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			{{Short description\|Unrecognised micronation in northwest Italy}}
	{{POV\|date=September 2011}}{{Refimprove\|date=September 2010}}
			{{About\|the micronation in Italy\|the town\|Seborga}}
	{{Infobox Micronation
			{{Infobox micronation
	\| fullName = Principality of Seborga<small><br>]: ''Principato di Seborga''<br>]: ''Principauté de Seborga''</small>
	\| ~~shortName~~ = Seborga		\| conventional_long_name = Principality of Seborga
			\| common_name = Seborga
	\| status = Current
			\| native_name = {{Native name\|it\|Principato di Seborga}}<br>{{Native name\|lij\|Prinçipatu de A Seborca}}
	\| flagImage = ]
			\| general =
	\| secondImage =
			\| coordinates = {{coord\|43\|50\|N\|7\|42\|E\|region:IT\|display=inline,title}}
	\| secondImageType = Coat of arms
			\| image_map = Map of Seborga (Italian Comune & Micronation).svg
	\| motto = Sub Umbra Sedi
			\| map_caption = Map the ] and the Principality of Seborga marked in red within ]
	\| englishMotto = I Sat in the Shade
			\| area_km2 = 14
	\| capital = ]
			\| ethnic_groups =
	\| anthemName = La Speranza
			\| leader_name1 = *] (1963–2009)
	\| anthemComposer =
			*] (2010–2019)
	\| location = SeborgaMap.jpg
			*Nina (2019–''incumbent'')
	\| areaClaimed =
			\| established_date1 = 1963
	\| ethnicgroups =
			\| area_acre =
	\| purpOrgStruct = ]
			\| nummembers =
	\| leadership = Prince Marcello I (Marcello Menegatto), from April 25, 2010<ref name="telegraph-tremendousness"/>
			\| currency_code =
	\| foundationDate = 954 (pre-micronational)<br>1963
			\| DST_note =
	\| areaClaimed = {{convert\|15\|km2\|sqmi}}
			\| footnotes =
	\| membership = 312
			\| GDP_nominal =
	\| language = ], ], ]
			\| area_rank =
	\| purpCurrency = ]
			\| GDP_PPP =
	\| currencycode =
			\| GDP_PPP_year =
	\| footnotes =
			\| HDI =
	\| demonym = Seborgan
			\| HDI_year =
	\| gdp =
			\| today =
	\| timezone =
			\| official_website = {{url\|https://www.principatodiseborga.com}}
			\| image =
	}}		}}

			The '''Principality of Seborga''' ({{langx\|it\|Principato di Seborga}}, ]: ''Prinçipatu de A Seborca'') is an unrecognised ] that claims a {{convert\|14\|km2\|mi2 acre\|abbr=on\|adj=on}} area located in the northwestern ] ] in ], near the ] border, and about {{convert\|35\|km\|mi\|-1}} from ].<ref name="Telegraph">{{cite news \|title=Obituary: His Tremendousness Giorgio Carbone \|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/royalty-obituaries/6671765/His-Tremendousness-Giorgio-Carbone.html \|access-date=17 January 2021 \|work=The Telegraph \|date=27 November 2009 \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091201012903/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/royalty-obituaries/6671765/His-Tremendousness-Giorgio-Carbone.html \|archive-date=1 December 2009\|url-status=live}}</ref> The principality is coextensive with the ] of ]; assertions of sovereignty were instigated in 1963 by a local campaigner based on unproven claims about territorial settlements made by the ] after the ].
	The '''Principality of Seborga''' is a ] located in the northwestern ] ] in ], near the ] border, and in sight of ].<ref>, WorldStatesmen.org</ref>

			==History ==
	The principality is coexistent with, and claims the territory of, the town of ], which is an Italian municipality.

