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Mort, maladie aux jeunes femmes, rhumes,
De teste aux yeux mal heur marchads de terre,
De mer infaust, semes mal, vin par brumes,
Prou huile, trop de pluye aux fruits moleste guerre.
This is confusing. The part about the bad eyes of the traders of the world seems to indicate a time of terrible trouble caused by the greed of capitalists, that would place this in the near future. The part about the fog is indicative of the month of Brunaire from the old Republican Calendar, but it could also be a reference to the fog of war that has really taken a grip since the 20th Century. The first and fourth lines, plus parts of the third, are indicative of bacteriological and chemical warfare. Almost certainly this refers to the future.
Prisons, secrets: ennuis, entre proches, discord,
La vie on donnera, par mal divers catarrhes :
La mort s’en ensuivra, poison sera concorde,
Frayeur, pœur, crainte grande, voyageant lairra d’arres.
A catarrh is a buildup of thick mucus in an airway or cavity of a body. As a doctor, Nostradamus would know this and would see it during the course of his various duties.
The whole quatrain is indicative of a terrible disease. Almost certainly it is manmade. That indicates biological warfare and the future.
Prisons par ennemis occults & manifestes,
Voyage ne tiendra inimitié mortelle :
L’amour trois, simultez secret publiques festes,
Le rompu ruiné, l’eaue rompera la querelle.
The first line seems to tie this quatrain to the previous presage of January 1567 (Presage 131).
Les ennemis publics, nopces & marriages,
La mort apres, l’enrichy par les morts :
Les grands amis se monstrer au passage,
Deux sectes jargoner, de surpris tards remords.
Note: Some could claim that this only came out after the fact – the base this on the claim that it was first seen in the Sève edition of 1605. However, since it was actually first seen in the Almanac of 1567 (published 1566) which was a few years before this event, this claim is fallacious.
This concerns both the wedding of Henri de Navarre to the daughter of Catherine de Medici, Margaret de Valois and the subsequent massacre during St. Bartholomew's Day.
The wedding itself was a glorious occasion. Occurring on the 18th day of August, 1572, the Cathedral of Notre Dame was packed with the nobility of France. But harsh divisions were seated in that cathedral, the most bitter hatred that existed between Catholics and Protestants. It would be one of the last public spectacles that Admiral Coligny would enjoy. He would be murdered a few days later, by another who attended the nuptials, Henri I, duc de Guise, who blamed Coligny for the murder of his father, Francis, Duc de Guise.
The murder of Coligny signaled the beginning of a massive slaughter of Protestants. It began on the 24th of August, 1572, St. Bartholomew's Day. Henri barely survived because he begged his new wife to protect him and then later announced he had converted. But many Protestants fell that day.
All the massacre did was to inflame Protestant opinion and guarantee that warfare would continue for years. Duc Henri was never regretful of what he did. Catherine may have been regretful but she struck because she felt she had to. The only one who regretted was Charles IX, who died in the arms of his old Protestant nurse.
Par grandes maladies, religion faschée,
Par les enfans & legats d’Ambassade :
Don donné à indigne. Nouvelle loy laschée,
Biens de vieux peres, Roy en bonne contrade.
There are several points to this quatrain. The first regards the word Don. There are two ways it can be interpreted. The first and most likely is Donation. The second is the Spanish honorific Don, originally reserved for royalty and high nobility, though now people who have achieved great distinction and esteem. This strongly indicates a Spanish quatrain. Note that the Don, either the title of great distinction and esteem or the donation, is given to an unworthy person.
The second regards the disease the religion is angry over. That a religion would be angry over a disease is most unlikely, unless it is obvious that the doctors either outright refused to treat the disease, or they were barred from treating it, either by the government, the hospitals or the insurance agencies, the latter of which is the most probable in certain situations. However, more likely is the fact that the disease is not a physical disease but a spiritual disease. Christianity and Islam would say it is a spirit of the disease of sin gaining ground in various parts of the world. Hinduism would say it is the spirit of the disease of the acceptance of maya (illusion of the world) gaining complete sway over humanity. What other religions would say, I have no idea.
Du pere au fils s’approche: Magistrats dits severe,
Les grandes nopces, ennemis garbelans :
De latens mis avant, par la foy d’improperes,
Les bons amis & femmes contre groumelans.
