Why Meghan Is Brilliant For The Crown
On the left, Venus in Virgo, on the right, Venus in Pisces.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Harry and Meghan, are finally suing the tabloids.
The British media and the royal family have a weird symbiotic relationship. The media veers between creepy sycophancy and vicious criticism; relentless pursuit coupled with endless judgment. The family invites attention and demands privacy; grants interviews and expects deference.
The royal family has often had its privacy trespassed by the meeja — phone-hacking, telephoto lenses, and kiss and tell stories. Most heinously, Diana, Princess of Wales, was killed in a car crash while being pursued by paparazzi, photographed as she died.
The latest grown-up addition to the family, Meghan Markle, now Duchess of Sussex, has had a continuous savaging from certain sections of the press since she hooked up with dashing Prince Harry a few years ago. Unsurprisingly, she fell in love and got married under a series of eclipses in her Sun sign Leo: she had to give up her world to marry the man she loved.
Her crimes, according to certain journalists, as far as one can ascertain appear to be: being black, being American, being a woman, having opinions, and wanting some privacy. Also, being pregnant in public, not being pregnant in public, not wanting to show her baby to the press, showing her baby to the press, having a successful career before marriage, and wanting to use her position of privilege to do some good in the world.
In particular, some self-appointed experts are tremendously keen to give her advice on how to behave, like “a royal”. The sneering, thinly veiled racism and vulgar condescension from certain quarters is really rather shocking. (I don’t normally read that stuff, but I’ve just done so for the purposes of this story. And people, you sound cray-cray with the anti-Duchess obsession. You might want to ask yourselves what it says about you, take an ibuprofen and lie down with a cool flannel on your heads.)
Anyway I think the astrology tells the opposite story. Far from being a jumped-up embarrassment, Meghan is the best thing to happen to the royal family in years — at least as far as its most important member is concerned. The Queen is both head of the family and head of state. Indeed, she is the Crown — and as such, her relationship with Meghan is most important within that family.
Her synastry with Meghan is astonishing.
First of all, they have what’s called a cosmic marriage, an exact conjunction of the Sun and Moon at 12° Leo. This is a meeting of soul (the Queen) and creative ego (Meghan). This is a very special aspect between two charts, showing a real connection. You see it in a love-match. The Sun person often cheers up the Moon person. She reaches the parts others can’t reach. And the Moon person makes the Sun feel at home and able to be herself.
Appropriately for an actress, Meghan has the Sun in Leo. The Queen’s private Leo Moon suggests someone who is well attuned to drama. After all, what could be more theatrical than putting on a crown with massive diamonds and riding around in a golden carriage attended by page boys and heralds?
Both Her Maj and Meg must act in public anyway. Perhaps Meghan is able to do some of those flashy, warm Leoish things the Queen would like to do, but cannot because of her position.
Secondly, they have an exact opposition between Venuses at 13° Virgo-Pisces. Again, you see this kind of contact in the charts of lovers and friends. They have much to admire and learn from each other. Both those Venuses represent a kind of ideal woman — the Queen an impossibly distant Pisces, and Meghan an earthy Virgo. When you have synastry like this there’s bound to be fondness.
Those two precise aspects are enough to make any relationship swing. But there’s more. The Queen’s Sun is on the bendings of Meghan’s chart. Well, we know the current monarch is a pivotal person in the Duchess’s life, I suppose. Indeed, someone who has helped change her destiny.
The young Queen. Neptune (glamour) in Leo, the ultimate regal sign.
They also have an exact trine between Neptunes at 22° of fire signs — and there’s no doubt that these two sprinkle a bit of stardust. The Queen in her pomp in the 1940s and 1950s was a veritable fairytale princess — and today the Duchess of Sussex has shown millions of little girls around the world that they can be princesses too.
Meghan Markle (as was): Neptune in Sagittarius (exotic to the Brits)
Finally, there is a disruptive element. Meghan has a tricky conjunction of Lilith and Uranus which sit right on the Queen’s stern Saturn in Scorpio. The Duchess can’t help but stir things up. She is a breath of the future — an outsider (Lilith) with the common touch (Uranus), and American, a foreigner. She is going to change the way things are done, there’s no doubt about it. And some people may not like that, but I would be very surprised if the Queen were among them. Aside from anything else, Meghan must have lovely manners. Her chart is so people-pleasing with all that Libra and the exquisite Venus in Virgo.
I’ve only looked at aspects with an orb of 0-1°, so there’s much more to mull over in these charts.
But there’s another interesting chart to compare with Meghan’s — and that is the chart of the UK itself — the 1801 chart.
