Italy: Europe's newest microstate, the Principality of Dellavalle, names cabinet

A 70-year-old Italian pensioner rules his own mini state in a roundabout of a road in Vercelli, Turin region, in the same place that his house was placed before being demolished by the government, Saturday. During a ceremony held in the premises, Pier Giuseppe Della Valle has named his cabinet of ministers among those who already had one of the certificates of nationality of the "Principality of Dellavalle." The microstate in the roundabout on the surface of his former house is equipped with a makeshift kitchen and a vegetable patch where he grows tomatoes. Several banners with messages of protest are also at the site. The pensioner started this microstate as a protest, after being promised compensation by the Highways Agency for the demolition of his house to build a new bypass road. Nevertheless, after years of quarrelling with the authorities, he only got about half of the promised compensation, therefore he decided to set up this microstate to reclaim his land.