XVII
For forty years the Iris will not appear,
For forty years every day it will be seen:
The arid earth will grow in drought,
And great flood when it is perceived.
Original
Par quarante ans l'Iris n'apparoistra,
Par quarante ans tous les jours sera veu:
La terre aride en siccit croistra,
Et grans deluges quand sera aperceu.
It will last, extend, for 40 years. All concepts can be replaced by "During." Let’s agree that this "during" is synonymous of a time cycle, i.e.,it starts and ends. A span of forty years. At first glance, "Iris" is what we all know as a concept associated with the eye.
In anatomy, the iris is the circular colored membrane of the eye that separates the anterior chamber from the posterior chamber. It has a central opening of variable size that connects both chambers: the pupil. The iris is the colored area of the eye and regulates the amount of light entering the eye. But in Greek mythology, Iris is the personification of the rainbow that announces the covenant of humans and gods and the end of the storm. Basically, the Iris is a symbol of a covenant.
Let’s know that from the first verse of this quatrain, a clause is born (see section in the blog on the use of Nostradamic punctuations) and extends to the second verse through a coma and ends with a colon. The main clause provides the big picture. Only one. Then, we have the paraclause that goes from the third verse, extends through a coma to the fourth verse, where it ends. It is also a unique image but it derives from the main clause.
The first two verses seem strange. On the one hand they say that "the iris will not appear" and on the other, they say "every day it will be seen;" if it does not appear, how can it be seen?. Let’s rearrange the verse because it appears to be messy.
If the first verse says "the Iris will not appear," then it is closely related with "when it is perceived”. Therefore, the first and fourth verses are consecutive and logical to one another. So we have:
For forty years the Iris will not appear
And great flood when it is perceived.
Logically, the second verse is related to the third. So we have:
For forty years every day it will be seen:
The arid earth will grow in drought,
If we join all the verses, we get:
For forty years the Iris will not appear
And great flood when it is perceived.
For forty years every day it will be seen:
The arid earth will grow in drought,
And I will base my analysis on this structure. Pay much attention to that especially in its references (first verse, second verse, etc.).
The concept "will appear" can be replaced by arise, spring up, flourish.
The fourth verse says: "The arid earth will grow in drought" - The term "earth" can be replaced by ownership, possession, inheritance. Likewise, the term "arid" can be changed to dryness, barren, barren, lonely. The term "drought" may be replaced by wilting, calamity, dryness, thirst. Finally the concept "grow" can be synonymized by will develop, will progress, will prosper. Therefore, we can potentially change the verse by adding a minor change in its syntax (changing the position "solitary",) we get:
"The solitary domain in calamity will prosper"
Interesting, is it not? How it changes when we are not so literal.
The second verse says, "and great flood when it is perceived." Let's see.
"Flood" can be synonymized by bursting, deluge, river. The concept "perceived" associated with looking can be replaced by watched, checked, proved, examined, tested. Therefore, the verse tells us:
"And much overflow when it is proved"
As conclusion, Nostradamus here does not speak of a drought or a flood. He talks about another thing, using a kind of metaphor.
Let's be even more specific and go to history.
Indeed, on May 17th 1935, General Francisco Franco becomes chief of the Central General Staff, the ultimate military beacon in Spain. In July 1936, after much hesitation, he joins the coup led by General Sanjurjo and General Mola against the government of the Second Spanish Republic, placing himself at the head of the army in Africa. The coup failed and led to civil war ("Iris"). Basically, it is the pact between the pro-coup generals.
After Sanjurio’s death in a plane crash just days after the coup, aided by the prestige gathered by the swift advance of his troops and the liberation of the Alcazar of Toledo, Franco sees a clear path to become the undisputed leader of the rebels, is appointed its Head of Government on September 28th, 1936, and proclaims himself Head of State. And we know that the Franco regime in Spain ends in November 20th 1975, after the death of its military leader, dictator and leader of the Spanish state, Francisco Franco. He remained in Spain for forty years, in absolute power. ("For forty years every day he will be seen")
Spain had lost a significant portion of its population and productive capacity in the Civil War. The shortage multiplied famine and perpetuated extreme poverty. The situation worsened because months after the end of the civil war, the Second World War between1939-1945, began.
