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Nostradamus
1503–1566 · France
Description
Michel de Nostredame, usually Latinised as Nostradamus, was a French astrologer, apothecary, physician, and reputed seer, who is best known for his book Les Prophéties, a collection of 942 poetic quatrains allegedly predicting future events.
Facts
| Born | 14 or (1503-12-21)21 December 1503, Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, Provence, France |
| Died | 1 or 2 July 1566(1566-07-02) (aged 62), Salon-de-Provence, Provence, France |
| Occupations | Physician apothecary author translator astrological consultant |
| Known for | Prophecy, treating plague |
| Notable work | Les Prophéties |
Life & work in brief
Summarised by section — one row per topic, for fast reading.
| Work / contribution | Significance |
|---|---|
| Life | Nostradamus was born on either 14 or 21 December 1503 in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence, Provence, France, where his claimed birthplace still exists, and baptized Michel. |
| Works | In The Prophecies Nostradamus compiled his collection of major, long-term predictions. |
| Origins of The Prophecies | Nostradamus claimed to base his published predictions on judicial astrology—the astrological 'judgment', or assessment, of the 'quality' (and thus potential) of events such as births, weddings, coronations etc.—but was heavily criticised by professional astrologers of the day such as Laurens Videl for incompetence and for assuming that "comparative horoscopy" (the comparison of future planetary configurations with those accompanying known past events) could actually predict what would happen in the future. |
| Interpretations | Most of the quatrains deal with disasters, such as plagues, earthquakes, wars, floods, invasions, murders, droughts, and battles—all undated and based on foreshadowings by the Mirabilis Liber. |
| In popular culture | The prophecies retold and expanded by Nostradamus figured largely in popular culture in the 20th and 21st centuries. |