Catherine the Great: A Chart Analysis

Lately I’ve been binge-watching The Great with my boyfriend, and I’ve become fascinated with Catherine the Great as both a ruler, and a person. Her brilliance and power is something that stood the test of time and continues to inspire many. I of course consulted her natal chart, and was immediately amazed at how her cosmic imprint manifested itself into her reality!

At a time when we can see the selfish and ignorant consequences of leader’s choices, Catherine the Great is a compassionate breath of fresh air, promoting the notion of collective betterment and compassion. Before we dive into her chart, let me tell you a bit about the lady herself.

In the Beginning

Well ahead of her time, Catherine the Great fought to bring forward a new, inspiring, and intellectual Russia. Referred to as the greatest Emperor (or Empress rather) of Russia, she was most famously known for building academic institutions, and cities during her reign, helping to improve the quality of life for Russians all over the country. Her love for the arts and sciences allowed her to push for intellectual innovation, bringing forth a prioritization of public health, as well as advocating for the free press. This led to Russia entering a golden age during the Enlightenment period, offering fields like the arts and academia to evolve in major ways.

Portrait of Catherine the Great

Officially known as Catherine II, Catherine the Great was the reigning Empress of Russia from 1762-1796. She was born as Sophia Augusta Frederica/Sophie Auguste Friederike, in Stettin, Kingdom of Prussia (now modern day Poland) on May 2, 1729, to Joanna Elisabeth of Holstein-Gottorp and Christian August, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst. Despite her family’s noble status, her father was not able to obtain the title of duke, and became a Prussian general in his capacity as governor, of the city of Stettin. With little money to their name, the only hope for Catherine’s parents was to marry her to an affluent man to help lessen the financial blow.

This however did not stop her parents from educating Catherine, as it was a custom of German dynasties at the time to educate their children thoroughly. As a result, Catherine was educated by a French governess and other tutors, who helped expose Catherine to the many ideas and ways of thinking that would eventually inspire her to make tangible change. Along with learning about a variety of topics, Catherine also managed to learn to speak French fluently, allowing her to dive into the minds of Enlightenment thinkers and use these ideas for good.

She was often seen as a tomboy in her youth, with some accounts even saying that she mastered the art of the sword by herself. Catherine expressed her boredom throughout childhood, noting that it was uneventful and that it was of no interest to her. Even if she was groomed to be the wife of a powerful husband, just like every other woman of her social status, she definitely had an independent edge to her that not many women possessed at this time.

The Chart of Catherine the Great: Sect

Catherine II was an Aquarius rising ruled by her 2H Pisces Saturn, which as a nocturnal chart, is also her malefic out of sect. It’s important to remember that a nocturnal chart has the Moon as the sect light, with Venus as the of sect benefic and Mars as of sect malefic. This makes the diurnal team of the Sun, Jupiter, and Saturn out of sect, and therefore less helpful to the native than the planets of the sect.

Catherine the Great’s Chart - AstroGold

Since the chart ruler is the most important planet of the chart, having it be the most malefic planet of the chart and averse to ascendant definitely packs a punch. Catherine the Great, though powerful and capable, had to deal with a rather harsh crowd of people who constantly judged her. Whether it was those who saw her as an outsider due to her disinterest in classic femininity of the time, the nobles who opposed educating the masses, or the people who evidently always have a point of criticism for a monarch, it seemed like Catherine could never please everyone. When we see her chart ruler in the 2H of resources and values, it’s no wonder that she was held to high — and maybe unattainable — standards for her beliefs and her ambitions as ruler of Russia. I imagine that this kind of pressure on an Empress who was never prepared to reign before the opportunity presented itself, can be a massive burden, especially when you’re using an approach that was far from the norm.

Since her Saturn is trining and ruled by an exalted Jupiter however, the harsh effects of Saturn are definitely mitigated to some extent. This can be seen by the fact that Catherine II ended up reigning for 34 years, always surrounded by successful generals and trusted nobles (Jupiter ruled 11H containing MC) who helped her to bring her vision to life. Diving into her work (6H containing Jupiter) and focusing on big ideas and Enlightenment philosophies (9H, and house of exaltation for Saturn) is ultimately what helped to strengthen her position as ruler, and what eventually became her legacy after her death.

