1.20.2011

The 8th US Saturn Return - Part 1

In my last post about the US natal chart, I concerned myself specifically with the solar eclipse of January 4th. This time, I'd like to share some insights into what the US, as a nation, may be going through during this, it's 8th Saturn return.

In part 1 of this 3 part, extended post, I will first review the previous Saturn returns and the events that coincided with them so we can better understand the nature of what Saturn returns mean to the US natal chart. In The 8th US Saturn Return - Part 2, I also review some of the other planetary placements during these previous returns, specifically Uranus, Neptune and Pluto. In part 3, I will take a closer look at the current Saturn return, including the US natal "personal planets", and offer an analysis of what challenges may be in store for the US.

With the first return, which occurred over the period from December of 1804 through to September of 1805, we see circumstance similar to the one we are experiencing this time. It was a 3 part event where Saturn retrogrades over the natal Saturn placement after making the first transit, and thus makes the transit a total of 3 times over the course of less than a full year. Returns that behave this way are quite interesting as it seems to spread out the "main event", giving the native first a taste of what's to come during the initial transit, then a refresher course as Saturn transits again in retrograde, and finally a sort of "final exam" on the 3rd and final transit. Many of the returns experienced in this way see the majority of their effects during the first two transits, with the third either proving a right solution to the problems brought to surface by revealing a resolution to the issues of the day, or the third shows a sort of stalemate scenario where the issues are not resolved but instead are left to fester over the following years.

The first transit of this particular Saturn return occurred on December 16th in 1804. On November 30th, at about one degree of orb, the first wave of the Saturn return was beginning to take hold as 8 articles of impeachment were served to Supreme Court Justice Samuel Chase. One of these charges apparently went right to the matter at hand - he had, in 1803, publicly spoken out against the repeal of the Midnight Judges Act (the Judiciary Act of 1801). Chase, being a Federalist, had quickly found himself in a minority as Thomas Jefferson's "Democratic-Republican party" (usually known as the "Jeffersonian Republicans") took hold of the US Government, and as it turned out, the impeachment was more or less just a witch hunt to rid the Supreme Court of it's one remaining Federalist.

On March 4th, Jefferson was sworn in for his second term as President, this being 2 days before the second transit, and on March 11, just 5 days after the transit, Samuel Chase was acquitted on all charges by the Senate. This was the only impeachment ever tried against a Justice of the Supreme Court in all of US history.

The third and final hit occurred on September 6th and passed without much fanfare. These transits, as a whole, however, marked the end of the Federalist parties power and the beginning of the control by the Democratic and Republican parties that are still with us today. They also marked the first presidential election to be carried out with the newly ratified 12th Amendment, fixing many of the embarrassing issues with the electoral procedures. Another point of interest is this transit marked the beginning of the tensions with Britain that eventually led to the war of 1812.

It's said that the first Saturn return marks the point of maturity, and that's exactly what happened for the US during this first return.

The second Saturn return of the US occurred in October of 1834, during the rise of the Whig party. The US public debt went to $0 - the only time in US history. However, this was also a time of extremely high inflation and speculation in real estate, spurred by the use of debt monies issued by the Second Bank of the United States, directly leading to a debt bubble that burst, causing the Panic of 1837, along with 5 years of economic depression and record high unemployment.

Again, on November 25, 1863, Saturn made the first of a 3-part return to the US natal position. This period, of course, from roughly 1861 through 1865, was the time of the American Civil War. The first transit of this return marked the beginning of a great turning point in US history, including the infamous Gettysburg Address in November 1863. Saturn transited in retrograde on April 3rd the following year and then direct on August 19th, marking the beginning of the end for the war as first President Lincoln appointed Ulysses S. Grant as commander of the Union Armies, along with the subsequent appointment Major General Sheridan by Grant to command the Army of the Potomac. This Saturn return arguably marked the most chaotic and important periods in all of US history, deciding the literal life of the nation in a way not seen since the nation's birth.

September 30, 1893, the US experienced it's fourth Saturn return along with the Panic of 1893, the worst depression to hit the US to that date. Over 15,000 companies and 500 banks failed and unemployment rates climbed to between 17% and 19%. Homeowners began walking away from their mortgages. Eventually, the Alaskan gold rush did help to bring the economy out of the depression, but yet another panic quickly followed in 1907.

The fifth Saturn return, occurring in 3 parts on November 8, 1922, May 4, 1923 and July 29, 1923, marked the beginning of a time of economic prosperity dubbed the Roaring Twenties. The prosperity was spurred by reduced taxes, less government intrusion into private businesses and immigration reforms. However, the US Federal Reserve, established in 1913, quickly inflated the money supply by about 60% during the decade, sparking the enormous amounts of speculation in the markets and easy debt that lead to the market crash of 1929 and the subsequent Great Depression.

The return of 1952 began with Saturn going stationary only 10 seconds of arc beyond the US natal placement, marking a prolonged period of "return" transit from January 10 through February 6. Saturn then revisited the point on September 15th, completing the full return. This period marked the middle of the Korean War, considered a proxy war between western powers and the Soviet Union, as well as the first NATO military exercises and the tail-end of the height of anti-communist sentiments in the US.

The last of the previous Saturn returns occurred on October 22, 1981, and marked the middle of yet another major recession in the US, highlighted by the beginning of the Savings and Loans Crisis.

Each of these returns marked important milestones politically, economically or militarily. Each coincided with a challenge put to the US to "grow up" and take on new responsibilities while asking it to reject a system that wasn't working. When the right choices were made, the new system that manifested would endure and prove fruitful, but if the wrong choices were made, the system would fail, resulting in dire consequences being felt before the following Saturn square, approximately 7 years later, or approximately 14 years later during the Saturn opposition.

In the case of the first return, a whole new political mentality, seen through the Jeffersonian Republican party, came into power. It endured and shows signs of it's presence even today. Through the acquittal of impeachment charges by the Senate, a potentially disastrous precedent was avoided during the earliest years of the nation's life. However, we can see the seeds planted by some decisions made during this return that 7 years later sparked the war of 1812.

The third return, after a couple of smart decisions and right moves, led to the end of the American Civil War and a full reunification, ensuring the nation's survival for the many years since. Echos of this time still ring today, with President Lincoln still held as one of the most honored men to sit as president. By 7 years after the return, all southern states had been readmitted to representation in Congress, and over the 14 difficult years following the return, the Reconstruction Era steadily ground forward.

In the case of the second, fourth and fifth returns, however, the fiscal irresponsibility of the day had led to debt bubbles, market crashes, "panics" or bank runs, and economic depressions. The seventh return, also, led to a continued financial and economic turmoil due to the Savings and Loans crises, with its effects lasting for more than a decade thereafter. The sixth return proved only partially successful as new military strategies and alliances may have helped prevent nuclear war, but at the cost of calamitous wars like Vietnam 7 years later and the following half a century of tense "mutually assured destruction" mentality.

In The 8th US Saturn Return - Part 2, I take a look at some of the other planetary transits and how they affect the flavor of each of these Saturn returns. In part 3, I take a focused look at the transits of the current return and make projections of what may be in the cards as the remainder of it unfolds in the coming year.

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