17th3

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The 17th Century Part III

Cardinal Richelieu’s friend the Marechal d’Effiat had died in 1632, and Richilieu took over the responsibilty for his young son Cinq-Mars. He did everything he could to forward the young man’s career, even making certain he was appointed as grand master of the royal wardrobe to King Louis XIII.

Cinq-Mars Gaston de Orleans

            Cinq-Mars rapidly ingratiated himself with the King, and soon became his favourite, rising to hold great power. Then as Nostradamus predicted, after ten years, the two of them - Richelieu and Cinq-Mars would be equal in most things.
            Now, Cinq-Mars started going behind the Cardinal’s back, (and the King’s as well) plotting and scheming to forward his own ambitions. Richelieu of course was suspicious, and sent out armies of spies, hoping to catch the young man red handed in one of his plots.
            There was a war going on at the time between France and Spain, and the French army was besieging Perpignan in South West France. At this time, Perpignan was in the county of Roussillon, which although north of the Pyrenees, belonged to the Spanish until 1659.
            The French court was staying at Narbonne at this time, which was not far away. It was at Narbonne, that Richeliue was plotting with the Catalonians, who wanted to break free from Spanish rule. At this time Catalonia could only be reached by the sea, because the province of Roussilon was still stoutly loyal to Phillip II and the Spanish.
            It was during the siege of Perpignan, that Cardinal Richelieu suddenly sensed real danger for his life from Cinq-Mars. He immediately set off for safer places. He told his physicians to tell the King that the climate of Narbonne was detrimental to his health. He left through Beziers, Agde, Saint Privas, and arrived at Arles on June 9, 1642. It was here that a messenger finally caught up with him, having first tried to find him at Narbonne.
            This message was from Marechal d’ Breze, Viceroy of Catalonia, and it informed him that the Catalonians had found something on a ship which may be of interest to him. It was a treaty, signed between Cinq-Mars and the Spanish on March 13, 1642. At last the Cardinal had proof to take to the King, to show that the favourite was in fact a traitor. Not only did it finger Cinq-Mars, but it also hinted that the King’s brother Monsieur, and the King’s wife Anne were involved as well! Richelieu immediately sent a message for the King to join him at Arles.
            When the Cardinal first presented the King with the proof of his family’s treasonous acts, the King could hardly believe it. Still not entirely convinced, he decided to lay a trap for his brother to test his loyalty once and for all.
            On June 13, 1642, From the village of Beziers the King sent his brother Monsieur two letters. The first one advised him of the arrest of Cinq-Mars, but for rather trivial reasons - not the real one. The 2nd letter, appointed him commander of the army in Champagne. The King in this fashion, thus tricked Gaston into defending the frontier against his secret allies, the Spanish. Then the King sat back and waited to see what his brother would do.
            Gaston wrote back and distanced himself from Cinq-Mars in a very great hurry, and thanked his brother for the army command. With this, the King was satisfied that he had nipped in the bud any plot between his brother and the Spanish, but there was still the matter of Cinq-Mars. There was absolutely no doubt, that the favourite was involved in a very treasonous plot with the Spanish. To compound his guilt, Cinq-Mars suddenly fled, but was captured not far away.
            Cinq-Mars and his accomplice De Thou were led in chains to a barge, and the court sailed down the Rhone river to Lyons, which they reached on September 12, 1642. The old and ailing Cardinal followed on his luxury barge behind them.
            The next day in Lyons, on September 13th, both De Thou and Cinq-Mars were beheaded. The old Cardinal did not live long after this, dying on December 5, 1642. His King Louis XIII followed him to the grave in May of the next year, and both were embalmed according to French custom.

Cardinal Richelieu Marquise de Cinq-Mars

            8-69 Beside the young one, the old angel will fall
            But he will come to rise above him in the end
            Ten years equal in most things, the old one will fall again
            Of three, two one the eighth a seraphin.

            Here, the young one is Cinq-Mars, the old angel is Richelieu, Nostradamus says that after ten years they will be equal in power. This happened exactly as predicted, since Richelieu took over the responsibility of Cinq-Mars in 1632 when his father died, and it was exactly 10 years later when these events happened.
            Then Cinq-Mars will cause the old angel to fall. But the old angel will win and rise above him in the end - but only for a short while, and then the old one will fall again, that is, die.
            The last line of this quatrain is unclear, although there is much speculation as to what it means. One could fiddle with the numbers easily enough - 3 x 8 = 24, and 2 x 8 = 16, forming a numerical anagram of the date 1642. The word Seraphin could refer to a Franciscan Monk - Richeleu was connected with the Franciscan Order.

