Sturgeon vs Salmond

I last reported on Sturgeon and Salmond in 2014, just before the Scottish Referendum.  Film footage at the time shows them as best mates…so when and how did that turn to enmity, to the extent that Alex Salmond now shows a desire to bring down the Scottish government, and even to jeopardize the future prospects for Scottish Independence?

Nicola Sturgeon

I wrote in 2014:

“Scottish Deputy Nicola Sturgeon … is a role model for the strong woman, and unflinching in her political aims….  She is comfortable with power, as her Sun is sextile Pluto… Nicola started young on her course: she was 16 when she entered politics”.

I would add now:

She has the Sun conjunct Mars, the Inner Warrior Archetype.  Her strength comes from the Sun closely trine Neptune and closely sextile Pluto, and in addition the problem-solving exact trine between Mercury and Chiron.

Alex Salmond

I wrote in 2014:

“Alex is a Sun in Capricorn (ambition and politics) whose Sun is conjunct the North Node also in Capricorn (representing his karmic mission, which is also on side).  He has the fighting spirit of Moon conjunct Mars in Pisces, which sometimes obtains what is desired by subterfuge.  But his Ascendant is in Cancer, giving rise to the moon face and also the patriotism.  Rising within 6 degrees of his Ascendant is an exact conjunction between Jupiter and Uranus (the Inner and Outer Entrepreneur)  And we all know what his Enterprise is.”

I would add now:

He has a strong sensuality (Venus in Scorpio trine Mars) and a capacity for revenge (Venus square Pluto): traits I did not emphasize in my earlier account.

Their Synastry

I wrote in 2014:

“The remarkable thing with respect to her alliance with Salmond, is that her natal Sun is exactly conjunct Alex Salmond’s Jupiter/Uranus exact conjunction, in other words she can directly help co-create his Enterprise.  Karmically, their North Nodes are exactly sextile, so a karmic contract will have been set up before birth for this aim.”

I would add now:

Her Chiron exactly square his Sun shows the possibility of a wound being exacted.  The Synastry seemed favourable looking at it in 2014, and it has not changed.  But perhaps their karma has gone through another turn of the screw, yet to be unravelled in the future, and possibly even in a future lifetime.  Her Pluto also opposes his Moon, which is another in-depth emotional wrangle.

Timeline

Having left this story after the Scottish Referendum in 2014, there are some gaps to fill in.

2014:  Nicola’s transit picture for the Referendum  was described in my original blog:  “On the day of the Referendum, Neptune is conjunct her North Node, a day on which her dreams could also come true.”  The Scottish National Party lost the vote, and Alex Salmond resigned as First Minister of Scotland. Saturn was on his Venus at the time in his 5th House in Scorpio – personal sadness and loss.

At the time, Nicola said:

“The personal debt of gratitude I owe Alex is immeasurable. He has been my friend, mentor and colleague for more than 20 years. Quite simply, I would not have been able to do what I have in politics without his constant advice, guidance and support through all these years. […] I can think of no greater privilege than to seek to lead the party I joined when I was just 16. “

So there was not a trace of animosity in that speech, in that point in their relationship.  Resentment from Alex Salmond would come later.

Nicola’s transits at becoming First Minister for Scotland showed up Saturn sextile her natal Pluto in Virgo in 11th House (leading the party and country, a fulfilment of power) – with Saturn trine Pluto natally indicating this potential.

Her record of achievement as first minister has come into some criticism, particularly over her governments’s performance in Education.

2015: She was notably hailed for winning a 7-way TV debate in preparation for a general election.  In forceful combat, Mars was square her natal Mars at the time, showing that she had no fear of conflict.

2016:  In the Brexit Referendum, Scotland voted to stay in Europe, by 62% to 38%.  This of course contrasted with England, and the overall percentages for the U.K.  Nicola had a new fight on her hands, to uphold the interests of Scotland in the matter, and more ammunition for leaving the Union.

2018:  In August of that year, Alex Salmond was faced with charges of sexual misconduct, which he denied.  At that time, Pluto was sextile his natal Mars and Saturn  (at the midpoint of their trine) and opposed his Ascendant.  Pluto and Mars represent the area of sexuality.

2019:  In January of that year, Alex Salmond was arrested, with Uranus opposite his natal Neptune (a sudden even throwing him into confusion) and Uranus square his natal Chiron (a sudden event causing an emotional wound).

2020: A new challenge for Nicola Sturgeon: the pandemic. She is generally deemed to have handled this relatively efficiently, especially in comparison to the U.K. Prime Minister.  She showed up every day to speak to her countrymen in a briefing, for example.  Interestingly, she had had some prior experience, for in 2009 she had impressed with her handling of the flu epidemic, as Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing.

On 23rd March of that year, the same day that England went into its first lockdown, Alex Salmond was cleared of all charges.  He had many favourable transits at the time, including: Uranus trine his natal North Node in Capricorn in the 6th House; Neptune trine his Ascendant on 9th House cusp; Pluto sextile his natal Moon and sextile his natal Venus.  He had admitted at the trial, however, that he should have been “more careful with people’s personal space”

Marriage and Meetings

Nicola Sturgeon’s marriage comes into this story, as Alex Salmond has accused her husband Peter Murrell, the  Chief Executive Officer of the SNP, of conspiring to have him imprisoned.  They may well have personal karma, for Alex Salmond’s Moon squares Peter Murell’s Nodal Axis.

Alex Salmond alleges that he had a meeting with Nicola Sturgeon a few days before the meeting where she acknowledges they discussed his charges, in 2018.  Here he claims she has broken the ministerial code by lying, where she claims she forgot about the first meeting. The meetings are said to have taken place on 29th March and 2nd April 2018, and the charts for these two meeting are interesting.  The issue is further complicated because in giving evidence, Murrell has contradicted himself and Nicola Sturgeon over whether he was present at one of these meetings and how long for.

