From tribes fighting for their independence to Holy Orders ruling from abroad, here are
10 nations you didn’t know existed…
11.
Eritrea
Eritrea is a country located in the African Horn that won its independence from Ethiopia
in 1993.
It was part of the kingdom of Aksum since the year 300 and in the 19th century it was
colonized by the Europeans.
It is in a very strategic location and it fought over 30 years for its independence.
It keeps a very low profile and tensions with Ethiopia are still high.
Because of the extreme drought and conflict it remains one of the poorest countries in
Africa.
The UN has accused the government of crimes against humanity and says that thousands have
fled the country recently travelling across the Sahara to Europe.
Despite all of this, It is home to many animals and is hoping to use its landscape and rich
history to encourage more tourism.
I only knew about Eritrea because I met a guy who was teaching English in Spain who
was from there.
No one had ever heard of it so he gave all of us, teachers and students, a geography
lesson!
You learn something new every day!
10.
Abkhazia
Abkhazia has been caught up in the tensions between Russia and Georgia for years.
It has its own ethnic culture and language but has always lived in the shadow of higher
powers.
In the 9th century BC it was part of Colchis which was a kingdom under Georgian control.
Flash forward to the 8th century AD and Abkhazia was enjoying a period of independence.
However in 1008 it joined with Georgia’s medieval kingdom.
This lasted till 1864 when it became part of the Russian Empire.
After the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917 it looked like they were going to get some autonomy
but when Stalin came along they found themselves going back to Georgia.
When the USSR went belly up in 1991 Georgia declared independence from Russia.
Abkhazia decided they wanted the same thing but the Georgians disagreed, leading to a
bloody conflict.
Around four fifths of the Abkhazia population were Georgians.
After the fighting.
the dominant population were controversially driven out.
Abkhazia declared its independence in 1999 but was strongly tied to Russia as a result.
It wasn’t till 2008 that Russia said it would recognize it as a separate place.
Is Abkhazia master of its domain though?
Some doubt that very much.
Technically it is a partially recognized state.
9.
Balochistan
The desert-like region of Balochistan has a long and complex history.
Its story has played out across 5 centuries and it’s seen many rulers come and go, from
the ancient Persian Empire of Achaemenid to the British Empire who demarcated it in the
1870s with the Persians.
It’s described as being a province in Pakistan but it shares land mass with both Pakistan
and Iran.
The area has played host to religions such as Hinduism, Buddhism and Islam.
The native population are the Balochs who the region is named after.
They are associated with Sunni Muslim beliefs and they speak a north west Iranian language
which is similar to Kurdish.
Balochistan is known in the history books for being a place of disaster for Alexander
the Great.
Following his Indian campaign he attempted to return to Babylon through the deserts of
Balochistan where he lost thousands of men at the hands of Balochi fighters.
This inhospitable and often overlooked environment became a headache of colossal proportions
for the legendary military leader!
Now it is considered one of the 4 provinces of Pakistan.
However, there is an violent insurgency happening now as the Khan of Khalat signed an agreement
with the British that Balochistan could remain independent just like Nepal, Burma, and Sri
Lanka.
8.
Barotseland
Barotseland is part of Zambia though there has been a drive for independence dating back
to 1911.
With much of Africa having existed under European rule since the late 19th century the business
of reclaiming the likes of North Rhodesia has been a long and difficult struggle featuring
complex negotiations.
Barotseland called for separation but was absorbed into Zambia in 1964 thanks to a famous
and controversial agreement called BA64 or the Barotseland Agreement.
The inhabitants of Barotseland are the Lozi people and they were seen by their British
rulers as being unable to support themselves due to a lack of resources.
Through BA64 it was said the region would become a “nation within a nation” and
gain autonomy despite the king, or ‘Litunga’s, reservations.
However this never happened and attempts have been made to get true independence for Barotseland,
most recently in 2012.
Some argue the agreement wasn’t worth the paper it was written on in the first place.
It just shows the mess created by colonialism, the after effects of which are still being
felt over a century later.
7.
Chin State
The history of Chin State is tied up with the story of Myanmar or as it used to be called,
Burma.
Its native people are the Chin, a diverse ethnic group of 500,000 who speak 20 different
dialects.
They dominated a mountainous area before the British showed up in the 18th century and
occupied it.
The territory was divided into 3 areas, southwest, northwest and east.
This action split the Chin people between Burma, India and Bangladesh.
But despite the British being in command they wanted the tribal chiefs to have authority.
So in 1886 the Chin Hills Regulation Act gave them some powers, though not too much!
World War II created an unstable environment where the Burmese felt they could take back
control of their country.
The Burma Independence Army allied with the Japanese to fight against their rulers but
when the Japanese tried to take over they had to be expelled by the Brits.
Myanmar has been under direct or indirect military control after a coup in 1962.
The situation has caused an outcry internationally with many feeling that freedom has been taken
away from the Chin, a proud people who used to occupy their own part of the world.
6.
Republic of Artsakh
This Armenian state recently changed its name from the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic.
‘Nagorno-Karabakh’ is roughly translated from the Soviet “Autonomous Region of Mountainous
Karabakh”.
It has a complex background with the state’s origins going back to the 5th century BC,
back in a time when dynasties controlled the area via local princes known as ‘nakhabars’.
Artsakh is seen as a focal point for Armenian culture.