Oops — it looks like the UK found itself a Duchess there. Meghan’s Moon-Jupiter-Saturn triple conjunction in the sign of marriage, Libra rests on the UK ascendant. Both Jupiter and Saturn are associated with this family, and you often see one or the other on the ascendant or midheaven (like the Queen and Prince Harry, who have Saturn in Scorpio on the MC). Again there’s that element of upheaval though, as Meghan’s planets are squeezed between the UK’s Uranus and its Ascendant. This country is indeed much trickier than it appears on the surface.
In the UK chart, the Royal family is indicated by that grandiose Jupiter in Leo in the 10th house of rulers. Meghan’s point of destiny makes an exact conjunction, so I guess that worked.
So why have some people got their knickers in a twist over the Duchess? Well, if you’re young and lovely, they always do. They were horrible about the Duchess of Cambridge when she was plain old Kate Middleton, and disgusting about Diana until she died. Joining the Royal family must be incredibly daunting. It did for Diana, and for Andrew’s ex-wife Sarah Ferguson, not to mention Princess Anne’s first husband Captain Mark Phillips. The scrutiny and attention are relentless.
Meghan’s limited contact with the UK Moon (the people) could be a problem for her. The tightest aspect is from her Chiron in Taurus, which makes a nice sextile — but could involve a bit of pain. Interestingly, be progression, that Chiron is actually on Meghan’s midheaven right now. You could not get a better symbol of public scapegoating — or of someone who could play a role as a healer.
Note that the Queen’s North Node is right on that UK Moon.
So this time the tabloids have Harry to deal with, and the relationship between royals and press may change for good. Jupiter in Sagittarius has just triggered his fighting Mars in the 11th house, which makes a sextile to his Venus in Libra (Meghan herself). His Mars is right on the UK Mercury (communications) in the third house.
Note that “the press” — the third house in the UK chart — is Sagittarian in Britain. And it has indeed overreached itself this time as Jupiter transited that house and squared Neptune in Pisces (the land of make-believe).
This is probably just the opening salvo, and besides these days there are much more effective ways for celebrities to reach their fans.
Bigger context
But the Duchess’s arrival on these islands is part of a much longer and wider story. She came as this Capricorn country was, and still is, experiencing a breakdown of structures and ideas that have been fundamental for centuries. Among other things, Britain is just beginning to acknowledge the dirty truth of its colonial history, to make connections between the past and the present — including its period as a major slave trader.
Her husband Prince Harry used a very specific term “commoditised” when he denounced the press treatment of Meghan. It’s exactly right, of course. The royal women are packaged and presented like objects not people — just as Meghan’s distant ancestors were. On her mother’s side, the Duchess of Sussex is descended from some of those abducted Africans who found themselves exiled long ago and sold on a fatal shore, literally commoditised.
Meghan Markle’s marriage into the Royal family is a powerful symbol of change — hence perhaps that Uranus-Saturn conjunction with the Queen — and perhaps a measure of liberation. Perhaps, her presence will help bring about a different relationship for the Royals with the press and the public.
Pluto has been in Capricorn since 2008. This is the sign of the establishment, government, power. Like all planets, he has a good side and a bad side. Pluto has brought people who were once considered outsiders into the corridors of power: for example, Donald Trump, a man who had been knocking at the door for thirty years, Nigel Farage, ditto, Catherine Middleton, a commoner married second in line to the throne. Pluto is traditionally associated with blackness — and indeed Barack Obama walked into the White House as Pluto walked into Capricorn. Perhaps he acted as a talisman for the US.
So Meghan might perform that same service for Britain — if she were allowed. Instead she is being vilified — for the time being.
It is a sign of the times that rather than being celebrated, she is derided. Since her mission appears to be to bring change and light into the Royal family, you have to ask yourself why some people find that offensive. And why those same people have so little to say about another member of the royal family, Prince Andrew, and his friendship with a certain Jeffrey Epstein.
The Duke and Duchess may not stay on these shores if they continue getting the treatment meted out by the press so far — and that would be a pity. Indeed, it might make an old lady a little sad.
You seem to dislike the UK. I’m surprised.
Why do you say that?
Quite. Where do you get that from? Is it patriotic to attack the most vulnerable member of the royal family day after day?
Great article. 🙂
The recent Libra new moon 28 Sept was 6 Libra, which was on my AC, 7 Libra, which is the same as the UK’s. I wondered how that would play out. I bet Harry’s announcement a few days after that new moon might have further reaching consequences than people think. https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/commentisfree/2019/oct/02/prince-harry-letter-shows-you-dont-have-to-be-royal-to-be-bullied-by-the-red-tops
We know tabloid circulation is falling, it’s halved for the Sun and Daily Mail since 2010. Combined, it was 5 million back then. Now they’re around 2.5 million. People do look online, but when they do, they go straight to the stories (pictures) they want to look at. It’s not the same as turning a page and seeing everything else.
