Editor’s note: Elizabeth Elkins’ book We Should Soon Become Respectable: Nashville’s Own Timothy Demonbreun will be published March 15 by Vanderbilt University Press. When Elkins set out to learn about the French-Canadian trapper and 18th-century Nashville settler, she left no stone unturned — including those in the celestial realm. She consulted with a local astrologer on Demonbreun’s chart, and she offers it as an addendum here.
So, what kind of man was Timothy? There are many assumptions to make based on his choices and actions: Was he a spoiled rich child who did what he wanted, a classic-case misogynist and polygamist, or a conceited adventurer? Was he brave and stubborn, a passionate romantic who lived for the moment, from survival to success and back again? We know he was a man who conned the Spanish governor out of a war, carried on graceful correspondence with Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton, owned several slaves, may have served as a spy, and was a decorated veteran. He served in the Revolutionary War, extraordinarily so it seems. Generals counted on him: He must have been loyal and steadfast, perhaps unshakable and fearless. Military records underscore his leadership skills. We can make many assumptions from all the facts and all of the opinions in this book so far.
Timothy wrote letters with an educated grace and undeniable wit. A few of those letters survive, giving us scattered clues to Timothy’s personality. One notable letter is from October 1785, addressed to Spanish Gov. Francisco Zavier Cruzat, written urgently after the Spanish seized refugees in Kaskaskia, Ill. It was convincing and elegant, and it can be partially credited with averting military action between the United States and Spain. Timothy later eloquently petitioned the U.S. government for greater reward for his services during the Revolutionary War, which he felt were overlooked. He cared about spirituality, bringing his deep Catholic faith to Nashville, even if it meant bringing the priest in from Kentucky. We know from later Nashville court records he loved to be in court, loved to sue people — and according to newspaper reports, he was a charming party host.
For the curious, however, there are more ways to unlock a personality than just the historic record. Astrology may be one of the most unconventional. It’s part math, part magic — arguably either pure nonsense or chillingly prophetic. There is, of course, no science in this art — but there are thousands of years of fervent belief that the position of the stars in the sky at the time of your birth can determine your fate, and influence who you are. Nashville astrologer Jes Justice dove into Timothy’s astrological chart to find clues to his motivation, personal relationships and proverbial destiny. It’s important to note that prior to the reading she knew nothing other than his birthplace and birth date, that a street was named after him in Nashville and that he was a part of the founding of the city.
He was, of course, born in late March, under the sign of the ram, Aries, with a Leo moon and Taurus rising. Justice dug into the details: Mercury was in Aries that day, Mars in Scorpio, Venus in Aquarius. She crosses complicated lines in her readings, noting Trines and the Lilith and the Chiron and conjunctions far beyond the understanding of the casual astrology believer, but they combine to form a picture of the subject at first glance:
This person is fiery, driven, passionate and creative while also being a builder in life. This is someone who may build a business, an enterprise or even actual buildings or infrastructure. He is definitely a trailblazer who was born to be a rebel with a cause and do things his own way. Although he can be impulsive and dramatic, he’s very gifted at being able to pace himself, to steadily build upon past accomplishments and build something over a long period of time. He does things differently than the people around him, and his career and public life are meant to break social norms and boundaries. His success in business is greatly related to his sense of self-worth. He takes his success very personally, and this is probably why he is successful. He feels he must succeed in order to matter.
Justice immediately wondered if Timothy inherited money from his father, but said his father was most likely detached and aloof; their relationship was strained. He was probably closer to his mother than his father as his mother was the more nurturing and loving parent. His chart shows he gained additional wealth in a foreign land, but it required great risk and long-term perseverance to get there. Things, she said, didn’t always come easily to Timothy. His career was paramount to him, and it was most likely in law or the justice system. There were definitely secret financial dealings in his life. He may have been getting money from a secret source or had to lie about bank accounts or where he was getting money from — at least at some point.
As far as his personality, the stars offered some clues.