An aspect for the first meeting is very telling – Venus exactly conjunct Uranus (strange meetings).  Transits for the first meeting show:  for Alex Salmond, Saturn on his Sun in Capricorn in his 6th House, a time of great difficulty; Uranus square his natal Jupiter in Cancer in 1st House; Uranus opposite his natal Neptune in Libra in 4th House, and Uranus square his natal Chiron in Capricorn in his 7th House (Uranian transits taking someone by surprise).

For Nicola Sturgeon, Uranus square her natal Sun (taken by surprise), Saturn trine her Venus ( a question of loyalty in friendship), and Uranus opp her natal Jupiter (more shock).

For Peter Murrell:, Neptune opposite Peter Mars, Neptune opposite Peter Uranus and Neptune transiting Peter Chiron (Neptune transits possibly suggesting being implied in a scandal or deception).

Transits for the second meeting show: for Alex Salmond, Mars exactly on Alex Salmond’s Sun (a feeling of being endangered), Saturn still exactly on his natal Sun, Mars conjunct Saturn in Capricorn in his  6th House (pain or difficulty), and the other transits as a few days earlier, though Uranus was moving away from a trine with Pluto, possibly leaving him more exposed.

For Nicola Sturgeon,  Saturn was still trine with her Venus, and the other transits still applied, but Uranus moving away from squaring her natal Sun, which may imply that the earlier date was significant for her.

For Peter Murrell, as before, but with Neptune starting to move away from Chiron, again a possible implication that the earlier date had significance for him. For him and for Nicola, the earlier date may have had a completely different application in their lives, however, and it is not clear which meeting Peter Murrell was supposed to have attended.

Current Transits

On Friday at a Holyrood inquiry, Alex Salmond had his say about the allegations of the mishandling of the enquiry by Nicola Sturgeon’s government:

“This inquiry is not about me…The failures of leadership are many and obvious.  And yet, convener, not a single person has taken responsibility.” he claimed. Pluto is sextile his Venus –  an impassioned expression of his feelings, and Pluto is opposite his Jupiter/Uranus conjunction – a challenge of power, bearing in mind his conjunction is conjunct Nicola Sturgeon’s own Sun.  Pluto has homed in on the crucial feature of their synastry.

Nicola Sturgeon is due to testify tomorrow, and she is undeniably stressed: Mars is opposite her natal Neptune – her version of the truth under examination; Uranus square her natal Moon in Aquarius in 3rd House – emotionally, she feels uncertain. Uranus is opposite her Ascendant, quite a shock to her system.  And then comes Pluto, opposing her natal Sun – a severe test for her, but Pluto trine her Pluto, she has some form of self-empowerment.

For Scotland itself, the cause of Independence has grown during Nicola Sturgeon’s period of leadership, though a recent poll suggests some levelling off.  The chart of Scotland itself highlights conflict and transformation at this time, with a preponderance of Mars and Pluto transits: Mars sextiles the Scottish Sun, Pluto sextiles the Scottish Sun, and Mars sextiles the Scottish Pluto.  The nature of sextiles may show that the damage may be less severe than feared; some voters even hope that the Scottish National Party will be damaged.

The chart for the SNP shows Neptune (confusion) closely square its Sun (its identity),  Saturn on its Venus – a sense of loss, Uranus square its Venus – some disruption and disharmony.  Also Chiron sextile its Venus – an ultimate healing purpose, though that seems a long way off at the moment, and Neptune sextile its Mars, confusion and sensitivity over its leadership.

This would seem to be a distressing mess at the heart of Scottish government and leadership, and the meltdown of a relationship once united in a cause.  Nicola Sturgeon is trying to salvage her position, and Alex Salmond is calling for an overhaul of the Scottish government and her resignation. I would hope for a satisfactory outcome, but that does not look easily achievable at the moment.  Truth needs to be established, before they can move on.  Meanwhile, opposition parties are making the most of the crisis.

Aspects

The notable aspects begin on Wednesday this week, with a sextile between Venus and Uranus on 3rd March.  It is good to see some Spring weather turning up these days, warming up the population and raising hopes, together with some prospects of some return to social interaction.  Though we are not quite there yet with the measures, Wednesday is a good day for socializing, as far as the rules and regulations permit.  Many of us are reliant on zoom, facetime and WhatsApp (what happened to Skype?) for contacting family and friends these days, but a chance meeting on a walk in the park is not out of the question.  As mentioned in the above blog, meetings are significant with the combination of Venus and Uranus, and sometimes they can be strange.  Venus sextile Uranus is on the pleasantly uplifting side of the equation, and can bring reunions.  There is also an impromptu or spontaneous element to such meetings.

On Thursday (4th) Mars enters Gemini, and we go from the more sluggish energy of Mars in Taurus to a brighter, more expressive energy.  It’s a high action placing, with a spike in mental and physical energy, and the urge to get things done.  Certain sports, such as running and cycling, are highlighted.

There’s a treat in store late in the week when Mercury conjoins with Jupiter on Friday (5th) at 17 degrees Aquarius (check whether that is an important degree in your chart).  This conjunction favours learning and education, communication and good news, sales and transport.  The enjoyment of mental expansion and philosophical awareness should bring about a major uplift.

The week in bullet points:

  • Wednesday – special meetings
  • Thursday – physical and mental stimulus
  • Friday – mental expansion and philosophical awareness
Date: Feb 28th, 2021 · Comments RSS · Tags: News