Solunars by Aldebaran Sidereal Academy

I was surprised to discover no one had ever posted Freddie Mercury's chart here. I suspect that's because at least some controversy about the time, though there seems to me little real controversy.

Freddie was born September 5, 1946, in Zanzibar, Tanzania. I regard the birth time of 5:50 AM as Class B data because, though it came from a family member, we have the information second-hand, from a biography. (The date and place are documented on a birth certificate.)

As for the time, the main information comes from Waldemar Januszczak's article, "Star of India," in the Sunday Times Magazine November 17, 1996, page 61. He quoted his interview with Freddie's brother-in-law (his sister's husband):

Freddie's English brother-in-law, Roger,... insists that [Freddie] chose the name because Mercury was his rising planet. 'When he told me, I said, it's a bloody good job it wasn't Uranus. Freddie never forgave me for that.' Kashmira, Freddie's sister, gives Roger a look. He says no more on the subject.

Freddie took the self-renaming seriously. It seemed to have a spiritual import for him. Brian May is quoted as saying that when Freddie wrote, in the song "My Fairy King," the line, "O Mother Mercury, what have you done to me?," Freddie then told Brian, "Well, 'm going to become Mercury because the mother in this song is my mercury and so I'm going to become Mercury." (This is an example of what I call the spiritual dimension.)

The brother-in-law story is quite believable and has the kind of detail and reaction that gives it life. I'm inclined to believe it tentatively. However, against it is one possible contradiction. A week after Freddie's mother died, another biographer confirmed that Freddie's mother had told her that she gave birth during "office hours" and Freddie's father was notified while he was at work. This doesn't sound like a chart for just before sunrise. So we have to test the chart to filter between these two.

The basic chart is sound in any case. He had a Leo Sun - the master ringmaster who owned the house, had an ego as big as the heavens, and yet saw the heroic greatness in everyone else as well. His Moon was in Sagittarius regardless of time, which fits the character well. Also, in dying of AIDS consequences, he technically tied of pneumonia, which is a perfect fit for Sagittarius Moon.

He also had a close Venus-Jupiter conjunction in Libra. With his luminary signs, this shows well his flamboyance and related traits. For any time of day, his Leo Sun was octile Venus-Jupiter. For the 5:50 time, Moon closely sextiles it.

But when you take this time and relocate the chart to London - where he grew up, where he broke out, and the enter of his fame - the Venus-Jupiter is exactly angular, Venus being mere minutes from IC. The other planet I would have expected to be strong for Freddie is Pluto - self-characterized as an extreme loner, intentionally living on the outskirts, trying to shake labels and limits - and it does show as moderately foreground for London, where he spent nearly all his life. (Pluto is 7° above Ascendant in 2° mundane conjunction with Saturn.)

Freddie died November 24, 1991 in the evening, at his home in Kensington, London. Regardless of birth time, the transits are rather remarkable as almost exclusively extremely positive markers. For the given time, it is a more extreme example of this, one extreme positive marker after another until the very end when it switches around.

This matches conditions of the end of his life. He died in his own home in the care of a man he loved and with his best friend in life nearby. He instantly had the familiar on-death popularity and a surge of world adulation centered on him.

The keenest mark of positive indications: Regardless of birth time, transiting Jupiter exactly conjunct his Sun. For the reported birth time, it is exact nearly to the minute of arc. (This means it octiled natal Venus-Jupiter as well.) Additionally, for any birth time, progressed Sun conjoins natal Jupiter! (For the given birth time it was 16' wide.)

For the reported birth time, progressed Moon squares Venus 0°04'. Transiting Sun conjoined progressed Venus and squared progressed Moon (roughly to the minute for the reported birth time).

His only other progressed aspect at death was a progressed Mercury-Mars conjunction (07' wide for the reported time; this could be a further indication of pneumonia).


For the given time, his final SSR has Moon-Saturn opposition, plus Moon is 0°13' from conjunct natal Saturn. Uranus-Neptune on IC (Uranus closer), and Mars widely rising. Natal Neptune is exactly rising, consistent with his convalescence.

His final SLR continues the extreme benevolence and loving characteristic. Venus closely rises square Moon, which is wider to IC. Then, the night before he died, a Demi-SLR occurred with Sun-Mars the most angular. The larger picture is Sun and Mars each 3° either side of IC with Jupiter and Pluto more widely foreground. The Jupiter is now 0°03' from natal Sun. After a stream of benevolent markers, the chart (still preserving them somewhat) shows the inflammatory Mars at the last, as inflammatory disease overtook him.


