Why a tiny country with big ambitions existed for 100 years and disappeared from the map of Europe

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

This tiny European country existed for only one century - and disappeared a century ago almost without a trace, never becoming either a cultural capital or a second Monaco. In memory of Neutral Moresnet, only the border pillars remained, local stamps that did not receive distribution, and photographs of Esperantists who looked into the future with hope and were cruelly deceived in it.

When a bad world is better than a good quarrel

The history of a unique pseudo-state of its kind began from the moment a rather unusual way out of the territorial conflict was proposed. With the passing of Napoleon's empire into the past, it became necessary to divide European lands between different states. Prussia and the Netherlands could not come to an agreement only on a short section of the border - only three kilometers long.

The thing is that zinc has been mined in these places since 1806; a mining enterprise was located here. None of the kingdoms wanted to concede a promising field to a neighbor, and it seemed inappropriate to unleash a military conflict because of it, when memories of the Napoleonic wars were still fresh. Then, as a temporary solution, this small triangular patch of land was made an independent territory. The new "state" was named "Neutral Moresnet" - after the name of a village located nearby in the Netherlands. What role the owner of the Vieille Montagne mine played in this political move is anyone's guess. In any case, ore mining continued, more and more workers arrived at the mine, and more and more residential buildings grew around.

Neutral Moresnet attracted new residents for several reasons. First of all, taxes on this territory were really very low, there were no markups on imports from neighboring states, the prices of goods generally favorably differed from those that operated outside the mining village. In Moresnet it was possible to hide from problems, from the search, even from military service. Those who came to live on an islet of neutral territory in the middle of Europe received the status of stateless persons, and therefore, if in 1815 there were 256 people living in Neutral Moresnet, and the number of houses did not exceed fifty, then in 1858 there were 2275 inhabitants. when the country lost all autonomy - in 1914 - there were 4,668 "stateless persons" on its territory.

How life was in Morenet

Strictly speaking, this territory did not receive autonomy, and therefore it would be wrong to call Neutral Moresnet a state. Management was carried out jointly by the Netherlands and Prussia, each of the states sent its commissar to Moresnet. Usually they were civil servants from cities located near the borders of the new territory.

In 1830 Belgium seceded from the Netherlands and took over the administration of Neutral Moresnet. Although, by and large, life in this "state" was regulated by the work of the mine and the company that owned this mine - Vieille Montagne. The main employer of Moresnet organized and ensured the construction of houses, shops, hospitals, schools, and ensured the work of the bank.

There was no police in Moresnet, and there was no court either. If necessary, the judge came from Belgium or Prussia and considered the dispute, guided by the norms of Napoleon's codes. On the other hand, Neutral Moresnet had its own coat of arms and its own flag, which is believed to have been drawn using the colors of the flags of Belgium and Prussia. For the work of various services, such as the post office, either Prussian or Belgian officials were responsible. Since 1859, a council of ten members began to work in Moresnet, as well as a mayor. There were no elections - the officials were approved by the commissioners of the neighboring states.

This neutral state did not receive its own currency either - however, an attempt was made to put into circulation the money of Morenet, then this initiative did not receive official recognition, as well as distribution. The main means of payment was the French franc, but Prussian thalers and Belgian francs were in circulation.

Why the country of Moresnet disappeared

However, the fate of the mining settlement, even if it was called a neutral territory, was primarily determined by the activities of the mine. By the end of the century, the possibilities of the mine were exhausted, and it became necessary to determine the future fate of Morenet. For some time this territory happened to be a kind of local "Monaco" - at the beginning of the 20th century a casino was opened here. In Belgium, such establishments were prohibited. For some time, players from neighboring countries actively visited Moresnet, and the corresponding infrastructure, such as drinking houses and other establishments, arose - which is why Moresnet managed to acquire a bad reputation. But pretty soon, by order of Kaiser Wilhelm II, this type of activity was terminated in this territory.

A much more interesting, and most importantly, an extraordinary idea of the future state of Moresnet was proposed by Dr. Wilhelm Molly, the chief doctor of the mine and an avid philatelist. He had previously tried to strengthen Moresnet's status by developing a postage stamp for the territory and proposing to organize his own postal service. But neither Prussia (which by that time had become the German Empire) nor Belgium supported this step towards autonomy. In addition to this hobby of collecting stamps, Dr. Molly was also fond of the Esperanto language.

"Neutral language - neutral Moresnet" - this was the slogan voiced by the Esperantists. As a mission with which Moresnet would build his future, the status of the capital of Esperanto was proposed. Ludwik Zamenhof, the creator of the language, supported the idea. Esperanto courses began to work on the territory of Moresnet, enthusiasts from different European countries came here for congresses and for the sake of advanced training. There was even a hymn written in this language - Amikejo, that is, "Place of Friendship."

Perhaps, if history had taken a different path, now the dwarf state of Moresnet would really exist on world maps, where Esperanto would be the official language, and the main activity would be to improve and popularize this artificial language. But the First World War and the German policy that preceded it put an end to both the idea and Moresnet himself. In 1914, the territory of Belgium was captured, the same fate befell the capital of Esperanto. Under the Treaty of Versailles in 1919, the territory that had previously been neutral was transferred to Belgium - it is Belgian to this day, with the exception of a short period of time during World War II, when this piece of land was annexed by Germany again. Neutral Moresnet was located, now you can still see the border pillars.

The current name of the settlement is Kelmis or, in French, La Calamine. None of the residents of Neutral Moresnet are already alive: the last of them, Katarina Messen, died in 2020 at the age of 105.

And here's how 150 years ago Esperanto language appeared, whose development turned out to be closely associated with both anti-Semitism and the Internet.