As my investigation of the Kaiser article unfolds, certain facts or conditions must be taken into consideration. If W.D. Gann used Firdaria or Profection, he most certainly would have tested his model. In all astrology, the date of birth is important, but far more important to prediction is the placement of the houses—and this is entirely dictated by the time of birth, with the assumption that the date and place of birth is known. If the time is not known, the horoscope must be rectified. Gann would not have not known the time of birth. Not knowing the time of birth, Gann would have used one of several methods for rectification—a complicated process—of which the simplest is to place the sun exactly rising at the ascendant (for personal matters of the native), or at the Midheaven (for public matters of the native); for testing matters, I am going to assume the latter.
Gann would also have chosen a house method. I believe his choices would have been Placidus, Regiomontanus, Equal and Whole. Placidus was and still is common in western astrology; so, I will not use it. But, the traditional astrological school seems to have relied upon equal or whole house signs. For an overview, albeit with controversy, of the history and development of the house systems, consider this article. Since I have something Gann did not, namely a laptop with software, I will investigate both the equal and whole house signs. The classical astrologers did not use all the planets that modern astrology does; so, for this investigation, we will stick with just the Chaldean or traditional seven planets.
Before W.D. Gann would go out on a limb and make predictions in 1919 about Kaiser Wilhelm, he would have tested his astrological model against known important dates for the Kaiser. For an overview of the Kaiser's life, see this article. Based upon the biography, I will test the Firdaria and Profection against a few key important dates for the Kaiser: his first marriage, his father's death and his subsequent ascension to the throne, and his abdication.
Finally, something must be said about how to interpret the Firdaria and Profection. The approach will be a generic one. Both Firdaria and Profection provide time-lords, or chronocrators, who rule over periods of our lives; specific planets, called rulers, are activated. For the time period under consideration, an activated planet will highlight or otherwise activate or bring to the front any issues, concerns or events related to the houses they rule as domicile rulers, as the exalted ruler, or which they reside in. For the purpose of testing the model, I am going to avoid discussing aspects, dignity or debility. If in 1918, the moon is a ruler thus is the domicile ruler of the second house (moveable wealth matters), and is also in the sixth house (servants, sickness), then conceptually I am going to say that the Kaiser's life in 1918 will be concerned with his wealth, and being sick. This example also points out the linkage of houses; whenever the ruler of a house is found in another house, then those two house are linked—in our example, his money is sick, or simply, he has medical expenses.
