[B]A man who established his own independent state on a former military platform in the sea off East Anglia has died at the age of 91.
[/B]"Prince" Roy Bates set up the Principality of Sealand in international waters seven miles off the coast of Felixstowe, Suffolk.
Mr Bates died on Tuesday at a nursing home in Leigh-on-Sea, Essex.
His son "Prince" Michael said he would be remembered as a man who stood up to the establishment.
World War II veteran Roy Bates was involved in setting up the pirate radio station Radio Essex at a different offshore platform before moving to Roughs Tower, which he renamed Sealand and declared it as independent territory in 1967.
The tower was built as a platform for anti-aircraft guns during World War II.
Michael Bates, who lives in Southend, Essex, said: "He was an extremely intelligent and active man and he developed Alzheimer's, which he would have absolutely hated, and he barely recognized his family over the last few years.
[B]
"My father will always be remembered for shaking up the establishment with pirate radio, declaring Sealand's independence and confronting the Royal Navy and other foreign governments."
[/B]During the Bates' time on the platform, they saw off an attempt by the Royal Navy to evict them, and an attempt by a group of German and Dutch businessmen to seize control of the platform by force in 1978.
[B]Michael Bates said they were taken to Holland and he returned with his father to successfully recapture Sealand and the five men who were on it.
[/B]He said: "We were both armed and that's certainly one of the most memorable days I spent with him."
Britain extended its territorial waters in 1987 to include Sealand.
As well as his son, Roy Bates leaves his widow "Princess Joan", his daughter Penny and four grandchildren.
[B]Sealand, now run by Michael Bates, is used as a base for internet servers and other business ventures.
[/B][IMG]http://www.sealandgov.org/images/blog/Prince-Roy-and-Princess-Joa.jpg[/IMG]
[url]http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-19901944[/url]
[quote]Michael Bates said they were taken to Holland and he returned with his father to successfully recapture Sealand and the five men who were on it.
He said: "We were both armed and that's certainly one of the most memorable days I spent with him."[/quote]
Pretty fun childhood.
I wish I experienced the father-son moment of staging an armed hostile recapture of a small micronation.
Least you can say is the guy had an exiting life.
[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AYqZkJxq2ys[/media]
A true international hero for all micronations.
rip, always found this story so interesting
Is sealand part of Britain now after Britain just decided to expand its waters?
[QUOTE=carcarcargo;37986915]Is sealand part of Britain now after Britain just decided to expand its waters?[/QUOTE]
a british court already ruled long ago that sealand was outside its jurisdiction
Has he ever considered expanding the platform at all? The foundation it sits on can handle a hell of a lot more than what it's currently being used for.
He was a great man, and he'll be missed. I'm glad to hear Sealand is still independent after his death.
RIP
Brilliant, the stage is set for my glorious coup and revolution of the people. Glorious Democratic People's Republic of Sealand, here we come.
The Mercenary Helicopter coup, was one of the most interesting things I've read on Sealand. Really fascinating stuff, the man lived by his own set of rules.
I've been (near) there!
[img]http://i.imgur.com/66qbS.jpg[/img]
[QUOTE=Winner;37988286]England was one of the 162 nations in the UN that agreed that artificial structures could not have their own territory[/QUOTE]
And yet their agreement changed nothing.
does sealand show up on apple maps
The Internet will grieve and remember you King.
[QUOTE=Winner;37988523]It means that Sealand is no longer considered to be outside of British jurisdiction[/QUOTE]
Yes and this was a while ago. As far as I know Sealand continues to operate the same as it has for years prior.
If their ruling actually manifested into something physical beyond them saying "Yep, they definitely are in our jurisdiction", then I am unaware.
Also, I believe the ruling only meant they aren't recognized to be an actual nation, nothing to do with jurisdiction. Though I could be completely wrong on that.
Isn't this technically the smallest country?
[QUOTE=Conspiracy;37986963]a british court already ruled long ago that sealand was outside its jurisdiction[/QUOTE]
I read somewhere it was a court in another country decided you cannot do that. Something to do with neutrality.
Dunno why they stopped there though, I mean a few more miles and France would be ours!
[QUOTE=Daniel Smith;37988677]Isn't this technically the smallest country?[/QUOTE]
There are micronations that are smaller than that.
One example would be the [URL="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kingdom_of_Lovely#The_Kingdom_of_Lovely"]Kingdom of Lovely[/URL], a micronation created by Danny Wallace for his TV show. His teritorial claim is his flat in London.
Goodnight sweet prince
[QUOTE=Winner;37988726]My point wasn't that they control them or that it operates any differently, I'm just answering carcarcargo
(And yeah I doubt Britain ever really makes an effort to command Seaworld or even needs to)[/QUOTE]
I was just making a comment on how silly such a ruling is.
Sorry, I didn't mean to sound confrontational or anything.
And suddenly in 200 year Sealand takes over like half of the north globe and we'll all have a day off because of Roy Bates death day is going to be a holiday.
There's a short video here for anyone interested, looks cosy, the even have a cat:
[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_LnPYRSLIc[/media]
I'll establish a new micronation in his honor.
I'll call it New Sealand.
[QUOTE=matt.ant;37994347]There's a short video here for anyone interested, looks cosy, the even have a cat:
[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P_LnPYRSLIc[/media][/QUOTE]
That's a hot princess.
So, now that he's not using it...
Anyone got contact info for the Piratebay guys?
[QUOTE=nikomo;37995010]So, now that he's not using it...
Anyone got contact info for the Piratebay guys?[/QUOTE]
My mind might be making this up, but I remember a news post on here about the pirate bay attempting to buy The Principality of Sealand... and failing.
[QUOTE=ReligiousNutjob;37995114]My mind might be making this up, but I remember a news post on here about the pirate bay attempting to buy The Principality of Sealand... and failing.[/QUOTE]
Yep:
[quote]The micronation Sealand is offering asylum to Gary McKinnon, a British hacker who’s facing extradition to the United States. Prince Michael Bates of Sealand apparently prefers hackers to pirates. Earlier this year he refused to sell its micronation to the Pirate Bay because this would upset his friends in Hollywood.[/quote]
[url]http://torrentfreak.com/sealand-prefers-hacker-to-the-pirate-bay/[/url]
So hypothetically speaking, if I found an island that was in international waters, I could technically claim it, make it sovereign, become king, and try to become recognized as an independent nation-state?
Sorry, you need to Log In to post a reply to this thread.
