BREXIT

(This article was written in March and printed in The Mountain Astrologer in May 2016. Now I am making it available here.)

David Cameron is clearly a nice guy. Wouldn’t you be, if you had Libra rising with Venus in Libra, just like lovable Bill Clinton? He is also a person born in the lap of privilege and luxury, educated in Eton and subsequently Oxford, which is well reflected by his Moon in Leo on the 11^th house cusp conjoining Jupiter. He has launched Britain on two potentially disastrous referendums – the Scottish vote on independence in 2014 and the imminent vote on June 23^rd 2016 to decide whether the UK will remain in the European Union. Perhaps, when you are a strong Libran type, you just like asking people to decide things for you.

David Cameron. October 9 1966  6.00 Wantage, UK (AS 0.40 LI)

Horoscope for Referendum
If you want to predict something as simple as a Yes/No vote, then one option is to consult the bookies, and right now they give considerably higher odds for Britain staying in the EU than exiting (Brexit). Of course they have experience in these matters. But they got it wrong in the last UK election, when the Conservatives won an absolute majority against the odds. Using another option, astrology, you can try to interpret the winner by studying the horoscope for the opening of polls at 7 a.m. for the capital London. This is a really interesting horoscope!

UK Referendum on EU. June 23^rd 2016. 7.00 a.m. London (AS 27.47 CN)

The Sun/Venus conjunction in Cancer in the 12^th trine Neptune reflects the fact that Britain is a self-sufficient island nation, which enjoys splendid isolation. A traditional interpretation of the outcome of the referendum might be found by looking at the movement of the Moon, which in this case is in Aquarius and the 7^th house, nicely reflecting the focus on that union of states over the water and all those foreigners. Following the movement of the Moon, it makes a sextile to Saturn in Sagittarius during the course of the day, and there you have it: the British people really do want to be part of an international organization.

Jupiter and the Nodes
An alternative astrological process would be to try and understand just how the horoscope for this most significant day reflects what is going on. How fascinating it is that Jupiter finally conjoins the North Node at 16 Virgo! Jupiter nearly conjoined the Node months back, but went retrograde on January 8^th 2016 at 23 Virgo just one degree from the Node, which of course is always on a backwards trajectory through the zodiac.

So what does this meeting actually mean? The Nodes often show relationships or unions, and Jupiter conjoining the Node in the referendum horoscope’s 3^rd house might indicate a foreign, but neighboring organization, which is very bureaucratic. Does the fact that the conjunction happens on this day mean opting to be with the organization, or opting to separate from it? If you view the North Node as embracing the future, then perhaps this is a vote to be part of the organization.

It must be significant that when the United Kingdom actually did join the European Union on 1^st January 1973 Jupiter was also conjoining the North Node, exactly, at 17 Capricorn. Transiting Pluto is within a degree of this conjunction on referendum day, indicating the ideological crisis voters in the United Kingdom are undergoing. Fascinatingly when the UK joined, Uranus was at 22.26 Libra – it has gone half-circle and is at 23 Aries at the referendum. More about this degree later.

Mars and Uranus
The referendum chart is very complicated because of a series of aspects focused on 16 degrees. Pluto is at 16 Capricorn, trine Jupiter/Node, whilst Mercury, which disposes of Jupiter, is at 16 Gemini square Jupiter. The Pluto trine, which is the last of a set of three, might well indicate organizational restructuring, which has a beneficial effect… a healthy transformation process. The Mercury square clearly indicates a cacophony of voices with widely diverse opinions and compelling arguments on both sides. This referendum date perfectly captures the polarizing nature of the EU debate.

It is also fascinating that, after a long retrograde period, Mars at 23 Scorpio is set to move direct, dwelling for a long period in an exact quincunx to Uranus at 23 Aries. Crunch time is coming, and there is a lot of anxiety and uncertainty. As far as Europe is concerned, Brexit would be a disastrous setback for the European idea, which is already on the rocks because of the huge influx of refugees from the Middle East. The EU has a Mars/Pluto conjunction at 24 Scorpio opposing the Moon at 24 Taurus, so this retrograde Mars awakens all kinds of latent fears.

Showdown for Cameron
David Cameron must also be trembling in his boots, because if the UK electorate rejects the EU, he will lose credibility as a leader and may be kicked out by his party. Assuming his birth time is correct, his Ascendant progressed is exactly conjoining his Mercury in Scorpio and the 2^nd house (and trine his Ceres) in the months leading up to the referendum. Despite being born with a silver spoon in his mouth, Cameron has had his share of trials, not least the death of his seriously ill son when the boy was six years old. This could be traced to the 5^th house ruler Saturn conjoining Chiron in Cameron’s 6^th house, but it is worth noting that Cameron is born in 1966 – the Year of the Fire Horse – seen, at least in Chinese astrology, as very inauspicious. This is the year of the exact Uranus/Pluto conjunction, and this conjunction makes a semisquare to his Mercury, which is probably connected to his son’s illness – epilepsy and cerebral palsy. Obviously, when his Ascendant progressed conjoins Mercury in Scorpio, it also activates Pluto, which indicates that the whole referendum process is a mentally exhausting process for him.

Eris, Ceres and Uranus and Boadicea
There is one other completely extraordinary factor in the June referendum chart, and that is that Uranus at 23 Aries is also conjoining Eris and Ceres on the same degree. What are the odds for that, and what on earth does it mean? Eris has been equated with Persephone, and Ceres with Demeter, so mother and daughter are hanging out, rather angrily and unpredictably with Uranus, and with the quincunx to Mars in Scorpio, hell-bent on radical action and inaugurating a period of martial glory.

