You ever dreamed of becoming a king or president? Seems impossible since every square foot on
Earth is already ruled by someone, right? Well, not quite! Here are some territories
that don’t belong to anyone, so they’re up for grabs!
#1. Knight’s Residence at Fort St. Angelo What better way to feel like a monarch than
ruling a place with the words “knight” and “fort” in it! Now, this historic place
is officially located in and owned by Malta, a small island country south of Italy. But
you can sorta rent it if you want! As of 1998, it’s being leased to the Sovereign Military
Order of Malta for the next 99 years. Those guys (the Order) are basically a country (officially
recognized, by the way!) whose only land is being rented to them. In fact, the Maltese
government can apparently terminate that lease any time it wants after the first 50 years
(which would be as of 2047). So, I guess you could get in line to be the next “tenant.”
On second thought, maybe this country would like to keep the only land it has. Let’s
see what other territories you can check out!
#2. The Lagoan Isles The Grand Duchy of the Lagoan Isles has nothing
“grand” about its size. It’s a micronation based on 3 islands in the middle of Baffins
Pond in Portsmouth, England. The idea to claim these lands as his personal Duchy came to
schoolteacher Louis Robert Harold Stephens (aka "Grand Duke Louis") in 2005. He found
out that these islands weren’t officially mentioned as part of the United Kingdom, so
why not rule them? The Duchy has an official website where you can see the national flag,
anthem, and even a list of public holidays. But the site hasn’t been active for a long
time, and the isles are uninhabited. If you don't mind being surrounded by ducks, you
could become the next Great Duke of the Lagoan Isles!
#3. Liberland This is a virtual state between Croatia and
Serbia about 2.7 sq miles (7 sq km) in size. The territory has been an unresolved subject
of dispute between Croatia and Serbia since 1947 so in 2015, Czech politician and activist
Vít Jedlička just came in and claimed this territory the sovereign state of Liberland.
According to its official site, Liberland is a constitutional republic. The state has
a President (Vít Jedlička himself), two Vice Presidents, five Ministers, its own flag
and currency, and even a motto: “To live and let live.” Ironically, nobody actually
lives in Liberland, but you can apply for citizenship on the state's site. By the way,
you’d better hurry up: as small as the land between Croatia and Serbia is, there are others
that could be moving in! The Kingdom of Enclava and the Principality of Celestinia (both also
micronations) are currently disputing over territory near Liberland! Strange, you don’t
hear about this stuff in the news…
#4. Bir Tawil If you prefer a hotter climate, there's 800
sq miles (2,070 sq km) of unclaimed territory in northern Africa between Egypt and Sudan.
Bir Tawil actually means "tall water well" and you’ll probably need plenty of H20 given
that this place is an absolutely dry piece of desert. Kinda makes it sound a little less
attractive to potential “rulers” looking for some property, but that didn’t stop
American Jeremiah Heaton from laying claim. In 2014, he named it the “Kingdom of North
Sudan” and dubbed his daughter Princess of the state, since, well, she’d always
wanted to be a princess! Heaton actually went there and erected a flag on the territory!
A year later, Indian businessman Suyash Dixit declared himself ruler of the “Kingdom of
Dixit” which - by accident or not - turned out to be the Kingdom of North Sudan! A couple
of Russian tourists impressed by Tolkien's books also claimed this land to be Middle-Earth
and put a Russian flag there. None of these proclamations were recognized by anyone, so
you have all the chances to become a ruler of the desert yourself!
# 5. Rockall If you’re a true highlander, then this piece
of rock in the Atlantic Ocean might interest you. At just 56 feet (17 m) high and about
half the size of a hockey rink, Rockall doesn’t seem all that special at first. There’s
never been fresh water on the islet, and its only residents stay there to rest during long
flights. No, I’m not talking about frequent human flyers but birds! In fact, Scottish
politician William Ross is quoted as saying that more people have been to the Moon than
to Rockall! Sounds like a useless lump of granite out in the middle of the sea, right?
Oh, but there’s a lot more to it than that! Scientists say that there are tons of oil
reserves in the continental plate beneath the rock, which makes Rockall the most appealing
stone on the planet! It was claimed by the United Kingdom in 1955, but Ireland insists
that it’s Irish. While those two are arguing over who owns it, perhaps you can sweep in
and lay claim to what Greenpeace activists dubbed “Waveland” back in 1997. They even
offered citizenship to anyone willing to take an oath. Or, ya know, you could come up with
your own country name if you decide to occupy the rock…
#6. Ailsa Craig Here’s another granite islet in the United
Kingdom, but you can actually buy this one! Ailsa Craig currently belongs to David Thomas
Kennedy, a Scottish peer and the 9th Marquess of Ailsa, who’s selling it for a mere £1.5
million, or about $2 million. The price was actually a million pounds higher when it was
first put up for sale back in May 2011, so you better grab it while you can! Yeah, let
me just withdraw 2 million bucks, be right back… Jokes aside, the dome-shaped island
known as “Paddy’s milestone” is a pretty small territory of 220 acres (90 hectares)
with a ruined castle, a small cottage, a lighthouse, and a granite quarry on it. And if you’re
a curling fan, this should peak your interest: the rocks on Ailsa Craig are the main source
of the majority of curling stones currently in use across the world! And you can’t say
this place is uninhabited since it’s home to one of the largest gannet colonies in the
world, with about 36,000 breeding pairs. The birds are closely looked after by The Royal
Society for the Protection of Birds, so you’ll have some strict visitors checking on your
avian neighbors!
#7. Marie Byrd Land Ok, enough itsy bitsy islets and borderlands
– let’s think big! What about the vastest no man’s land on Earth with a territory
that’s larger than France, Germany, Italy, and Great Britain combined? Hey, just check
out Marie Byrd Land! Hopefully, you don’t mind the cold since this place is an uninhabitable
snowy expanse in Antarctica. If that’s ok with you, then you must’ve been born to
rule polar bears and penguins. Oops, polar bears hang out in the northern Arctic, don’t
they? Oh yeah, and you won’t see a lot of penguins either: they only live on the coast.
Well, still! You might assume you won’t have any rivals on a territory with one of
the harshest climates on the planet, but here's another surprise: in 2001 American Travis
McHenry founded a micronation there and appointed himself ruler of the Grand Duchy of Westarctica.
As of August 2018, the now Protectorate of Westarctica has a population of over 2,000
people. The good news is none of them live there and McHenry's claims aren’t recognized
by any government, so go for it! I guess?
#8. The Moon If Earth is simply not enough to quench your
territorial thirst, then you should probably know that the Moon doesn’t belong to anyone
either! And your chance to lay claim could be right around the corner…sorta… NASA,
as well as the Russian space agency Roskosmos, have plans to return to the Moon by 2020 and
build a permanent base on the lunar surface. There are also plans for a manned colony by
2030, so it’s high time you bought yourself a couple acres for just £50 (or about $65).
Just see Sue and Francis Williams to make the deal. The couple have a company called
Moon Estates based in Cornwall, England. They also offer land on Mars and Venus if you’re
in the market! They’ve already persuaded buyers to invest in more than 200,000 acres
(~81,000 hectares) on Earth's lifeless satellite. Hey, ya never know, we might be kicking ourselves
in the future when those prices go sky-high!
Which of these unclaimed lands would you prefer to rule? Let me know down in the comments!
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