            9-25 Passing the bridges to come near Rosiers
            Arriving late, sooner than he will believe
            Will come news of the Spanish from Beziers
            So that the enterprise will break this chase.

This quatrain obviously refers to the Beziers incident. The town of Rosiers is situated very near Beziers. The last line tells us that the Spanish plot will be discovered near here, and that the enterprise will be broken, which is exactly what happened.

            8-22 Coursan, Narbonne, through the sea will be warned
            Tuchan, the grace Perpignan betrayed
            The Red town will not want to consent thereto
            In high flight, a gray cloth will end his life.

This quatrain refers to the time during the seige of Perpignan. Coursan, Narbonne and Tuchan are all in close proximety in South West France. This quatrain is a little difficult to interpret entirely. No doubt it has many subtle meanings which are now lost to history. However, the first line does tell us that Narbonne will be warned from the sea, which is exactly what transpired in this case. No doubt Perpignan would be the Red town of the third line, being Catholic and loyal to the Spanish. Richelieu would have found himself in a rather unique situation here, being a Catholic Cardinal, and at war with Catholic Spain.
The last line would refer to the flight of Cinq-Mars, when he tried to escape. The gray cloth would be Richelieu, who will do the ending of the life of Cinq-Mars, although this line could have a double meaning, since Richelieu’s life ended as well a short while later. The next quatrain also deals with this event.

            7-37 Ten sent to put to death the captain of the ship
            Warned by one open war in the fleet
            Confusion, the chief and another prick and bite one another
            At the Lerins and Hyeres islands, ships, prow into the darkness.

            The Isles of Lerins are off the Southern coast of France between Cannes and Antibes. The Isles of Hyeres are off the coast east of Toulon.
            In May of 1635, France attacked Spain and the Emperor, and thus opened the 30 years war. In April and May of 1637 the French managed to recapture the Lerin islands back from Spain. This quatrain fits most closely this time period.
Note that in the numbering of it 7-37, we are given two digits of the date 1637.
    I think in the first line Nostradamus is referring to Cardinal Richelieu who is the captain of the ship – it is a word play on his duel role as a captain of the bark of St. Peter and military leader both. During this period in time there were a great many conspiracies and plots going on – Louis XIII’s wife was Spanish, and Richelieu was forever catching her in secret correspondence with her brother the Cardinal in Spain. Then there was the Kings brother Gaston, and his favourite Cinq-Mars – all plotting against Richelieu and the King.

Louis XIII

            5-17 By night the King passing near an alley
            He of Cyprus and the principal guard
            The King mistaken, the hand flees the length of the Rhone
            The conspirators will set out to put him to death.

He of Cyprus here is referring to Cinq Mars. This is a very obscure little bit of trivia that Nostradamus likes to throw at us! Richelieu and Cinq Mars both came from the Poitiers area of France. Lusignan about 20 miles South West of Poitiers, was the seat of the great medieval family which provided the Kings of Jerusalem and ruled Cyprus until 1489. But by the time of Nostradamus, the family was supposed to have been extinct - the French branch having died out supposedly in 1389, and the oriental branch passed to the Kings of Savoy in 1485.
The hand who flees would be Richelieu, who is also the subject of the last line. In the original French, the first line reads “De nuit passant le Roi pres d’une Androne” The word Androne is captitalized in the original French, giving it further significance here. I think it is most certainly a word play on Androgen, which means hermorphadite, i.e. a homosexual, which certainly both the King and Cinq Mars were.

            8-24 The lieutenant in the doorway
            Will knock down the great one of Perpignan
            In thinking to save himself at Monpertuis
            The bastard of Lusignan will be decieved.

In this quatrain as well, Cinq Mars is called the bastard of Lusignan, connecting this quatrain to the previous one and Cyprus. The great one of Perpignan would be Richelieu, who was forced to flee from Narbonne. Montpertuis is the Perthus pass in the Pyrenees, south of Perpignan. Perpignan was at this time a Spanish possession. It is known that Cinq Mars fled and tried to escape, but I do not know which direction he went in - perhaps it is as Nostradamus says here, towards the Perthus Pass. Note in the numbering of this quatrain 8-24, we are given two digits of the date 1642 in which this event happened.

            8-68 The old Cardinal will be deceived by the young one
            He will find himself disarmed out of his dignity
            Arles do not show that the duplicate is perceived
            Both Liquiduct and the Prince will be embalmed.

This is a curious quatrain. The Liquiduct would refer to one who is carried by water, presumably. This is a good description of the Cardinal, who always sailed on his luxury barge when traveling. The quatrain seems to say, that the document which is revealed at Arles, will so stress out the King and the Cardinal, that it will finish both of them off – which is indeed, what came to pass!

