Which of the following is the smallest landlocked country in the world?
A landlocked country is a country that does not border any of the world's oceans. However, a landlocked country may have a coastline on an endorheic basin or border a large water body such as a lake or swamp. Thus, a country is considered landlocked if one or more countries surround it and has no immediate access to open water. There are currently 44 landlocked countries and 5 partially recognized landlocked states.
With an area of just 44 hectares (109 acres), the city-state of Vatican City is the smallest landlocked country in the world. The city-state is an enclave within Rome. It is one of the three singly landlocked countries (others are San Marino - also surrounded by Italy and Lesotho - surrounded by South Africa).
•Kazakhstan, one of the 12 landlocked countries of Asia, is the largest landlocked country in the world by area.
•Austria is a landlocked country in the southern part of Central Europe. It is surrounded by Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Liechtenstein, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Switzerland.
•Liechtenstein is bordered by Switzerland to the west and south and Austria to the east and north. It is Europe's fourth-smallest country.
More Info:
en.m.wikipedia.org
What are your thoughts on this subject?
13 Comments
Leapy Lee
Wendy Petty, the word state in political terms means something different than a state like Victoria or Texas. In International Relations a state is more in line with what we usually call a country.
JRW
How many times has this appeared in quizzes and tests on this site? Still only 80% correct.
Jim Mascair
Liechtenstein is small , but must have big money. The Russians offered Alaska to them before the USA.
Steve Tingle
The Vatican is the smallest country in the world - doesn't need any more adjectives.
Gary Chadwick
Smallest country keeps cropping up in these questions, just by changing the wording to include land locked, doesn't change the answer.
Fred Keogh
Wendy Petty, The word State can also be used in place of Country, and has been used so since before the USA was a Country or had States. In ancient times we had the classic city States of Athens or Sparta and many others, eventually these developed over the centuries into the Greek State, or country of Greece.
Al Breyette
2nd time this has been a question here
lls
Wendy Petty, Ok, you bring up a very valid point...is The Vatican a "country," or "City-State?" I thought it was a "City-State," too!
billyboy915
Gordon Mehaffey,
Yes, Vatican City is a "new" country that was born on the 11th of February 1929.
How did the Vatican city become a country?
The Lateran treaty granted the Vatican City the status of a country. The treaty put an end to the period of political and religious turmoil in Italy. Before the treaty, the Kingdom of Italy and the Papal States fought over land in Italy. Using brute force, the kingdom of Italy invaded the Papal States – it’s members fled to the Vatican. The church then declared that they were being held as prisoners in the Vatican. In retaliation, they refused to acknowledge the Kingdom of Italy as a political power. This tore the population of Italy between the church and government.
Popes, Prime ministers, and decades passed. There was still no resolution to the conflict. Then the infamous Benito Mussolini stepped on the scene. Wisely, Mussolini realized that without the support of the church government became restricted. So he devised the Lateran treaty, also known as the Lateran pact of 1929. It was a deal made between the kingdom of Italy and the Holy See. The pact recognized Vatican City as an independent state under control of the Holy See. To sweeten the deal, Mussolini gave the church almost 1 billion euros, palaces, as well as land in Rome and Lazio. In return the Holy See recognized Italy as a country and promised to remain neutral in wars and politics.
As an independent state, the Vatican mints its own euros, prints its own stamps, issues passports and license plates, and operates media outlets. It also has its own domain, flag, and national anthem.
billyboy915
Horsetrivia,
Yes, Vatican City is a "new" country that was born on the 11th of February 1929.
How did the Vatican city become a country?
The Lateran treaty granted the Vatican City the status of a country. The treaty put an end to the period of political and religious turmoil in Italy. Before the treaty, the Kingdom of Italy and the Papal States fought over land in Italy. Using brute force, the kingdom of Italy invaded the Papal States – it’s members fled to the Vatican. The church then declared that they were being held as prisoners in the Vatican. In retaliation, they refused to acknowledge the Kingdom of Italy as a political power. This tore the population of Italy between the church and government.
Popes, Prime ministers, and decades passed. There was still no resolution to the conflict. Then the infamous Benito Mussolini stepped on the scene. Wisely, Mussolini realized that without the support of the church government became restricted. So he devised the Lateran treaty, also known as the Lateran pact of 1929. It was a deal made between the kingdom of Italy and the Holy See. The pact recognized Vatican City as an independent state under control of the Holy See. To sweeten the deal, Mussolini gave the church almost 1 billion euros, palaces, as well as land in Rome and Lazio. In return the Holy See recognized Italy as a country and promised to remain neutral in wars and politics.
As an independent state, the Vatican mints its own euros, prints its own stamps, issues passports and license plates, and operates media outlets. It also has its own domain, flag, and national anthem.
billyboy915
Chris Braid,
Yes, Vatican City is a "new" country that was born on the 11th of February 1929.
How did the Vatican city become a country?
The Lateran treaty granted the Vatican City the status of a country. The treaty put an end to the period of political and religious turmoil in Italy. Before the treaty, the Kingdom of Italy and the Papal States fought over land in Italy. Using brute force, the kingdom of Italy invaded the Papal States – it’s members fled to the Vatican. The church then declared that they were being held as prisoners in the Vatican. In retaliation, they refused to acknowledge the Kingdom of Italy as a political power. This tore the population of Italy between the church and government.
Popes, Prime ministers, and decades passed. There was still no resolution to the conflict. Then the infamous Benito Mussolini stepped on the scene. Wisely, Mussolini realized that without the support of the church government became restricted. So he devised the Lateran treaty, also known as the Lateran pact of 1929. It was a deal made between the kingdom of Italy and the Holy See. The pact recognized Vatican City as an independent state under control of the Holy See. To sweeten the deal, Mussolini gave the church almost 1 billion euros, palaces, as well as land in Rome and Lazio. In return the Holy See recognized Italy as a country and promised to remain neutral in wars and politics.
As an independent state, the Vatican mints its own euros, prints its own stamps, issues passports and license plates, and operates media outlets. It also has its own domain, flag, and national anthem.
Howard Groopman
Learned very recently that Kazakhstan is one of the 10 largest countries in the world.
Player
Gordon Mehaffey, it's a city state, like Singapore.