Hate is amplified these days. Tories campaign on it, as do other right wing/far right parties. It’s legitimised from the top. Harry’s attack on the press attacks the Tories and these other right wing/far right parties too.
I haven’t read about synastry in some time. What does ‘bendings’ mean?
I really like Meghan. I bought her issue of Vogue the day it came out. I think she’s great. I like the Queen too. They’re both compatible with me, which makes me happy. 🙂 My sun falls in Meghan’s 4th house. Then there’s my Sag stellium trining her sun. 😀
It’s interesting also that the Queen has enquired about sacking Boris Johnson, something she has never had to do before. He has been goading her since, which is bizarre. I should look at your previous articles on the UK and the Tories for clues, although I don’t suppose there are any, we’re in a time of shocks and suprises.
I’m cheering for Harry & Meghan! As soon as I saw their synastry I knew it was a fantastic match! Of course Harry the rebel would marry someone Uranian in nature like Meghan. As far as her connection to the UK Moon, does her Cancer Rising & Libra Stellium not count towards the synastry? I think she’s helping the nation reflect on their perceived manners & fairness with all that Libra. I’m so happy Harry let that Mars/Uranus in Sagittarius go ham on the press, he deserves the peace of mind that his wife and child won’t be chased to an early death like his mother. May he succeed in his mission.
Yes, I agree about the Libra-Cancer stellium. Also, if you look at that synastry — Meghan/UK — the Moons are in the same place for each other, just above the ASC, so there is something there about reflecting back on each other.
So lovely to read something positive about Meghan. She shows the establishment how the UK has changed and they need to catch up. Hope the racists get their come-uppance soon
I am a black woman born in Britain of Commonwealth parents. I have lived in several cities in the US since the age of 19 and now live in Britain again. What I do not like about Meghan is that she seems to view everything through the prism of US racism which is not the same as here. She really hasn’t lived here long enough to truly know what the UK version is like and having NOT ONE relation here — they did her family tree and can’t find a black relative here — I really do not think she is qualified to tell us what the experience is. If she did have a relative who could tell her what they have experienced over the last 50yrs, then maybe.. Thankfully we do not have the same issues as the US and she did not classify herself as black nor did she have much interaction with black people past her teenage years. Where was she during Black Lives Matter, for instance? She did not even send a tweet but she did tweet about Brexit during the same time period when she wasn’t living here and had just started seeing Harry. I do not appreciate her employing her race when it’s convenient for her — I find that exploitative. She seems to be “borrowing” others’ experiences, which is what actors do, I guess. Harry ought to be educating her and defending this country, not enabling her. And I do hope that those defending the allegations of racism towards her do take time to measure it against the very real and very different experiences of black Americans and that they do not try too hard to incorporate American attitudes over here.
Where were the black friends/relatives at her wedding? Take a look at the photos again. The incorporation of Black culture was the suggestion of Cheku the cellist from Prince Charles. The preacher…something else. Idris, Oprah and the Prince from Sentebale are not Meghan’s relatives.
While I agree with you about how race works differently on either side of the Atlantic, and about how Americans in general tend to project their own experience of race on to other countries (and not just race! But that is another story), I don’t think she’s particularly done this, and she’s always identified as biracial. Her wedding was certainly partially a celebration of black American culture.
I think a lot of the anti-Duchess writing is simply to do with her being a foreigner. She would probably be getting it in the neck anyway — every woman who has married into the royal family recently has had to weather a lot of bad press — her colour is used as one more way of getting at her..
Agree, Christina. Very difficult position to be in. Princess Diana had an eating disorder and was depressed. Both hers and Fergie’s marriage broke down.
I think Barb has unique insight and I agree with some of her points too. I don’t think it’s helpful to make it personal though. That’s not the thing to notice. The thing to notice is we’re even having this conversation about race and that it’s more nuanced than ever before. It’s not a simple thing we can understand in one go, there’s a lot to talk about. I’ve been reading some of the amazing articles coming out of America since Black Lives Matter, plus there’s what we’re learning now about what the British Empire did. It’s immense. I would say there are overlaps. I look for differences but I also look for similarities, themes. That doesn’t detract from any one thing or diminish one in favour of another. Nor does it distract from bigger truths or the bigger picture. It’s complex and complicated, nuanced, especially intersectionality. When we talk about any particular aspect, we don’t have to fight to be heard or put anyone down. Everyone is being listened to. People like me are listening.
Meghan’s marriage into the royal family does kind of trigger these conversations. It isn’t right to blame her or hold her responsible, or worse, find her not good enough. If we’re going to have grown up conversations about this, we need to grow up ourselves. The only thing Meghan has done is open the door. Harry and the Queen are holding it open for her. I love that! <3
Thank you for writing this article. I enjoyed reading it. I have always been happy to see the Duchess of Sussex being able to make HRH Queen Elizabeth II laugh. With your analysis I now know why.
