A shift occurred in Astrology. It was precise. In Hamburg, in the years immediately following the First World War, a new approach to astrology began to take form. Around 1920–1923, Alfred Witte, together with collaborators such as Friedrich Sieggrün, laid the foundations of what would later be called the Hamburger Schule. This was not a reform in style or interpretation. It was a structural redefinition of astrology itself. At the center of this transformation stands the concept of Halbsumme, literally “half-sum”. In mathematical terms, it is the midpoint between two planetary positions. Yet within this school, the Halbsumme is never treated as a neutral or secondary element. It is conceived as an active point, a site where two planetary principles converge and generate a third field of manifestation. This idea introduces a decisive break with the traditional logic of aspects. Classical astrology is based on angular relationships. Two planets form an aspect, and that aspect is interpreted. The Hamburger Schule replaces this relational model with a structural one. Two planets do not simply interact. They produce a configuration. The midpoint is not between them. It is what emerges from their combination. During the 1920s and early 1930s, this approach was further developed with remarkable coherence. The use of midpoint trees, systematic combinations, and later the 90-degree dial created a new technical language. Astrology began to resemble a system of coordinates rather than a collection of symbolic associations. The historical trajectory of the school, however, was abruptly interrupted. In 1936 the activities of the group were restricted under the National Socialist regime, and in 1941 Alfred Witte died under circumstances that remain historically documented as tragic and unresolved. The continuity of the school was broken, and its development shifted into new directions after the war. One of the most important figures in this later phase is Reinhold Ebertin. Beginning in the late 1940s and especially with the publication of Kombination der Gestirneinflüsse in 1940, later expanded in postwar editions, Ebertin systematized the use of midpoints in what he called cosmobiology. He removed speculative elements such as hypothetical planets, retaining instead a rigorously testable midpoint structure. In Ebertin’s formulation, the Halbsumme becomes the core analytical tool. The language reflects this transformation. Instead of describing aspects, one writes equations. For example, Saturn equals Sun Mars indicates that Saturn activates the midpoint formed by Sun and Mars. This is not a metaphor. It is a structural statement. From this perspective, the horoscope is no longer read as a narrative of psychological traits. It is understood as a network of operative points. Each midpoint functions as a node where forces are condensed. When a third factor, such as a transit or a directed position, reaches that node, the configuration becomes active. This leads to a form of astrology that is fundamentally previsionale and concrete. A combination such as Sun Mars is associated with vitality, drive, and active force. When Saturn is directed to this midpoint, the possible manifestations include inhibition, physical exhaustion, obstruction, or enforced limitation. These are not interpreted primarily as inner states. They are treated as conditions that can manifest in observable reality. The difference with twentieth-century psychological astrology is therefore radical. In approaches influenced by Jung, interpretation begins with the subject and its inner dynamics. In the German structural model, the starting point is the configuration itself. The individual becomes the locus in which these configurations are expressed. Psychological meaning is not excluded. It is repositioned. It appears as a consequence of structural conditions rather than their origin. This inversion introduces a high degree of analytical precision. It also leaves open the question of interpretation in a deeper philosophical sense. The Halbsumme, in this context, is more than a technical device. It reflects a vision of reality in which forces operate through intersections and combinations. No element acts in isolation. Every manifestation emerges from a structured field of relations. Throughout the second half of the twentieth century, this approach remained a minority current, even in Germany. Its technical rigor limited its diffusion. At the same time, its influence extended far beyond its immediate circles, especially through the widespread adoption of midpoint analysis in various forms of modern astrology. Today, the concept of Halbsumme still represents one of the most coherent attempts to ground astrology in a precise and operational framework. Its strength lies in its capacity to reveal hidden structures within the chart. Its limitation lies in its relative silence on the question of meaning. A complete astrology may require both dimensions. Structure provides clarity. Interpretation provides depth. The German contribution, developed between the 1920s and the postwar decades, remains an essential reference for any serious attempt to rethink astrology beyond impressionistic or purely psychological models.
Roberto Minichini, March 2026
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