This combination is reminiscent of that iconic fury Boadicea, who gave the Romans a dose of their own medicine, scything them down with her chariot. Boadicea was the daughter of a Celtic king, who had a treaty with Rome, which was abrogated after her father’s death, whereupon she was flogged and her daughters raped. As a result she wasn’t very keen on Romans. In AD 61 she gathered 100,000 warriors and defeated the Romans and destroyed Londinium. Boadicea was portrayed on the English penny since Victorian times and she has become a cultural symbol of the United Kingdom. Boadicea wasn’t having any of those Europeans on her island.

Significant Degree
Looking at significant horoscopes for Britain, 22-23 degrees turns up time and time again. The very first person to name himself king of a unified Britain was Athelstan, on July 12^th 927 in Penrith, and Uranus was at 22.58 Aries at this moment (its position in the coming referendum), with the Sun and Mercury at 23 Cancer. (Note 1) The 1066 chart for Britain (Note 2) has an Ascendant of 22.17 Aries, if we assume the coronation of William the Conqueror was crowned at noon. At the Glorious Revolution, which established a democratic government with limited monarchy (Note 3) in February 1689, the Moon was at 22 Aries and Pluto 23 Cancer. The powerful United Kingdom chart for January 1^st, 1801 has Saturn 23 Leo. (Note 4) When Eire attained independence from the UK in 1922 (Note 5), the Moon was at 23 Cancer.

It appears that the conjunction of Uranus, Ceres and Eris on the referendum date reflects the disruptive, patriotic and revolutionary tendencies, which are part of the psychology of the British Isles. The Brexit voters gather under this banner – they don’t want Europe, and they don’t need Europe. This conjunction is fiercely independent and warrior-like, and can do without Roman and Norman invasions, as well as cheap labor from Eastern Europe and those Jupiter/Node-in-Virgo Brussels bureaucrats.

The Horoscope for EU
Europe itself is going through a bad time. Although there are many iterations of the European project, from the Treaty of Rome in 1957 to the adoption of the Euro on January 1^st 1999, the horoscope that best reflects the EU is its actual official foundation at the Treaty of Maastricht on November 1^st 1993. (Note 6)

The European Union: November 1st 1993. 0.00 a.m. Brussels. (AS 17.15 LE)

If you progress this horoscope (by Naibod in RA) to the UK referendum, the MC/IC axis actually reaches 24 degrees Taurus/Scorpio, activating the massive opposition of the Moon to Mars/Pluto also at 24 degrees. This opposition shows just how powerful the EU is, as well as the dominance of trade and economic values. (This opposition incidentally falls on the Moon at 25 Taurus opposing Saturn at 25 Scorpio in the horoscope for the Conservative Party, reflecting the power struggles within the party because of the EU – Note 6).

The MC progression activates the latent paranoia in the EU, and will trigger a draconian surveillance and control program. This of course is exactly what is happening as a reaction to the tsunami of refugees, which has forced the closing of borders, and nurtured anxiety about terrorist infiltration. Naturally too, there is the added anxiety of the UK leaving the union, and the general sense that the EU is fighting for its survival. But basically the strong Mars and exalted Moon, constellating with the Saturn/Pluto square indicates an institution with incredible survival powers.

The EU was founded with Uranus conjoining Neptune within 4 minutes of arc, irrevocably linking this institution to the 172-year conjunction cycle of these two planets, which in itself suggests a long life. This conjunction is in the 6^th house, which reflects the free movement of labor. This is of course one of the main objections that the UK has, as its labor markets are flooded with migrants from Eastern Europe. It also shows immigrants from very different cultures fleeing trauma from lands outside the EU, who have to be integrated into the workforce. The conjunction at 18 degrees Capricorn is on the Jupiter/Node conjunction of the UK’s accession to the EU in 1973, which is why the current Pluto transit is creating upheaval both in the EU and Britain.

Please keep our Flag
One unintended consequence of Brexit is the possibility that Scotland will insist on a new referendum for independence, and perhaps even Northern Ireland. Scotland has always supported the EU, and it embraces the Scandinavian style democracy that it offers, in strong contrast to Englishness and the aristocratic rule, which they have a historical aversion to.

So I worry about the Union Jack, really. The English flag (a red cross) is very boring, and the Scottish flag, a diagonal white cross on a blue background, is only marginally more interesting. So please, all you British patriots, please don’t vote for Brexit. Anyway, I am going with the bookies this time.

Adrian Duncan. March 16^th 2016.

1. Unification of Britain under 1^st king: July 12^th 927 in Penrith. (Source: Book of World Horoscopes – Nick Campion.)
2. Crowning of William the Conqueror: December 25^th 1066. 12.00 p.m. London (Ibid.)
3. The Glorious Revolution: February 23^rd 1689. 10.00 London (Ibid.)
4. United Kingdom: January 1^st, 1801. 0.00 a.m. London. (Ibid.)
5. Irish Independence: December 7^th 1922. 15.28 p.m. London. (Ibid.)
6. Maastricht Treaty – Single European Act: November 1^st 1993. 0.00 Brussels. (Ibid.)
7. The Conservative Party: November 12^th 1867. London (Ibid.)