            8-38 The King of Blois will reign in Avignon
            Once again the people bloody
            He will cause to bath by the walls in the Rhone
            Up to five, the last one near Lyons.

François-Auguste De Thou Cinq-Mars Decapitated at Lyons September 12, 1642

In French history, probably no one could be better described than Cardinal Richelieu, as being the King of Blois. Richelieu, although a Catholic Cardinal, held great power in the politics of France, and was personably responsible for more than a few deaths in the course of his career. As the last line, says, his last victims will die near Lyons - Cinq-Mars and De Thou in September 12, 1642. This next quatrain also deals with Richelieu and the plot near Perpignan.

            9-15 Near Perpignan the red ones detained
            Those of the middle completely ruined led far off
            Three cut in pieces and five badly supported
            For the Lord and Prelate of Burgundy

Cardinal Richelieu was once abbot of Cluny in Burgundy, so he would be the Lord and Prelate referred to in the last line here.
The next quatrain concerns the English, and their seemingly constant struggle to keep a Protestant monarch reigning over them. James VI of Scotland did not get along very well with the English Parliament, and his son Charles I found himself even more at odds with them. The English felt very threatened, because his wife was the Catholic Henrietta Marie who very much liked to meddle in politics. In July of 1643, she landed at Bridlington in Yorkshire, after obtaining supplies in France for the Royalist cause in Britain.

Queen Henrietta Marie, wife of Charles I of England

            5-34 From the deepest part of the English West
            Where the head of the British Isle is
            A fleet will enter the Gironde through Blois
            Through wine and salt, fires hidden in the cask.

            The first two lines of this quatrain refer to the Stewart monarchy, who came from the deepest part of the English West, that is, Scotland.
            The third line is interesting, since Blois in France is nowhere near the Gironde river. Obviously it refers to a person who is at Blois, and is allowing a secret shipment of casks containing arms to go on the Gironde river.
            Blois is the royal residence in France, and Henrietta Marie was conspiring with the French to aid her English husband in his battle against Parliament. The wine and salt refers to taxes - Nostradamus has used this term elsewhere as well, to refer to taxes, and the English politics of the time. And of course, it was literally the fight over wine and salt, that is, taxes, which led to the English Civil war, as the prophet can see, in the last line of this quatrain. Note that in the numbering of this quatrain, 5-34, we are given two digits of the date 1643, on which this event happened.
            The unfortunate monarch of England, Charles I, was delivered up to Cromwell’s men and taken to Windsor Castle, on December 23, 1648. Here he was kept locked up until the next January, when the Long Parliament of London decreed that he should be beheaded.
            Charles I went to his death bravely and with dignity. The shirt pictured is one of two that he put on that day, for it was a bitterly cold day, and he did not want to be seen shivering - they might think he was afraid. He took off his cape and coat, unlaced the Order of the Garter, and handed it to the Bishop. Then dressed in his white shirt, he was beheaded on January 30, 1649, and later buried in St. George’s chapel at Windsor Castle.

Death sentence of King Charles I King Charles I

            9-49 Ghent and Brussels will march against Antwerp
            The Senate of London will put to death their King
            Salt and wine will overthrow him
            To have them, the reign will be turned upside down.

Clearly, Nostradamus sees the reason for the fall of the English monarch in this quatrain - salt and wine, that is, taxes. And the reign certainly was turned upside down, with the arrival of Cromwell and his roundheads.
As regards Ghent and Brussels marching against Antwerp, at first this does not make sense, because they were all ruled by Phillip IV of Spain. But Philip was so anxious to get the Dutch out of the ongoing war, that in a treaty signed on Jan 30, 1648, he gave them the key towns of Maastrict, Bois-Le-Duc, Berg-Op-Zoom, Breda, and Hulst. The first thing that the Dutch did, was to close the Scheldt river, which brought wealth to Amsterdam, but ruin to Antwerp. In other words, Antwerp was ruined by it’s own ruler, Phillip IV. This treaty was signed one year to the day before Charles I was executed.

            8-37 The fortress near the Thames
            Will fall, when the King is locked up inside
            Near the bridge he will be seen in his shirt
            One before death, then locked up in the fort.

