Dateline: 1559, Yorkshire, England

Ursula Sontheil reputedly was born in 1488 in Norfolk, England. From an early age she exhibited stunning psychic gifts of foresight and prophecy. She was a contemporary of Nostradamus, but, being a woman, was not allowed his level of education and lacked his medical and astrological training and the forbearance of royal friends at court to nurture and protect her. At the ripe old age of 24 she entered a difficult marriage to Toby Shipton.

She correctly predicted the dissolution of the Catholic Church under Henry VIII, the fall of Cardinal Wolsey, the untimely death of Henry’s son Edward VI, the horrific reign of “Bloody” Mary I, and the ascent of Queen Elizabeth to the throne of England. Many of her visions came true with shocking and specific clarity within her own lifetime and then in subsequent centuries as she peered down the corridors of Time to view the fate of Earth and all mankind. She became the feared and revered prophet of Tudor England. Her name was spKoken in low, hushed whispers, as if the very mention of her name would bring the disasters she spoke of down upon the head of he that spoke them. She eventually became known to serf and lord alike as Mother Shipton.

Like Nostradamus, to capture the public imagination and most likely to also avoid persecution for the crime of witchcraft, she published her prophecies in rhyme and verse. Still, she saved her penultimate work for her later years just before her death. And so in 1559 she published an epic poem for which she would become best known down through the ages. She died in Clifton, Yorkshire, in 1561, five years before Nostradamus.

This rare collection of Mother Shipton’s prophecies was published thirty years ago. They were found by a woman who painstakingly transcribed them and managed to smuggle them out of the Mitchell Library, in Sydney, Australia (now the State Library of New South Wales). The originals were kept in a locked room, along with many other volumes of prophetic writings deemed unsuitable for viewing by the general public. In light of recent world events these rare verses from Mother Shipton seem to have prophetic indications for our times, but, of course, are open to interpretation. My brief interpretations and explanations are in { }:

And now a word, in uncouth rhyme of what shall be in future time:

• Then upside down the world shall be And gold found at the root of tree All England’s sons that plough the land Shall oft be seen with Book in hand The poor shall now great wisdom know Great houses stand in far flung vale All covered o’er with snow and hail.

• {The advent of the printing press and the mass distribution of books, a dearly expensive rarity in her day, seemingly to herald an age of knowledge and enlightenment even for the very poor. But this also leads to the mass migration into festering cites, leaving the great houses of the countryside bare and forlorn.}

• A carriage without horse will go, Disaster fill the world with woe. In London, Primrose Hill shall be In center hold a bishops sea.

• {Motorcars and trains and their accidents, and the formation of the Church of England by Henry VIII as its sole head.}

• Around the world men’s thoughts will fly, Quick as the twinkling of an eye. And water shall great wonders do, How strange, and yet it shall come true.

• {Telephone, radio, television and the internet. The building of massive dams and the harnessing of waterfalls, like Niagara, for hydroelectric power which then lights the world.}

• Through towering hills proud men shall ride, No horse or ass move by his side. Beneath the water, men shall walk, Shall ride, shall sleep, shall even talk.

• {Cities with canyons made of skyscrapers. Submarines, the aqua-lung and SCUBA gear allowing man to work and even live beneath the sea. Aquatic cities in our future, maybe.}

• And in the air men shall be seen, In white and black and even green. A great man, shall come and go For prophecy declares it so.

• {Modern aircraft. There have been many great men since Mother Shipton’s time. But she points to a great prophet that may be yet to come.}

• In water, iron then shall float As easy as a wooden boat. Gold shall be seen in stream and stone, In land that is yet unknown.

• {Ships made of iron and steel and probably a description of America and its wealth. Certainly an accurate description of California in the Gold Rush days.}

• And England shall admit a Jew, Do you think this strange? But it is true! The Jew that once was led in scorn, Shall of a Christian then be born.

• {Help in creation of Israel in 1948 by the British and the United Nations.}

• A house of glass shall come to pass, In England. But alas, alas!
  A war will follow with the work Where dwells the pagan and the Turk.