This presage was supposedly on the lips of courtiers after Francis II died in 1560 after a reign of just under 17 months. The nuptials referred to the marriages of Margarite, sister of Henry, to Charles Emmanuel I of Savoy, and of his sister Elizabeth to Felipe II of France. The third line could refer to the developing conflict that would erupt as the Religious Wars, the Latins would refer to Catholicism and the improper faith would refer to Calvanism. So it is possible.
However, I cannot make the fourth line fit. Groumelans is a word I do not know. So, I am uncertain.
Par le thresor, trouvé l’heritage du père,
Les Roys & Magistrats, les nopces, ennemis :
Le public mal-vueillant, les Juges & le Marie,
La mort, pœur & frayeur, & trois Grands à mort mis.
This sounds like the future it is almost scary. The three would be the three nations, the three brothers of the future that united wage war against the world. The treasure is most likely a spiritual treasure. The third line is almost a giveaway; the public wants, very badly, the Judges and Marie. Marie here is the Blessed Virgin Mary, given her French name of Marie.
Encor la mort s’approche, don Royal & legat,
On dressera ce qu’est, par veillesse en ruine :
Les jeunes hoirs de soupçon nul legat,
Tresor trouve en plastres & cuisine.
The only definition I found for plastids are a part of protoplasm, a structure necessary for modern life. This is, of course, confusing to me. How was it that Nostradamus knew of such a thing, and was able to spell it? It is admittedly possible that he learned what the name was and how to spell it, the fact that it has a medical significance would draw the interest of the good doctor to no end. That said, the odds of this being correct are extremely remote. Due to this, I am of the opinion that there is another definition, one that I am unaware of. This is extremely likely due to the nature of the rest of the quatrain, even though it does tie in with the last word of the quatrain.
There is one other possibility, and this I think likely. It is possible that this is another example of Sève’s editing of the quatrains from the almanacs.
Les Ennemis secrets seront emprisonnez,
Les Rois & Magistrats y tiendront la main seure :
La vie de plusieurs, santé maladie yeux, nez,
Les deux grands s’en iront bien loin à la male heure.
Longues langueurs de teste nopce, ennemi,
Par Prelat & voyage, songe du Grand terreur :
Feu & ruine grande trouve en lieu oblique,
Par torrent de couvert sortir noves erreurs.
This is another of the quatrains that deals with both the wedding of Henri di Navarre to Margaret de Valois and the massacre of Huguenots on St. Bartholomew’s day. Nothing about the prelate who performed the wedding has come down to us, but as the first two lines show, the real story of the wedding was the fierce tension and terror between the Catholics and Huguenots. As this was during the days of the dread Inquisition, Nostradamus indicates that an eventuality would be new errors. Henri would eventually issue the Edict of Nantes which granted Huguenots a certain amount of freedom of worship. But more likely Nostradamus was referring to the horrors of the Religious Wars that resulted where Frenchman was turned against Frenchman and so many ardent Catholics turned against their own king, violating their own laws.
Les Rois & Magistrats par les morts la main mettre,
Jeunes filles malades & des Grands corps enfle :
Tout par langueur & nopces, ennemis serfz au maistre,
Les publiques douleurs, le Coposeur tout enfle.
Du retour d’Ambassade don de Roy mis au lieu
Plus n’en fera: fera alié à DIEU :
Parans plus proches, amis, freres du sang,
Trouvé tout mort prés du lict & du banc.
This prophecy, if such can be called, was printed before the prophet died. According to tradition, he was found in the morning exactly as he described in this statement.
Most religions claim that occasionally a person will be told when they will die. This is a known phenomena as there are those people who suddenly strive to put their affairs in order or can tell to the day when they will die - usually within a week of their deaths. Nostradamus may have been one such person allowed to know when he would depart from this world.
That said, Nostradamus would not need his powers of foresight to know that his end was approaching. As he was a medical doctor, he would know from first hand knowledge that his end was approaching and could, with a practiced eye, determine approximately when he would pass away.
The part about the embassy is curious. Tradition, based largely on this quatrain, claims that before he died, he performed one last mission for Charles IX or Catherine de Medici. Of course, I hold that it merely refers to the embassy of Catherine and Charles as they toured France. As this did happen, it is the far more likely interpretation.