In fact one of Armenia’s earliest dialects is called ‘Artsakh’ and is thought to
date back to the 7th century.
It has many features distinctive to their culture such as ‘khachkars’ which are
engraved stone slabs of great significance.
It also has key examples of Christian art and architecture.
There has been a lot of unrest over the centuries.
For example from the 1720s-30s Artsakh was at war with the Ottoman empire.
It’s had its quarrels putting it mildly with superpowers like the Soviet Union.
After that bit the dust in 1991 it became the sovereign nation of the Nagorno-Karabakh
Republic and last year a referendum was held which resulted in its current name.
The new Republic is working its way toward presidential democracy.
All we can do is wish them well with what will hopefully be a happy and uncomplicated
future!
5.
Republic of Lakotah
The Republic of Lakotah is located in North America.
It doesn’t have official status in the eyes of the US government but for the Lakotah it
is very much independent.
It was proposed in 2007 and is described as being part of “the longest running legal
battle in the world”, taking place over 158 years!
When land was occupied by what became present day Americans, everything was divided up according
to conditions set out in 52 treaties.
174 million acres were taken this way.
The move to create a Lakotah Republic ignores the Fort Laramie treaty of 1851 which gave
rise to the Great Sioux Nation.
In 1974, 5000 Indian delegates attended the first International Indian Treaty Council
at the Standing Rock Sioux Indian Reservation.
It decided on something called the Declaration of Continuing Independence working on evidence
that the US had violated the terms of many of its treaties.
The Lakotah’s quest for recognition continues over a decade later.
4.
Saharan Arab Democratic Republic
In the Western Sahara there is a state called the Saharan Democratic Republic.
It’s part of Morocco but there are some who dispute that.
The Saharawi people who are native to that region want it declared their territory, which
is why it’s also known by another name, the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic.
The dispute dates back to 1976.
Since 1884 the area had been a Spanish colony but when the Spanish gave it up, a bitter
fight broke out between 3 sides.
There were the Moroccans and the Mauritanians who both wanted a piece.
And also battling it out was the Polisario Front in Algeria.
They were made up of Sahrawis and believed they had the right to govern.
Mauritania called a truce with the Polisario Front and backed out of the conflict in 1979.
Morocco then took control in a controversial move, the repercussions of which are still
being felt to this day.
Even the UN has tried to step in but the situation is at stalemate for the time being!
3.
South Ossetia
Like Abkhazia, South Ossetia has been defined in recent years by fallout from the breakup
of the Soviet Union.
It’s similar in that during the Soviet years, it had a degree of autonomy.
But things started to go wrong in the late 1980s when Russian influence began to crumble
and Georgia began pushing for independence.
South Ossetia was in the Georgians’ sights and during the infamous “March on Tsk-hin-vali”
between 20 and 30,000 Georgians entered the capital leading to violence resulting in deaths
and injury.
This led to South Ossetia declaring themselves independent and opposing Georgian attempts
to control the region.
At the moment South Ossetia is only partly recognized as a state.
So deep-rooted are the problems in the area that it’s referred to as one of the “frozen
conflict” zones which were created after the Soviet Union was dissolved.
2.
Sovereign Military Order of Malta
The Roman Catholic Church was behind the formation of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta.
It has the peculiar purpose of being both a medical and a military force and has been
in existence since the late 11th century.
A church, convent and hospital were originally constructed in Jerusalem though the Order
has moved around since then.
It has migrated to different parts of the world due to wars and upheaval and operated
in places such as Cyprus, Rhodes and Malta.
In Rhodes in the 14th century, a naval fleet was assembled and the Order began to make
its mark defending Christian interests worldwide.
The Order is governed by a Grand Master.
It’s split into 8 groups according to language.
These are called ‘Langues’ meaning tongues.
Different Langues include English and German.
The Order can appoint its own ambassadors and it even has its own currency!
In 1530 the Order took possession of Malta and following the Great Siege of the Ottomans
it contributed greatly to the architecture and culture of the country.
In 1802 the Treaty of Amiens was signed which gave it sovereign rights over Malta.
Everything was going fine and the order ruled from Malta until our good friend, Napoleon
came.
He occupied the territory in 1798 and because he was a Christian, the knights couldn’t
resist him.
And so the Order moved on to Rome where it has been based ever since, even though they
bear the name of Malta.
It continues to work across the globe providing humanitarian support.
1.
Transnistria
Officially Transnistria is a landlocked state but don’t go around saying that to the population
of 500,000 strong!
The area is caught between Moldova and Ukraine and is another example of the fallout that
occurred during the break-up of the Soviet Union.
In 1990 Moldova separated itself from the Soviet Union but the large Russian population
who live in Transnistria wanted things the way they were and declared independence.
They wanted to create a Socialist Republic but disagreements led to a two year war.
The current status of Transnistria is a bit of a contradiction.
On the one hand it has a parliament, a constitution and a currency which is a colorful plastic
coin.
You’d think it would be its own country but it’s not recognized by the UN.
It isn’t even on maps!
Talk about a snub, right?
Despite images of Putin being as prevalent as Transnistria’s own President, Russia
doesn’t acknowledge it as a sovereign nation.
Even so Russia provides Transnistria with free gas supplies, troops and pension supplements.
You’d think that would give them some leeway but it seems this curious place is destined
to remain the filling in a Moldovan/Ukrainian sandwich!
Thanks for watching.
Any countries younwould like to add?
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