Michael Roy Bates (born 2 August 1952), also known as Prince Michael of Sealand, is a British businessman and self-published author. He operates 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 se ...

called the

Principality of Sealand The Principality of Sealand () is an unrecognized micronation that claims HM Fort Roughs (also known as Roughs Tower), an offshore platform in the North Sea approximately off the coast of Suffolk, as its territory. Roughs Tower is a Maunsell ...

, which he inherited from his parents

Paddy Roy Bates Patrick Roy Bates (29 August 1921 – 9 October 2012), also known as Prince Roy of Sealand, was a British pirate radio broadcaster and micronationalist, who founded the Principality of Sealand.Strauss, Erwin. ''How to Start Your Own Country'' ...

and

Joan Bates Joan Bates ( Collins; 2 September 1929 – 10 March 2016), also known as Princess Joan of Sealand, was the wife of Paddy Roy Bates, a British entrepreneur who founded the micronation known as the Principality of Sealand. Early life Bates was b ...

. He has claimed the title "Prince of Sealand" since 2012.

Early life

Michael Bates was born to Roy and Joan Bates on 2 August 1952. On 24 December 1966, at the age of 14, Michael joined his father Roy in occupying

HM Fort Roughs HM Fort Roughs was one of several World War II installations that were designed by Guy Maunsell and known collectively as ''His Majesty's Forts'' or as '' Maunsell Sea Forts''; its purpose was to guard the port of Harwich, Essex, and more ...

, where they established a pirate radio station. Michael left his boarding school to visit the platform and ended up never going back, stating, "I thought it was a six-week adventure, not 34 years." On 2 September 1967, Roy declared sovereignty over the platform, and moved his family permanently to Sealand, including wife Joan, son Michael, and daughter Penelope. Michael was a key participant in the battle to retake Sealand from the perpetrators of an attempted coup.

Sealand

On whether Sealand is a sovereign state, Bates stated, "We have never asked for recognition, and we’ve never felt the need to ask for recognition. You don't have to have recognition to be a state, you just have to fulfill the criteria of the

Montevideo Convention The Montevideo Convention on the Rights and Duties of States is a treaty signed at Montevideo, Uruguay, on December 26, 1933, during the Seventh International Conference of American States. The Convention codifies the declarative theory of stateh ...

which is population, territory, government and the capacity to enter into negotiation with other states. We can and we have done all these things. We've had the German ambassador visit at one point to discuss something: that was defacto recognition. We've had communication with the

president of France The president of France, officially the president of the French Republic (french: Président de la République française), is the executive head of state of France, and the commander-in-chief of the French Armed Forces. As the presidency i ...

many years ago, but we have never asked for recognition and we don’t feel we need it." In 2015, Bates published a memoir about his experiences with Sealand called ''Principality of Sealand: Holding the Fort''. Bates presented a discussion of his book at Estuary 2016, an art, literature, music and film festival. In September 2017, Bates held a dinner to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Sealand, stating, "We're perhaps the most undemanding state in the world. We don't force anybody to worship any god or religion or anything. Maybe that's why we've lasted so long. Hopefully I'll be around for the next 50!"

Personal life and other ventures

Bates resides in

Westcliff-on-Sea Westcliff-on-Sea (often abbreviated to Westcliff) is an inner city area of the city of Southend-on-Sea, in the City of Southend-on-Sea, in the ceremonial county of Essex, England. It is on the north shore of the lower Thames Estuary, about 34 m ...

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...

, within the United Kingdom. He wanted his three children to attend English schools. Bates runs a shellfish company that harvests cockles mainly for the Spanish market. The business, called Fruits of the Sea, is run by Bates and his sons James and Liam. He also has a daughter named Charlotte. All three children are with his former wife, Lorraine Wheeler. As of 2017, Bates's partner is Mei Shi.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bates, Michael 1952 births 21st-century British male writers British memoirists Living people Micronational leaders Offshore radio broadcasters Principality of Sealand

Early life

Sealand

Personal life and other ventures

See also

References