Don’t you think this is more of a clash between the blurred spheres of the Royal Family and celebrity? Traditionally, members of the Royal Family have no voice & no opinions. There is a huge degree of self sacrifice for anyone who is a senior member of the Royal Family – think of Prince Philip who gave up his naval career. Meghan is articulate & vocal on the causes that interest her. Did she realise just how much she would be circumscribed by joining the Royal Family? (As an aside, I wonder what she really thinks of the Monarchy as an institution). I think a lot of public ill feeing comes from the situation with her father – it’s uncomfortable to see. Either Meghan and Harry have been badly advised or have ignored advice on how to deal with that issue. Being a senior member of the RF is not easy and I think this situation indicates that a drastically slimmed down royal family could be the best way forward in the coming years for everyone. Hence the conspicuous lack of royal title for their son.
Ahh — the question of celebrity and royalty: that opens up a can of worms!
There’s also the question of whether the royal family really represents the UK in the most useful way any more. They do a a brilliant job, especially of the Queen, of embodying a country that’s reliable, traditional, eternal, wealthy, stylish — but they also represent hierarchy, class, entitlement and inequality.
I loved reading this post. I don’t really follow the British Royal Family as such but I am also not one of those people who thinks the institution should be abolished. However what I do think is most interesting about this situation is that it is Prince Harry who is stepping up to get something done which the UK’s own government has failed to do and that is: attempt to place controls on those who will not control themselves. A clear sign of how corrupt the govt. has become dependent as it is on party donations from unscrupulous press barons. The same press barons who themselves live abroad but want to see the UK leave the EU whatever the cost. Someone else also mentioned that falling circulations are making these rags more and more desperate for ‘scoops’ and will invent them if necessary. The fact is that Meghan couldn’t win whatever she did. If she behaved ‘too royal’ then she would be deemed distant and haughty. If she reaches out to people, then she is ‘not royal enough’. Which makes it all the more interesting that it is Harry – whose own mother was hounded to her death by the Paparazzi – who is now drawing the battle lines. People seem to forget that Free Speech also comes with responsibilities, whether that be in the print media or online.
Hmm. Yes you’re right. Maybe a Prince Harry/UK analysis would be interesting to do.
An interesting post and one which hs given me thought to reconsider my opinions on this. Whilst I am no republican, I really don’t see why we as tax payers should carry the financial burden of supporting a burgeoning and ever growing royal family. A monarch, consort and heirs should suffice in maintaining the basis of our constitution, the rest of the family,that is the good , the not so good and the downright bad should support themselves.
As far as Meghan Markle is concerned, I admit to being sniffy,However, if she and her husband are to be the agents of positive changes within the status and role of the monarchy, perhaps I should reconsider my view.
As for the gutter press, that is where they live and seem to thrive on dragging their readers down to that level.
Thanks, Christina – fascinating article, and what a lovely photo of the two of them! My mother and I had the same Sun/Moon conjunction in Leo (same degree for me) and also a Virgo/Pisces Venus opposition. My mother, like Meghan, had a Leo Sun and Virgo Venus. She was also 1/4 native American (Blackfeet), which didn’t play well with my Dad’s family, but she won them over. At least we are more open about things these days – I was nearly 40 before I found out about my mother’s native heritage – all her life it had been something she was made to feel ashamed of.
At the time of the Queen’s coronation, I was barely 1 year old, but my great aunt insisted on propping me up in front of the TV so I would be able to say I had seen it. Now, I’m glad she thought that was important. No international broadcasts in those days, but films of the event were immediately flown to Montreal and the US.
What an amazing coincidence!
Dear Christina, I thoroughly enjoyed this post. I think you summed up the situation quite perfectly. It reminds me of the fact that Moonlight is reflected light, and that Megan’s treatment by the press comes from a sector that is losing sales. By commoditising Meghan, and seeking to profit from her status, they are reflecting the worse dynamics of the public consciousness in Britain. With Pluto’s transit in Capricorn, there’s possibly Shadow Work going on here. As you say, Britain’s colonial past hasn’t been fully come to terms with. A lot of rearranging the ornaments, but not clearing much of the junk hidden away in its consciousness. The press barons are exploiting that residual discomfort and unease, and it will backfire on them, perhaps spectacularly, when Jupiter moves into Capricorn into a conjunction with both Pluto and Saturn. Jupiter as ruler of the press will be subject perhaps to other revelations, which may culminate in them having more limitations placed upon them. We shall see. Again, thank you for your wonderful and insightful post.
[…] another note, I wrote earlier about how the Queen and Meghan have excellent synastry with what’s known as a cosmic marriage between the Meghan’s Sun and the Queen’s […]