			]
	==History==

			The claim of sovereignty for ] was put forward in 1963 by a Seborgan former ] named Giorgio Carbone. He claimed to have found documents from the ] which, according to Carbone, indicated that Seborga had never been a possession of the ] and was therefore not legitimately included in the ] when it was formed in 1861 during ]. Carbone claimed that Seborga had existed as a ] since 954, and that from 1079 it was a principality of the ]. Sovereignty claims assert that Seborga was overlooked by the ] in its redistribution of European territories after the ].<ref name="Telegraph" /><ref name="Klieger">{{cite book \|last1=Klieger \|first1=P. Christiaan \|title=The Microstates of Europe: Designer Nations in a Post-Modern World \|date=29 November 2012 \|publisher=Lexington Books \|isbn=978-0-7391-7427-2 \|page=177 \|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CrfwGa4aCwYC&pg=PA177 \|access-date=17 January 2021 \|language=en}}</ref>
	During the Middle Ages it became part of the feudal holdings of the Counts of ]. By 954 it became the property of the ] Monks of Santo Onorato of Lerins. In 1079 the Abbot of this monastery was made a Prince of the ], with temporal authority over the Principality of Seborga.

			Carbone promoted the idea of Seborgan independence as a principality, and in 1963 the town's inhabitants elected him as their putative head of state. Carbone ] ''His Tremendousness (Sua Tremendità)'' Giorgio I, Prince of Seborga.<ref name=Telegraph /><ref name="italymag">{{cite web \|title=Prince of Seborga fights on for 362 subjects {{!}} Liguria {{!}} ITALY Magazine \|url=http://www.italymag.co.uk/italy/liguria/prince-seborga-fights-362-subjects/ \|website=The Telegraph \|access-date=17 January 2021 \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101119012259/http://www.italymag.co.uk/italy/liguria/prince-seborga-fights-362-subjects/ \|archive-date=19 November 2010 \|date=15 June 2006}}</ref> He formed a "cabinet" of ministers; minted a local currency, the ]; introduced a Seborgan flag, a white cross on a blue background; and established a Latin motto, {{lang\|lt\|Sub Umbra Sede}} (Sit in the shade).
	On 20 January 1729, this independent principality was sold to the ]'s ], then ruled by ].
			Carbone's campaign has generally not been taken seriously and is widely viewed as a ruse to attract tourists to the town, although his supporters in the town claim that their small state has been recognised by ].<ref name="Telegraph" /><ref name="huffingtonpost">{{cite web\|url=https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/anneli-rufus/seborga-the-micronation-i_b_5760864.html\|title=Seborga: The Micronation Inside Italy Where Time Stands Still\|date=11 September 2014\|author=Anneli Rufus\|publisher=HuffPost\|access-date=5 May 2018}}</ref>

			In January 2006, Carbone announced that he would ] on reaching the age of 70, apparently as a result of a row over rebuilding the village centre, but he didn't and continued to hold the office until his death.<ref>, Richard Owen, ''The Times'', 24 January 2006</ref> Even so, this decision was the subject of a feature on the ] ] programme ''World Today'' on 25 January 2006.<ref>, BBC, 16 January 2006</ref>
	The argument for Seborga's present-day status as an independent state is founded on the claim that this sale was never registered by its new owner, resulting in the principality falling into what has been described as a legal twilight zone.

			Giorgio Carbone retained his ceremonial position until his death on 25 November 2009 (age 73), due to complications due to ].<ref name=Telegraph/> The position of the Serborgan "monarch" is not hereditary, and since Carbone's death, elections have been held in Seborga every seven years among the town's 200 registered voters.<ref name="telegraph180832017">{{cite news \|last1=Squires \|first1=Nick \|title=Radio DJ from West Sussex vies to become next leader of tiny self-declared principality in Italy \|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/03/18/british-dj-west-sussex-vies-become-next-leader-tiny-self-declared/ \|access-date=17 January 2021 \|work=The Telegraph \|date=18 March 2017 \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201111222517/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/03/18/british-dj-west-sussex-vies-become-next-leader-tiny-self-declared/ \|archive-date=11 November 2020\|url-status=live}}</ref> Carbone was succeeded by businessman ], who was elected on 25 April 2010 and crowned on 22 May 2010 as ''His ]'' (''Sua Altezza Serenissima'' or ''SAS'') Prince Marcello I.<ref>, Article "Seborga will crown his new elected Prince: Menegatto I"</ref><ref name="telegraph-tremendousness"/><ref name="principe-biog">{{cite web \|title=S.A.S. il Principe di Seborga \|url=https://www.principatodiseborga.com/pds/s-a-s-il-principe-di-seborga \|website=Principato di Seborga \|access-date=28 September 2019 \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190928091926/https://www.principatodiseborga.com/pds/s-a-s-il-principe-di-seborga \|archive-date=28 September 2019 \|language=it-IT\|url-status=dead}}</ref> Menegatto was re-elected as Prince on 23 April 2017, after an unsuccessful challenge to the position by Mark Dezzani, a British-born ] who had lived in Seborga for nearly 40 years.<ref name="telegraph180832017" />
	Subsequently, in 1815, the ] overlooked Seborga in its redistribution of European territories after the ], and there is no mention of Seborga in the ] for the ] in 1861.