It’s really difficult for him to let go of being controlling; he may have an overpowering presence and most often takes the lead in most situations in his life. He does not change his mind easily. He probably struggled with anxiety and perfection. He is a very compassionate person, naturally disciplined, perhaps very obsessed with work? He is meant to become more relaxed, spiritual and a compassionate leader in his lifetime. He may have been the leader of a cause. The biggest key to his success is that he is willing to break norms, traditions and the status quo, and that is how he makes a name for himself. His businesses will be most successful in foreign lands — the businesses themselves would probably be something traditional like building or selling.
There’s a darker thread in this heavenly geometry, though. Timothy likely felt something was wrong with him, that he could never live up to what was expected of him. He wanted to be perfect, and these shortcomings were always a part of his thought process. He felt different from others, and this may be exactly what compelled him to travel far from home. He put that insecurity into his work. He held fast to a dedicated cause: be of service and try to improve others’ lives. He loved people, and was probably very nice to deal with in any business.
Timothy may have also been viewed as odd, exceptional or interesting. This guy sticks out. He is led by an urge to find the truth and feels that he has a different world view than most people. With his Mercury sextile in Venus, he is charming and persuasive and probably well-liked. Even though he had pretty bad anxiety that may have caused some neurosis, he comes off as friendly and good-natured. The chart shows he is very clever and an intelligent thinker who can get mixed up in controversy without being condemned or associated with major dramas. He’s also able to mix with an eclectic group of people quite easily. He has genuine charisma and is probably very popular, in business and in his personal life.
Which leads us to perhaps the biggest question: What about his romantic relationships?
It looks like he will be married. But with Mars and Pluto in his seventh house there will be separating at some point. His relationships tend to be a key part of how he transforms in life, and they may also be volatile. I definitely see a daughter who could be a Leo. [Of note, of course, is the early August birth of his first child, a daughter, making her a Leo.] He has at least one child. With his sun in the 12th house, he is somewhat secretive, not easy to know fully, a part of him is always hidden. There are many secrets at some point in his life — very secretive dealings. Also, with his 12th house ruler in the seventh house, I think there’s a secret relationship or a secret marriage, or perhaps this relationship could have caused him to withhold some sort of big secret.
She continues that he loved time with his children, and she suspects there are secret children.
“I see so much secrecy,” she says, “but I don’t see anything malicious about it. His family means a great deal to him even though his family life is complicated. There are definitely some nontraditional aspects going on here, perhaps something very transformative happens in his family life. It’s either a divorce or death or major separation. Honestly, the more I get to know him I think he has something like a double life in his personal life. There’s a lot of secrecy here, but he has such a great personality and propensity for business and service no one seems to notice or care.”
His romantic relationships are actually really important to him even though they are volatile, somewhat dishonest and a hot mess. I think he really does truly love his partner or partners, and he is extremely passionate. It is possible however that he benefited off of a romantic separation or the ending of a relationship. Somehow the ending of a relationship enriched his life. The people he is involved with romantically have a huge impact on him and are very intertwined with his destiny. The decisions he made in his romantic life greatly impacted his life as a whole. He has his own sense of ethics regarding relationships, he does what he feels is right, and he tried his best. He actually is the one the people depend on. His moon sextile Saturn gives him emotional maturity and a sense of dependability. People felt like they could lean on him and trust him. This goes to show that although he may have had secret relationships, he would never totally abandon any of his partners. He showed his love through making sure they had money, shelter and food.
“There’s a wife that is a Leo,” says Justice, unaware of Elizabeth’s late-July birth. “This is probably the most important partner to him, or she’s the mother of his most important child to him. That sounds bad, but that’s what it looks like. He probably train-wrecked at least one of his partner’s lives or that person met some sort of tragic end. In the best-case scenario, it wasn’t his fault, though it likely was tied to his doing other secretive things in business that aren’t known about.”
Justice believes Timothy’s career and home life were often at odds. His career, though it provided financial stability, made him unavailable either literally because of his travel and business obligations or, importantly, emotionally. Above all else, Timothy liked to feel like a great provider.
He was also destined to live a long life, she concludes, and probably died of natural causes or old age.
