Nostradamus
A French physician's book of four-line verses has been claimed to predict nearly every major event for five centuries.
What was reported
Michel de Nostredame, known as Nostradamus, was a French physician and astrologer who lived in Salon-de-Provence. In 1555 he published Les Prophéties, a collection of quatrains, four-line verses, written in a mix of French, Latin and other languages, deliberately vague and mostly undated.
Since then, readers have claimed the verses foretold the Great Fire of London, the French Revolution, Napoleon, Hitler and much more. Interest surges whenever disaster strikes.
Explanations offered
Historians note that the verses are so ambiguous they can be matched to many events, and that 'successful' readings are almost always made after the fact. Some of his imagery draws on earlier history and older texts. No verse has been shown to predict a specific event in advance.
- When
- Prophecies published in 1555
- Where
- Salon-de-Provence, France
- Witnesses
- Readers for nearly 500 years
- Status
- Mostly explained
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.