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Countries Which Don't Exist (Self-Declared; Unrecognised; Etc.)

San Escobar: Polish foreign minister's slip invents a country
11 January 2017

Do you know the way to San Escobar?
Probably not, it doesn't exist, but that didn't stop Poland's foreign minister claiming to have had a productive meeting with its officials this week.
Witold Waszczykowski told reporters he met with various nations for Poland's bid to join the UN security council, "such as Belize or San Escobar".

Mr Waszczykowski has been roundly mocked on Twitter, the one place San Escobar does now exist, flag and all.
He said that he had had meetings with officials from nearly 20 countries, including some Caribbean nations "for the first time in the history of our diplomacy. For example with countries such as Belize or San Escobar".

He put the slip down to tiredness. "Unfortunately after 22 hours in planes and several connecting flights you can make a slip of the tongue," he said.
He said he had in mind Saint Kitts and Nevis, a two-island Caribbean country known in Spanish as San Cristobal y Nieves.

Twitter users responded in customary style, creating an official account and a flag for the island nation.
One tweet said that San Escobar "fully supports Poland's candidacy to the Security Council".

Another designed some currency, but added: "It's funny until you realise your only allies left are Belarus, Hungary and an imaginary nation state."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-38582447
That was truly weird.
 
The founder of Australia's oldest micro-nation, 500 kilometres north of Perth, has announced he will abdicate as reigning monarch, handing over sovereignty to his youngest son.

Following a stoush with the State Government over wheat production quotas, through a series of legal manoeuvres Leonard Casely decided to secede from Australia in 1970, and form the Principality of Hutt River.

Hutt River claims to be an independent sovereign state and has existed for 45 years, although the Australian Government does not legally recognise it.

Now at 91, and suffering from the effects of emphysema, Prince Leonard has nominated his youngest son Graeme to take over the sovereign reins.

"It certainly would be nice to be able to continue, but again, you've got to be able to realise that we've all got our own period of life," Prince Leonard said.

"I'm very happy to be handing it over to Prince Graeme, because I know he's very able and capable."

Prince Graeme, who holds a number of titles, including minister of state and education and grand master of the order of wisdom and learning, has been working full-time at the principality for three years. ...

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-02-...t-river-principality-abdicates-to-son/8232730
 
San Escobar: Polish foreign minister's slip invents a country
11 January 2017

Do you know the way to San Escobar?
Probably not, it doesn't exist, but that didn't stop Poland's foreign minister claiming to have had a productive meeting with its officials this week.
Witold Waszczykowski told reporters he met with various nations for Poland's bid to join the UN security council, "such as Belize or San Escobar".

Have just noticed this exchange, about the Foreign Minister's “mis-speaking”. It occurs to me to wonder whether Mr. Waszczykowski might be – like myself -- a devotee of the “Vorkosigan” series of space-fiction / psychological / romance novels by Lois McMaster Bujold. The series’s premise is a far-future situation of a galaxy-wide assortment of human-settled planets with various cultures. One of the “bit-players”, is the planet called (just plain) Escobar: in the main, an advanced, progressive and humanely-run society; populated largely by folk from Earth from, most broadly, Hispanic / Portuguese cultures – the inhabitants tend to be passionate and excitable. If our Polish ministerial gent were by any chance a Bujold fan – the above might account for “San Escobar” having popped up as it did, out of his subconscious.
 
Looks as if dissidents might be behind the elaboration of Veyshnoria given Pavel Usov's comments.

A country invented as part of military exercises in Belarus has caught the imagination of locals, who have created a foreign ministry, flag, history and even its own Wikipedia page for the fictional nation.

Veyshnoria is one of three states made up for the Zapad 2017 military drills, which - according to the scenario - seek to invade Belarus and sow discord between Minsk and Moscow.

The map of the exercise, made public during the General Staff briefing on 29 August, shows Veyshnoria in the north-western regions of today's Belarus, with Vesbaria and Lubenia lying in Lithuania and Poland, the Nasha Niva website reports.