			On 12 April 2019, Menegatto abdicated from his position,<ref> {{Webarchive\|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190928091926/https://www.principatodiseborga.com/pds/s-a-s-il-principe-di-seborga \|date=2019-09-28 }} on principatodiseborga.com</ref> and he was succeeded by his ex-wife, Nina Menegatto, who was elected by the town as ''Her Serene Highness'' Princess Nina on 10 November 2019.<ref name="telegraph-nina">{{cite news\|last=Vogt\|first=Andrea \|title='Her Tremendousness' elected leader of self-declared micro-nation on hilltop in Italy \|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2019/11/10/tremendousness-elected-leader-self-declared-micro-nation-hilltop/\|access-date=11 November 2019\|newspaper=The Daily Telegraph\|date=10 November 2019}}</ref>
	===Princes of Seborga ===

	In the early 1960s, ], then head of the local flower-growers ], began promoting the idea that Seborga retained its historic independence as a principality.<ref>, Italy Magazine, 15 June 2006</ref> By 1963 the people of Seborga were sufficiently convinced of these arguments to elect Carbone as their "Head of State". He then assumed the ] ], which he held until his death in 2009.

	Carbone's status as "Prince" was confirmed on 23 April 1995, when, in an informal ], Seborgans voted 304 in favour, 4 against, for the Principality's ], and in favour of ] from Italy.<ref>, Caitlin Moran, ], 30 January 2006</ref> Carbone reigned until his death on 25 November 2009.<ref>, ''Daily Telegraph'', 27 November 2009.</ref>

	Prince Giorgio of Seborga has been styled with the ] ''Sua Tremendità'' ('Your Tremendousness' or 'Your Terrificness').<ref name=tremendousness>, Malcolm Moore, Daily Telegraph, 13 June 2006</ref>

