10 SMALLEST COUNTRIES in the World!

10 SMALLEST COUNTRIES in the World!

This article will investigate the 10 smallest countries in the world. Stay with us...

- As small as these countries are, they do some pretty incredible things. But yeah they're super small.

In this article, we will investigate follow countries:

• Maldives
• Liechtenstein
• Saint Kitts and Nevis
• San Marino
• itcairn Islands
• Vatican
• Sealand

1. Maldives

This is the first on our list about 10 smallest countries in the world. The Maldives is made up of a chain of 1,192 islands in the Indian Ocean. It's one of the most spread out nations in the world with the islands covering an area of nearly 35,000 square miles. But despite that, the islands themselves only have a total area of 115 square miles making it the smallest country in Asia.

Most of the islands are uninhabited and the population was under 400,000 in 2015. The Maldives was settled in 300 BC by fishermen from India and Sri Lanka. It was mostly Buddhist until Islam was introduced in the 12th century. Since then, ownership was passed between the Portuguese and Dutch and British empires for centuries.

It wasn't until 1965 that it finally gained its independence and was a member of the Commonwealth until 2016. Unfortunately back in December of 2004, the country was badly damaged by the Boxing Day earthquake and tsunami in the Indian Ocean that killed over 110 people.

2. Saint Kitts and Nevis

This is the 2nd on our list about 10 smallest countries in the world. Saint Kitts and Nevis is a two island state in the West Indies.

It's only 101 square miles making it the smallest country in the Caribbean and all of the Americas. The two islands are only about two miles apart each and are separated by a channel known as the narrows. The islands were formed by volcanoes which have been dormant for over 200 years.

Well, that seems kinda risky to live there. Native Americans inhabited them for over 5,000 years before the explorer Christopher Columbus and the Europeans showed up in 1493. Making it the Caribbean's oldest colonized territory. For years, the French and English fought over Saint Kitts and Nevis until they were put under British rule before gaining independence in 1983.

But it's still a member of the Commonwealth. The islands are known for their sugar cane crops which is how it got the nickname sugar city. But today tourism is the biggest contributor to the economy. This country's so small, how sweet. Sweet, sugar canes, moving on.

3. Liechtenstein

This is the 3th on our list about 10 smallest countries in the world. Liechtenstein is double landlocked by Austria and Switzerland and is only 62 square miles.

It was founded as part of the Roman empire back in 1719 and was owned by Germany until it got its independence in 1866. The country has a population of about 37,000 people and is ruled by a constitutional monarchy headed by Prince Hans Adam the second. In 2003, the country voted to give the monarchy the power to veto parliamentary decisions and to even get rid of them if they wanted to.

Liechtenstein remained neutral during World War Two but in March of 2007 it was accidentally invaded by Europe's most famous neutral country, Switzerland. 170 armed Swiss troops had wandered over the border and traveled a mile before even realizing it. But Liechtenstein didn't even notice and that's good because they don't even have an army so they let it slide. But one benefit to being so small is that every single year all of Liechtenstein's citizens are invited to Vaduz castle for a huge garden party.

Think of as like a block party but the entire country's invited.

4. Saint Martin

This is the 4th on our list about 10 smallest countries in the world. Located in the northeast Caribbean, about 190 miles east of Puerto Rico, is the island of Saint Martin. It's part of the Leeward Island chain and at only 34 square miles, it's the smallest inhabited island to be divided by two countries. Today the island has a total population of nearly 78,000 people and is split between France and the Netherlands.

Saint Martin was first settled around 800 BC by Arawak Indians from South America and Christopher Columbus was the first European to claim it in 1493. During the 17th century, the French and Dutch had occupied it and were fighting over its salt mines. In 1648, they agreed to divide the country. But the way they did it's a little funky. To do so, each country chose a man who were placed back to back on one side of the island.

They ran them in opposite directions along the coast until they met and the border was drawn between the two points. The French won that race and have 60% of the island while the Dutch have the other 40. As you can see unit of measurements weren't exactly an exact science back in the day.

5. San Marino

This is the 5th on our list about 10 smallest countries in the world. With an area of only 23.6 square miles, San Marino is a micro state completely surrounded by Italy. Hundreds of years ago, city states were common in Europe. But over time they were taken over or formed into larger countries. But San Marino has managed to maintain its independence. The country claims to be the oldest sovereign state in the world and is still governed by the earliest written constitution.

Its official founding date was September 3, 301 AD by the Christian stone mason named Marinus who was fleeing persecution. He founded San Marino on top of Monte Titano where he built a chapel and monastery and lived as a hermit. The pope recognized its independence back in 1631 and even Napoleon's armies respected its boundaries during the Napoleonic wars.