Some commentators noted that the border between Belarus and Veyshnoria "strongly resembles" the border between the Soviet Union in Poland in 1920-39. "This means that under the Zapad 2017 scenario, Belarusians will have to attack the territory of Belarusians," lifestyle website kyky.org said.

Political historian Pavel Usov, blurring reality and fiction on his Facebook page, said that "Veyshnoria is a peaceful democratic country which has never been aggressive towards its neighbours. ...

http://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-news-from-elsewhere-41107540
 
On Israel's coastal road, just south of Lebanon, lies a crossing into a land of another kind.

Large blue iron gates with white painted signs mark the border, but there is no entry procedure - visitors just arrive, then go and look for the president. This is Achzivland, perhaps the most unusual piece of territory in the Middle East. It has the trappings of a state - a flag (of a mermaid), a national "anthem" (the sound of the sea) and a constitution declaring the president democratically elected by his own vote (never actually cast).

Achzivland also has a House of Parliament - a timber structure with scatter-cushions round a table - though it has no serving MPs and has never held any sessions. ...

http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-31800580

Sad news: Eli Avivi leader of Achzivland has died.

One of the Middle East's longest-serving "rulers" has died aged 88 but Eli Avivi was no ordinary president.

He led the micronation of Achzivland - with its population of two - for almost half a century.

Nestled in the north of Israel near the border with Lebanon, the tiny "nation" attracted hippies and celebrities alike, including Sophia Loren.

Despite having no international recognition, it has its own flag (a mermaid) and national anthem (the sea).

Avivi is survived by his wife and Achzivland's only other "citizen", Rina, 71, who confirmed his death in the early hours of Wednesday.

His sister told Israeli news site Ynet news he had been suffering from severe pneumonia. ...

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-44142794
 
Some of these Mini- Reichs based on the Sovereign Citizen/Freemen notion, others are Fourth Reichs, Principalities or Monarchies.

Germany’s New Mini-Reichs
By Timothy Wright

ON THE OUTSKIRTS of the East German town of Wittenberg, about six kilometers northwest of the city center, lie the grounds of an old shuttered hospital. The 23-acre plot is dotted with groves of pine and chestnut trees and winding cobblestone pathways now overgrown with grass and weeds. Like so many other East German hospitals, factories, and businesses, the departure of two million residents after the fall of the Berlin Wall and the influx of new technology from the West left properties like the hospital redundant. In 2010, with real estate prices depressed, a buyer for the property emerged, a welcome development for a region seeking economic renewal. But the new owner’s plans for “renewal” were far more ambitious than merely providing health care.

The new proprietor, who had tried to keep himself anonymous, was a former cook, tattoo parlor owner, karate instructor, and esoteric healer by the name of Peter Fitzek. He had become a regular speaker at homeopathic conferences around Germany in the early 2000s. Within this alternative milieu occupied with astrology and healing the body, Fitzek’s appearances veered into grandiose plans to heal the body politic.

His speeches expounded dissatisfaction with mainstream politics and the German state itself, questioning the latter’s legitimacy and laws, which he felt kept the population in a state of material security, but ultimately restricted their spiritual development and only served far-off elites elsewhere in the EU. At alternative conferences and on far-right YouTube talk shows, Fitzek began to promote his vision for “a new financial and economic system […] and progressive theory of the state.” ...

https://lareviewofbooks.org/article/germanys-new-mini-reichs
 
interesting to hear that from Germany. Certainly the people here (uk) who go on about euro elites seem to think that it's germany that has them...
That's how it works with using shadowy others as scapegoats. They've always got to be not quite tangible. Otherwise the whole thing falls down.
 
interesting to hear that from Germany. Certainly the people here (uk) who go on about euro elites seem to think that it's germany that has them...

Being a plastic paddy what I find both amusing and refreshing is the change that has taken place over the last few years in Ireland, or at least in the bit of Eire that I am most familiar with. When I started visiting “home” the Irish were self-deprecating and you felt at times they almost wanted to tug their forelock in some misplaced idea that I/we were somehow above them.
With the Celtic tiger came the realisation that they were very much our equals and now with the current political turmoil they jut out their chins and tell us to “go on to f***k”. So I believe the whole euro elites thing is balderdash.
 
