Acclaimed Irish writer, activist, critic and card-carrying Leo George Bernard Shaw argued, “Kings are not born: they are made by universal hallucination.”
After the death of Queen Elizabeth II, Scorpio King Charles III ascended at last with pinky rings and sausage fingers to the throne.
The British royal family has been a point of curiosity and condemnation for centuries. Regal, ruthless and rich, their scandals, ceremonies, infighting and incest know no equal.
Indeed there are plenty of rotten roots and lamentable limbs in the royal family tree, not least of all disgraced super sleaze Andrew, a prince no more and a gentlemen never. And yet, those born in or married to this ménage continue to fascinate and instigate.
In an attempt to understand the discord and dynamics of the royal family we’re taking a look at their respective birth charts to glean how the stars weigh upon the crowns.
Read on to learn more.
ARIES (March 21 – April 19)
Prince Louis
While this tiny regent is a Taurus sun/Leo moon combo, his Mercury, planet of communication and his Midheaven, indicator of aspirations and achievement, are in the cardinal sign of Aries. Fire breathing, standard shaking, rule-breaking, Aries-influenced folk have a need to express themselves and exhaust their energies. Equal parts determined and destructive, they are rarely tactful but always entertaining. In addition to his Mercury and Midheaven, Louis has Uranus, planet of rebellion in Aries. High on fire, this combination suggests Louis is fearless when it comes to acting and acting out and our boy will be challenging convention and stealing the show for years to come.
TAURUS (April 20 – May 20)
Prince William
Born June 21, 1982, Prince William is a double Cancer with his sun and moon in the cardinal water sign. Notably however, his Venus, planet of love and attachment is conjunct Chiron, his OG pain point, in the fixed sign of Taurus. Chiron conjunct Venus is a challenging aspect in the birth chart and in relationship to Taurus suggests insecurity related to voice and self-worth. As Advanced-Astrology describes, “Self-sacrifice is often present in the life of a person with their Chiron conjunct Venus. Often, there is a fear of abandonment and being rejected. These feelings are usually connected to childhood memories, and you learned that the only way to keep your partner with you is by giving up on your own desires if they don’t align with your partner’s wants.” We can easily see how William’s absorption of his parents’ divorce and his mother’s untimely death may have contributed to the proliferation of this wounding and helped to shape the sacrificial nature of his adult relationships.
GEMINI (May 21 – June 20)
Muick and Sandy
The Queen’s beloved Corgis, Muick and Sandy are a pair of siblings that evoke the mythical twins Castro and Pollux, symbols of the mutable air sign of Gemini. Highly communicative and ruled by messenger planet Mercury, Gemini oversees information exchange including viral media. Cue the royal hounds who have become something of a sentimental sensation after being photographed looking cute if a little short of leg and heavy of heart while waiting for the Queen’s hearse to arrive at Windsor Castle on the day of her majesty’s funeral.
CANCER (June 21 – July 22)
Camilla Parker Bowles
Born July 17, 1947, Camilla Paker Bowles is a quad point Cancer with her sun, moon, Mercury, and Venus all in the sign of the crab. Cancer rules the fourth house of home and aligns with the archetype of the mother. Cancer women are compassionate, emotionally manipulative, seriously devoted, self-sacrificing and utterly shameless when it comes to getting what they want out of love. Water sees water so it tracks that a Cancer like Camilla would keep company with, and one claw upon, a Scorpio like Charles.
LEO (July 23 – August 22)
Kate Middleton
Cardinal to the hilt, Kate Middleton has a Capricorn sun and Cancer moon but her ascendant is in the limelight-loving, tiara tipping sign of Leo. Leo risings are primed for induction into royalty because they are born believing they are destined for greatness and sometimes, they’re right. These are people who know their angles, play the game and understand the power of PR and a good tailor.
VIRGO (August 23 – September 22)
Sarah Ferguson Duchess of York
Born under the sun sign of Libra, Sarah Ferguson has Venus, planet of love and attachment in the mutable sign of Virgo. Venus is said to be in fall in Virgo, meaning its ability to express itself in a full or healthy way is restricted. Virgo is famously critical and in relationship to Venus, which governs aesthetics, it indicates a person that is very hard on themselves and acutely self-conscious about their appearance. We see this clearly in Ferguson whose weight became a ruthless point of tabloid discussion that contributed to her mental health struggles and insecurity. Virgo is ruled by Mercury and Ferguson seems to have found self-love through literature, authoring upwards of sixty books. Virgos are fastidious and bright and absolutely live to slum it in their romantic relationships. We see this expressed in Ferguson who, despite divorcing the ick monster Andrew Windsor in 1996, continues to cohabitate and take afternoon tea with him.