			== List of Seborgan monarchs ==
	{\| class="wikitable"		{\| class="wikitable"
	\|-		\|-
	! Title !! Given name !! Reign began !! Reign ended		! Title !! Given name !! Reign began !! Reign ended
	\|-		\|-
	\| Prince Giorgio I \|\| ] \|\| ~~{{date\|1963-05-~~14}} \|\| ~~{{date\|2009-11-~~25}}		\| Prince Giorgio I \|\| Giorgio Carbone \|\| 14 May 1963 \|\| 25 November 2009
	\|-		\|-
	\| Prince Marcello I \|\| ] \|\| ~~{{date\|~~2010~~-04-25}}~~<ref name="telegraph-tremendousness">{{cite news\|last=Squires\|first=Nick \|title=Tiny Italian principality announces new monarch called 'His Tremendousness' \|url=~~http~~://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/italy/7639617/Tiny-Italian-principality-announces-new-monarch-called-His-Tremendousness.html\|~~accessdate~~=18 June 2010\|newspaper=The Daily Telegraph\|date=27 April 2010}}</ref><ref name="metro">{{cite news\|title=The King of Nylon: 'kingdom' of Seborga ruled by hosiery heir\|url=http://www.metro.co.uk/weird/823736-the-king-of-nylon-kingdom-of-seborga-ruled-by-hosiery-heir\|~~accessdate~~=18 June 2010\|newspaper=The Metro\|date=28 April 2010\|location=London}}</ref> \|\| ~~reigning~~ ~~monarch~~		\| Prince Marcello I \|\| Marcello Menegatto \|\| 25 April 2010<ref name="telegraph-tremendousness">{{cite news\|last=Squires\|first=Nick \|title=Tiny Italian principality announces new monarch called 'His Tremendousness' \|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/italy/7639617/Tiny-Italian-principality-announces-new-monarch-called-His-Tremendousness.html\|access-date=18 June 2010\|newspaper=The Daily Telegraph\|date=27 April 2010}}</ref><ref name="metro">{{cite news\|title=The King of Nylon: 'kingdom' of Seborga ruled by hosiery heir\|url=http://www.metro.co.uk/weird/823736-the-king-of-nylon-kingdom-of-seborga-ruled-by-hosiery-heir\|access-date=18 June 2010\|newspaper=The Metro\|date=28 April 2010\|location=London\|archive-date=16 November 2012\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121116023524/http://www.metro.co.uk/weird/823736-the-king-of-nylon-kingdom-of-seborga-ruled-by-hosiery-heir\|url-status=dead}}</ref> \|\| 10 November 2019
			\|-
			\| Princess Nina \|\| Nina Menegatto \|\|10 November 2019<ref name=telegraph-nina /> \|\| ''incumbent''
	\|}		\|}

			=== False titles ===
	==Status==
			{{See also\|False titles of nobility\|Pretender}}
	]
			There have been ]s to the Seborgan throne, which include such pretenders as the self-styled "]" Yasmine von Hohenstaufen Anjou Plantagenet,<ref>{{cite news \|last1=Moore \|first1=Malcolm \|author1-link= \|title=Battle rages for His Tremendousness's throne {{!}} Italy {{!}} Europe {{!}} International News {{!}} News {{!}} Telegraph \|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2006/06/13/wsebo13.xml \|access-date=17 January 2021 \|work=The Telegraph \|date=13 June 2006 \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070311031813/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2006/06/13/wsebo13.xml \|archive-date=11 March 2007\|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="italymag" /> and Nicolas Mutte, a French writer.<ref>{{cite news \|title=Ruler of self-declared principality on the Italian Riviera faces 'coup d'etat' from rival \|first=Nick \|last=Squires \|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/06/21/ruler-of-self-declared-principality-on-the-italian-riviera-faces/ \|access-date=17 January 2021 \|work=The Telegraph \|date=22 June 2016 \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160622124827/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/06/21/ruler-of-self-declared-principality-on-the-italian-riviera-faces/ \|archive-date=22 June 2016\|url-status=live}}</ref>
	When the princely abbacy ceased to exist, Seborga, if not bought by Piedmont-Sardinia, would have reverted to Ventimiglia (which since 1139 was subordinate to ]) or else become ]. The new state of Italy thus either inherited Seborga, as successor state to both Genoa and Piedmont-Sardinia, or annexed it. Seborga thus became an ordinary Italian comune, as the democratically elected mayor explicitly acknowledges.{{Citation needed\|date=May 2009}}

			Yasmine von Hohenstaufen wrote to Italy's ] and offered to return the principality to the state on June 13, 2006.<ref name="tremendousness">{{Cite web \|last=Moore \|first=Malcolm \|date=13 June 2006 \|title=Battle rages for His Tremendousness's throne {{!}} Italy {{!}} Europe {{!}} International News {{!}} News {{!}} Telegraph \|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2006/06/13/wsebo13.xml \|url-status=dead \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070311031813/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2006/06/13/wsebo13.xml \|archive-date=11 March 2007 \|access-date=16 October 2024 \|website=]}}</ref>
	There is no tension between the Principality of Seborga and the Italian government. Law enforcement, public health, telecommunications, school services and all other public services are provided as in the rest of Italy. Seborgans regularly pay taxes, participate in the Italian administrative life, and vote in local and national (Italian) elections. For instance, in the elections of the ] in 2001 the voter turnout was 84.21%.{{Citation needed\|date=May 2009}}

