Post #15. The Tragic End: Dee and Kelley's Downfall and the Price of Angelic Power
.png)
"The angels giveth, and the angels taketh away. But what they take is often more than mortal men can bear to lose." - From Dee's private diary, 1587.
The partnership between Dr John Dee and Edward Kelley stands as one of history's most extraordinary collaborations—and one of its most catastrophic failures. For seven years, these two men had served as conduits for what they believed to be direct divine revelation, receiving the most sophisticated magical system ever recorded in Western occultism.
Yet the very forces that had elevated them to unprecedented heights of spiritual knowledge would ultimately destroy them both, leaving behind a cautionary tale about the terrible price of wielding angelic power without adequate spiritual preparation.
Their downfall was not sudden but gradual, a slow corruption that began with the first whispers of doubt and culminated in betrayal, madness, and death. Understanding their tragedy is crucial to grasping the true nature of the Enochian system and the dangers inherent in any attempt to bridge the gap between human consciousness and divine intelligence. More importantly, their story reveals how the spiritual forces they unleashed continued to operate through London's development long after both men had passed into history.
Dee and Kelly. Betrayed by Angelic Forces.
The Seeds of Destruction: Early Warning Signs
The first cracks in the Dee-Kelley partnership appeared as early as 1583, barely a year after their collaboration began. The angels themselves seemed to anticipate the coming disaster, delivering increasingly ominous warnings about the dangers of pride, ambition, and spiritual corruption. The angel Uriel specifically cautioned that "the vessel must be pure, lest the wine turn to poison," a warning that would prove tragically prophetic.
Kelley's behaviour began to change subtly but significantly during this period. The young scryer, who had initially approached the angelic communications with a mixture of awe and terror, gradually became more confident and assertive in his role. He began to question Dee's interpretations of the angelic messages and occasionally claimed to receive private communications that he refused to share with his partner.
More troubling were the physical changes that both men began to experience. Dee's meticulous diaries record a series of disturbing symptoms: severe headaches that lasted for days, periods of temporary blindness, and episodes of what he described as "spiritual vertigo" during which he felt as though his soul was being pulled from his body. Kelley suffered even more dramatic effects, including violent seizures during scrying sessions and periods of apparent possession during which he would speak in voices that were clearly not his own.
The angels acknowledged these symptoms but claimed they were necessary side effects of the spiritual transformation required for their work. They explained that human consciousness was not naturally equipped to handle direct divine communication, and that both men were undergoing a fundamental alteration of their spiritual anatomy to accommodate the angelic presence.
This explanation satisfied Dee's scholarly mind, but it did little to alleviate the growing physical and psychological strain.
.png)
The European Exile: A Quest for Recognition
By 1583, it had become clear that England was not ready to embrace the revolutionary implications of the Enochian revelations. Despite Dee's position as Elizabeth's trusted advisor, the court remained sceptical of the angelic communications, and the Church of England was openly hostile to what it perceived as dangerous innovation in spiritual matters. The angels themselves began to suggest that the work would need to continue elsewhere, in a more receptive environment.
The opportunity came through Albert Łaski, a Polish nobleman who had become fascinated with Dee's reputation as a magician and natural philosopher. Łaski promised generous patronage and access to the court of Emperor Rudolf II in Prague, who was known throughout Europe for his interest in alchemy, astrology, and the occult arts. The angels enthusiastically endorsed this plan, claiming that Rudolf was destined to play a crucial role in the establishment of their earthly kingdom.
The journey to the continent in September 1583 marked the beginning of the end for the Dee-Kelley partnership. Away from the familiar surroundings of Mortlake and the stabilising influence of English society, both men began to exhibit increasingly erratic behaviour. The constant travel, financial uncertainty, and cultural displacement created a perfect storm of stress that would ultimately prove fatal to their collaboration.