Spain was declared non-belligerent in World War, but participated indirectly in it. Initially it expressed support to Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany, but always avoiding direct involvement in the war. After the meeting at Hendaye, the most significant action was the mobilization of Spaniards, volunteers or motivated by other circumstances, to the 250th division of the Wehrmacht, the Blue Division, which fought against the Soviet Union.
Meanwhile, Spain showed a position of neutrality to its allies, which became clearer as the situation began favoring them. However, the ambiguous position of Spain caused the allied victory to suppose the international isolation of the regime ("The arid land" or “the lonely domain”). Western democracies did not defend the Spanish Republic, and after World War II, Western Europe was rebuilt following the Marshall Plan, but not Spain or Portugal.
Since the end of the war in 1939 there was an armed resistance to the dictatorship of the Maquis, guerrillas who acted mainly in rural and mountainous areas. Their peak of activity occurred in the second half of the 1940's. In the early 50’s, guerrillas in Spain were in decline, and in 1952, a general evacuation to France took place. From that date until 1965, only increasingly isolated parties survived.
The economic policy of the time followed the autarky model, with supported the war economies of Italy and Germany with relative success. It relied on the direct State intervention in economic affairs, and economic self-sufficiency that limited trade with the rest of the world.
State interventionism spread to a large portion of the economy. The State extracted agricultural and livestock products from the market laws, setting prices and limiting the right of ownership of the goods produced. In 1941 the Instituto Nacional de Industria (INI) was created, and a rigid control of foreign trade was established.
The scarcity and the state intervention led to black market and corruption (import and export licenses, State supplies ...). In 1947 the last concentration camp in Spain, Miranda de Ebro camp, closed. Partly, post-war hunger was alleviated through a number of charities included within the Social Assistance falangist organization.
The failure of the autarkic model led to a shift in economic policy, and prices, trade and transit of goods were partially liberalized. In 1952, food rationing ended. These measures improved the economy, but until 1954 it did not exceed the income per capita from 1935.
The Opus Dei technocrats came to power in 1957 and implemented a tough Stabilization Plan in accordance with the guidelines of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and its social impact was the emigration of some two million Spaniards over the following years.
The economy was liberalized, ending the autarky and reducing State intervention. Public expenditure was cut, the economy opened to the exterior, currency was devalued, and foreign investments were encouraged. The result was that, as from 1961, economic growth flourished.
Between 1961 and 1973, the favorable situation in the world led to a rapid growth of the industry and services in Spain. Foreign investments arrived, attracted by low labor costs. The development and mass migration ended unemployment. An exodus from rural areas to industrial zones in Spain and in other European countries was triggered. ("The arid earth will grow in drought")
Spain managed to achieve a surplus in its payment balance. The historic deficit was offset with tourism revenues, foreign investment and remittances from migrants in other European countries.
Migration and increased performance in agricultural and livestock businesses accounted for the impoverishment by desertification of rural areas with no industrial or tourist presence.
As of 1963, the Government approved several Development Plans that sought to correct, with tax incentives and state aid, the poorest results of the economic development. The economy continued to grow but the planning did not work and the imbalance between regions grew ("The arid earth will grow in drought ")
And precisely the same year that Francisco Franco appeared with the greatest military power in Spain, i.e., in 1935, one of the most devastating natural disasters of mankind occurred, that is, the Lang-tzu river floods in China, which killed approximately 145,000 people. ("And great flood when it is perceived.")
And surprisingly we know that in July 1932, four weeks before the Sanjurjada, Sanjurjo met secretly with Franco to ask for his support in the military uprising. Franco did not provide it, but it was so ambiguous, that Sanjurio was able to think that after the coup, he could count on him. The interview happened in Madrid; after returning to La Coruna, Franco asked for a leave of absence from his post for a few days in order to accompany his wife and daughter on a trip along the Rias Bajas, which coincided with the dates planned for the military uprising. The permit was denied because the Division general of the square would be absent. When the military uprising occurred, Franco was in La Coruña assuming in office, the command of the square, and did not join the rebels. Having failed in his uprising, Sanjurjo was sent to a military council and asked Franco to defend him, but he refused. Let’s remember that Francisco Franco was born in 1892, and in 1932 he was 40 years old. ("For forty years the Iris will not appear). The quatrain has been clarified.
