Republic of Morac-Songhrati-Meads

The Republic of Morac-Songhrati-Meads was a micronation in the Spratly Islands established by British naval captain James George Meads in 1877.

Flag of the Republic of Morac-Songhrati-Meads
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History

The republic's history begins with Captain Meads, who laid claim to the Spratly Islands in 1877. Meads was exploring the South China Sea and laid claim to the islands and took the name King James I.[1] Descendants of Meads have continued to posit legitimacy over the islands, and ownership of the island's resources.[2][3] However, there is no contemporary evidence of the existence of this state. There is no reliable information available about the life of Meads: his name does not appear in the archives of the British armed forces.

Kingdom of Humanity
Flag of the Kingdom of Humanity

A rival entity called the "Kingdom of Humanity" formed in 1914 under the leadership of Franklin M. Meads, the son of James George. The two rival factions continued their claim on the islands during World War II, when they were occupied by Japanese troops. Franklin died in 1945, and his son Josiah took over leadership; Josiah himself died soon after. His son, Morton F. Meads, was to succeed but was deemed too young.[4] The Kingdom of Humanity reunified back into the republic in 1963.

The Kingdom faded into obscurity over the next decade until 1972, when the then-ruling Morton Meads unsuccessfully petitioned the United Nations, Chiang Kai-shek of the Republic of China, and the Philippines to recognise the Kingdom and its claims.[4] Later that year, the remainder of the Kingdom's governing body drowned in a shipwreck off the coast of Philippines during Typhoon Ora, except for Meads.[1]

The Kingdom reappeared in 1985 when Meads sued the United States and others for $25 billion, claiming "unfair competition, harassment, [and] sabotage." The case was not heard.[5]

See also

References
  1. Middleton, Nick (2015). An Atlas of Countries That Don't Exist: A Compendium of Fifty Unrecognized and Largely Unnoticed States. London: Macmillan. p. 186. ISBN 978-1-4472-9527-3.
  2. Fowler, Michael; Julie Marie Bunck (1995). Law, Power, and the Sovereign State. Pennsylvania State University Press. pp. 54–55. ISBN 0-271-01470-9.
  3. Whiting, Kenneth (2 February 1992). "Asian Nations Squabble Over Obscure String of Islands". Los Angeles Times. p. A2.
  4. Samuels, Marwyn (1982). Contest for the South China Sea. pp. 169–71.
  5. Miami Herald Staff (31 May 1992). "Atlantis And Other Wild Claims". Miami Herald. p. 11F.

Further reading
  • Samuel Pyeatt Menefee, "Republics of the Reefs: Nation-Building on the Continental Shelf and in the World's Oceans", California Western International Law Journal, vol. 25, no. 1, Fall, 1994, pp. 83–85.
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