Sealand is a tiny country without any land mass at all. In fact, it’s a small watchtower in the ocean that has become the world’s most rebellious micro-nation.
The tower was originally called HM Fort Roughs and was built during World War II. This tower nation is located about six nautical miles away from the Suffolk cost and was used by the British to watch for Germans laying mines near England during the war. Eventually, it was abandoned and then occupied by Jack Moore and his daughter Jane to broadcast their radio station, but it was taken over by Major Paddy Roy Bates, which is where the rebelliousness began.
Bates called it Sealand
The British Navy did not commission Major Paddy Roy Bates to take over the tower; he simply did so. In fact, he wanted to make a radio station on the tower, but rules in the UK prevented it. He changed the name to Sealand, called himself “Prince of Roy,” and made a constitution, flag, money, anthem, and passports. Despite the UK stating he couldn’t do this, the tower is in international waters and was left by the UK, which means anyone could legally take over.
The Moores tried to take it back
The Moores called their rouge radio station Radio Caroline and after being kicked off the platform in 1967, they attempted to retake the platform. Bates and his team fought off the attack by the Moores by shooting warnings and throwing fiery bottles. When the Radio Caroline team left, one of their members was left stuck on a ladder for two hours. After negotiations, Bates allows a small boat to rescue them.
Bates had to fight off his partner
Somehow, Sealand was making a lot of money, which meant it was becoming desirable to many people. In 1978, Alexander Achenbach wanted to control it. Achenbach actually helped write the rules for the country, but Bates didn’t like this at all. Achenbach sent armed men and a lawyer to the country to take it and took Bates’ son Michael in an attempt to take over the fort platform. Bates returned with armed men to fight back. It almost became a big fight, but Michael accidentally fired a shot, and Achenbach’s men gave up immediately.
A restricted content hub
HavenCo wanted to have a place for people to safely access information that’s banned elsewhere. This led to them building a place to store computer information in the tiny country to avoid government control over the internet. Few people used this service, except for some gambling websites. In 2008, the tiny platform country shut down HavenCo’s website because they thought it was making the country look bad.
The country was put up for sale
Although you can’t actually sell a country, one company suggested they could pay enough to take care of Sealand and offered to pay for it. The cost for this country was more than $900 million, and it was listed for sale from 2007 to 2010. Unfortunately, Pirate Bay, the company that wanted to buy it, was unable to get enough money from donations to do so. The small country was listed for sale by a company in Spain, but it never got to earn that commission since the tiny country was never sold.
its not a recognized country
It shouldn’t come as any surprise that a group of people occupying a small watchtower platform in the middle of the ocean isn’t recognized as an actual country. This platform is a small space, and other countries don’t officially recognize it, but the UK and Germany understand its significance and location. The United Nations has rules that say man-made islands don’t count as real islands and don’t get their own sea area. This could be the most official way to say that Sealand doesn’t actually exist.
Does this little country have athletes?
Strangely, there are some athletes that have represented this tiny platform country in international competitions. Most have never been to the country, but they compete in sports, including mini-golf, soccer, and running. The first such athlete is Darren Blackburn, who competed at local events in Canada while representing the tiny offshore country. Another athlete, Michale Martelle, competed in the Kung Fu World Cup in 2007 and won two silver medals. In 2008, this platform country hosted a Redbull skateboarding event, which is a bit crazy considering the country’s size.
Sealand is the world’s smallest country of only 27 people and it’s been a bit of a rebellious nation located on a man-made platform off the coast of England. Does it deserve more respect and recognition than it’s gotten?
Emily Thompson