Microstate
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A microstate or ministate is a sovereign state having a very small population or land area, usually both. However, the meanings of "state" and "very small" are not well-defined in international law. S
Vatican City, the smallest independent country in the world, with 0.49 km2 (120 acres)
St. Kitts and Nevis in the Caribbean Sea, the smallest independent country in the Americas with 261 km2 (101 sq mi)
San Marino, the 3rd smallest independent country in Europe and the oldest republic in the world with 61.2 km2 (23.6 sq mi)
Maldives in the Indian Ocean, the smallest independent country in Asia with an area of 298 km2 (115 sq mi)
Couto Misto
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Couto Misto was an independent microstate on the border between Spain and Portugal. It comprised the villages of Santiago de Rubiás, Rubiás, and Meaus, all in the Salas Valley, Ourense, Galicia. The t
Microstate
…independent by a treaty error and survived from 1440 to 1826. Its independence made it important in the introduction of tobacco cultivation to Italy. Couto Misto was disputed by Spain and Portugal and operated as a sovereign state until the 1864 Treaty of Lisbon partitioned the territory, with the larger part…
Commemorative plaque on the church of Santiago de Rubiás
A view of Meaus, one of the three villages that composed the Couto Mixto
Church of Santiago de Rubiás, one of the three villages that composed the Couto Mixto
Part of the Caminho Privilegiado in Santiago de Rubiás