Agatha Christie
The Queen of Crime
The Queen of Mystery, Agatha Christie, wrote no fewer than 66 crime novels and 14 short story collections. Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple are among her most famous brainchildren.
Suspect #1: Mercury
At first glance, God of writing Mercury, does not jump out in Agatha’s chart with seemingly more prominent planets in the angular houses stealing the show, but upon closer look, evening star Mercury is just about to station retrograde. A planet virtually standing still in the sky always demands our attention. Fueled by her Mercurial curiosity, Agatha taught herself to read and write by the age of 4. She was an insatiable reader and wrote her first poem when she was 10.
Other signs of Mercury’s influence were her childhood dreams of becoming an opera singer or concert pianist. As the ruler of the 7th house of relationships, Mercury from the lucky 11th house attracted “many handsome suitors”.
Later in life when she developed her writing style, she stuck to the same successful formula for most of her work. Perhaps this invariable method is what her stationing Mercury points to. In each of her novels, a murder occurs and there are several suspects, which engages the reader to find the murderer. At the end, the detective then gathers all the characters together and explains how the crime was committed. There is nothing Mercury likes better than explaining mysteries!
“Crime is terribly revealing. Try and vary your methods as you will, your tastes, your habits, your attitude of mind, and your soul is revealed by your actions.” - Agatha Christie
Why crime in particular? The Moon’s first aspect is a conjunction with Mercury and the Moon rules the 8th house of crime and punishment. Mercury is ruled by Venus, who is in the 12th house of secret enemies, and she is ruled by lawbreaker Mars. Mars, right on the ascendant already gives us a hint toward a potential personal interest in subjects like conflict and violence, and I would say Saturn tops it off, highlighting themes of darkness and death up there in the public 10th house.
Suspect #2: Saturn
Saturn is very strong in Agatha’s chart. Not only is this planet in the powerful 10th house, it is also in the process of escaping the burning beams of the Sun. Saturn will become visible in the morning sky on the eastern horizon just before sunrise. Ancient astrologers believed this to be a powerful omen, pointing to the importance of all of Saturn’s significations in the native’s life. With Saturn co-present with the Sun, and their ruler Mercury about to station retrograde, some delays and setbacks in Agatha’s professional life can be expected and this happened to be the case as her first novel, The Mysterious Affair at Styles, in which Hercule Poirot makes his first appearance, was initially rejected by six publishers before becoming a hit during her first Saturn return.
Her inspiration for the famous Belgian detective came from seeing war refugees in her town during the First World War. When her husband Archie was sent to fight in the war, Agatha joined a British voluntary unit providing field nursing services. This is where she learned about all kinds of poisonous substances, traditionally associated with Saturn.
Can you discover more placements hinting at her favorite genre? Let us know!
Notice how the Sun is separating from a conjunction with Saturn while his next aspect is a square to Mars.
Suspect #3: The Sun
The Sun is a universal significator of the father. Agatha’s father died when she was 11 years old, and that event, she said, marked the end of her childhood. In her Solar Return chart of that year, we see an emphasis on the Sun by virtue of its placement within 1° of the ascendant.
“The popular idea that a child forgets easily is not an accurate one. Many people go right through life in the grip of an idea which has been impressed on them in very tender years.” - Agatha Christie
The Sun rules the 12th house of loss and grief in the Solar Return chart. Another important significator for the father in the natal chart is the 4th house ruler which in Agatha’s case is Jupiter.
The planetary placements in the Solar Return chart indicate the changes in quality of the topics the planets represent in the natal chart. Note that Agatha’s 4th house ruler Jupiter is in its fall in Capricorn in the Solar Return chart, moving into a conjunction with the god of death, Saturn; a conjunction that perfected in November 1901, the month Agatha’s father actually died. The Solar Return Moon, in her fall in the sign of Scorpio, the sign occupying her natal 12th house of loss also points to severe issues related to family.
Regarding Agatha’s professional ambitions, despite her musical talent, she suffered from performance anxiety when singing or playing for a live audience.
“Most successes are unhappy. That's why they are successes - they have to reassure themselves about themselves by achieving something that the world will notice.” - Agatha Christie
The planets best describing her character are Mars on the ascendant and the ruler of the 1st house, Jupiter. Whereas we can expect both of these planets to provide a healthy dose of self-confidence, Jupiter is retrograde and resides in Saturn’s temple. It is probably this strong Saturn in Virgo, known to be quite demanding, who undermined some of her self-esteem when she was young. Self-criticism and feelings of insecurity and shyness might have hindered her, although Helm-ruler Jupiter cannot be underestimated as the most benefic planet of the chart.
We find Jupiter in the 3rd house of siblings. Agatha followed the example of her successful older sister who was a writer. Another signature of Jupiter is clearly manifested in Agatha’s love of travel and there was no shortage of adventure in that part of her life and we can see how this interest found a way into her crime fiction, e.g., Murder on the Orient Express and Death on the Nile, as the ruler of the 9th house of long-distance travel, the Sun, is in the 10th house of work. The Sun and Saturn see Mars through a square aspect and this is representative of Agatha’s ability to work extremely hard and deliver steady quality throughout her career.
Jupiter and Mars do not only paint a picture of Agatha’s adventurous character; they also point to her physical strength and athleticism. She loved roller skating, swimming, played tennis, and learned how to surf in South Africa.
The 2nd house of money is ruled by Saturn. Despite her success, Agatha insisted on a careful, modest lifestyle and kept a tight control on her own finances, which led to tensions in her marriage with Archie. They were both very busy and appeared to have drifted apart, although Agatha loved him very much.
“Where large sums of money are concerned, it is advisable to trust nobody.” - Agatha Christie
Suspect #4: Venus
Goddess of Love, Venus is in the house of hidden enemies, in the sign of Scorpio, where she feels abandoned. When Archie told her he had an affair and wanted a divorce, this was a huge shock for Agatha. For months, they tried to reconcile to no avail. When Archie finally left her on December 3, 1926, Agatha packed a suitcase, drove out, crashed her car and walked away. The story of her mysterious disappearance was all over the news, casting suspicion onto her husband.
In the Solar Return chart of that time period, we see Venus in poor condition. In her fall in Virgo, she is located in the 12th house of the Solar Return chart. Literally, loss of love. The prominence of Venus is underlined by the applying aspect to the degree of the MC and her rulership over the 1st house. Her natal 1st-house-ruler Jupiter receives a tight square from the debilitated 7th house ruler Mars, promising discord and strife.
On the very day that Saturn entered her 1st house, she disappeared. She was found 11 days later in a hotel where she had registered under a false name. The exact details of what happened are unclear to this day. Suggestions ranged from a nervous breakdown brought on by her husband’s affair, to a publicity stunt.
When the dust settled, Agatha met and eventually married archeologist Max Mallowan 4 years later when Jupiter and Uranus activated her natal 7th house ruler.
“I married an archaeologist because the older I grow, the more he appreciates me.” - Agatha Christie
Agatha, who sold an estimated 300 million books died from natural causes at age 85, while Saturn was opposing her natal 1st house ruler, Jupiter.
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