In Britain we have been celebrating the 448th birthday of the Bard, the greatest of all England’s literary greats, William Shakespeare. Speculation surrounds the day when he was actually born and I think that Astrology can help prove when his birthday actually is. One thing we do know for sure is that there is documented proof that he was baptised in Stratford upon Avon on 26th April 1564. Often babies were baptised 2-4 days after birth, and common knowledge has always been that he was born on 23rd April, but after looking at the stars I tend to disagree. One other piece of information given by Astro Databank is that William was born at 08.30am. This time seems reasonably accepted, although I do not know it’s veracity. In this piece, I try to explain that most astrological assumptions and speculation about his day of birth being the 23rd April are I believe incorrect.
The above chart if you are wondering is set for the 22nd April 1564 taking the 8.30 am time that everyone uses, the day I believe he was actually born on, but is adjusted as the Gregorian calendar was in use at the time of Shakespeare’s birth. It is remarkably similar to the chart quoted by Astro Databank and other astrologers, except the Moon is in the 4th house in Virgo rather than in Libra if he was born on 23rd April.
I have always seen that the great writers always seemed to have a strong Virgo influence in their chart. The combination of Taurean Sun and Virgo Moon seems to me a very logical mix for a writer and poet. One would have ease of expression, common sense and good organisational ability, vital in planning the plot structure of any piece of work. The Virgo Moon is sharp and insightful especially with language and writing & Shakespeare was a genius in using words and the expression of them. That is what we remember him for, not the romantic production and possibly the self-adulation of his work which would have been more expressed if he had had the Moon in Libra and had been born one day later. The Moon in the 4th house was very patriotic and very tied to his mother and his family. A Virgo Moon is very sensitive and shy about showing ones feelings & often there is tremendous love inside that cannot be expressed verbally, so one way to express these emotions would be through Virgo’s ruler Mercury - in writing. Mercury we find in the 10th house, the house of work and profession. It would not surprise me if most of the romantic sentiments that lay in his heart came out assertively in the manner of Aries where Mercury was found through his plays, sonnets and poems.
It is known that the Pluto in Pisces generations were blessed with unbelievable insight and intuition, here we have heightened imagination combined with lofty goals in life. With Pluto conjunct to a Pisces Midheaven, William would have been superbly imaginative and this talent was inherent in his being as the trine to his Cancerian ascendant showed. Pluto squared onto a very romantic and gentle Neptune Venus conjunction – here is love and idealism with a dark underbelly, light and shade, frivolity and depth of character.
This Venus Neptune conjunction opposed Uranus in the 5th house of creation, self-expression and love affairs. Having Uranus in the 5th would have had a crazy sense of humour, and would have been attracted to creative people of all creeds. Uranus in the 5th is spontaneous, kind and a bit eccentric. Rumours abound that William may have been gay. All I can say is that with a Venus/Uranus opposition it is possible. With Venus in the 12th house, one often wants to keep romantic liaisons behind closed doors, and the nature of Uranus is to experiment and “be different”.
With Sun in Taurus in the 11th house, the need to build a comfortable life for himself and his family would have driven William on to work hard. He would have shined in group work, working as part of a team and with Neptune also in the 11th house, here is the link to the theatre and to the troupes of actors of which William was one – he often appeared in his own productions.
He would have been a non-aggressive person, as Mars on his birth was in Cancer and with Mars in the 12th not very assertive in promoting himself, indeed his name only started to appear credited on his work once he had reached his 30’s. Mars in Cancer will protect one’s family at all costs and can get rather irritable – one with this position needs a supportive and understanding partner.
The final two planets on the chart to look at are Saturn and Jupiter in the first house. We have an interesting balance here of optimism and darker pessimism and he would have swung between the two depending on his mood of the time. Jupiter is in Leo, optimistic proud, seeing the big picture, loving the limelight knowledgeable and wise, feeling one is a king. Saturn is in Cancer, fearing emotional vulnerability, rejection and dependence on others. Having security of thought and being is key for Saturn in Cancer. Shakespeare was just as adept at writing light hearted verse and prose as he was tragic plays, reflecting those changing emotions present in his soul.
Now why was Shakespeare such a brilliant writer and why is he so revered? I think the answers lie in the connections of the planets to the fixed stars on his day of birth. Below is a list of connections between the planets and the stars for 22nd April 1564.
PARAN ANALYSIS – From Starlight programme (Bernadette Brady)
Day Start: Just before Sunrise (22 Apr 1564 04:31)
STARS ON ANGLES AT MOMENT
None
HELIACAL RISING STAR
Deneb Algedi - Rising 131 mins 15 secs before Sunrise -
Seeking the legal, physical or metaphyical laws that govern the world
HELIACAL SETTING STAR
Zuben Elgenubi - Setting 02 mins 42 secs before Sunrise -
To spend one's life trying to improve the quality of life for all
PARANS - BY ANGLE
RISING - Stars of Your Youth
Alkes as A North-Node is On Nadir orb 00 mins 15 secs -
To align oneself in order to represent a sacred issue, to carry the flame of an idea.