The fortress near the Thames in this quatrain would be Windsor Castle, where Charles I was taken to be locked up. I think he means here, the fall of the British monarchy.
The next quatrain describes in perfect detail, the advent of Oliver Cromwell. Leader of the English Puritan Republic and later Lord High Protector of England, Oliver Cromwell for all intents and purposes served as the monarch of England from 1650 to 1660. When Cromwell's power became increasingly autocratic, the final straw came when he named his own son as the heir to the English Protectorate. Presuming to be king in all but name, both monarchical and anti-monarchical forces throughout Europe characterized him in this manner

Oliver Cromwell

            8-76 More butcher in England
            Born of obscure place he will have the empire through force
            Base without faith without law he will bleed the land
            His time approaches so near that I sigh

The third line of this next quatrain dates it to the time of the English revolution, and their problems with wine and salt, that is, the taxes in 1649. The second line and the word Aemathion dates it to the time of France’s Sun King Louis XIV. Taking the year 1649 as a guide, we see that the Treaty of Westphalia was concluded in 1648, under the reign of the Spanish King Phillip IV. In it, Metz was ceded to France. The next French Spanish war was 50 years later, and the reigning monarch of Spain was another Phillip, the V. In the middle of this time period, The Sun King Louis XIV took Nancy in 1660, turned out the Duke of Lorainne Charles III, razed the fortifications of the great city, and incorporated it into France.
Note that in the numbering of this quatrain 10-7, we are given three digits of the year 1701 in which Louis’ grandson became Phillip V, and began the war of the Spanish succession.

Louis XIV the Sun King

            10-7 The great conflict that they are preparing for Nancy
            The Aemathien will say I subjugate all
            The British Isle in anxiety over wine and salt
            Between the two Phillps Metz will not be held for long.

The next quatrain dated for the 17th century concerns the election of the Holy Roman Emperor Leopold I in 1658.

Leopold I Holy Roman Emperor

         10-58 In the time of mourning, the feline monarch
         Will make war against the young Aemathien
         France will shake, the bark will be in trouble
         Marseilles will be tried, in the West, a talk.

            The first line refers to the succession of the feline monarch, the Emperor Leopold I, on April 1, 1657. Nostradamus makes a play on his name, calling him feline, because of the LEO(pold) in his name. This young monarch saw nothing wrong in making war against France while he was yet in mourning for his father, the Emperor Ferdinand III. The young Aemathien is France’s Sun King, Louis XIV. Nostradamus calls him Aemathien in other quatrains as well.
             Indeed, during these times, the bark was in trouble as well, as the prophet says. France lost a firm Ally when Pope Innocent X died, and in 1655 he was replaced with Pope Alexander VII - this new Pope allied himself with Phillip II and the Spanish against France.
             Eventually the war came to an end, and in October 1658, peace talks were begun. They were formalized in the West, as the prophet says, at the Peace of the Pyrenees. This document was finally signed on August 15, 1659, in a perfectly neutral place - on a raft on the river Bidassoa, exactly between the two countries. The young King Louis XIV was betrothed to the Spanish princess Maria Theresa to seal the deal.
             Note that in the numbering of this quatrain 10-58, we are given three digits of the date 1658, on which these events unfolded.

One of the greatest soldiers of the 17th Century, was the Duke of Berwick. Although born of English blood, he rose to France’s highest military honour, and became the Marshall of France. He was born in Moulins on August 21, 1670, the illigitimate son of James, Duke of York, who soon afterwards became King James II of England. His mother was Arabella Churchill, sister of John Churchill, who subsequently became the Duke of Marborough of English fame.
Berwick’s prosperous fortune became rather complicated when the war of the Spanish succession broke out in 1701. Villars, Berwick, and Vendome were Louis’ principal generals for France in this war, and the Duke of Marlborough was the principal general on the English side.

Duke of Berwick Duke of Marlborough

            3-16 An English Prince, Mars in his heart from heaven
            Will want to pursue his prosperous fortune
            Of the two duels, one will pierce his gall
            He will be hated by one who is well loved by his mother.

            The problem for Berwick, is that he ended up fighting against the most illustrious general on the English side - Marlborough, who just happened to be his mother’s brother! There can be no doubt, that he was hated by one who was well loved by his mother!
            In the first line, Nostradamus tells us that this man was born to be a soldier, which indeed he was.
            The third line is unclear, Berwick went on later to serve in the war of the Polish succession when it broke out in June of 1733, and he was killed in the trenches during the siege of Phillipsburg. It is not known if he was pierced in the gall, but perhaps he was.
            Notice in the numbering of this quatrain, 3-16, we are given two digits of the date in which this prince was born in 1670. The 16 may well enough as well, refer to the year 1716, when this Prince was at his apogee.

The next quatrain is written for Louise de La Valliere who was mistress of the Sun King, Louis XIV.