			== Seborga today ==
	It has been claimed that several states have recognized Principality of Seborga, and one state, ], has even opened a consulate there.<ref> The Telegraph</ref><ref> Times Online</ref>

			Seborga's independence claims continue today, and an official ''Principato di Seborga'' website asserts the historical arguments put forward by Carbone.<ref>{{cite web \|title=Why we are independent\|url=https://www.principatodiseborga.com/en/why-we-are-independent\|website=Principality of Seborga\|language=en}}</ref> Seborga claims to maintain a volunteer border guard, the ''Corpo delle Guardie''. Participants wear a blue-and-white uniform and during the tourist season they stand guard at ]es on the unofficial border crossing on the main road into Seborga.<ref name="telegraph180832017" /><ref name="guardie">{{cite web \|title=Le Guardie \|url=https://www.principatodiseborga.com/pds/guardie \|website=Principato di Seborga \|access-date=17 January 2021 \|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210109093713/https://www.principatodiseborga.com/pds/guardie\|archive-date=9 January 2021 \|language=it-IT}}</ref>
	www.hohenstaufen.org.uk
	==Government==
	]

			The unrecognised ] that claims Seborga Town understands that the town still falls directly within the laws and borders of ].<ref>{{Cite web \|author=Jacopo Prisco \|title=Seborga: The Italian village that wants to be a country \|url=https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/italy-village-seborga-country/index.html \|access-date=2022-03-29 \|website=CNN \|language=en}}</ref>
	This is the actual Seborgan government:

			=== Currency ===
	* Mauro Carassale: State Secretary and Minister of Internal Affairs
	* Giuseppe Bernardi: Minister of Finances, Tourism and Sports
	* Mirco Biancheri: Minister of Justice (Seals Attendant)
	* Nina Döbler Menegatto: Minister of Foreign Affairs
	* Mirko Ferrari: Minister of Motorization and Population Register
	* Bruno Santo: Minister of Environmental Goods and Territory
	* Domenico Falbo: Minister of Agricultural, Food and Forest Politicies
	* Maria Carmela Serra: Minister of Instruction and Youth, Chancellor of the Crown Council
	* Daniele Zanni: Minister of Health

			]
	==Military==

			Seborga's ], the Seborga luigino, is divided into 100 cents. Luigini coins circulate in Seborga alongside the ]. The currency has no value outside of the town. The ] of the luigino is ] to the ] at SPL{{nbsp}}1 = USD{{nbsp}}6.00.<ref>{{cite web\|url=https://www.principatodiseborga.com/en/the-luigini\|title=The luigini\|website=Principality of Seborga\|language=en}}</ref> On 20 August 2023 the Principality presented the first banknote ever of the ''luigini''.<ref>{{cite web\|url=https://www.principatodiseborga.com/2023/08/p=9466\|title=Festa di San Bernardo 2023 / Resoconto della giornata, rassegna stampa, foto, video – Presentata la prima banconota della storia del Principato di Seborga\|website=Principality of Seborga\|language=en}}</ref>
	Unlike other micronations, the Principality has an armed force consisting of one lieutenant, Lt. Antonello Lacala. This was an attempt to strengthen their claim of sovereignty. The Principality maintains good relations with the mayor of the commune, and they see that the police forces are provided by Italy rather than them as not.

	==~~Controversy~~==		=== Population ===
	In June 2006 a minor controversy arose when a woman calling herself "] Yasmine von Hohenstaufen Anjou Plantagenet", who claims to be the rightful ] of Seborga, wrote to Italy's ] offering to return the principality to the state.<ref name=tremendousness /> Her claim was contested by the then-], ], who asserted that there were no credible sources supporting her,<ref>, Italy Magazine, 15 June 2006</ref> and said: {{Quote\|“Pah! No one’s ever even seen her as far as I know. I call her the ‘internet princess’.”}}

