Principality of Hutt River

Hutt River (Province) Principality

Flag	Seal Seal
Motto: Dum Spiro Spero Musical Anthem: tba, by Jon English
Type of entity:	Micronation
Location:	near Geraldton, Western Australia 28°04′46″S 114°28′48″E
Area claimed:	75 km²
Membership:	approx 20 permanent residents and 13,000 passport holders
Date of Foundation:	21 April, 1970
Leadership:	Prince Leonard I (Leonard George Casley) 1970-
Purported organisational structure:	constitutional monarchy
Language:	English
Currency:	Hutt River Province Dollar

The Hutt River Principality (28°4′28″S 114°28′14.5″E), previously known as Hutt River Province, is Australia's oldest micronation. It is a self-proclaimed independent sovereign state since its foundation, but has rarely been recognised as such by the Commonwealth of Australia but often by other states. It is located on a large farming property 517 km north of Perth. The province was founded on 21 April, 1970 by farmer Leonard George Casley (born 1925), when he and his associates proclaimed their secession from the state of Western Australia. Casley now styles himself as Prince Leonard.

History

In 1969, in response to a long-running dispute with the government of Western Australia over what they saw as draconian wheat quotas, Casley and his associates resorted to a British law (the Treason Act 1495) which they felt allowed them to secede and declare their independence from the Commonwealth of Australia. Casley states that he nonetheless remains loyal to Queen Elizabeth II. Casley was elected administrator of the new "sovereign state" by his family and later styled himself His Royal Highness Prince Leonard of Hutt.

In the early 1980s Hutt River Province declared itself to be a kingdom, but soon afterwards reverted to its original status of a principality. The principality proceeded to release a veritable flood of stamp and coin issues whose legality was accepted in the Courts of Australia.

The Australian Government's official current position on the Principality is that it is nothing more than a private enterprise operating under a business name.

In September 2006 Prince Leonard decided to officially change the name to "Principality of Hutt River" and dropping the word "Province".[1]

Coins

The first Hutt River coins were not issued until 1976. The currency of the Hutt River Province Principality is the Hutt River Province Principality dollar (or HRPP$ for short), which is divided into 100 Cents. The HRPP$ is tied at a one-to-one ratio with the Australian dollar.

The first series (1976–78)

There were four denominations: 5c, 10c, 20c, and 50c. These were issued between 1976 and 1978, but the 1978 issue was a proof only issue. There was also a silver $30 coin and a gold $100 coin, struck only in proof.

First Series
Value	Technical parameters		Description			Date of first minting
	Diameter	Composition	Edge	Obverse	Reverse
5c	16.5 mm	Aluminium	Plain	Prince Leonard	Coat of arms	1976
10c	19.1 mm	Copper
20c	22.4 mm	Brass
50c	24.9 mm	Cupronickel
$30	38.1 mm	999‰ silver	Reeded
$100	25 mm	24 carat gold	Plain
For table standards, see the coin specification table.

Silver Jubilee $1 coin

In 1977 $1 coins were struck to commemorate the Silver Jubilee of Elizabeth II. These coins are known as 'Holey Dollars', which is a nickname that is applied to the extremely rare New South Wales 5/- coin and to the Prince Edward Island 5/- piece as well, which were cut and counterstamped from Spanish-American Pieces of Eight (8 Reales).

Coins of the same design were struck again in 1978, without the inscription "QUEEN'S JUBILEE".

Later series

Most of the coins of later series have specific commemorative topics and are usually made of precious metal. The issuance of coins lasted at late as 2000.

Statistics

Principality of Hutt River is situated 595 km north of Perth, and is about 75 km² (approximately 18,500 acres) in size. Exports include wildflowers, agricultural produce, stamps and coins, while tourism is also important to its economy.

Although actual residents are very few, the principality claims a world-wide citizenry of 13,000.

It has no standing army, but a number of its citizens have been awarded military commissions, honorary guardsmen attend the Prince on formal occasions, and despite being completely landlocked, it apparently possesses a navy - at least naval commissions have been conferred on supporters of the Principality.

It is governed by its founder Prince Leonard and his family, including his wife Princess Shirley and son and heir Crown Prince Ian.

Since 2 September 2004, Hutt River Province Principality has accepted company registrations. At least one company experienced in the registration of entities in traditional offshore jurisdictions (British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands etc.) has been authorised to act as a registered agent for HRP incorporations.. A variety of Licenses are also available. No Australian resident is allowed to take advantage of this legislation.

The Principality has only one settlement: it's called Nain.

