A Question, if best to adheare to King or parliament:

Extracted from Anglicus Merline, 1646 – William Lilly's annual almanac

The querent is signified by the Moon, and she being strong in the ascendant, and the question asked in London, did signifie the place wherin he then was in, was most safe for him to abide in; her seperation from ¬  of W did tell me the Gentleman was much afflicted in minde, and had strong conflicts within himselfe which way to dispose his affaires: her application to a ¬  of Q did make me confident to tell him, his affection was wholly for Oxford, and he strongly resolved to be gone; I dehorted his going, having sufficient grounds in Art for my judgment; for finding S & > in the tenth, and Q and W in the eleventh, I made it appear how his Majesties designes were betrayed, and his cause sinking; and that his owne losses would be infinite great, even to his utter impoverishment, if he declined not his present resolution, &c. I might deliver more, but let it suffice, the advice was not followed wholly or scarce at all, by which eight or ten thousand pounds are elapsed out of his estate.

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Commentary by Sue Ward

This horary is set for approximately 9.00 am on 3rd April 1644 (OS) in London, these data were discovered from the chart positions because Lilly did not provide any. 

London was loyal to Parliament and Charles I had removed his court to Oxford. The querent personal loyalties are to the King, but his financial concerns conflicted with them, hence Lilly's interpretation of the Moon's separation from the square of Saturn.

On page 212 of Christian Astrology, Lilly provides the rules for judging such questions: "If good to remove from one house or place to another, or to stay or abide in any place or not?". The 1st signifies the querent's current location, London, and it contains the Moon which is strong in its own sign, providing an important argument for remaining. However, the querent's desire to remove to Oxford is so strong that he will not listen to Lilly's advice. The Moon, as his significator, shows a changeful nature, in its own sign of Cancer which is moveable, we see a strong desire or impulse for change and movement. Mars on the 10th cusp, although not mentioned by Lilly here, is another indicator of haste and impatience for action. It also describes the nature of the question as one of war, or a consequence of war. Its being a civil war is described by dual Pisces.

Lilly takes the 10th house for the King and the Sun as the natural ruler of kings. Even though the Sun does not score particularly highly in this chart overall, it is a high score for the Sun and we see its symbolism of the king as his "standing on high terms", as Lilly might have put it. Being conjunct Saturn, Lilly sees this as a fall, in his word "sinking", both of these terms are descriptive of Saturn's natural signification. The South Node and detrimented Mercury are in the 10th, significant of the king, and Lilly interprets this as showing the king's plans being betrayed. The South Node naturally describes treachery and scandal as Mercury peregrine and detrimented shows lies and deceit.

We see that the querent eventually lost over £8,000 – a huge sum in those days – because he removed to Oxford. It is interesting to note that although Lilly was a supporter of Parliament, he judged this question for someone with Royalist sympathies. While it might be suggested that his attempt to persuade the querent to remain in London may have been partisan, it is clear from the horoscope that Lilly was justified. Charles I had had notable victories up to this point, so it might have seemed to the querent that Lilly was being disingenuous. However, in the following year (14th June) the Battle of Naseby was the turning point of the Civil War which almost destroyed Royalist forces. Almost exactly a year later Oxford was taken by Parliamentary forces led by Lord Fairfax.

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