			As of 1 January 2018, Seborga had a population of 297 people, with 146 males and 151 females.<ref>{{Cite web\|url=http://demo.istat.it/pop2018/index3.html\|title=Statistiche demografiche ISTAT\|website=demo.istat.it\|series=Imperia\|access-date=2019-03-21\|archive-date=2019-06-30\|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190630220127/http://demo.istat.it/pop2018/index3.html\|url-status=dead}}</ref> As of 2021, the population of Seborga has gone down to 217 people.
	Her claim can be refuted on formal grounds {{Citation needed\|date=May 2010}}, since it is based on the claimed descendancy of thirteenth century Holy Roman Emperor ] and the position of Seborga within the Empire. The position of the Holy Roman Emperor was not hereditary, but was based on election by ]. As such, Frederick II never was private owner of the territory of Seborga {{Or\|date=May 2010}}. In ], the Holy Roman Empire ceased to exist. The claim can also be refuted {{Citation needed\|date=May 2010}} by the claimed descendancy, since there are no legitimate male descendants after the death of ]ine in ], when the ] ceased to exist.

			==Notes==
	There are no legitimate descendants in unbroken male line after the death of ] in ], when the ] ceased to exist. There are plenty of descendants of the Hohenstaufen via women (see a lot of authoritative genealogies - for example, Europäische Stammtafeln, and Genealogics{{Full}}).
			{{Reflist}}

			==Bibliography==
	==Economy, folklore and tourism==
	{{Multiple image\|direction=vertical\|align=right\|image1=Seborga Coin - Arms.JPG\|image2=Seborga Coin - Prince.JPG\|width=200\|caption2=15c Seborgian coin}}Thanks to the publicity as a principality, tourism expanded. The principality's historic town centre was also restored, ensuring that its charms were protected from commercial overdevelopment.

			*{{cite book \|first=Eugène \|last=Caïs de Pierlas \|title=I Conti di Ventimiglia, il priorato di San Michele ed il principato di Seborga \|location=Turin \|publisher=G. B. Paravia \|year=1884}}
	A local currency, the ], was issued from 1994 to 1996.<ref>, The Imperial Collection</ref> The luigino is accepted inside the city (along with the legal currency, the ], and before that both ] and ]); it is recognized by the ],{{Citation needed\|date=February 2010}} but without legal value outside the town. Some claim that the Italian government did not welcome this initiative.{{Citation needed\|date=June 2008}} It is not clear what is the total amount of luigini issued.

			==External links==
	The luigino's value is pegged at ]6.00, which would make it the world's ] if it were considered an official currency.
	Stamps are also issued. The stamps have only a ] value, since the only ] is the Italian one.
	The tourist office currently issues a novelty Tourist Passport. It is not a recognised document valid for crossing international boundaries.

			{{Commonscat\|Principality of Seborga}}
	==Gallery==
			{{Wikivoyage\|Seborga}}
	<Gallery>
			* {{in lang\|it}} {{Official website\|https://www.principatodiseborga.com}}
	Image:Seborga1.jpg
			* {{Official website\|seborgatimes.blogspot.com\|Official English-language blog}}
	Image:Seborga1 cavaliere.png
			* {{in lang\|it}}
	Image:Seborga2.jpg
	Image:Seborga scorcio del borgo.png
	Image:Seborga2 stemma su facciata.png
	</Gallery>

	==See also==
	{{Portal\|Micronations}}
	* ]
	* ]
	* ]
	* ]
	* ]
	* ]
	* ]

	==Sources==
	{{Reflist}}

	==External links==
	{{Commons category\|Seborga}}
	*
	*
	*
	*

	{{Coord\|43\|49\|N\|7\|41\|E\|region:IT_type:city\|display=title}}
	{{Micronations}}		{{Micronations}}
			{{Authority control}}

	{{DEFAULTSORT:Seborga, Principality Of}}		{{DEFAULTSORT:Seborga, Principality Of}}
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Latest revision as of 21:15, 19 December 2024

Unrecognised micronation in northwest Italy This article is about the micronation in Italy. For the town, see Seborga.