• {Describes the building of a gigantic glass atrium in London called The Crystal Palace for The Great Exhibition of 1851. It was a huge iron Goliath with a million feet of glass housing over 13,000 exhibits. It was destroyed by fire November 30, 1936. The rest could describe any number of British wars or adventures in the Mid and Far East after that, and the massive expansion of the British Empire under German Queen Victoria Hapsburg. The Afghan, Indian and Boer wars.}

• These states will lock in fiercest strife, And seek to take each other’s life. When north shall thus divide the south An eagle build in lion’s mouth Then tax and blood and cruel war Shall come to every humble door.

• {Probably describes a war between the Northern & Southern countries as above, describing joint US (Eagle) and British (Lion) forces. It could also allude to the American Civil War.}

• Three times shall lovely sunny France Be led to play a bloody dance. Before the people shall be free Three tyrant rulers shall she see.

• {The different French Republics. The French Revolution under Robespierre, however Napoleon had two successors, Napoleon II and III.}

• Three rulers in succession be Each springs from different dynasty. Then when the fiercest strife is done.

• England and France shall be as one.

• {World War II – England & France as allies}

• The British olive shall next then twine, In marriage with a German vine. Men walk beneath and over streams Fulfilled shall be their wondrous dreams.

• {Queen Victoria and Prince Albert were German Hapsburgs, who later changed their name to Windsor, supplanting the rightful heirs of the House of Stewart. Post Second World War scenario}

• For in those wondrous far off days, The women shall adopt a craze To dress like men, and trousers wear And to cut off all their locks of hair. They’ll ride astride with brazen brow, As witches do on broomsticks now.

• {Craze in women to dress like men, wearing trousers and cutting their hair, adopting various hairstyles and riding horses, and bikes straddle instead of side-saddle (Nice description J )}

• And roaring monsters with men atop, Does seem to eat the verdant crop. And men shall fly as birds do now, And give away the horse and plow.

• {Crop harvesting machines & tractors, and the mass exodus from farms into cities}

• They’ll be a sign for all to see Be sure that it will certain be.

• Then love shall die and marriage cease And nations wane as babes decrease.

• {Failure of marriages and divorce. Decrease in population (in Europe) and wholesale abortion in America. Could be a future time when birth rates plummet due to radiation, earth changes or volcanic ash.}

• And wives shall fondle cats and dogs And men live much the same as hogs.
  {Sounds like a very female point of view here!}

Mother Shipton’s next prophecies continue on the outer wrappings of the scrolls.

• I know I go, I know I’m free, I know that this will come to be, Secreted this, for this will be Found by later dynasty.

• {Describes how her prophecies written on scrolls will be discovered at a later date after her death.}

• A dairy maid, a bonnie lass, Shall kick this tome as she does pass And five generations she shall breed Before one male child does learn to read.

• {For five generations these scrolls will be held by a family of a girl and then the fifth generation male child will learn to read and understand them.}

• This is then held year by year, Till an iron monster trembling fear, Eats parchment, words and quill and ink, And mankind is given time to think.

• {Nice description of a printing press, which “eats” papers, “words” and ink. With the burden of manual copying of books removed, this brings about a new age of learning and enlightenment when man can devote more time to thinking.}

• And only when this comes to be Will mankind read this prophecy. But one man sweets another’s bain So I shall not have burned in vain.

• {After the invention of the printing press her prophecies will be printed and man will read this.}

Mother Shipton’s next set of prophecies are found on a scroll in another jar.

• The signs will be there for all to read;
  When man shall do most heinous deed Man will ruin kinder lives;
  By taking them as to their wives.
  And murder foul and brutal deed:
  When man will only think of greed.
  And man shall walk as if asleep;
  He does not look – he may not peep And iron men the tail shall do;
  And iron cart and carriage too.

• {The greed of modern man}

• The king shall false promise make;
  And talk just for talking’s sake.
  And nations plan horrific war;
  The like as never seen before.
  And taxes rise and lively down;
  And nations wear perpetual frown.

• {False promises by politicians, wars between nations, increase in taxes and perpetual tension among nations.}