Belgium, what do you actually know about Belgium? Not quite France, not quite Germany, not quite Holland but a sort of amalgam of all three. The European parliament is based in Brussels, a compromise sort of place with great beer, chocolates, frites and it’s not too far from London, Paris and Berlin. Belgium is now the holder of an unwanted record, the country which has existed for the longest amount of time without being able to elect a government, they have existed on… a sort of compromise. One look at the astrology, and you can see why all this has happened.
Belgium was formed on 4th October 1830 at 13.52 hrs in Brussels. With a Libran Sun, a Scorpio Midheaven and Capricorn Ascendant, you can see how Belgium was always going to be a legal and diplomatic centre (Libra), one of the first industrial countries (Scorpio), a financial centre (Sun in 8th house) and the seat of government (Capricorn) for the region. The Moon representing the people is in steady Taurus, the sign of the people making things; another signifying factor of Belgium having being manufacturing country in the heart of Europe. The Moon is also exactly at the IC on the cusp of the 3rd & 4th houses reflecting the split nature of the country and the people, opposite the Midheaven (the Head of State).
Belgium is a constitutional monarchy with Saturn representing government in “royal” Leo, but the power lies with the people with the people and the federal government, one keeps the other in check. Taurus never rushes into a decision, it takes it’s time, certainly the Belgian people have not been hurrying this time around. The Sun opposes Pluto in pioneering Aries, and this opposition squares Jupiter & the Belgian ascendant. Belgium as a country had many colonies in Africa, the international exploration link shown by pioneering Jupiter; she exploited (Pluto) it’s colonies wealth (Jupiter/Pluto) for national (Sun) gain. The Sun/Pluto opposition does suggest that Belgium would go through several metamorphosis periods in it’s history, the first and second World Wars when Belgium was a battleground are direct examples. Belgium itself with Mars in non-combative Pisces has never been an aggressive nation. Mercury sits in balanced Libra in the 9th house, Belgium has two regions and two languages, French and Flemish and is a major transport and communication hub across Western Europe.
Looking astrologically at what has been happening to cause the government crisis, both the transit and the solar Arc charts show a clear picture. By transit, transiting Saturn has been hovering around and conjunct to the Belgian Sun for months now. Saturn always delays things and holds things up, allowing you to learn lessons before proceeding. The crisis was started after the government resigned in April 2010. Remember the Sun (leader) is opposite Pluto, so some type of reform in the way of government is needed before normal rule can proceed. Transiting Pluto is also bang on the Ascendant, reinforcing the need for a new direction and way of thinking for the country. Neptune opposes Saturn so there is confusion and a lack of decisive action.
By Solar Arc the picture is strikingly the same. Pluto is approaching a exact conjunction with the Belgian natal Sun in the next 3-4 months. Again, Pluto means complete reform, old structures of governing will be smashed down before new ones are built. Solar Arc Ascendant again in 3-4 months time will square it’s natal position so it will soon be time to make decisions about the whole face of Belgium as a country – it will be interesting to see what new ideas they come up with, possibly more autonomy for the two main regions Flanders and Wallonia? We shall see in the near future.