XVIII
By the discordant Gallic negligence,
A path will be opened for Mohammed
The land and sea of the Seine will be soaked in blood,
And the port of Foce will be covered by sails and ships.
Original
Par la discorde negligence Gauloise,
Sera passaige Mahommet ouvertL
De sang tremp la terre & mer Senoise,
Le port phocen de voiles & nefs couvert.
It is strange that the letter L from ouvertL is indicated in Capital letter. The original quatrain contains the colon and only appears with comas, which indicates that we are facing 4 images within a same context.
Resuming the idea of "OuvertL" the word is "ouvert", and the L does not fit; neither in the rhyme ("couvert"). We will see if we can find any sense to that, or simply it is due to a transcription problem that has prevailed through time. There are many interesting elements here; first, it says “discordant Gallic negligence:” Discordant means that one or several do not agree on a subject, so it can be changed by divergent, unequal; and "negligent", is one who has committed one or several mistakes, has not been responsible. We can change it by clumsiness, carelessness, laziness; and Gallic refers to France. Therefore, let’s change the verse.
By the dissenting clumsiness of France
Then it says "a path will be opened for Muhammad". The concept "pass" or "passaige" can lead to "path", but also to "passager", passenger. Given the concept of mixing France "Gallic" with "Mohammed", it could prove more successful. We'll see. The concept "wil be" can be changed to “will exist”, which derives from the verb "to be". Similarly, the concept "open" can be changed by opening, deployment, beginning, or even fit.
We realize that by forcing the rhyme, the verse has a somewhat complex syntax reading. Let’s rearrange first what we have and join it to the first verse:
By the dissenting clumsiness of France
A path will be opened for Mohammed
Now, obviously Muhammad was already dead when Nostradamus wrote his quatrains, hence the reference to Muhammad is only a reference to Islam, a religion which was born from the legacy of the prophet.
Basically, Nostradamus tells us that France will be a bridge that will somehow let Islam in. In short, these two first verses connect us with two elements – France, and a region where Islam is present. But France itself can not be it, since it has very strong Catholic roots. Nor should we be so bold as to assume that Muslims will invade Europe and thus trigger the Apocalypse as predicted by many wild interpretations that are circulating, even with advertising. Thus, the term "passager" is interesting because it has two sides, since it also alludes to the passenger. And therefore, France is connected to another region where Islam is predominant. Because basically, France is the bridge.
Let’s continue: “Par”. We will define that later. "The land and sea of the Seine will be soaked in blood". The combination "land and sea of the Seine" points to the river itself and its banks. The use of the term "Sea" and its property announced by the concept "of the Seine" alludes to consider that the Seine flows through Paris and lies in a region that is paradoxically called "The Ile-de-France", or rather the island of France. And an island is surrounded by sea. That is the idea that Nostradamus infers when using the term "mer." Therefore, we can change that concept by "water."
Let us consider that the verse also says "in blood". The preposition "in" indicates that in the river Seine, blood will be irrigated, sprinkled, disseminated. Therefore, the term "blood" can potentially be changed by death. That is, we are looking at a conflict, war, riots or any action where injuries and deaths occur. Now let us change what we have and add the first two verses:
By the dissenting clumsiness of France
A path will be opened for Muhammad
The banks and water of the Seine will be sprinkled with death
Now, "The port of Foce”: let us remember that it alludes to Focea, a Greek city in Asia Minor, now located in Turkey. It was an important trading port and had dealings with the whole Mediterranean. Its inhabitants are known as Foceans. It is also important to say that according to Herodotus, the Foceans were the first Greeks who made long voyages by sea and discovered the Adriatic, the Tyrrhenian, Iberia and Tartesos. This is very important since this port is assigned with two characteristic features of the Foceans: to be traders and be adventurous in the sea. This is made clear by the phrase "... covered by sails and ships", or rather that Port Foce is covered with sails and ships.