Principality of SeborgaPrincipato di Seborga (Italian) Prinçipatu de A Seborca (Ligurian)
Micronation (unrecognized entity)
Map the Italian Comune of Seborga and the Principality of Seborga marked in red within Europe
Area claimed	14 km (5.4 sq mi) 43°50′N 7°42′E / 43.833°N 7.700°E / 43.833; 7.700
Claimed by	Giorgio I (1963–2009) Marcello I (2010–2019) Nina (2019–incumbent)
Dates claimed	1963–present
Website www.principatodiseborga.com

The Principality of Seborga (Italian: Principato di Seborga, Ligurian: Prinçipatu de A Seborca) is an unrecognised micronation that claims a 14 km (5.4 sq mi; 3,500-acre) area located in the northwestern Italian Province of Imperia in Liguria, near the French border, and about 35 kilometres (20 mi) from Monaco. The principality is coextensive with the comune of Seborga; assertions of sovereignty were instigated in 1963 by a local campaigner based on unproven claims about territorial settlements made by the Congress of Vienna after the Napoleonic Wars.

History

The claim of sovereignty for Seborga was put forward in 1963 by a Seborgan former flower grower named Giorgio Carbone. He claimed to have found documents from the Vatican archives which, according to Carbone, indicated that Seborga had never been a possession of the House of Savoy and was therefore not legitimately included in the Kingdom of Italy when it was formed in 1861 during Italian unification. Carbone claimed that Seborga had existed as a sovereign state of Italy since 954, and that from 1079 it was a principality of the Holy Roman Empire. Sovereignty claims assert that Seborga was overlooked by the Congress of Vienna in its redistribution of European territories after the Napoleonic Wars.

Carbone promoted the idea of Seborgan independence as a principality, and in 1963 the town's inhabitants elected him as their putative head of state. Carbone assumed the style and title His Tremendousness (Sua Tremendità) Giorgio I, Prince of Seborga. He formed a "cabinet" of ministers; minted a local currency, the luigino; introduced a Seborgan flag, a white cross on a blue background; and established a Latin motto, Sub Umbra Sede (Sit in the shade). Carbone's campaign has generally not been taken seriously and is widely viewed as a ruse to attract tourists to the town, although his supporters in the town claim that their small state has been recognised by Burkina Faso.

In January 2006, Carbone announced that he would abdicate on reaching the age of 70, apparently as a result of a row over rebuilding the village centre, but he didn't and continued to hold the office until his death. Even so, this decision was the subject of a feature on the BBC World Service radio programme World Today on 25 January 2006.

Giorgio Carbone retained his ceremonial position until his death on 25 November 2009 (age 73), due to complications due to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. The position of the Serborgan "monarch" is not hereditary, and since Carbone's death, elections have been held in Seborga every seven years among the town's 200 registered voters. Carbone was succeeded by businessman Marcello Menegatto, who was elected on 25 April 2010 and crowned on 22 May 2010 as His Serene Highness (Sua Altezza Serenissima or SAS) Prince Marcello I. Menegatto was re-elected as Prince on 23 April 2017, after an unsuccessful challenge to the position by Mark Dezzani, a British-born radio DJ who had lived in Seborga for nearly 40 years.

On 12 April 2019, Menegatto abdicated from his position, and he was succeeded by his ex-wife, Nina Menegatto, who was elected by the town as Her Serene Highness Princess Nina on 10 November 2019.

List of Seborgan monarchs

Title	Given name	Reign began	Reign ended
Prince Giorgio I	Giorgio Carbone	14 May 1963	25 November 2009
Prince Marcello I	Marcello Menegatto	25 April 2010	10 November 2019
Princess Nina	Nina Menegatto	10 November 2019	incumbent

False titles

See also: False titles of nobility and Pretender

There have been pretenders to the Seborgan throne, which include such pretenders as the self-styled "Princess" Yasmine von Hohenstaufen Anjou Plantagenet, and Nicolas Mutte, a French writer.

Yasmine von Hohenstaufen wrote to Italy's president and offered to return the principality to the state on June 13, 2006.

Seborga today

Seborga's independence claims continue today, and an official Principato di Seborga website asserts the historical arguments put forward by Carbone. Seborga claims to maintain a volunteer border guard, the Corpo delle Guardie. Participants wear a blue-and-white uniform and during the tourist season they stand guard at sentry boxes on the unofficial border crossing on the main road into Seborga.

