-----Original Message----- From: Mauro Lacy > That's correct. So, it seems there was a solstice eclipse in the year 1554, and all your "omen" speculation regarding that epoch and the occurence of a solstice eclipse is appropriate. That does not mean it's true, of course.
Well, it was light-hearted. Many scientists do not like to consider the possibility that historical "coincidence" can have a root cause in non-random external events, much less that "the stars" or astrology can provide partial answers, or that cycles repeat. To be honest, I am probably in that group but I do like to find and point-out the cases where there could be some mystical and predictive value in celestial or other seemingly random events. Even so, I doubt that this is one of them. However the events of that time frame, circa 1550-1650, are extremely important for the history of the USA as it now exists. It is also amusing to play the 'alternative universe' game. Were it not for the Reformation, the religious strife and the blood-thirsty-ness of a few English Queens, Bloody Mary in particular, and the forced migration of persecuted minorities to the New World, then the early Spanish lead in exploration would surely mean that the USA would look very different now than it does, for better or for worse. Already by 1554 Francisco Vásquez de Coronado (who died this same year) had explored mid-America all the way to what is now Kansas, and could have laid a successful claim to most of North America, were it not for persecuted Protestants from Northern Europe being forced into exile further East. That - and the lack of gold, as an enticement, and/or the perception of bad winter weather. We like to date Plymouth Rock as a starting point for Mayflower Pilgrims who founded a Colony in 1620. They could have been routed by a few dozen Conquistadors. Generally the early Anglo settlements were not based on choice or perceived opportunity - but more on the fear of not leaving. Most ironic.
