Major Paddy Roy Bates (Retd), or rather Prince Roy of the Principality of Sealand, has put his "country" up for sale. Or rather, he has made Sealand available for transfer, since one cannot sell a principality.
Sealand" is an old World War II off-shore fortress that used to be known as HM Fort Roughs Tower. It was originally built in international waters as part of a chain of installations protecting England from the Germans. When the war ended, the garrison was withdrawn and the facility was abandoned until Bates and his family moved to the installation and proclaimed it an autonomous principality in 1967.
Previously, Bates had been convicted of running an illegal radio station when he broadcast from HM Fort John Knox, which was within Britain's 3 mile territorial waters. By moving to Roughs Tower, which is six miles off the coast of England, he hoped to avoid similar charges. The British government took him to court but the judge, suprisingly, ruled that Sealand was outside of the government's control because it was in international waters.
Prince Roy's firm belief in Sealand's independence was reinforced in 1978 when Dutch and German businessmen were held as prisoners of war after an abortive attempt to kidnap Prince Roy's son Michael, the current Prince Regent and acting head of state. When the German government attempted to intercede with the British government to obtain the release of their citizen, they were directed to deal with Sealand authorities.
No nation has formally recognized Sealand as an actual state, although it is sometimes used to illustrate principles of international law, but that has not stopped the Bates dynasty from issuing Sealand passports, stamps, and currency. The Principality has even been represented at sporting events, such as mini-golf and slot cars.
Given the impending change of government which will inevitably follow the transfer of the principality, it might be a good time to consider purchasing an official Sealand title. That's right, you can become a Lord, Lady, Baron, or Baroness of Sealand for the low, low price of only £29. For more information, check out: http://www.sealandgov.org/shop.html
By the way, if you are interested in arranging the transfer of Sealand from the Bates family to your own dynasty, you had better start getting the money together. The asking price is from £65,000,000 and £504,000,000. In Canadian dollars, it would cost you $1.4 billion. And you thought cottage country was expensive.
Coat of Arms used with the kind permission of the government of Sealand.
1 comment:
Thanks for writing this.
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