The curious story of an unconvincing duplicated holiday destination...

Welcome to Hawaii2

2020-03-03 16.10.51.png

https://hawaii2.website/map.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hawaii_2

(previously Birch Island) is a six-acre (2.4 ha) private island in Maine's St. George Lake. Previously used as de facto public land, in 2014 the island was purchased by Cards Against Humanity LLC as part of a fundraiser for the Sunlight Foundation. After licensing the island for use by those who contributed to the campaign, the nearby town of Liberty, Maine threatened the games company with hundreds-of-millions in fines for code violations.
 
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You may - or may not - care to know that I am a Lord of the Principality of Sealand.

https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwj1l8v0-P7nAhWUi1wKHeuQAsUQFjAAegQIBBAC&url=https://www.sealandgov.org/&usg=AOvVaw3jcCDxUQ0j4OQl2gP-koi8

Which i think is at least an influential position as a member of the UK House of Lords.

Edit: Although you should correctly address me as My Lord, or My Lord Peter of Sealand, allow me to give you a dispensation to address me as ' that pain in the ass' or other similar titles that may occur to you.
 
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You may - or may not - care to know that I am a Lord of the Principality of Sealand.

https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwj1l8v0-P7nAhWUi1wKHeuQAsUQFjAAegQIBBAC&url=https://www.sealandgov.org/&usg=AOvVaw3jcCDxUQ0j4OQl2gP-koi8

Which i think is at least an influential position as a member of the UK House of Lords.

Edit: Although you should correctly address me as My Lord, or My Lord Peter of Sealand, allow me to give you a dispensation to address me as ' that pain in the ass' or other similar titles that may occur to you.
30 quid, right?
 
30 quid, right?

A bit more than that. but no brownosing required. An honest transaction.

In short. I get to kid along my friends and annoy the gullible while not being in any way empowered to do permanent harm to anyone, plus an equally harmless group of people gets some funding to carry on an eccentric lifestyle. What's to dislike?
 
A bit more than that. but no brownosing required. An honest transaction.

In short. I get to kid along my friends and annoy the gullible while not being in any way empowered to do permanent harm to anyone, plus an equally harmless group of people gets some funding to carry on an eccentric lifestyle. What's to dislike?

Exactly, couldn't agree more (and this is coming from a Lord of Glencoe, Scotland - twas a gift).
 
Not nearly as exciting as a Principality is ownership of a subdivision. But when we bought a bit of an old farm, we had to have it surveyed as a subdivision. In an area rife with subdivisions with bland and meaningless names (The Oaks. Vista View !?!) we really wanted to call our few acres something fun, like Monster Island. But we wanted to avoid nosey city inspectors so we settled on Birdland. We do have a lot of bird music this spring.
birdddddd.jpg
 
Hutt River in Western Australia has collapsed:

The 50-year reign of an Australia-based micronation formed by a "prince" has come to an end.

Hutt River, a self-declared principality, issued its own passports and once even declared war on Australia. In recent years, however, it's been known as a quirky tourist attraction.

But the economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, coupled with a giant tax bill, have forced the principality to announce it will finally surrender to Australia.

Hutt River's origins as a micronation date back to 1970, when the late Prince Leonard Casley claimed he'd exploited a legal loophole to create the principality in an isolated part of Western Australia, 500 kilometers (310 miles) north of state capital Perth.
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Set on 75 square kilometers of farming land, it was more than twice the size of Macau but populated by less than 30 people.

The principality -- though not officially recognized by the Australian government -- acted like an independent nation. Its government granted visas and driver's licenses, issued passports and currency, produced its own stamps, flew its own flag and reportedly operated 13 foreign offices in 10 different countries, including the US and France.

Now its rollicking journey is over.


More Details Here:
https://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/australia-micronation-hutt-river-principality/index.html
 
I am currently reading Banvard's folly by Paul Collins.

