Astrological Self-Government at the Fifteenth-Century Court of Bourbon

In articulating the uses of their art, late-medieval astrologers often invoked the maxim that “the wise man will rule the stars” (sapiens dominabitur astris). However, it is by no means clear whether this invocation sought to emphasize ‘domination’ over the natural and social world, or the ontological self-government that is at stake in the pursuit of ‘wisdom’. Many historians have interpreted the past pursuit of astrology in terms of an interest in dominance over the natural and social world. Taking inspiration from a recent ‘ascetic turn’ in the history of early modern science and philosophy, however, this article argues that late-medieval astrology was approached and appreciated as an art of self-government (both in body and in soul) and uncovers what this entailed. In so doing, we also demonstrate that the undifferentiated view of astrology as a pre-modern counterpart of modern prospective knowledge practices is anachronistic.