While the general chart for 5:50 fits the event well, we can't assume that Mercury rising timed things to the minute. FWIW the primary angles of his natal had progressed Sun conjunct natal Jupiter exactly conjunct progressed Ascendant.

The biggest event of his life was probably the performance at Live Aid July 13, 1985, at Wembley Stadium in London. This event is dramatized during the last half hour or so of the movie Bohemian Rhapsody. Queen's performance began at 6:41 PM: Their performance that day was voted (by more than 60 artists, journalists, and music industry executives) "the greatest live performance in the history of rock." (Wembley, for those who want to micro-analyze the event chart itself, is at 51N33'20", 0W16'47"; for Freddie purposes, I'll just use the coordinates for London.)

The went on just as Uranus crossed Ascendant in London. Freddie's Mars crossed the MC exactly as he went on stage, paran the Uranus.

For the given birth time, the one most exceptional indication is that transiting Venus at 13°29' Taurus was a third of a degree from Freddie's natal MC.

The first hard mark against this birth time is his SLR for Live Aid. Saturn is 2° above Ascendant opposite Venus 0° from Descendant. While there might be an explanation for this, the simple reading is that this is unlikely to describe a peak life event that was an enormous success. (Uranus was on EP.) - Freddie's Sun was exactly on MC - as fitting as can be! - and square transiting Uranus 2 1/2°. But this also means his Sun was in mundane square to the rising Saturn and setting Venus, which is at least controversial.

His progressions, for any birth time, have a partile Mars-Pluto square - fitting in many ways for the day and for the stage of his life. For the given birth time it was 0°03' wide. For the given birth time, progressed Moon squared his Mercury that day (0°28') and was on his natal Zenith (if the time is to be taken as that precise).

Switching to primary angles, his local progressed Ascendant exactly conjoined natal Sun. This is perhaps the best argument of this birth time being accurate to within a couple of minutes. If I use the exact coordinates of the concert, primary progressed Ascendant conjoined natal Sun within 0°14'. This would have been perfect if the birth time were just one minute of time later.

Great post Jim, thanks. He was a remarkable song writer!

I'm pleased to notice that standardized interpretation paragraphs for Freddie (from my semi-automated chart notes system) are incredibly accurate, in places looking like I custom wrote them for him (which I did not).

ANGULAR PLANETS
Angular Mercury (EP 0°02')
Alert, attentive, observant, strategic, analytic. Mentally sharp, hard to fool (knows more about you than you think). Little emotional affect, hard to read. Nervous (anxiety? worry? touchy?). Easily bored without regular mental stimulation. Good at precise, detailed work; naturals at handling business. Curiosity drives sexual choices as much as any other factor.

Mercury semi-square Mars (0°44')
Mind is quick, dynamic, strategic. Fast physical & mental responses. Forthright, direct; independent of thought, enjoys argument. Creative. Quick wit, edgy humor. Irritable, nervous frustration, fault-finding, stubborn, opinionated. Vulnerability to addiction.

MOON
Moon in Sagittarius
Higher & higher (ambition, spiritual aspiration, flight). Optimism (adapting with positivism). Courteous, gracious, natural hosts. Seeks to impress (needs validation, approval). Devoted to ideals & values (political; nationalistic, tribal; loves history). Dramatic (actors). Mercenary. Strong family ties.

Moon sextile Venus (0°06')
Attractive, charming, affectionate, sexual charisma, sensual. Passive-dependent, moody, can be blindsided by strong feelings, often preoccupied with whether they are liked.

Moon sextile Jupiter (2°11')
Desires success. Social elitism (may feign aristocracy). Drawn to quality: desires the best. Good-humored, entertaining, kind, generous (natural host). Strong beliefs (religious or patriotic intensity, morality, judgment). Often difficulty applying persistent effort.

Moon sesqui-square Pluto (0°55')
Bold, forthright, challenging. Maverick & alien. Independent, resists authority. Avoids habitual conformity & conventional conditioning. Restless, can uproot or take to the road on little notice. Deeply inquiring into existential mysteries.

