Giorgio Carbone
| Giorgio I | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prince of Seborga | |||||
 Coin of Prince Giorgio | |||||
| Reign | 1963-2009 | ||||
| Successor | Marcello Menegatto | ||||
| Born | 14 June 1936 | ||||
| Died | 25 November 2009 (aged 73) Seborga | ||||
| |||||
Giorgio Carbone (14 June 1936 – 25 November 2009)[1][2] was an Italian who claimed to be head of state of the Principality of Seborga, a micronation whose extent is the Italian town of that name, but whose independent status is not yet recognised outside of Seborga. He had assumed the title of Giorgio I, Prince of Seborga.[3][4]
Life
In the early 1960s, Carbone, the head of the local flower-growers co-operative, began promoting the idea that Seborga retained its historic independence as a principality.[5] By 1963, the people of Seborga were convinced of these arguments and elected Carbone as their Head of State, although without any legal power. Henceforth, he was to be known under the self-styled title Giorgio I, Prince of Seborga. Carbone was known locally as Sua Tremendità or "Your Tremendousness".[6]
He made a rare TV appearance in the 2005 BBC programme How to Start Your Own Country.[7]
In January 2006, Carbone announced that he would abdicate on reaching the age of 70, apparently as a result of a row over rebuilding the village centre, but he didn't and continued to hold the office until his death.[8] Even so, this decision was the subject of a feature on the BBC World Service radio programme World Today on 25 January 2006.[9]
In June 2006, a power struggle arose when a woman calling herself "Princess Yasmine von Hohenstaufen Anjou Plantagenet", who claimed to be the rightful heir to the throne of Seborga, wrote to Italy's president and offered to return the principality to the state.[6]
Carbone died from complications due to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis at the age of 73.[10]
References
- ^ 'His Tremendousness' oversaw the Italian village of Seborga, The Washington Post, 4 December 2009
- ^ Obituary: "His Tremendousness Giorgio Carbone", Daily Telegraph, 27 November 2009
- ^ "Prince of the piazza", Anthony Peregrine, The Daily Telegraph, December 1999
- ^ "Noel Gallagher is my choice for monarch", Caitlin Moran, The Times, 30 January 2006
- ^ "Prince of Seborga fights on for 362 subjects", Italy Magazine, 15 June 2006
- ^ a b "Battle rages for His Tremendousness's throne", Malcolm Moore, Daily Telegraph, 13 June 2006
- ^ Episode 3, For King and Country
- ^ "Wanted: prince to rule village", Richard Owen, The Times, 24 January 2006
- ^ "The best of the World Today", BBC, 16 January 2006
- ^ Giorgio Carbone, Elected Prince of Seborga, Dies at 73, By DOUGLAS MARTIN, The New York Times, 12 December 2009
External links
- Obituary: "His Tremendousness Giorgio Carbone", Daily Telegraph, 27 November 2009
- Giorgio Carbone, Elected Prince of Seborga, Dies at 73, By DOUGLAS MARTIN, The New York Times, 12 December 2009