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Sealand

The True Story of the World’s Most Stubborn Micronation

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About this listen

In 1967, retired army major and self-made millionaire Paddy Roy Bates proclaimed himself ruler of the Principality of Sealand on a World War II Maunsell Sea Fort in the North Sea, off the East Anglian Coast - and began the peculiar story of the world’s most stubborn micronation.

Having fought off attacks from the British government and armed mercenaries for half a century - and thwarted an attempted coup that saw the Prince Regent taken hostage - the self-proclaimed independent nation still stands. It has its own constitution, national flag and anthem, currency and passports - and offers the esteemed titles of ‘Lord’ or ‘Lady’ to its loyal patrons.

Incorporating original interviews with surviving members of the principality’s royal family, Sealand recounts the outrageous attempt to build a sovereign kingdom by a family of rogue, larger-than-life adventurers on an isolated platform in the freezing waters of the North Sea.

©2021 Dylan Taylor-Lehman (P)2020 W. F. Howes Europe Great Britain Royalty
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It's probably been a couple of years since I first played this audio book and still, the story sticks with me, with it's complex twists and turns and surprising changes in pace and direction.

The story of Sealand is quite ridiculous and if it wasn't true, you would criticise a fiction writer for making it unrealistic.

There are gun battles, legal precedents, international criminal gangs, high times and low. There is probably no other place on Earth this tale could have played out, and in probably no other time, with no different players. It's mad. You will love it.

A heck of a tale

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