The Chart of Catherine the Great: The 4H and Family

Since Catherine the Great was initially supposed to be the wife of an Emperor, I figured we’d look at her chart to see how these key people in her life show up through the astrological lens. I previously mentioned that Catherine’s father wasn’t capable of obtaining as high of a status as his other relatives, resulting in limited finances. Since we’re looking at the State of Catherine’s father, and as an extension her family, we need to look to her Taurus 4H, as well as her Sun. The Sun is often ascribed to the native’s father in a chart, and speaks to the nature of the father in the native’s life.

Catherine’s Mars and Sun in the 4H, ruled by a rejoicing and averse Venus in Gemini

In Catherine’s case, her Sun is located in the 4H copresent her Mars in detriment. Since Mars is the malefic of sect, his malefic affects won’t be as challenging, but we are still dealing with a malefic nonetheless. The 4H is ruled by a rejoicing Venus in Gemini, which further helps to mitigate the fire-y nature of a Mars-Sun combination. This rather clearly summarizes the role of Catherine’s father and her family life, as even though some circumstances weren’t ideal and maybe even challenging (Mars in the 4H) her father still managed to be a provider to some extent, and offer his daughters the education they needed to succeed in life. Though her father fell short in some cases, it ultimately didn’t impede his children attaining better lives as they entered adulthood, which is all you can really ask from an imperfect noble family in the 18th century!

Funnily enough, Catherine’s father wasn’t the only man in her life represented by the Sun in her chart, as her 7H is in the sign of Leo. This means that we will likely see overlaps between Catherine’s father and her husband, thematically speaking.

The Chart of Catherine the Great: The 7H and Peter III

As was normal at the time, Peter III was Catherine’s second cousin, whom she met when she was 10 years old. Her written accounts of this encounter expressed that she was not a fan of her cousin Peter in the slightest, saying that he was “detestable and that she stayed at one end of the castle and Peter at the other.”

A view of Catherine’s 3H-7H showing the ruler of the 7H (Taurus Sun), as well as the ruler of the 3H (Taurus Mars)

Knowing that the ruler of the 7H is located in the 4H, definitely nods to the fact that Catherine’s husband was somehow tied to the family. However, what I found surprising was the fact that her 3H — the house ruling over cousins— was in the martial sign of Aries, meaning that this house and the planets in it, answer to her 4H Mars in detriment. Knowing that Catherine avoided her future husband by staying on opposite ends of the palace definitely speaks to the aversion between Mercury + 3H and their ruler Mars, showing that there is a disconnect and even dislike between cousins, and later between husband and wife.

A portrait of Peter III of Russia

When we consider that fact that Catherine planned a coup against her then husband and Emperor, leading to the imprisonment and assassination of Peter III on July 17, 1762, it’s safe to say that both Catherine’s father and her husband failed at gaining the status they were expected to in their noble society. In both cases it’s also safe to say that the primary male figures of Catherine’s private life were remembered through the victory/accomplishments of the women they were associated to, as opposed to their own accomplishments. I definitely think this speaks to rejoicing Venus as ruler of the 4H and two masculine planets, as the touch of Venus, and the feminine energy that comes with her, tends to wash over this masculine energy present in Catherine’s life.

The Chart of Catherine the Great: The 5H and a Laughter Loving Queen

Catherine’s 5H containing her Moon-Venus conjunction, as well as Neptune

This is by far my favourite part of Catherine’s chart, as her 5H contains a tight Moon-Venus conjunction with her benefic of sect rejoicing in this place. Valens firstly says that the Moon and Venus together “are good with respect to rank, acquisitions, and the inception of business…” (Valens, 35) which we can definitely notice when looking to the houses influenced by these planets. The Moon rules over Catherine’s 6H, containing Jupiter and Venus rules Catherine’s 4H as previously mentioned, but it also rules over her 9H. When reflecting on Catherine’s reign I would definitely say that 6H and 9H topics are the loudest parts of her chart. Her desire to invest in education, improve medical practices, promote scientific discovery, and to help her people embrace modern Enlightenment schools of though, all tied into what made her known as Catherine the Great. The Empress’s drive to change the lives of her subjects helped bring Russian into a new era, which later helped it gain deserved achievements in literature and the arts. She also helped to found institutions like the Hermitage Museum (1770) in Saint Petersburg, filling it with her art collections, as Catherine herself was a patron of the arts, and desired to spread this admiration to the masses.

