Back مقاطعة هوت ريفر Arabic Hatt-River Knyazlığı AZ Província del Riu Hutt Catalan میرنشینی ھۆت ڕیڤەر CKB Knížectví Hutt River Czech Principality of Hutt River German Princlando de la Rivero Hutt EO Principado de Hutt River Spanish شاهزادهنشین هات ریور FA Principauté de Hutt River French
Principality of Hutt River | |
|---|---|
| Micronation (unrecognised entity) | |
 | |
| Area claimed | 75 km2 (29 sq mi) of land near Northampton, Western Australia 28°4′28″S 114°28′14.5″E / 28.07444°S 114.470694°E |
| Claimed by | Leonard Casley |
| Dates claimed | 21 April 1970[1]–3 August 2020 |
The Principality of Hutt River, often referred to by its former name, the Hutt River Province, was a micronation in Australia, proclaimed on 21 April 1970 when farmer Leonard Casley declared his farm to be a sovereign state, the "Hutt River Province". He claimed to have seceded from Australia, which occurred during his dispute with the authorities concerning wheat production quotas. A few years later, Casley began styling himself as "Prince Leonard" and granting family members royal titles, although he did not include the word "principality" in the official name until 2006. In 2017, Casley's claim to rulership was taken over by his son Graeme,[2][3][4] who dropped the claim to sovereignty on 3 August 2020.[5][6]
The claimed territory was located 517 km (321 mi) north of Perth, near the town of Northampton in the state of Western Australia. It had an area of 75 square kilometres (29 sq mi), making it larger than several recognised countries. It was not recognised as a country by the Australian Government nor any other national government, and the High Court of Australia and Supreme Court of Western Australia rejected submissions arguing that it was not subject to Australian laws.[7]
The "principality" was a regional tourist attraction until it announced it was closed to tourists after 31 January 2020.[8][9] It issued its own currency, stamps and passports (which are not recognised by the federal Australian government or any other government).[10]
Leonard Casley died on 13 February 2019.[11][12]
- ^ Casley, Leonard George (21 April 1970). "Fate Accompli" (PDF). Letter to Sir David Brand, Premier, Western Australian Government. Lockhart Street, Como, Western Australia.: Principality of Hutt River. Archived (PDF) from the original on 3 October 2024. Retrieved 19 April 2018.
- ^ Taillier, Sarah (2 February 2017). "Prince Leonard of Hutt River Principality abdicates to son Graeme". ABC News. Archived from the original on 3 October 2024. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
- ^ "Australian micronation 'prince' abdicates after 46 years". BBC News. 15 February 2017. Archived from the original on 3 October 2024. Retrieved 20 September 2017.
- ^ Taillier, Sarah; Neuweiler, Sebastian (11 February 2017). "Hutt River Principality now ruled by Prince Graeme as Prince Leonard stands aside". ABC News. Archived from the original on 3 October 2024. Retrieved 20 September 2017.
- ^ Prince Graeme (27 December 2019). "Principality of Hutt River to close its borders!" (Press release). Archived from the original on 3 October 2024.
- ^ Hedley, Kate (3 August 2020). "End of an empire: Hutt River to rejoin Australia after 50 years". WA Today. Archived from the original on 3 October 2024. Retrieved 5 August 2020.
- ^ Casley v Commissioner of Taxation [2007] HCATrans 590 at [8], [2017] 196 (4 October 2007)
- ^ Pascual Juanola, Marta (10 January 2020). "Hutt River Principality will close its doors 'until further notice' due to financial hardship". WAtoday. Archived from the original on 3 October 2024. Retrieved 21 February 2020.
- ^ Ministry of Electronic Communications, Principality of Hutt River (1 April 2020). "Welcome To The Principality of Hutt River". Archived from the original on 3 October 2024. Retrieved 21 March 2021.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
MacBethwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Mann, Francesca (13 February 2019). "Hutt River micro-nation founder Prince Leonard dead aged 93". PerthNow. Archived from the original on 3 October 2024. Retrieved 14 February 2019.
- ^ Harradine, Natasha (13 February 2019). "Prince Leonard, who founded Hutt River Province after stoush with WA government, dies aged 93". ABC News. Archived from the original on 3 October 2024. Retrieved 13 February 2019.