This leads us to think of some French port, especially if in the above verse he refers to the symbolism "and the sea of the Seine.” To the elements previously stated, France and some Islamic region, the following elements are added, a French Commercial Port and the French with their hands stained with blood. Nostradamus inexorably leads us to Algeria, and to be precise, to the process of Independence. But let’s provide historical support to all the concepts presented here to make sure. In 1834, France annexed Algeria and thus became an overseas department of France, controlled entirely by the European minority, which was called colons (colonists).
The colons formed one privileged elite. Even though they were majority, the Muslim population, who benefited from social services and economic development, remained at a disadvantage and was subject to many restrictions. According to French law, Muslims could not hold public events, carry firearms or leave their homes or towns without permission. Legally, they were French subjects, but to become French citizens with full rights, they had to relinquish their beliefs. ("By the dissenting clumsiness of France")
Algerian nationalism developed after World War I between groups of Muslims who, basically, only wanted equality with Europeans. ("By the dissenting clumsiness of France") The nationalist resistance strengthened again in early 1920, until it exploded in 1945 when the festivities for the defeat of Nazi-fascism became a popular uprising that was violently suppressed: 45,000 Algerians and 108 Europeans died, according to the official French report.
In 1936, the French government devised a plan that contemplated full equality for Muslims veterans and professionals, but was thwarted by the colons deputies in the French National Assembly, who were frustrated by the stubborn resistance of the colons to reform, "By the dissenting clumsiness of France"
Abbas joined forces with Messali (Farhat Abbas and Ahmed Hadj Messali were among the most prominent Algerian leaders in the 1920’s and 1930’s) during World War II in order to organize a party of anti-French affiliation, the Friends of the Manifesto and Liberty. After the war for the Organic Statute of Algeria which took place in 1947, the first Parliamentary Assembly of Algeria was established, with an equivalent number of European and Muslim delegates. This idea was not satisfactory neither to the natives nor the colons, and proved its ineffectiveness A steady rise in guerrilla actions during the next two years forced the French to bring reinforcements; 400,000 French troops sailed from Marseille, to be stationed in Algeria.
In short, the verse ("will be opened for Muhammad”) then refers to the independence of Algeria. The phrase "Port Foce” is Massalia or Marseilles, founded by Focean Greeks around 600 A. C., which during the nineteenth century was the scene of swift progress due to the French colonial expansion into Algeria and the opening of the Suez Canal. "The port of Foce will be covered by sails and ships." In order to sustain "French Algeria" and the pieds-noirs (French in Argelian), the French colonialism destroyed 8,000 villages, killed more than a million civilians, systematically used torture, and deployed over 500,000 soldiers. The colonial right-wing forces residing in Algeria formed the terrible Secret Army Organization (OAS), a terrorist group that mixed neo-fascism with the claims of the French settlers who resisted the increasing dominance of the Algerians.
But certainly, within the context of the Algerian liberation war (1954 - 1962) there is another episode that clarified beyond doubt where Nostradamus places us in this historical period, and it is the year 1961, with the slaughter of Paris in October 17th, 1961, which more precisely happened during the Algerian war. The repression from the Paris police, then headed by Maurice Papon (convicted in 1990 for crimes against humanity perpetrated during Vichy) against the Algerian population in the Paris region lasts throughout the fall of 1961. By then France had already more or less lost the war, and Charles de Gaulle was beginning to negotiate with the FLN. On October 17th, 1961, a peaceful demonstration called by the FLN against the curfew imposed on Algerians living in the Paris region by the Police Prefect Maurice Papon ("By the dissenting clumsiness of France") ended in a brutal repression, which caused between 70 and 200 deaths (the historian Jean-Luc Einaudi counts 200), and 325 Algerians dead by the police during the fall of 1961.
The Algerians were not the only victims, because the racism of the police caused that any colored person (Moroccans and Tunisians, but also Portuguese) was detained, beaten and killed. Some of the victims were thrown into the Seine, ("The banks and the water of the Seine will be sprinkled with death”), while other deaths were hidden in a bureaucratic manner. The victims were detained in facilities that were used during World War II as concentration centers. The quatrain has been clarified.
XIX
When snakes come to surround the altar.
Trojan blood humiliated by the Spains:
By them, a large number will be abated,
Chief flees, hidden in the swamp among reeds.
