The Republic of Morac-Songhrati-Meads was a

micronation A micronation is a political entity whose members claim that they belong to an independent nation or sovereign state, but which lacks legal recognition by world governments or major international organizations. Micronations are classified ...

in the

Spratly Islands The Spratly Islands ( fil, Kapuluan ng Kalayaan; zh, c=南沙群島/南沙群岛, s=, t=, p=Nánshā Qúndǎo; Malay, id, Kepulauan Spratly; vi, Quần đảo Trường Sa) are a disputed archipelago in the South China Sea. Composed ...

established by British naval captain James George Meads in 1877.

History

The republic's history begins with Captain Meads, who laid claim to the

in 1877. Meads was exploring the

South China Sea The South China Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean. It is bounded in the north by the shores of South China (hence the name), in the west by the Indochinese Peninsula, in the east by the islands of Taiwan and northwestern Phi ...

and laid claim to the islands and took the name King James I. Descendants of Meads have continued to posit legitimacy over the islands, and ownership of the island's resources.

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 World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, 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.

Legal attempts at legitimacy

The Kingdom faded into obscurity over the next decade until 1972, when the then-ruling Morton Meads unsuccessfully petitioned the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...

, Chiang Kai-shek of the Republic of China, and the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

to recognise the Kingdom and its claims. 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. The Kingdom reappeared in 1985 when Meads sued the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

and others for $25 billion, claiming "unfair competition, harassment, ndsabotage." The case was not heard.

History

Kingdom of Humanity

Legal attempts at legitimacy

See also

References

Further reading