Presidential nativities

1
Having recently read Dr H's excellent book "A Rectification Manual - The American Presidency", here are some interesting obsevations/trends from the nativities of the 43 men who became President of the United States :

No President has Aries rising (Surprising, given Aries assertive "take charge" disposition - perhaps too brash to be elected President).
Only 1 has Pisces rising (Benjamin Harrisson). The highest is Aquarius with 6.

Nothing particularly stands out for Sun sign, Lowest is 2 which is joint for Aries, Gemini and Virgo. Other signs range 3 - 5.

For Moon sign, Capricorn is top at 7 but all of these were before the 20th century. Gemini, Taurus, Virgo and Scorpio are next highest with 5.
No President has had a Pisces Moon and only one President has an Aries Moon.

For house position of the luminaries (whole sign houses), the most significant observation is that 9 of the 43 (1 in 5) Presidents have the Moon in the 2nd house. 2nd house has to do with material wealth and possesions and has a role in our profession by trine with the 10th. Most men who occupied the White House did not view it as a path to become wealthy, and many left the white house poorer than when they entered. Is there a deeper meaning to the 2nd house? In Hellenistic astrology, the house has the name "The Gate of Hades". In the Gospel of Matthew 16:18 he says that "Gate of hades shall not prevail" While presumably not said in an astrological context, its interpretation by bible scholars is very interesting. Here is a link to a site with the relevant section (second pdf download): http://www.beyondthepulpit.org/index.ph ... &Itemid=20
Of the 3 different interpretations given, I suggest that the 1st or the 2nd would be more in line with the astrological 2nd house (especially the 2nd). Here is an excerpt:

1st view:
B. Word usage in this view:
The word "gates" is pictured as "power or authority."
The word "hades" is pictured as "Satan's realm."
"The expression Gates of Hades is an orientalism for the court, throne, power, and dignity of the infernal kingdom. Hades is contemplated as a mighty city, with formidable, frowning portals. Some expositors introduce also the idea of the councils of the Satanic powers.... The kingdom or city of Hades confronts and assaults the church which Christ will build upon the rock."

2nd view:
View #2: "Worldly organizations of the unsaved"
A. Explanation of this view: The institutions that make-up the civil, legal, and religious areas of society will not have the power to over-take the church.
B. Word usage in this view:
The word "gates" are pictured as "places where justice is carried out"
The word "hades" is personified as "a building or institution."
C. Support for this view:
"And as the gates of the Eastern city were the scene at once of the kingly judgment (2 Sam. xv. 2) and of the council of the elders (Prov. xxxi. 23), they become the natural symbol of the polity which ruled there. And so the promise declared that all the powers of Hades, all the forces of destruction that attack and in the long run overpower other societies, should attack, but not overpower, the ecclesia of which Christ was the Founder. " "He was about to announce, with a clearness unknown before, His coming death as a malefactor, and yet it was at this moment that He proclaimed the perpetuity and triumph of the society which yet, it may be said, existed only in the germs of a half-realized conception."

"Because 'gates' has in Greek no article, Weiss takes it to mean 'hades-gates' i.e. gates of that class or kind shall not surpass it in strength." "gates? may be taken... as a symbol of power, because strong gates completed the fortifications of a city (Gen. 22:17; Psa. 127:5), or because judges often sat, kings administered justice, and garrisons gathered, in the gates.It will be intersting to see the views of astrologers on this forum about the 2nd house.

The next most common house for the Moon was the 7th (seeks the support of the public). Moon is in 1st, 4th and 10th for only 1 President each, although this would be higher with quadrant houses.

For the Sun, 7 Presidents have Sun in 11th. Next highest is 2nd and 3rd with 5 each. Barack Obama is the first President with a 7th house Sun.

For Bounds (or terms) of the Luminaries, Most striking is 16 Presidents having Sun in the Bounds of Venus. Only 2 have Sun in the bounds of Saturn (James Garfield and Barack Obama).
Nothing outstanding about the Moon's bounds, all are within expected range. Highest is Mercury and Jupiter with 10 each.

I am interested in the views of other astrologers on these patterns.

2
Thanks for your kind comment on my book.

My thoughts on patterns in Presidential nativities can be summed up in a sentence or two: given the wide variety of planet/sign/house placements and only 40+ charts it is virtually impossible to reach any conclusion which can be verified by statistics. In short, the sample is too small. At most we can come up with some generalities.

In my opinion the correct way to think about this question is why specific individuals rise from the ranks of society to advance to the Presidency. This is a mundane question. As I suggested in my second book, the reason why is because specific natal configurations are mirrored in separate mundane horoscopes, thus the individuals are lifted up to play the role called for in mundane figures. One can compare natal charts of Presidents to Jupiter-Saturn conjunctions, eclipses, ingresses, or even national horoscopes.

George Washington has Jupiter opposed Saturn which was recapitulated around 1790 which timed the political divide between Federalists under Hamilton and the Republican-Democrats under Jefferson. Washington was able to mediate the partisan bickering in a manner which avoided civil war and left relatively intact a political system. This in fact may be 'why' Washington was selected as President so he could successful moderate an otherwise nasty bit of political infighting.

With respect to the Regulus USA National Horoscope, as I have pointed out, I believe the prominence of Moon/Capricorn occurs because Capricorn is 7 signs away from the Cancer Sun which signifies the President. 7th houses is the spouse. As you say, no Moon/Capricorns lately, but note in recent contests Al Gore and John McCain had this placement.