Government

When the Principality of Hutt River seceded, a Bill of Rights was drafted. This Bill of Rights was, as the name suggests, a brief document outlining the rights of "Hutt River" citizens. It also provided for an Administration Board to govern over the Principality until a permanent form of government could be established. When Casley declared himself Prince, the Administration Board clause lost effect, and the Hutt River Principality became a benevolent absolute monarchy with a Legislation Committee to draft new legislation. In 1997, the Legislation Committee finished a proposal for a constitution and presented it to the Prince and his Cabinet. Although the Prince and Cabinet are still yet to officially adopt and promulgate the proposal, it is not without effect, as there is a decree stating that any constitution will be in effect while still under consideration except for clauses that conflict with the Bill of Rights. To this end, the proposal remains in effect as a sort of provisional constitution, and the Prince and Cabinet do not appear to intend to adopt the constitution very soon.

Australian Government response

The Australian Government response is typically that HRP is a private farm and that the Prince is nothing but a businessman. One particular public note on HRP is a warning that businesses allegedly incorporated or registered in HRP are not legal, and that any commercial involvement with HRP could be illegal.. In the case of Australian residents this would certainly be the case under both Australian and HRP law. However, despite this activity, the ATO have not acted against HRP.

Contradicting this, the Australian Taxation Office and the Department of Territories are believed to have engaged in correspondence that recognise his claim may have validity and he is exempt from taxes.

On occasion, HRP is mentioned in parliament. Sometimes there may be a negative connotation with allegations of opportunism.

Australian postal services officially will not send letters to HRP; however, the reality is that letters addressed to the province do arrive, and letters sent with HRP stamps also leave the country. At times, HRP did not pay taxes, and Department of Territories internal government documents posted on the HRP Web site indicate that the province is not bound to pay taxation.

The Australian government generally appears to avoid any legal challenge to the HRP. While HRP builds its own buildings (without any Australian government approval), offers company registrations, car licences, sells coinage, philately and even runs its own University, many of these activities would seemingly draw the ire of the Australian government on any other Australian citizen. However, the Australian government has so far not interfered with HRP sovereignty in these matters, and appears to avoid any legal stoush with the HRP..{See Reference #3)

'Royal Family'

Prince Leonard is the name and title that has been used by Leonard George Casley and his supporters since his creation of the Hutt River Principality, the oldest and most widely known micronation in Australia. Prince Leonard is the Sovereign of that entity, which he claims is an independent state - a position that is not supported offially by the government of Australia.

Prince Leonard pursued a number of occupations before purchasing a large wheat farm near Geraldton, Western Australia in the 1960s. In 1970, after a long-running dispute over quotas with the Australian Wheat Board, he declared the "secession" of his 75 square kilometre property from the Commonwealth of Australia, based on his unique interpretation of British and Australian constitutional law.

Despite his advancing years the Prince is known as a keen-minded "bush lawyer". He is also an adherent of hermeticism, a subject on which he has privately published a number of research papers. Casley is married to "Her Serene Highness Princess Shirley" (née Shirley Butler), by whom he has seven adult children, among them "His Royal Highness Crown Prince Ian" (Ian George Casley, born 1947), who has been designated as his eventual successor as "Sovereign Prince".

Many Australians are somewhat familiar with the Principality of Hutt River and know of "Prince Leonard". Some Australians view him affectionately as a harmless eccentric and view his tenacity in taking on "big government" with wry amusement, while others believe him to be looking for a fight where none exists. He is the subject of a permanent exhibit at the National Museum of Australia, in Canberra.

Recent events

To celebrate the 60th wedding anniversary of the Prince and Princess, HRP released new coins to celebrate the event. This was the first new coinage minted since 2000. There was a number of awards given at the event. European Television crews visited the Principality to film the celebrations and formalities, held Easter 2007.

See also

• Proposals for new Australian States
• Secessionism in Western Australia

References

• "Mini-states Down Under are sure they can secede", by Nick Squires, The Daily Telegraph (UK), 24 February 2005.
• "If at first you don't secede…", by Mark Dapin, The Sydney Morning Herald — Good Weekend, 12 February 2005, pp 47-50
• "Unusual World Coins", by Colin R Bruce, Krause Publications, 2005, ISBN 0-87349-793-7, p240

External links

• HRP website (Updated December 2005)
• HRP website (Updated 2004)
• HRP "Ministry of Foreign Affairs" website (Updated March 2006)
• HRP US Representative Office website (Updated 2007)
• Hut River Principality, Cabinet Magazine
• HRP German Representative Office website (Germany and Europe: „Staendige Vertretung der Hutt River Principality“ in Berlin - Much information in different languages: German, English, Bulgarian, Spanish, etc. ) (Updated November 2006)
• Coins of HRP