SUN
Sun in Leo
Requires centricity & satellites: Holds court. Casual dignity, simple elegance, innate flair. Authority, courage, competitive, hates weakness, nurtures talent. Warm, loyal; must love and be loved (centricity, adoration); sexually lusty, playful. Purity, perfection (pedantic). Strong religious instinct. Childlike delight.

Sun semi-square Jupiter (2°11')
Generous, kind, warm, amiable, tolerant. Visible self-confidence. Needs acceptance & friendship. General dislike of problems. Lucky, confident: problems usually resolve remarkably easily, but has difficulty persevering against real adversity. Extravagant, prodigal, loves leisure, overly reliant on luck. Philosophical or religious mind.

MARS
Mars in Virgo
Strategic, analytical, logical, calculating odds (often deceitful, covert, manipulative, gamey). Very smart, curious, astute, eager to learn everything possible (intelligence is more accessible than feelings). Stands ready to assist, help, support. Substance abuse (alcoholics).

MERCURY
Mercury in Leo
Bright, takes pride in learning. Derives stature, dignity, and strength from intellect. Refuses to be intimidated by facts. Dislikes “common thinking” and obvious stupidity. Flair for stylish expression; effective communicators. Resourceful.

VENUS
Venus in Libra
Relationship-focused. Polite, well-mannered, likable. Seeks active romantic-social life. Intense passions (but can deny themselves pleasure). Requires & gets loyalty & faithfulness (jealous, possessive). Secretive about sexual relationships. Vain (arousal linked to flattery). Loves beautiful things, luxury (spoiled). Mediators, negotiators, peace-makers.

Venus conjunct Jupiter (2°05')
Fundamentally social creatures. Warm, friendly, giving, hospitable, gracious (reigns over social events). Nearly always liked (great need to be liked, desires positive attention and appreciation more than most, usually gets it). At home in a fine lifestyle (or as celebrity, aristocrat, etc.). Indulgent in all oral pleasures, e.g., preparing and eating fine food. Usually has an easier time through life despite sometimes harsh starts (experience unusual luck or patronage), usually partner well. Inclination to extravagance, possible “spoiled brat” attitude (risk of mild narcissism).

This is very interesting. I'm almost a little bothered by how is chart components match with mine, I'm also gay (and really hope I dont get AIDS of course).

Leo and Sagittarius luminaries. Angular mercury with Mercury Mars connections. He has Mars in a Mercury sign (I have Mercury in a Mars sign). He has Pluto and Jupiter aspecting the Moon and Jupiter the Sun, I have both expecting the Moon (and Jupiter novile sun). Sun is novile my Venus and the Moon is in a Venus place (his Moon aspects Venus and his Sun is in a Venus place).

I definitely would say Freddy is more Mercurial than me and perhaps I am more shrouded than him due to my Mars sign (also perhaps my navasma sun sign).

I've been trying to find Brian May's birth time for a while, without luck. Brian, a double Cancer, was born July 19, 1947 in London.

I think it highly likely that Brian would have become a significant, noteworthy musician if he'd never met Freddie Mercury, and Freddie would have made a big splash without Brian; but their collaboration is one of the great bits of magic in music history, comparable at least to the chemistry of, say, Lennon and McCarthy.

BTW, many of you probably know that Brian first trained in physics. I recently found Dr. May's doctoral thesis, titled A survey of radial velocities in the zodiacal dust cloud.
https://spiral.imperial.ac.uk:8443/handle/10044/1/1333

Besides the double Cancer luminaries, we have Moon in triple conjunction with Saturn and Pluto - orbs and relative intensities unclear. Saturn and Pluto (and perhaps Moon) sextile his Taurus Mars. He has a very close 9possibly partile) Mercury-Jupiter trine.

What of his chart comparison with Freddie? His Sun exactly squares Freddie's Jupiter and closely squares Freddie's Venus. This seems the basis of their friendship, mutual respect, and bringing out the best of each other. Brian's Mars squares Freddie's Sun, generally meaning that the former is able to motivate and energize the latter. Brian's Mercury square Freddie's Mars, while potentially conflictual, also is an animated creative interchange. But it all rests (as far as we can tell, without Brian's birth time) on that Sun-Jupiter interchange.

I think their dynamic shows that Cancer Brian, while his own man and greatly capable, was naturally willing to abide in the shadow of the more dramatic Leo Freddie.

As a speculation, I like a chart for 8"15 AM for Brian. A side-benefit of this time is that it puts Freddie's Venus right on the Brian's speculative IC.