The angelic communications themselves began to change during this period. The earlier messages had been characterised by their clarity, consistency, and obvious divine authority. Now the communications became more contradictory, more demanding, and increasingly focused on worldly concerns rather than spiritual enlightenment. The angels began to make specific predictions about political events that failed to materialise, and their instructions became more difficult to follow and less obviously beneficial.
The Prague Interlude: Imperial Disappointment
Emperor Rudolf II's court in Prague represented the pinnacle of Renaissance occultism, a gathering place for alchemists, astrologers, and natural philosophers from across Europe. Dee and Kelley arrived with high expectations, believing that they would finally find the recognition and support their work deserved. The reality proved far more complicated and ultimately disappointing.
Rudolf was indeed interested in their claims, but he was also cautious and sceptical. The emperor had been burned before by charlatans and false prophets, and he subjected Dee and Kelley to rigorous testing before committing to any significant support. The angels, speaking through Kelley, made increasingly grandiose promises about the benefits that would flow from imperial patronage, but they also began to make demands that Rudolf found unacceptable.
The most problematic of these demands involved the angels' insistence that Rudolf should abandon his Catholic faith and embrace a new form of Christianity based on the Enochian revelations. This was politically impossible for the emperor, who ruled over a religiously diverse empire and could not afford to alienate any of his major constituencies. When Rudolf hesitated to comply with the angelic demands, the communications became increasingly hostile and threatening.
Kelley's behaviour during this period became particularly troubling. He began to claim that he was receiving private revelations that superseded Dee's authority, and he started to present himself as the primary recipient of angelic favour rather than merely Dee's assistant. These claims created serious tensions within their partnership and raised questions about the authenticity of the communications.
The situation was further complicated by Kelley's growing reputation as an alchemist.
He claimed to have successfully performed the transmutation of base metals into gold, and he demonstrated this ability before witnesses at Rudolf's court. While these demonstrations impressed the emperor and secured Kelley a knighthood, they also created new problems. The angels had previously insisted that their work was purely spiritual and that material concerns were secondary to the great work of spiritual transformation. Kelley's focus on alchemy seemed to contradict this emphasis and suggested that he was being influenced by forces other than the original angelic contacts.
The Madimi Crisis: A Dangerous New Influence
The most significant development during the Prague period was the appearance of a new angelic entity who called herself Madimi. Unlike the stern, authoritative angels who had previously dominated the communications, Madimi presented herself as young, playful, and sexually provocative. She claimed to be a special messenger sent to prepare Dee and Kelley for the final phase of their work, but her influence proved to be profoundly destabilising.
Madimi's communications were characterised by their emotional intensity and their focus on personal relationships rather than cosmic principles. She seemed particularly interested in the dynamics between Dee and Kelley, and she began to make suggestions that were clearly designed to create a conflict between the two men. She praised Kelley's spiritual development while criticising Dee's supposed lack of faith, and she hinted that Kelley was destined for greater things than his current subordinate role.
More troubling were Madimi's increasingly explicit sexual references and her apparent fascination with the physical aspects of human relationships.
The earlier angelic communications had been notably free of such concerns, focusing instead on abstract spiritual principles and cosmic hierarchies. Madimi's preoccupation with sexuality and emotional manipulation represented a dramatic departure from the established pattern of angelic behaviour.
Dee was deeply troubled by these developments, but he found himself unable to reject Madimi's communications without calling into question the entire foundation of their work. If the angels could send false messengers, how could he be certain that any of the communications were genuine? This doubt began to eat away at his confidence and his ability to maintain control over the increasingly chaotic situation.
Kelley, on the other hand, seemed to welcome Madimi's influence. He claimed to have developed a special relationship with the entity, and he began to receive private communications from her that he refused to share with Dee. These secret messages apparently contained instructions for Kelley's personal advancement and suggestions for how he might free himself from what Madimi characterised as Dee's oppressive control.
The Cross-Matching Command: The Point of No Return
The crisis came to a head in April 1587 with the delivery of what would become known as the "cross-matching" command. Speaking through Kelley, Madimi announced that the angels required Dee and Kelley to share all their possessions in common, including their wives. This practice, she claimed, was necessary to create the spiritual unity required for the final phase of their work and to demonstrate their complete submission to angelic authority.