Louise de la Valliere and her children

            10-19 The day that she will be hailed as Queen
            The day after, the benediction and the prayer
            The reckoning is right and valid
            Once humble, never was one so proud.

            In the original French, the last two lines of the quatrain are written thusly;
            “Le compte fait raison et valbuee
            Paravant humble onc ne fuit si fiere.”

            Most commentators agree that the word valbuee is also probably an unsolved etymology, but I see it, if one includes the last word of line four as well, as part of an anagram, or a play on the name Valliere - (VAL)buee, and f(IERE)
            I consider this quatrain to refer to Louise de la Valliere. She fits the humble role particularly well, she was only a simple country girl, a maid in the service of Queen Henrietta of England. Louis XIV met her in April of 1661, and their love affair lasted 6 years in total. She bore him 4 children, of whom only one, Marie-Anne grew to maturity.
            But it is the circumstances surrounding this affair which are so unusual, and thus they fit the prophecy so extremely well. Louise had borne a child to Louis as early as 1663, but it was kept very secret, as were the births of the following children they had - after all, the Most Catholic Monarch did have a wife - Queen Maria Theresa. But, unfortunately, when it came to moral issues, the Sun King was cowed by only one person, and that was his mother, Anne of Austria.
            The day his mother died, on January 20, 1666, the Sun King became suddenly free of all moral restrictions, and proudly declared to the world, his mistress Louise de la Valliere. She was obviously pregnant at the time, and of course it caused a tremendous scandal at court. This was of little concern to the Most Catholic Monarch, he went on to make his mistress a Duchess, and legitimize their daughter Marie Anne.
            It wasn’t long after this, that Louis met a new love, Madame d’ Montspan. But for a time, it was the Age of the three Queens - Queen Maria Theresa, Queen Louise de la Valliere, and Queen Montspan. Sometimes Louis was seen in public with all three women in tow - his poor suffering wife!
            But eventually it was to be Louise de la Valliere who could take no more of these infidelities on the part of her lover. In front of the entire court, on April 19, 1673, she donned the habit of a Carmelite nun, and prostrated herself before Louis’ wife Queen Marie Theresa to ask for her forgiveness. Her lover Louis was able to restrain his tears, but not so the Queen and Montspan - soon the entire court was weeping! What a spectacle it must have been in that day and age!
            Louise de la Valliere was only 30 years old when she entered the convent, and she was to live for another 36 years behind it’s vaulted walls. Nostradamus seems to agree with her decision, saying it was right and valid, in other words, she did the right thing. The 2nd line tells us that after the benediction, will come the prayer, that is, after she is hailed as a queen, she shall spend the rest of her life in prayers for her mistake.
            Possibly significant in the numbering of this quatrain 10-19, April 19th was the day in which she made amends to Queen Maria Theresa, and then left the court forever.

The next quatrain dated for the 17th century concerns the marriage of King James II of England and Mary of Modena in 1673.

         6-73 In a great city a monk and an artisan
         Lodged near the gate and walls
         Secretly speaking emptily against Modena
         Betrayed for acting under the guise of nupitals

            En cite grande un moine et artisan
            Pres de la porte loges et aux murailles
            Contre Modene secret, cave disant
            Trahis pour faire sous couleur d’espousailles.

James Duke of York Mary of Modena Madame Pompadour

            The great city of line one is Paris, the Artisan is the mistress of the French King Louis XIV, Madame Pompadour, and the monk is Cardinal Bernais. This quatrain concerns the marriage of King James II and Mary of Modena in 1673. At the time, the English King was in exile from England, and living at the French court.
            The French King wanted to ensure that if and when James was restored to the English throne, that he would go back being a Catholic sovereign. What better way, than to make certain he married a nice Catholic girl of the French King’s own choosing?
            The plots of the French court were extremely complicated at this time in French history. Madame Pompador was a friend of Queen Maria Theresa of Austria, and their agenda was to get rid of Cardinal Bernais, and start a war with Prussia. On the other side of the fence, sat another Mistress of Louis XIV, the very pious and religious Madame Maintenon. The Jesuit Monks, the Catholics, the Protestants, Austria, England, the Mistresses, the Cardinals - they were all working on their own little hidden agendas at this point in time. Each one had different reasons to either be for, or against the marriage of the titular English King James, and the princess Mary of Modena. However, all came to naught, and the two were married in 1673, despite all opposition.
            In the original French of this quatrain, there is a word play on the city of Versailles, which was a place not even in existence yet, at the time the prophet wrote these words.
                        Note also in the numbering of this quatrain 6-73, we are given three digits of the date 1673, upon which the marriage of James II and Mary of Modena took place.

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