermons, made the following entry for that day: ‘Was that celebrated, Eclipse of the Sun, so much threatened by the Astrologers, and had so exceedingly alarmed the whole Nation, so as hardly any would work, none stir out of their houses; so ridiculously were they abused by knavish and ignorant star-gazers’
There were several defining characteristics of the ‘Black Munday’ eclipse that were of great concern to the astrologers of the day, Saturn on the Ascendant was in opposition to its own sign, while also opposing Jupiter, in the sign of his fall. Furthermore, the Moon was applying, by square, to Saturn in the angular 1st house. The eclipse itself occurred in the angular 10th House of Kings, in the sign of Aries, ruled by Mars the planet of War. While our own April 8th eclipse shares much in common with the Black Munday eclipse, most of these foreboding characteristics are not amongst them. The exception is that both eclipses were in the sign of Aries. The eclipse of 2024 occurred in the weak cadent 9th house of international relations indicating that issues of war might remain overseas.
The famed physician, herbalist, and astrologer Nicholas Culpeper went all out saying “…Kings are mad, and subjects stubborn, violent diseases of choler, young men perished by the sword and by the pestilence, Cities are consumed by fire, and ruined, Countries are spoiled by injuries, murther, rapine and theeving, and the ayr is hot, pestilential and mortal”. The English Civil War was just ending, and the politically connected William Lilly had a somewhat more sober assessment of what to expect. He said that for two years and a quarter all of Europe would feel the effects of this ‘prodigious eclipse’. He predicted the eclipse would be very powerful for England and said there would be a change of rulership in Spain but made no such prediction for England. He further predicted that the English and Dutch would have a falling out. He then went on to compare the two races astrologically:
The English have Aries, a fiery, dry, manly and warlike sign on the Ascendant of England; the Hollanders have Cancer, a moist waterish and feminine, phlegmatic sign for their Ascendant. Aries has the representation of cattle, on which we feed; Cancer presents Fish, Herbs, and Trash on which the Hollander feeds: England is dry, mountainous: Holland is moist and waterish, low and Moorish: The English love War and to fight at land; the Hollander is totally for the sea. We have a commanding regal sign for England, they a weak and effeminate one. Aries beholds Cancer with a Quadrate. Neither nation love each other. In regard Mars doth signify England and the Moon both Scotland and the Hollander, and the two planets natures are so contrary as fire and water, therefore though we have done both Dutch and Scots so many civilities, and enriched both those unthankful people, and thereby have deserved so much at both their hands, yet they never did, nor will they ever effect us, yet will they ever be acting cruelties upon our People, whatsoever they can find vantage against them: besides the two signs Aries and Cancer do behold each other with square aspect, or an aspect of malice.The eclipse doth promise us many rich prizes from the Dutch, both in the Levant Sea, and on the coast of Turkey in the Straights and upon our own coasts, if they do not comply with our present authority, yae many within our own harbours.
While both eclipses share on overwrought reaction by the citizenry another commonality is that they occurred on a Monday. Both eclipses were on the ascending North node of the ecliptic. They were both at 19° Aries with Mercury in the sign of Aries. On both occasions Jupiter was in an earth sign, Saturn in a water sign, and Pluto in an air sign. Neptune was in the sign of Sagittarius in 1652; and in 2024 Pisces, both signs ruled by the planet Jupiter. Some foreboding planetary signs that were present in our eclipse of 2024 but were not present in the Black Munday eclipse included having Venus as a morning star in 2024 vs an evening star in 1652. Venus as a morning star is considered more warlike than the romantic evening star version of Venus. Two days after the 2024 eclipse Saturn and Mars, the two malefic planets came to a conjunction at 14 degrees Pisces.
In April of 1652 England was coming to the end of their civil war. While the United States is not directly involved in war, at this time, we are intimately implicated in two foreign wars involving Russia and the Palestinian people. On March 26th, 2 weeks before the 2024 eclipse our country experienced the dramatic destruction and collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, Maryland. This event impaired our naval fleet operations and transportation infrastructure the consequences of which are still being calculated. Occurring one day after a lunar eclipse, the bridge collapse can be considered to be a part of this eclipse season cycle. See Wade Caves fascinating astrological analysis of the Baltimore Bridge Collapse.
So what did William Lilly get right In his predictions?
The first Anglo-Dutch war effectively began in May of 1652 when The English engaged a Dutch fleet off Goodwin Sands causing them to withdraw. A declaration of war followed in July that culminated in the Battle of Texel on July 31st, 1653 when the combined Dutch fleet of 100 ships attempted to shatter an English blockade of equal strength. The Dutch were forced to withdraw after a loss of 30 ships, 1600 sailors and the death of their Admiral Maartin Tromp. The war ended with the signing of the Treaty of Westminster on April 5th, 1654. After the war, one man did rise to prominence when Oliver Cromwell dissolved the Rump Parliament. After the failure of the Barebones Parliament, Cromwell was installed as Lord Protector on December 16th, 1653 (p.16).
Traditional astrologers today would agree that the effects of the April 8th Great American Eclipse will be felt for the next two to three years. As in William Lilly’s time there is disagreement as to what those effects will be.
Fig. 1 shows the crossing paths of the two major eclipses from 2017 and 2024. I wonder if there isn’t a message encoded there. The city of Makanda, Illinois is located at the point where the two paths cross. The path of the 2024 eclipse starts at Eagle Pass, a central point for immigration concerns, continues on through the heartland and New England and on through the state of Maine. The city of Makanda is only a few short miles from the Mason Dixon line. Could it be a symbol of aggravated civil strife yet to come? The Francis Scott Key Bridge was itself very close to the Mason-Dixon line. Could one of our foreign entanglements result in conflagrations within our own borders? These are only idle speculations and not based upon any solid astrological foundation.
One final note, the 2024 eclipse does indicate portents of trouble for Trump. The eclipse at 19 degrees Aries is in a 2 degree opposition to his natal Jupiter at 17 degrees Libra. This by itself might not mean much except for the fact that Jupiter rules his natal 8th house of worries, obsession, and death. Trump certainly has his share of worries right now having just been convicted of 34 felonies. He may want to take it easy on the cheeseburgers for the near future. I have found other astrological indicators that point to March 5th, of 2025 as being a time particularly fraught with danger for him.