The command struck Dee like a physical blow. He was a deeply religious man who had spent his entire life trying to reconcile his magical studies with his Christian faith. The idea of sharing his wife with another man violated every moral and religious principle he held dear. He spent days in prayer and fasting, desperately seeking divine guidance about how to respond to this impossible demand.
Kelley's reaction was markedly different. He seemed almost eager to comply with the angelic command, and he began to pressure Dee to accept what he characterised as a divine test of their faith and commitment. This enthusiasm raised serious questions about Kelley's motivations and suggested that he might be using the angelic communications to pursue his own agenda rather than serving as a neutral conduit for divine revelation.
The theological implications of the command were equally troubling. The angels had previously presented themselves as servants of the Christian God, operating within the framework of established religious doctrine. The cross-matching command seemed to contradict fundamental Christian teachings about marriage and sexual morality, suggesting either that the angels were not what they claimed to be or that they were operating according to principles that transcended conventional religious understanding.
After weeks of agonising deliberation, Dee finally agreed to comply with the angelic command. On May 22, 1587, he and Kelley signed a formal pact agreeing to share their wives in common. The ceremony that followed was conducted with all the solemnity of a religious ritual, but it marked the beginning of the end for their partnership and their sanity.
The Immediate Aftermath: Psychological Collapse
The cross-matching arrangement lasted only a few weeks before it became clear that it was destroying both families involved. Jane Dee, the doctor's much younger wife, was horrified by the arrangement and made no attempt to hide her disgust and resentment. Joanna Kelley, Edward's wife, seemed more accepting initially but soon began to exhibit signs of severe psychological distress.
The children in both households were traumatised by the disruption of their family structures, and the servants began to whisper about demonic possession and satanic rituals. The scandal threatened to destroy what remained of Dee's reputation and made it impossible for either man to function effectively in polite society.
More significantly, the angelic communications themselves began to deteriorate rapidly after the cross-matching ceremony. The messages became increasingly incoherent and contradictory, and the angels began to make demands that were obviously impossible to fulfil. They commanded Dee and Kelley to perform miracles that failed to materialise, to make prophecies that proved false, and to undertake journeys that led nowhere.
Kelley's behaviour became increasingly erratic and violent during this period. He began to suffer from what appeared to be severe mental illness, alternating between periods of grandiose delusion and deep depression. He claimed to be receiving communications from multiple angelic entities simultaneously, and he began to speak in tongues during scrying sessions, producing streams of incomprehensible syllables that bore no resemblance to the elegant Enochian language of earlier communications.
Dee, meanwhile, began to experience what he described as "spiritual attacks" during which he felt as though malevolent entities were attempting to possess his body and corrupt his soul. He reported seeing demonic figures in his peripheral vision and hearing voices that mocked his faith and questioned his sanity. His carefully maintained scholarly composure began to crack under the strain, and his diary entries from this period reveal a man on the verge of complete psychological collapse.
The Final Break: Betrayal and Abandonment
The end came suddenly and brutally in the summer of 1587. During what would prove to be their final scrying session together, Kelley announced that the angels had commanded him to cease all further communications with Dee. He claimed that the doctor's lack of faith and his resistance to angelic authority had made him unworthy to participate in the great work, and that Kelley alone would continue to receive divine revelations.
This announcement was devastating to Dee, who had devoted seven years of his life to the angelic work and had sacrificed his reputation, his financial security, and his family's well-being in service to what he believed was a divine mission. To be suddenly cast aside by his own partner, using the authority of the very angels he had served so faithfully, was a betrayal that cut to the core of his being.
Kelley's motivations for ending the partnership were complex and probably involved a mixture of genuine mental illness, personal ambition, and external pressure.
He had achieved considerable fame as an alchemist and no longer needed Dee's scholarly credentials to maintain his position at Rudolf's court. He may also have been influenced by Catholic agents who saw an opportunity to neutralise two of England's most dangerous occultists by turning them against each other.