Original
Lors que serpens viendront circuir l'are,
Le sang Troyen vex par les Espaignes:
Par eux grand nombre en sera faicte tare,
Chef fruict, cach aux mares dans les saignes.
We already know that for Nostradamus, the serpent symbol is synonymous of infamous, cruel, cruel, infernal. We pointed that out in quatrain X of the first Century. The term "are” refers to an altar (Latin for Altar), which is a mound, rock or building devoted to worship or devotion. And "Go around" may be replaced with surround, encircle or wrap.
Let’s change what we have:
"When the infamous surround the altar"
Now, "the Trojan blood humiliated by the Spains": let’s stop for a moment. "Trojan blood? With this he is referring not to Troy in Asia Minor, but to Italy and specifically Rome, because according to Virgil in his Aeneid, it was founded by Romulus and Rema, descendants of Aeneas, the Trojan prince. Therefore, he refers to Italy.
Therefore, the verse becomes unique when it ultimately establishes that Rome will be humiliated by the two Spains. We can change the term "humiliated" by demeaned, outraged. The term "humiliated" is masculine in the translation, and the syntax in the original quatrain advises using such gender. Let’s change what we have:
"Italian Blood humiliated by the Spains"
With "the Spains", Nostradamus gives us an intentional plural, and establishes a kind of duality in the concept; however, he is referring to an area we all know as Spain, but that he infers as being more than one, not precisely called “second Spain”. This singularity may well be ascribed with the concept of "two Spains." We'll see why Nostradamus wrote “Spains” in plura, but within the historical concept we could speak of the "Viceroyalty of the New Spain" The Viceroyalty of New Spain came to encompass the territories of the Spanish Empire in North America, Central America, Asia and Oceania. So with this amount of territory there is no doubt that Nostradamus can refer to it as part of the first Spain, and refer to the whole group as "the Spains". But Italian blood is not a historical element to unfold in this context. We must therefore rule out that he refers to the New World.
Let’s know that the quatrain structures a general or main clause or main image that goes from the first verse to the second, where it ends in the colon; hence, Nostradamus establishes a paraclause or secondary image that derives from the main clause.
The next verse, which corresponds to the paraclause or secondary image, tells us: "By them, a large number will be abated." The last part of the original verse says, "sera faicte tare". Faicte derives in “fait”, fact, “faire” from the verb “to do.” “Will be" derives from the verbe “être”, “to be”, and the concept “tare” is an adjective which, when applied to people, as in this case, derives in corrupt, damage. Therefore, the verse would read:
"By them (the Spains), a large number will in fact be abated"
Now let’s add everything we have:
"When the infamous surround the altar
Italian blood humiliated by the Spains
By them a large number will in fact be abated
Finally we have the last verse:
"Chef fruict, cach aux mares dans les Saignes"
The term "cach" can be translated as hidden, covered. It derives from the French word caché, or cache, that means hideout. Also, "Mares" which is plural, is translated as pools. The term "fruict" already appeared in quatrain X of the first Century and was translated as “Fruit”, but this concept "fruit" can be synonymized as consequence, result. The concept "fruit" does not correspond to its literalness, but rather has a colloquial application. Also, "Saignes" derives in the French word “Saigner”, which translates as blood, and not stalks as mentioned in the translation. By combining "mares dans les saignes”, it could be translated as:
"(And) leader (has) been covered in bloody pools"
Nostradamus is speaking of the Italian military intervention in the Spanish Civil War. Remember that Spain was facing a bloody civil war. Two sides, the National and the Republican, were confronted. Spain was even divided territorially in areas occupied by one side or another. ("Two Spains")
Remember that The Corpo Truppe Volontarie (Body of Volunteer Troops), also known by its acronym, CTV, was an Italian force of about 140,000 combat troops sent by Benito Mussolini's fascist Italy to Spain, participating in the Spanish Civil War in support of the rebellious side.
Soon after the beginning of the war, Benito Mussolini decided to provide assistance to Spanish nationals. Early in the conflict, the better equipped Nationalist forces were located in the Spanish Morocco and the Canary Islands. The rest of the rebels at first were located in Pamplona, Zaragoza, Oviedo, Salamanca, Avila, Segovia and Cadiz. But the question is at what point the Italians ("Trojan blood") were humiliated and abused (by "the two Spains")?