It has a population of just over 33,000 people and with one of the lowest unemployment rates in Europe it's also super wealthy and has one of the lowest GDPs in the world.

6. Pitcairn Islands

This is the 6th on our list about 10 smallest countries in the world. The Pitcairn Islands is a British overseas territory located in the South Pacific. And it only takes two plane rides, a ferry, and a 32 hour ocean crossing to get there. Not exactly convenient. The territory is made up of four islands that have a total land area of only 18 square miles. Only one of the four islands, Pitcairn, is inhabited.

It's the least populated nation in the world with only 50 permanent residents. 50!

Those people are actually the descendants of four main families that settled on Pitcairn in 1790 and were formed by nine mutineers from the HMS Bounty and a group of native Tahitians that were with them. The population was at its highest in the 1930s when it reached about 300 people.

But inbreeding was a big problem on the island and the population is dying out. For years there have been efforts to repopulate the nation, but despite free land and amazing climate, there haven't been any takers. And with that crazy commute, it hasn't developed a tourist industry either.

7. Nauru

This is the 7th on our list about 10 smallest countries in the world. Nauru is located in Micronesia in the central Pacific and is the third smallest country in the world at 8.1 square miles as well as the smallest island country in the world. Micronesian and Polynesian tribes had populated Nauru for thousands of years before the British sea captain John Fearn found it in 1798. After World War One, it was captured by Australia and became a member of the British Commonwealth.

In the 1980s, Nauru had an economic boom when it began mining phosphate but the resource quickly disappeared and there's now a 90% unemployment rate. Since then, it's become a tax haven and hot spot for money laundering. Nauru may be one of the smallest countries but its citizens are the biggest. It's considered the most obese nation and has the highest level of type two diabetes in the world. In 2001, Australia controversially began paying Nauru to house a detention camp for asylum seekers.

It was closed in 2008, but reopened in 2012.

8. Monaco

This is the 8th on our list about 10 smallest countries in the world. Monaco is located in the Mediterranean sea. It is the second smallest country in the world. This micro state is only 0.78 square miles. And it's so small, you can literally walk across it in an hour. It's also the most densely populated country in the world, with a population of 36,000.

It was founded in 1215 and has been ruled by the Grimaldi family since 1297. For centuries, it was passed between France, Genoa, and Sardinia, until it finally gained its independence in 1861. Monaco is known for its wealth and the infamous Monte Carlo casino. For years, it's lived off its earnings and was actually tax free. But to make sure citizens didn't lose all that money, it was made illegal for them to gamble or even go inside the casino.

France was actually going to take over Monaco if there were no heirs to the throne. But luckily for them, current head of state, Prince Albert the second, son of Prince Rainier and Grace Kelly, had his first legitimate children in December of 2014.

This table indicates more details about the smallest countries in the world:

9. Vatican

This is the 9th on our list about 10 smallest countries in the world. Despite its name, Vatican City isn't a city at all.

It's actually a walled in city state within Rome Italy, though it's only 0.17 square miles in size. In 320 AD, work began on Saint Peter's Basilica over Saint Peter's tomb. And a century later, a palace for the pope was built. But it wasn't until 1377 that the Vatican became the official residence for the pope. When it gained independence from Italy in 1929, all state power was given to the pope and it's been ruled as an absolute monarchy ever since.

It's population is only about 1,000 people but most actually don't live there full time. There are no state taxes and the economy is run by the sale of stamps, tourist goods, and museum entrance fees. Oh, and of course, whatever's put in the collection basket on Sundays by the one billion members of the Roman Catholic church around the world.

And having one of the biggest and most impressive art collections in the world doesn't hurt the bank either. The pope be balling, shot calling.

10. Sealand

This is the last on our list about 10 smallest countries in the world. Officially known as the principality of Sealand, Sealand is technically the smallest nation in the world. The micronation is located 12 miles off the coast of Suffolk England in the North sea on the HM Fort Roughs better known as Roughs Towers. The platform was built in 1943 by the British during World War Two and was used as an anti aircraft gun defensive.

After the war, the towers which were in international waters were empty until Sealand was founded on September 2, 1967 when Paddy Roy Bates took them over to broadcast his pirate radio station Radio Essex. Though he never actually broadcast a thing. He claimed that Sealand was a sovereign state and that he was the prince.

In the '60s and '70s, armed forces tried to take Sealand over but with no luck. Though it's not officially recognized as a country, it's been treated as one by both Britain and Germany in legal matters. In 2007, it was put up for sale and could be yours for the low, low price of $977 million.

If you like to know more about the smallest countries in the world, you can check Here.

In this video you can find smallest countries in the world:

This article was about smallest countries in the world. If you know any other country of the smallest countries in the world, tell us in the comments.