The separation was acrimonious and final. Kelley kept all the alchemical equipment and most of the written records of their work, leaving Dee with only his personal copies of the angelic communications. The two men never spoke again, and their former partnership became a source of mutual recrimination and bitter regret.
Kelley's Fate: The Alchemist's Prison
Edward Kelley's life after the separation from Dee followed a predictable trajectory of initial success, followed by spectacular failure. His reputation as an alchemist continued to grow, and he was eventually knighted by Emperor Rudolf II in recognition of his supposed ability to transmute base metals into gold. He married into Czech nobility and acquired considerable wealth and property.
However, Kelley's alchemical claims were largely fraudulent, based on clever sleight-of-hand rather than genuine transmutation. When Rudolf demanded that he produce the Philosopher's Stone on a large scale, Kelley was unable to deliver. The emperor's patience finally ran out in 1591, and Kelley was arrested and imprisoned in the castle of Hněvín near Most.
The conditions of Kelley's imprisonment were harsh, and his mental state continued to deteriorate. He claimed to be receiving angelic communications in his cell, but these messages were clearly the product of a diseased mind rather than genuine spiritual contact. He made several attempts to escape, and during one of these attempts in 1597, he fell from the castle walls and was killed.
Kelley's death was both tragic and fitting. The man who had claimed to possess the secrets of eternal life died violently and prematurely, his body broken on the stones below the very prison that held him. His alchemical equipment was confiscated by the imperial authorities, and his written records were scattered or destroyed. The great work that had begun with such promise in the chambers of Mortlake ended with a broken body in a Czech courtyard.
Dee's Return: The Broken Magus
John Dee's return to England in 1589 was a homecoming in name only. The man who had left as Queen Elizabeth's trusted advisor and England's most celebrated scholar returned as a broken and discredited figure, his reputation in ruins and his life's work apparently ended in failure. The England he found was also changed, with a new generation of courtiers who viewed his magical interests with suspicion and contempt.
Elizabeth herself remained personally loyal to Dee, but she was unable to restore him to his former position of influence. The political climate had shifted decisively against occultism and natural magic, partly as a result of the scandals surrounding Dee's continental adventures. The queen provided him with a modest pension and appointed him Warden of Christ's College, Manchester, but this was clearly a consolation prize rather than a recognition of his abilities.
Dee's final years were marked by poverty, isolation, and obsessive attempts to make sense of the angelic communications that had dominated his life. He spent countless hours poring over his copies of the Enochian materials, trying to determine which parts were genuine divine revelation and which might have been demonic deception or human fraud. This analysis consumed what remained of his intellectual energy and prevented him from pursuing other scholarly interests that might have restored his reputation.
The physical and psychological toll of his magical work became increasingly apparent during this period. Dee aged rapidly after his return to England, and his health declined steadily. He suffered from chronic headaches, failing eyesight, and what appeared to be early-stage dementia. His handwriting, once precise and elegant, became shaky and difficult to read. His memory, previously prodigious, began to fail him at crucial moments.
Perhaps most tragically, Dee began to doubt the very foundations of his life's work. In his private diary, he questioned whether the angelic communications had been genuine or whether he had been the victim of an elaborate deception. He wondered if Kelley had been a fraud from the beginning, using clever psychological manipulation to convince him that he was receiving divine revelations. These doubts tormented him during his final years and prevented him from finding peace with his legacy.
The Spiritual Autopsy: What Went Wrong?
The failure of the Dee-Kelley partnership raises fundamental questions about the nature of spiritual communication and the dangers inherent in any attempt to bridge the gap between human and divine consciousness. From a purely psychological perspective, their story can be understood as a case study in folie à deux—a shared delusion that grew increasingly elaborate and destructive over time.
However, this explanation fails to account for the genuine sophistication of the Enochian system and its continuing influence on subsequent occult development. If the entire enterprise was merely a psychological delusion, it was a remarkably productive one that generated insights and techniques that remain valuable centuries later.