In it he describes a fraudulent claim of a resident of Formosa by Psalmanazar. Although Formosa exists he wasn't from there and everything he wrote about it was totally made up. But since it was published in 1705 practically no one could contradict him.

This is a copy of his book "An Historical & Geographical Description Of Formosa" : https://archive.org/details/historicalgeogra00psal
 
This 2017 book presents 50 unrecognized nations (principalities; whatever ... ) around the world.

An Atlas of Countries that Don't Exist: A Compendium of Fifty Unrecognized and Largely Unnoticed States
Nick Middleton
Chronicle Books, 2017

https://books.google.com/books/about/An_Atlas_of_Countries_that_Don_t_Exist.html?id=kG0rDQAAQBAJ

It's described in this CNN travel article ...
Countries that don't exist (officially): See Somaliland, Mapuche and more

"Everyone's familiar with the political world map," says Nick Middleton, travel author and Oxford University geography fellow.

"It looks as if the entire planet's surface is carved up, every square centimeter accounted for -- which it is, in one sense. But what that map doesn't show you is the large number of wannabe nation states, which are also there, but seldom get a look in."

Middleton has compiled a collection of these unrecognized nations in his book "An Atlas of Countries That Don't Exist: A Compendium of Fifty Unrecognized and Largely Unnoticed States."
It's a tour of the world's forgotten, shunned and unrecognized corners. "They're all intriguing in their own different ways," he says.

Some are politically contentious; some, such as Forvik in the Shetland Islands, are microscopic; others, for example Greenland, hide in plain sight. ...

FULL STORY: https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/countries-that-dont-exist/index.html
 
This newly published book describes a number of such odd countries which are now extinct.

An Atlas of Extinct Countries
Gideon Defoe
2020

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0008393850/ref=olp_product_details?_encoding=UTF8&me=

This CNN travel article describes the book and cites some examples ...
New book 'Atlas of Extinct Countries' explores the places that fell off the map

Despite its exotic name, there's a very good reason you've never booked a vacation to the Quilombo of Palmeres. Same goes for the Islands of Refreshment, the Fiume Endeavour and Neutral Moresnet.

They no longer exist.

While the map of the world may look set in stone, it is in fact fluid, with borders constantly shifting due to the forces of geology, politics, conflict or money.

Along the way, numerous new nations have popped into existence, only to be snuffed out a few years, or even days, later when circumstances change once again.

And, as is made very apparent in a new book, "The Atlas of Extinct Countries" by writer Gideon Defoe, the reason for their demise isn't always a result of international diplomacy, brinkmanship or peace treaty.

Often it's just down to stupidity.

Defoe has collected the fates of 48 deceased states in his entertaining book, neatly detailing the origins and outcomes of each in a few pithy paragraphs that capture the adventure, scheming and incompetence involved. ...

FULL STORY: https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/countries-that-fell-off-the-map/index.html
 
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This newly published book describes a number of such odd countries which are now extinct.

An Atlas of Extinct Countries
Gideon Defoe
2020

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0008393850/ref=olp_product_details?_encoding=UTF8&me=

This CNN travel article describes the book and cites some examples ...


FULL STORY: https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/countries-that-fell-off-the-map/index.html
God there most he loads of countries that no longer exist. I.e.: The Austro-Hungarian empire, the Ottoman empire, Yugoslavia, all the city states and small countries that were incorporated to form Germany and Italy. These are just a few of the later ones. The maps of asia and Europe have changed do much over the last few centuries.
 
As far as I know Defoe's book focuses on bygone countries (etc.) that were never officially recognized.
 
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As far as I know Defoe's book focuses on bygone countries (etc.) that were never officially recognized.
Got it that's interesting. Many Mid east countries still wish that were true in regards to Israel.
 
As I don't see it has been mentioned before, I wanted to mention Ladonia. A micronation in the south of Sweden, created by the late artist Lars Vilks. It's main attraction being a large wooden sculpture called Nimis, which is made of driftwood.
 
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