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Principality of Marlborough
| Australian Aboriginal flag
| |
| Motto: none Musical Anthem: none | |
| Type of entity: | Micronation |
| Location: | Near Rockhampton, Queensland |
| Area: | tba km² |
| Membership: | 2 |
| Date of foundation: | 1993 |
| Leadership: | Prince George (George Muirhead) |
| Purported organisational structure: | Absolute monarchy |
| Language: | English |
| Currency: | Australian Dollar |
The Principality of Marlborough was a short-lived micronation located near Rockhampton, Australia in 1993.
It came into being when farmer George Muirhead, facing bankruptcy and the possibility of the repossession of his property - Marlborough - by the Commonwealth Bank, challenged the legality of the repossession procedures in the Queensland Supreme Court. When he lost the case, Muirhead returned to his property, and, along with his wife, declared it to be an independent principality where the bank and Queensland government had no legal authority.
Less than a week after the proclamation of independence, officers of the Queensland Police entered the Principality and forcibly evicted the Muirheads. The Muirheads initially won widespread support across Australia to their cause, with the public seeing them as hardworking people being victimised by a cold, heartless corporation. Unfortunately, later comments by George Muirhead, where he advocated that one of the factors in the secession was preserving his "racial identity", caused him to lose much of his support from moderate segments of the Australian public. Ironically, the Muirheads adopted the Australian Aboriginal flag as the symbol of their "principality" during the "secession".
As of 2004, the Muirheads live quietly in Brisbane, Queensland, having abandoned all pretensions of being the sovereigns of the principality.
Reference[edit]
- "DIY Sovereignty and the Popular Right in Australia", by Judy Lattas, Macquarie University, March 2005.
- "Defiant Graziers Under Arrest", Sydney Morning Herald, 14 June, 1993.
- "Rebel graziers' bid to keep land ends in contempt charge", Sydney Morning Herald, 14 June, 1993.
- "Defiant graziers stay in jail", Sydney Morning Herald, 15 June, 1993.
- "A Principality without walls near Jericho", Sydney Morning Herald, 15 June, 1993.
- "The great conspiracy to enslave Australia", Sydney Morning Herald, 21 June, 1993.
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