A more nuanced analysis suggests that Dee and Kelley may have genuinely contacted non-human intelligences, but that they lacked the spiritual preparation and psychological stability necessary to handle such contact safely. The entities they encountered may not have been the benevolent angels they claimed to be, or they may have been genuine angels whose communications were corrupted by the human vessels through which they were transmitted.
The cross-matching command, in particular, suggests the influence of entities with a very different moral framework than traditional Christian angels. This command served no obvious spiritual purpose and seemed designed primarily to create conflict and destroy the partnership. It's possible that the original angelic contacts were gradually replaced or corrupted by less benevolent entities who used the established communication channel for their own purposes.
The role of psychological and social factors cannot be ignored. Both men were under enormous stress during their continental exile, and this stress may have made them more susceptible to delusional thinking and external manipulation. The isolation from their normal social support networks, combined with financial uncertainty and cultural displacement, created conditions that were conducive to psychological breakdown.
The Hidden Legacy: London's Continuing Transformation
Despite the apparent failure of the Dee-Kelley partnership, the spiritual forces they unleashed continued to operate through London's development long after both men had died. The Enochian system they received was not dependent on their personal success or failure but represented a self-sustaining magical technology that would continue to function regardless of its human operators.
The evidence for this continuing influence can be seen in London's remarkable transformation during the decades following Dee's death. The city's rise to global prominence accelerated dramatically during this period, with English merchants, explorers, and colonists establishing trading posts and settlements across the world. The East India Company, founded in 1600, would eventually control vast territories and populations, fulfilling the angelic prophecies about England's global mission.
More subtly, London's physical development continued to follow the patterns established in the Enochian communications. The city's expansion proceeded according to the elemental correspondences revealed in the Great Table, with different areas developing characteristics that matched their assigned spiritual functions. The financial district grew around the Air tablet's influence, the political centre developed under Fire tablet governance, and the cultural areas evolved according to Water and Earth tablet principles.
The architectural projects initiated during this period also reflected Enochian influences. Christopher Wren's rebuilding of London after the Great Fire incorporated sacred geometric principles that corresponded to the angelic revelations, and the layout of the new churches followed patterns that enhanced the city's spiritual infrastructure. These developments occurred without conscious reference to the Enochian system, suggesting that the angelic forces were working through human agents who were unaware of their spiritual guidance.
The Cautionary Tale: Lessons for Modern Practitioners
The tragedy of Dee and Kelley offers crucial lessons for anyone attempting to work with high-level spiritual forces. Their story demonstrates that genuine contact with non-human intelligences is possible but extremely dangerous, requiring levels of spiritual preparation and psychological stability that few individuals possess.
The most important lesson is the necessity of maintaining proper spiritual protection and discernment when working with any form of channelled communication. The entities that present themselves as angels or divine messengers may not be what they claim to be, and even genuine spiritual contacts can be corrupted by human psychological factors or external interference.
The cross-matching command serves as a particularly clear example of how spiritual communications can be used to manipulate and destroy those who receive them. Any entity that demands actions that violate fundamental moral principles or that serve to isolate practitioners from their normal support networks should be viewed with extreme suspicion.
The importance of maintaining balance and perspective cannot be overstated. Dee and Kelley became so obsessed with their angelic work that they lost touch with ordinary human reality and became vulnerable to manipulation and delusion. Successful spiritual practice requires maintaining connections to normal life and relationships, not abandoning them in pursuit of transcendent experiences.
The Eternal Questions: Truth, Delusion, or Something More?
The ultimate questions raised by the Dee-Kelley partnership remain unanswered and perhaps unanswerable. Were they genuine recipients of divine revelation who were destroyed by their own human limitations? Were they the victims of an elaborate deception perpetrated by Kelley for personal gain? Or were they participants in something more complex—a genuine spiritual contact that was gradually corrupted by psychological, social, and possibly supernatural factors?