Let’s go to history
The Battle of Guadalajara (March 8 - March 23, 1937) was a confrontation in the Spanish Civil War which developed around the city of Guadalajara in an attempt to penetrate Madrid, ("the altar"), the capital of Spain, by the North.
After the takeover of Málaga by Italian troops, Mussolini felt the need for a major military operation that would demonstrate the ability of his army in battle, persuading the Nationalist side to cooperate on a wide-ranging operation in the general offensive on Madrid. ("When the infamous surround the altar"). This operation became known as the Battle of Guadalajara, and was a disaster for the Corpo Truppe Volontarie, which since that moment would no longer participate in actions of this magnitude, except those to support the nationalist side. After the war, the troops withdrew almost immediately. (Italian Blood humiliated by the Spains")
The Battle of Guadalajara represented the penultimate attempt of the national troops to take Madrid, until the end of the war. Since then the National side directed its efforts toward the northern front, resuming the attack in Vizcaya shortly after the failure of the Italians in Guadalajara became evident. (Italian Blood humiliated by the Spains ")
The key to the development and resolution of the battle lay in heavy rains and later snow, which left the National army anchored along the N-II (paved) and unable to leave it, since the vehicles (especially the Italian tanks that made the attempt) would be stuck in the deep mud when trying to leave the safe pavement of the road. All this caused the first circulatory collapse that the N-II suffered in all its history. On the other hand, the army could not receive air support, because that same rain disabled all the aerodromes operating from the province of Soria, leaving Zaragoza airport, located at about 220 km, as the nearest operational airport, which in practice rendered it useless. Thus Nostradamus mentions "Mares" or ponds or swamps, as the quatrain was translated to Spanish.
The Italian defeat also caused a strong military discredit for Mussolini due to the large amount of military equipment lost or abandoned on the battlefield, and the high number of casualties (almost 4,000 Italian soldiers killed and wounded); many bodies were left in mud pools and in the mires that covered the battlefield, without considering the visible poor performance of Italian commanders and leaders. ("(And) leader (has) been covered in bloody pools")
In the Republican counterattack of March 12th, the Italian General Mario Roatta tried to modify his battle order to confront the Soviet heavy tanks used by the Republic, but such a task was almost impossible, because although the Italian vehicles got off highway N -II and were deployed in open fields, the mud formed by the rains left those vehicles stuck. Thus, the Republican aviation managed to destroy a large number of Italian tanks, armored vehicles and trucks. "(And) leader (is) covered in bloody ponds"
The losses of men and material among the Spanish nationalists were very small compared to the damage suffered by the Italians, which highlighted the failure of the Italian units. ("By them, a large number will be abated") However, the situation encouraged Mussolini himself to significantly increase his involvement in the Spanish war, hoping that the CTV would achieve, in some instances, a resounding military victory that would erase the memory of the defeat of Guadalajara from foreign opinion. The quatrain has been clarified.
XX
Tours, Orleans, Blois, Angers, Reims and Nantes,
Cities humiliated by the sudden change:
By foreign languages tents will rise,
Rivers, darts, horses shaking land and sea.
Original
Tours, Orleans, Blois, Angiers, Reims, & Nantes,
Cits vexes par subit changement:
Par langues estranges seront tendues tentes,
Fleuves, dards Rones, terre & mer tremblement.
Here Nostradamus announces several French cities and also makes them look like victims, that is, "humiliated" by the "sudden change." But who humiliated these French cities? Before answering that we should locate ourselves historically: we know that the concept "humiliated" can be replaced by humbled, offended. The concept "Change" can be replaced by movement. The term "sudden" is translated as swift, sudden, as indicated in the translation into Spanish. Pay much attention to that concept because it is key to understanding the rest of the quatrain.
We note that the main clause or main image is available from the first verse until the second, ending in the usual colon. Then, from this same colon, Nostradamus builds a paraclause or secondary idea or image that emerges from the main clause.
Let’s see the first two verses in the light of the changes we've made.
Tours, Orleans, Blois, Angers, Reims and Nantes, cities humiliated by the rapid movement
But to which regions of France do those cities correspond, I wonder? Let’s see.
