Seborga ( lij, A Seborca) is a small
village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred ...
and self-proclaimed principality in the region of
Liguria
it, Ligure
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near the
French border. Administratively, it is a ''
comune
The (; plural: ) is a local administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions ('' regioni'') and provinces (''province''). The can also ...
'' of the Italian
province of Imperia
The Province of Imperia ( it, Provincia di Imperia, french: Province d'Imperia, Ligurian: ''Provinsa d’Imperia'') is a mountainous and hilly province, in the Liguria region of Italy, situated between France to the north and the west, and the L ...
. The main economic activities are horticulture and tourism. It is known for being the 'territory' of the self-proclaimed
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 ...
the
Principality of Seborga
The Principality of Seborga ( it, Principato di Seborga) is an unrecognised micronation that claims a area located in the northwestern Italian Province of Imperia in Liguria, near the French border, and about from Monaco. The principality is ...
.
Economy
Seborga is known in the region for its agricultural activity: in particular, cultivation and collection of
olives and
floriculture
Floriculture, or flower farming, is a branch of horticulture concerned with the cultivation of flowering and ornamental plants for gardens and for floristry, comprising the floral industry. The development of new varieties by plant breeding is ...
crops. Thanks to Seborga's publicity as a principality, tourism has expanded in recent years. The principality's historic town centre was also restored, ensuring that its charms were protected from commercial overdevelopment.
Culture
An important cultural event in Seborga is the annual festival of
Saint Bernard, the town's patron saint, held on August 20. Seborga's
twin city is
L'Escarène
L'Escarène (; oc, L'Escarèa) is an ancient commune in the Alpes-Maritimes department in southeastern France. It was part of the historic County of Nice until 1860, named ''Scarena''. It was a main stop along the Route de Sel during the 14th, ...
,
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
. The festival includes a procession of citizens and the carrying of a statue of
Saint Bernard.
Transport
Seborga is situated along Provincial Road 57 in Imperia. The nearest motorway access is at the
Bordighera
Bordighera (; lij, A Bordighea, locally ) is a town and ''comune'' in the Province of Imperia, Liguria (Italy).
Geography
Bordighera is located from the land border between Italy and France, and it is possible to see the French coast with a nak ...
exit on the A10. The nearest railway station is also the one in
Bordighera
Bordighera (; lij, A Bordighea, locally ) is a town and ''comune'' in the Province of Imperia, Liguria (Italy).
Geography
Bordighera is located from the land border between Italy and France, and it is possible to see the French coast with a nak ...
, on the Ventimiglia-Genoa line.
Principality of Seborga
![Seborga frontier](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ec/Seborga_frontier.jpg)
In the early 1960s,
Giorgio Carbone
The Principality of Seborga ( it, Principato di Seborga) is an unrecognised micronation that claims a area located in the northwestern Italian Province of Imperia in Liguria, near the French border, and about from Monaco. The principality is c ...
, then head of the local
flower growers'
co-operative, began promoting the idea that Seborga and its surrounding territory should become independent from Italy. 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
The Holy Roman Empire was a political entity in Western, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars.
From the accession of Otto I in 962 ...
. According to Carbone's claims, Seborga was not included in the 1861
Italian unification, and that it should be recognised as a sovereign
principality.
In 1963 the people of Seborga held an informal vote and elected Carbone as their ostensible head of state. He then assumed the
self-styled title ''His Tremendousness (Sua Tremendità)'' Giorgio I, Prince of Seborga.
Carbone remained in office until his death in 2009.
A successor,
Marcello Menegatto
The Principality of Seborga ( it, Principato di Seborga) is an unrecognised micronation that claims a area located in the northwestern Italian Province of Imperia in Liguria, near the French border, and about from Monaco. The principality is c ...
, was elected in 2010.
Menegatto resigned in 2019 from his position, and he was succeeded by his ex-wife,
Nina Menegatto
Princess Nina Daniela Menegatto (born Nina Daniela Döbler, 6 November 1978) is a German businesswoman who currently reigns as the head of state of the Principality of Seborga, a micronation encompassing the Italian city of Seborga, from 10 Nov ...
, who has styled herself ''Her Serene Highness'' Princess Nina.
Supporters of the independence claim promote the Principality with the trappings of a state, including the creation of a flag, minting of coins, the formation of a "border guard" and the installation of
sentry box
A sentry box is a small shelter with an open front in which a sentry or person on guard duty may stand to be sheltered from the weather. Many boxes are decorated in national colours.
Compare:
In literature
The sentry box at the entrance to Buck ...
es on the unofficial border crossing on the main road into Seborga.
An official ''Principato di Seborga'' website asserts the historical arguments put forward by Carbone.
The independence claims of a "Principality of Seborga" have not been
recognised internationally, and Seborga remains officially part of Italy.
See also
* ''
Passport to Pimlico
''Passport to Pimlico'' is a 1949 British comedy film made by Ealing Studios and starring Stanley Holloway, Margaret Rutherford and Hermione Baddeley. It was directed by Henry Cornelius and written by T. E. B. Clarke. The story concerns the u ...
'' (1949)
Cooking up a Country(2018)
References
External links
Seborga official website
{{Authority control
Cities and towns in Liguria