Sun/Aquarius is a synastry match to the Moon/Aquarius in the same July 4, 1776 figure.

But the more interesting analysis in my opinion would be to compare the Presidential nativities to mundane figures. It is of course more challenging but ultimately I think this approach will yield better results.

In closing - a recent example - Sarah Palin, rose to prominence at the time of the 16-Aug-2008 North Node lunar eclipse placed in the bound of Mars/Aquarius which signifies partisan politics. Her natal charts has an Aquarius stellium which includes Mars/Aquarius.

Hope this helps.
Dr. H.
World Class Research in Medieval Predictive Astrology
www.regulus-astrology.com

3
Thanks for your advice Dr H.

Prior to reading your book I had noticed that the most recent Presidents with relatively reliable birth data tended to have the Jupiter/Saturn conjunction preceding their election placed in angular houses (WS). The sign of the part of fortune and 10 signs from the part of fortune are also powerful houses. If the MC/IC axis is not in the 4th/10th then the houses the axis falls in can be considered angular.

The pattern goes from Barack Obama to Gerald Ford:

2000 Jupiter/Saturn conjunction: 23 Taurus.
Obama: Taurus = 4th, also POF sign.
Bush 2: Taurus = 10th, opposite POF sign.

1980 Jupiter/Saturn conjunction: 10 Libra.
Clinton: Libra = 1st, 4th from POF.
Bush 1: Libra = 2nd, 10th from POF.
Reagan: Libra = 10th, same sign as POF.

1960 Jupiter/Saturn conjunction: 26 Capricorn.
Carter: Capricorn = 4th, 4th from POF (MC = 24 Cancer).
Ford: Capricorn = 9th, MC = 25 Capricorn.
Neither Richard Nixon or Lyndon Johnson have the Jupiter/Saturn conjunction angular. Nixon has a Capricorn stellium including the Sun at 19 Capricorn which rules the POF. The only factor Johnson has is the South Node in Capricorn, so there must be other mundane factors at work here.

Based on the sample of 43, 31 former Presidents have the Jupiter/Saturn conjunction angular by the following criteria: angular by whole sign houses, in the same sign as the MC or IC if not in a whole sign angular house, in the same sign as the POF or 10 signs from it. In a random sample, one would expect 1/3rd to have the JSC angular (perhaps slightly greater than a 1/3rd due to considering POF).

I had not considered connections to mundane charts, so that might be an interesting avenue to explore.

What I have considered is the 4 lots (Fortune, Spirit, Exaltation and Basis) which supposedly confer fame if the lots and their rulers are appropriately configured (i.e, In the Ascendant or 10th, rulers culminating with respect to each other, rulers handing over to each other such as ruler of spirit in the sign of fortune and the rulers of the parts in domicile or exalted).
If these lots promise fame and are activated by directions/progressions or become time lords then they can show when fame will arrive.

For example, take Barack Obama:
Fortune is angular in Taurus (good for fame) ruled by Venus/Cancer/6th (not a strong placement), Spirit is in Sagittarius/11th (Good) ruled by Jupiter/Aquarius/1st - 10th from fortune (excellent - spirit is the strongest lot). The exaltation is in Capricorn/12th and Saturn is present (very good that the ruler of exaltation is in the exaltation - promise of an exalted status through high office in government, 12th house not so good). Basis is in Cancer/6th (Ruler of fortune is in the Basis - good) ruled by Moon/Gemini/5th (good, but aversion is not so good).

Obama became President in a 12th house profection year, 12th is Capricorn/Exaltation, so the natal promise of high government office was fulfilled.

It will be interesting to look at past Presidents lots to see if they indicate fame and when the fame arrived.

4
Phase/Condition of Mercury:

Occidental-Diurnal-20 to 27d: George W. Bush, James Polk.
Occidental-Diurnal-15 to 19d: None.
Occidental-Diurnal-9 to 14d: Andrew Jackson, James Buchanan, Harry Truman (retrograde).
Occidental-Diurnal-0 to 8d: Warren Harding.

Occidental-Nocturnal-20 to 27d: Gerald Ford, Rutherford Hayes, Chester Arthur, William Taft.
Occidental-Nocturnal-15 to 19d: Abraham Lincoln, William McKinley, Franklin Roosevelt.
Occidental-Nocturnal-9 to 14d: James Monroe, Woodrow Wilson.
Occidental-Nocturnal-0 to 8d: James Garfield, Calvin Coolidge, Lyndon Johnson, Benjamin Harrison (retrograde).

Total Occidental: 19. 6 Diurnal and 13 Nocturnal.

Oriental-Diurnal-20 to 27d: Millard Fillmore, John Q. Adams, John Adams, Bill Clinton, Thomas Jefferson, Grover Clevland, John Tyler, George H.W Bush.
Oriental-Diurnal-15 to 19d: Jimmy Carter, Martin van Buren, Ulysses Grant.
Oriental-Diurnal-9 to 14d: None.
Oriental-Diurnal-0 to 8d: Zachary Taylor.

Oriental-Nocturnal-20 to 27d: George Washington, William H. Harrison, James Madison, Ronald Reagan.
Oriental-Nocturnal-15 to 19d: Herbert Hoover, Dwight Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy, Richrd Nixon.
Oriental-Nocturnal-9 to 14d: Andrew Johnson, Barack Obama.
Oriental-Nocturnal-0 to 8d: Franklin Pierce, Theodore Roosevelt.

Total Oriental: 24. 12 Diurnal and 12 Nocturnal.