Tours is in the Central region
Orleans is in the Central region
Blois belongs to the Central region and is located between Tours and Orleans
Reims belongs to the region of Champagne – Ardenne
And Nantes belongs to the region of the Countries of the Loire.
The key to this positioning is in the last verse "Rones, terre & mer tremblement”, i.e. horses trembling land and sea." No horse or cavalry could shake "land and sea." We would be talking about an almost staggering force. So it is clear that Nostradamus does not refer to any cavalry; he refers to an armored one.
And speaking of an armored cavalry, Nostradamus obviously takes us to the Second World War and the above mentioned cities named in the general clause. We are in France. And if we join both ideas, we are inside what became known as the invasion of France by Germany.
Let’s go to history:
Nazi forces were responsible for the so-called German invasion of France in World War II. Nostradamus places us in the days of June 1940. And the "sudden movement" means that the Allies were almost certain that the German offensive would unleash on the Netherlands and not on France; the French General Gamelin was equally confident, mainly relying on the strength of the Marginot Line.
Regarding the humiliation of those cities, let’s consider the following: Tours was taken by the Germans on June 19, 1940, Orleans fell on June 16, 1940, Blois on 18 June 1940, Angers on June 18, 1940, Reims was occupied on June 11, 1940, and finally Nantes was humiliated on June 19, 1940. In sum, all the cities that came under German jurisdiction and not under the Vichy government, following the Blitzkrieg pattern of invasion ("swift movement") And it is the German invasion ("By foreign languages .."), because the enemy actually ordered its forces to station in various strategic points before initiating the final blow, grouped into 3 groups of the German army: the A, B and C. ("... tents will rise)
The last verse, "Rivers, darts, horses shaking land and sea" has a very clear symbology, and especially reminds me of the example I gave in my introduction: what would happen if an ancient Roman would have seen a plane? Well, here we have this example very well applied in a verse from Nostradamus. Such roar ("...shaking land and sea") is caused by a" cavalry"; but never in its history, France has had an invading foreign cavalry (“which humiliates French cities”); it would require millions of horses and magnitude to achieve that. Behind this verse lies an assignment, i.e., the cavalry that shakes land and water are tanks; in fact, in many armies, the cavalry was replaced by armored cavalry after the invention of the tank.
And even more enlightening if we think that the success of the German offensive against France was due to the swiftness of its armored power or its panzer divisions, an innovative German strategy called Blitzkrieg or lightning war. ("Swift movement"). Nostradamus is remarkably right: he is referring to May 10th, 1940, when German tanks begin their offensive especially in the Netherlands and France. Interestingly, the Allies assumed that the German advance could be arrested in Belgium, given its many easily flooded watercourses (rivers ...") such concept in plural is applicable not to one river, but to many).
But when naming several French cities he is referring to the Battle of France, and not the almost simultaneous invasion of the Netherlands, which includes Belgium. And to be more precise, he aims at the area known as the Ardennes, an area with many rivers (including the Meuse), where the bulk of the German invasion troops crossed. And Reims is located in that region.
One of the three groups of the German Army was Group A: under the command of von Rundstedt, with 45 divisions, including seven armored divisions, it would conduct the largest offensive when crossing the Ardennes with three Panzer corps at the lead, making way. ("Rivers, darts, horses shaking earth and sea.")
The concept “darts” is also an inference to what the dart was in its time: a small arrow or spear that is thrown with the hand. With that he is referring not to the artillery guns because he knows them perfectly; he is referring to the Stuka airplanes that look like a dart when they rush to the ground to attack their targets, and precisely within this first context of the Second World War.
Stuka planes shattered the French artillery when crossing the river Mose. Many studies from Nostradamus infer that if the prophet did not consider Paris, it is because this quatrain does not refer to the Battle of France in World War II. This assessment is somewhat awkward, to my opinion, because 3 of the cities he names are located in the central region which is adjacent to the Ile de France, where Paris is located. Paris fell on June 14, 1940, after Reims fell, on June 11th. This quatrain speaks of the German occupation of France, not of Paris. ("Cities humiliated by the sudden change") The quatrain has been clarified.