LIBRA (September 23 – October 22)
Meghan Markle
A Leo sun, Meghan Markle’s moon is in the righteous sign of Libra, a placement that suggests her needs and wants are activated through and by her primary partnership. Her lunar identity is evident in her successful lifestyle blog The Tig. The highest and most apropos purpose for a Libra moon is to sort out, call out and recalibrate anything and anyone that is unjust be it bad lighting or systemic bias. We see this balancing act in Markle who fearlessly pointed to, and wanted free of, what she alleges are the damaging, racist and outdated modalities of the British monarchy.
SCORPIO (October 23 – November 21)
King Charles
Scorpio rules the eighth house of sex, death, other people’s money and personal transformation. True to form, the life of scorpion Charles, born November 14, 1948, has been defined by those pillars; his affair with Camilla Parker Bowles ended his marriage to Princess Diana whose untimely death irrevocably changed the course of his life and damaged his public perception. Recently, the death of his mother the Queen led to a regal rebirth for Charles who was named king shortly afterward. Scorpios are particular people and Charles is no exception, his list of daily demands includes precisely warmed biscuits, ironed shoelaces and a traveling toilet seat.
SAGITTARIUS (November 22 – December 21)
Prince Harry
While Harry was born under the sign of Virgo and Mars, planet of action, Neptune planet of dreams and Uranus planet of rebellion all in swashbuckling Sagittarius. Sagittarius is the bon vivant of the zodiac and those with serious Sag placements are born to go their own way. We see this in Harry who isn’t above a little strip poker for sport or royal abdication for personal freedom.
CAPRICORN (December 22 – January 19)
Queen Elizabeth
While Queen Elizabeth was born under the sun sign of Taurus, her rising sign was Capricorn and serves to explain her public perception and lengthy reign. Capricorn is ruled by Saturn and the energy here is “I endure” as the Queen certainly did during her seventy-year stint on the throne. Stoic, Capricorns tend to support rather than subvert the status quo. They’re about maintaining order and the old guard and in the case of the Queen, minimizing and or obscuring some of the many crimes committed by and in the name of the British crown. Strategists that value decorum, Caps rarely reveal feelings, discontent or vulnerabilities and are likely to dismiss or damn those that do as the Queen allegedly did to both Princess Diana and Meghan Markle.
AQUARIUS (January 20 – February 18)
Princess Diana
Though Diana, uncontested Queen of Hearts, was born on July 1, 1961, and thus a Cancer, but her moon and Jupiter were in the revolutionary sign of Aquarius. By nature, water bearers exist to question convention, push boundaries and dissolve what has been in favor of what could be. With her candor, vulnerability and fearlessness, Diana threatened and redefined the traditional role of a regent. Aquarius rules the eleventh house of community and water bearer energy is concerned with utopian ideals and compassionate action. For her part, Diana used her public station to bring awareness to the plight of people in pain and never hesitated to put herself at risk for the benefit of others.
PISCES (February 19 – March 20)
Andrew Duke of Windsor
Disgraced former Prince Andrew was born with his sun at 0 degrees Pisces. In astrology, O is considered a critical degree that indicates the native will experience and enact the qualities of that sign intensely, for better or worse. Pisces is the sign of the escape artist who prefers to retreat into the world of fantasy rather than confront the hard realities of their waking lives. At best, this retreat encourages art and imagination, poetry and a rose-colored worldview, at worst it breeds dark, diluted pleasure seekers. Pisces is ruled by Neptune, the planet of dreams and delusions and that influence can manifest as deceit, destruction and the inability to take accountability for their actions or reckon with the pain they cause. This is the sinister expression of the sign embodied by Andrew Windsor, who has been accused of sexual abuse and kept company with pedophile and human trafficker Jeffrey Epstein.
Astrology 101: Your guide to the stars
Astrologer Reda Wigle researches and irreverently reports back on planetary configurations and their effect on each zodiac sign. Her horoscopes integrate history, poetry, pop culture and personal experience. She is also an accomplished writer who has profiled a variety of artists and performers, as well as extensively chronicled her experiences while traveling. Among the many intriguing topics she has tackled are cemetery etiquette, her love for dive bars, Cuban Airbnbs, a “girls guide” to strip clubs and the “weirdest” foods available abroad.