The unrecognised micronation that claims Seborga Town understands that the town still falls directly within the laws and borders of Italy.

Currency

Seborga's local currency, the Seborga luigino, is divided into 100 cents. Luigini coins circulate in Seborga alongside the euro. The currency has no value outside of the town. The value of the luigino is pegged to the US dollar at SPL 1 = USD 6.00. On 20 August 2023 the Principality presented the first banknote ever of the luigini.

Population

As of 1 January 2018, Seborga had a population of 297 people, with 146 males and 151 females. As of 2021, the population of Seborga has gone down to 217 people.

Notes

^ "Obituary: His Tremendousness Giorgio Carbone". The Telegraph. 27 November 2009. Archived from the original on 1 December 2009. Retrieved 17 January 2021.
Klieger, P. Christiaan (29 November 2012). The Microstates of Europe: Designer Nations in a Post-Modern World. Lexington Books. p. 177. ISBN 978-0-7391-7427-2. Retrieved 17 January 2021.
^ "Prince of Seborga fights on for 362 subjects | Liguria | ITALY Magazine". The Telegraph. 15 June 2006. Archived from the original on 19 November 2010. Retrieved 17 January 2021.
Anneli Rufus (11 September 2014). "Seborga: The Micronation Inside Italy Where Time Stands Still". HuffPost. Retrieved 5 May 2018.
"Wanted: prince to rule village", Richard Owen, The Times, 24 January 2006
"The best of the World Today", BBC, 16 January 2006
^ Squires, Nick (18 March 2017). "Radio DJ from West Sussex vies to become next leader of tiny self-declared principality in Italy". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 11 November 2020. Retrieved 17 January 2021.
Seborga Times, Article "Seborga will crown his new elected Prince: Menegatto I"
^ Squires, Nick (27 April 2010). "Tiny Italian principality announces new monarch called 'His Tremendousness'". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 18 June 2010.
"S.A.S. il Principe di Seborga". Principato di Seborga (in Italian). Archived from the original on 28 September 2019. Retrieved 28 September 2019.
Letter of resignation Archived 2019-09-28 at the Wayback Machine on principatodiseborga.com
^ Vogt, Andrea (10 November 2019). "'Her Tremendousness' elected leader of self-declared micro-nation on hilltop in Italy". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 11 November 2019.
"The King of Nylon: 'kingdom' of Seborga ruled by hosiery heir". The Metro. London. 28 April 2010. Archived from the original on 16 November 2012. Retrieved 18 June 2010.
Moore, Malcolm (13 June 2006). "Battle rages for His Tremendousness's throne | Italy | Europe | International News | News | Telegraph". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 11 March 2007. Retrieved 17 January 2021.
Squires, Nick (22 June 2016). "Ruler of self-declared principality on the Italian Riviera faces 'coup d'etat' from rival". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 22 June 2016. Retrieved 17 January 2021.
Moore, Malcolm (13 June 2006). "Battle rages for His Tremendousness's throne | Italy | Europe | International News | News | Telegraph". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 11 March 2007. Retrieved 16 October 2024.
"Why we are independent". Principality of Seborga.
"Le Guardie". Principato di Seborga (in Italian). Archived from the original on 9 January 2021. Retrieved 17 January 2021.
Jacopo Prisco. "Seborga: The Italian village that wants to be a country". CNN. Retrieved 2022-03-29.
"The luigini". Principality of Seborga.
"Festa di San Bernardo 2023 / Resoconto della giornata, rassegna stampa, foto, video – Presentata la prima banconota della storia del Principato di Seborga". Principality of Seborga.
"Statistiche demografiche ISTAT". demo.istat.it. Imperia. Archived from the original on 2019-06-30. Retrieved 2019-03-21.

Bibliography

Caïs de Pierlas, Eugène (1884). I Conti di Ventimiglia, il priorato di San Michele ed il principato di Seborga. Turin: G. B. Paravia.

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