Menkar as l Neptune is Rising orb 00 mins 44 secs -
To lose one’s identity in a popular image, to be a fan of celebrities - Arising and lying hidden
Alphard as ; Pluto is Setting orb 01 mins 12 secs -
To look for a noble challenge or to be ruthless and seek retribution
Zosma as a Sun is Culminating orb 01 mins 14 secs -
To receive, or cause, suffering
Rigel as s Moon is On Nadir orb 01 mins 17 secs -
The metaphysician, or one who is drawn to alternative, or hidden wisdoms
Alphecca as s Moon is Rising orb 01 mins 24 secs -
A person who wants to leave a legacy - Curtailed passage
Sualocin as f Venus is Setting orb 01 mins 34 secs -
An artistic eye with colour, design or performance
CULMINATING - Stars of Your Prime
Sualocin as k Uranus is Setting orb 00 mins 35 secs -
To be a maverick, popular in one’s community or subculture.
Capella as f Venus is Culminating orb 00 mins 46 secs -
To challenge the values of society - Circumpolar
Spica as f Venus is Setting orb 01 mins 06 secs -
A master of getting one's needs met, a persuasive personality
Deneb Adige as f Venus is Rising orb 01 mins 12 secs -
The poetic soul struggling to live in the mundane world - Circumpolar
Deneb Adige as l Neptune is Rising orb 01 mins 46 secs -
To be involved with environmental issues to work in film or theatre - Circumpolar
Menkar as a Sun is Culminating orb 01 mins 51 secs -
Great success or great loss; to be a pawn in the winds of change - Arising and lying hidden
Spica as d Mercury is On Nadir orb 01 mins 55 secs -
Success through putting forward new ideas
SETTING - Stars of Your Latter Years -
Acumen as a Sun is Rising orb 00 mins 18 secs -
Personal attacks on one’s credibility
Pollux as k Uranus is Culminating orb 00 mins 19 secs -
To express or support unpopular but essential statements about society
Pollux as l Neptune is On Nadir orb 00 mins 22 secs -
One who experiences difficulties due to hasty action or ill-found decisions
Facies as A North-Node is Setting orb 00 mins 50 secs -
To be seen to work against injustice or corruption, to work against the abuse of power
Alcyone as ; Pluto is On Nadir orb 01 mins 42 secs -
To act prematurely, to live with little regard for the law and the customs of one’s culture
Ras Algethi as h Jupiter is Rising orb 01 mins 48 secs -
A person who promotes a more naturalistic approach to life - Curtailed passage
Bellatrix as ; Pluto is On Nadir orb 01 mins 52 secs -
To be born the underdog but to find success after a long, emotional and/or bitter struggle
ON NADIR - Stars of Your Foundation – How you are remembered after you die
Menkar as a Sun is On Nadir orb 00 mins 03 secs -
Great success or great loss; to be a pawn in the winds of change - Arising and lying hidden
Spica as d Mercury is Culminating orb 00 mins 11 secs -
Success through putting forward new ideas
Procyon as a Sun is Rising orb 00 mins 36 secs -
Exceptionally skilled, but needing to diversify this talent
Pollux as ; Pluto is Rising orb 00 mins 46 secs -
Methodical and painstaking research, to undertake a physical or intellectual journey knowing it will be hard
Procyon as ; Pluto is Rising orb 01 mins 16 secs -
An intuitive thinker, to suddenly find solutions to problems without applying oneself
Betelgeuse as s Moon is Setting orb 01 mins 50 secs -
An empowered person who is concerned with the quality of life
Murzim as A North-Node is Culminating orb 02 mins 00 secs -
To be identified with a body of knowledge
There are many connection to the creative arts, being popular and leaving a legacy of work in this collection of links between the fixed stars and the planets however the key star in my eyes is Spica which joined with both Venus and crucially Mercury on 22nd April. Spica is the brightest star in the constellation of Virgo, it is the wheat sheaf which the Virgin holds in her hand as in offering a gift. Virgo is one of the constellations that Mercury rules which makes this connection very powerful indeed, and the gift Spica bestows is brilliance and genius like quality in whatever one does, in this case through the power of communication, speech, quickness of mind and thought and through the ability of inventive writing. Of course that Mercury sat in the 10th house of career and we all know how brilliant Shakespeare was, especially revered years after he passed away.
Note also that Spica’s influence only started to be felt in his middle age, true by all historical accounts, as Shakespeare early in his writing career was seen as a young upstart whose writing was not regarded as special. If William had been born on either 21st or 23rd April 1564, this connection to the star Spica would not have been effective and thus he would not have benefitted from it’s blessing. Only on 22nd April could it have affected his character, and this is why I alone in the astrological community think that he was born one day earlier than everybody believes.
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