You might think it's impossible to have a country with a population of less than fifty people. Michael Bates, Prince Regent of the Principality of Sealand, disagrees.
What is Sealand? This micronation is housed on a decommissioned military fort, originally known as Rough’s Tower, located six miles off the coast of Suffolk, England. The fort was originally designed as an anti-aircraft defensive gun platform during World War II, but in 1967 it was taken over by Roy Bates and his family. Bates stole the platform from a group of pirate radio broadcasters, intending to set up his own pirate radio station. Instead, he set up a micronation and the Sealand government. His family continues to rule the platform in the manner of a royal family, passing titles from parents to children.
Although Sealand has its own flag, constitution, government, stamps, passports, and even soccer team, it isn’t officially recognized as a sovereign state by any country - not even England, where most of Sealand’s citizens actually reside. Life is tough when you’re an unrecognized micronation.
The U.K. Doesn't Recognize Sealand As A Sovereign State
When it was first established, Sealand wasn’t part of the United Kingdom. That changed in 1987, when the U.K. extended its territorial reach from three miles to twelve. Sealand, which sits six miles from British shores, was suddenly on British land.
Sealand doesn’t agree with this assessment. Michael Bates, the Prince of Sealand, told the BBC that Sealand "[has] never asked for recognition, and we’ve never felt the need to ask for recognition. You don’t have to have recognition to be a state, you just have to fulfill the criteria of the Montevideo Convention which is population, territory, government, and the capacity to enter into negotiation with other states."
In August 1978, Prince Roy and his wife Princess Joan left Sealand on business. While they were gone, the self-described Prime Minister of Sealand, a German named Alexander Achenbach, hired a group of mercenaries to launch an attack on the micronation. After storming the platform, they took Prince Michael hostage. Prince Roy fought for his son's release, and ended up holding Achenbach's lawyer and charging him with treason.
The United Kingdom declined to intervene in the affair. Germany sent a diplomat over to negotiate, and they eventually convinced Sealand to release their citizen. Prince Roy considered the visit to be de facto recognition of Sealand’s sovereignty.
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When the Prince traveled to mainland England, he was arrested and put on trial for a firearms offense. The case was thrown out of court because Sealand was beyond British jurisdiction, and the Prince got off scot-free. Prince Michael’s father, Sealand founder Roy Bates, called this decision confirmation of Sealand’s sovereignty.