Though her 9H is empty of traditional planets, it does contain Pluto, known for his intense generational transformations. There is no doubt that Catherine had this generational impact on her country, creating a legacy that outlived her many times over. When remembering that the 9H is the sign of Saturn’s exaltation, which is also Catherine’s chart ruler, the way her legacy continues to live on is rather fitting for Saturn’s symbolism of standing the test of time.

I wish that planetary combinations could be all sunshine’s and rainbows, but alas Valens will not stand for it. The second part of his Moon-Venus interpretation notes that this combination is “… unsteady with respect to living together, friendships and marriage, bringing rivalry and hostility, as well as ill-treatment and upset from relatives and friends. Likewise with respect to children and slaves, these stars are not good: they cause possessions to be fleeting and bring mental anguish” (Valens, 35).

Paul I of Russia

We’ve already covered her less than ideal personal life quite extensively already, so I wanted to talk about her son and heir, Paul I, as he tends to illustrate this side of the Moon-Venus combination quite perfectly. Though Catherine was able to produce an heir to Peter III’s lineage, this wasn’t without scandal and disappointment. Catherine the Great was a big flirt, who had many lovers during and after her marriage with Peter III. She was involved with at least 5 members of court, however this number should be taken with a grain of salt as there could be more; a woman of power will always have many suitors! When her son was born, his paternity was put into question, as there were claims that her lover Sergei Saltykov was Paul’s biological father. This however didn’t go very far as nobles noted that Paul looked and acted like Peter III. Paul was next in line to the throne at this time, as Peter III was still alive, but this all changed once Catherine’s coup succeeded and Peter III died in prison shortly thereafter.

When Paul was nearing adulthood, he was no doubt overshadowed by and constantly compared to his accomplished mother. Spending very little time with his mother, Paul lived with his aunt Empress Elizabeth for most of his childhood, so he never really had a deep connection to his mother. He was educated far differently from Catherine, seeing women as a threat to the fabric of society, and believing he is the only true heir to the throne. When Paul had his first child in 1772, Catherine immediately married the mother of his child to another man and went to find Paul a “proper” wife. This was also partly to distract him from trying to take the throne from her, as he only got more determined when he turned 18. This marriage didn’t last long as Paul’s first wife died, obligating Catherine to make another suitable choice for him.

This distance between mother and son only grew when Paul would disregard her opinions and policies in public. He would often speak ill of Catherine’s choices and even wrote a dissertation about military reform where he questioned her legitimacy as ruler as an act of defiance. It was for this reason that expectations for Paul were high once Catherine died in 1796, and also why he tried to destroy her testament shortly after ascending to the throne, but with no success. Unfortunately Paul wouldn’t be able to achieve much, as he was Emperor for only 5 years before he was assassinated by dismissed officers who opposed him.

Not only was Catherine II’s child a source of mental anguish, but she was often met with hostility and insults from him as well, which usually meant questioning her authority as both parent and Empress. What’s more is that the “fleeting of possessions” mentioned in Valens’s interpretation speaks to the rather swift loss of power and assassination Paul I experienced once he finally reached the throne. Though Catherine secured the lineage for the next generation, it would end up being lost in a short period of time; never allowing Paul I to truly reign as he had wanted to.

If you got to the end of this article, thank you so much for reading! I want to provide more chart example posts in the future, and I thought that this was a really juicy one to start with. I hope this example helped to illustrate some of the basics of interpreting a chart, while also teaching about this rather strong and impressive Russian Empress. For those of you who haven’t watched The Great, I highly encourage you to do so, even if it isn’t really based on historical facts all of the time.

If you enjoyed this article and would like to have your own chart looked at in depth, you can always book a reading with me here! I’d love to illuminate the chart in a way that speaks to your lived experiences, as well as your future ambitions, while giving practical ways to engage with the knowledge provided during our session. If you’d like to purchase a reading for a loved one this holiday season, I also provide gift cards for my consultations, which you can find here.

Wishing you all the best this Sagittarius season, and I’ll see you next time :)

Sources:

“Catherine the Great.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catherine_the_Great#. Accessed Nov. 2025.

“Paul I of Russia.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_I_of_Russia. Accessed Nov. 2025.

Vettius Valens, and Mark T. Riley. The Anthology. Amor Fati Publications, 2022.