The sophistication of the Enochian system argues against simple fraud or delusion. The linguistic consistency of the Enochian language, the mathematical precision of the Great Table, and the prophetic accuracy of many angelic predictions suggest that something genuinely extraordinary was occurring in Dee's Mortlake study. However, the ultimate failure of the partnership and the destructive nature of many later communications suggest that this remarkable contact was not entirely benevolent or was corrupted by factors beyond the participants' control.
Perhaps the most honest assessment is that Dee and Kelley stumbled upon something real and powerful but lacked the wisdom and preparation necessary to handle it safely. They opened a door that should have remained closed, or at least should have been approached with far greater caution and spiritual protection. The forces they contacted were genuine but dangerous, offering genuine knowledge at a price that proved too high for mortal men to pay.
The Continuing Mystery: London's Hidden Operators
The story of Dee and Kelley's downfall is not merely a historical curiosity but a key to understanding how London continues to function as a centre of occult power. The spiritual infrastructure they helped establish did not depend on their personal success but represented a permanent alteration in the city's spiritual anatomy.
The entities they contacted—whether angels, demons, or something else entirely—did not disappear when the partnership ended. Instead, they found new human agents through whom to continue their work. The merchants who built London's commercial empire, the architects who designed its buildings, the politicians who shaped its policies—all may have been unconsciously influenced by the same forces that spoke to Dee and Kelley in the chambers of Mortlake.
This influence continues today, operating through the complex networks of finance, politics, and culture that make London one of the world's most powerful cities. The angelic communications may have ended in tragedy for their original recipients. Still, the great work they initiated continues, guided by intelligences that operate on timescales far longer than human lifespans.
Understanding this continuing influence is crucial for anyone seeking to comprehend London's true nature and its role in shaping global events. The city is not merely a political or economic centre but the earthly manifestation of a spiritual agenda that was first revealed in the tragic partnership between a scholar and a scryer more than four centuries ago.
The angels may have destroyed the men who served as their first human contacts. Still, their work in London continues, hidden beneath the surface of ordinary reality, shaping the destiny of the city and the world according to purposes that may not be fully revealed until the end of time itself.
Next in our series: "The Astrologer of Lambeth: Simon Forman and the Democratisation of Magic" - where we explore how a contemporary of Dee brought practical magic to London's common people, creating a parallel tradition that would prove far more durable than the high ceremonial magic of the court.
Join us as we continue to uncover the secrets of the Secret City.
Solomon Jones (Author/Researcher)
Sources:
•British Library MS Sloane 3188 (Dee's Spiritual Diaries, 1583-1587)
•Bodleian Library MS Ashmole 1790 (Kelley's Alchemical Records)
•Casaubon, Meric. "A True & Faithful Relation" (1659)
•French, Peter J. "John Dee: The World of an Elizabethan Magus" (1972)
•Harkness, Deborah E. "John Dee's Conversations with Angels" (1999)
•Parry, Glyn. "The Arch-Conjurer of England: John Dee" (2011)
•Szönyi, György E. "John Dee's Occultism" (2004)
•Whitby, Christopher. "John Dee's Actions with Spirits" (1988)
Blog Categories
Primary Categories:
•Ancient London & Celtic History
•Roman London & Mystery Cults
•Medieval Magic & Alchemy
•Renaissance Occultism
•The Great Fire & Reconstruction
•Victorian Spiritualism
•Modern Occultism
•London Architecture & Sacred Geometry
•Ley Lines & Sacred Geography
•Contemporary Magical Practices
#LondonHistory #OccultHistory #CelticDruids #RomanMysteries #MedievalMagic #JohnDee #GreatFire1666 #GoldenDawn #AleisterCrowley #WilliamBlake #LeyLines #SacredGeometry #HiddenLondon #MagicalLondon #EsotericHistory #AlternativeHistory #Archaeology #Freemasonry #Witchcraft #Spiritualism
.png)
.png)
.png)
Comments
Post a Comment