Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Loading...
Loading...
Loading...
Recent Stories
All Stories Video Podcast
Most Recent Stories
View All Stories »
Rats didn’t take over the city by being foolhardy.
Do New York City Rats Deserve Their Bad Rap?
The Secret Gardens Saving the World’s Rarest Plants
Solo travel can be challenging and sometimes lonely, but it also often leads to the greatest adventures.
Dear Atlas: How Do I Unplug on a Solo Trip?
Museum of Friends
The Art in This Museum Was Donated for Free

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All the United States Wisconsin Milwaukee Kingdom of Talossa

Kingdom of Talossa

A trailblazing sovereign nation tucked in the American state of Wisconsin.

Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Added By
Rachel James
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
The official flag of Talossa.   Indolences on Wiki
Add Photos
The official flag of Talossa.   Indolences on Wiki
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

The territory lines of the Kingdom of Talossa started out small, its boundaries encompassing just the bedroom of a 14-year-old Milwaukee boy who had just lost his mother. 

It was December 26, 1979, when young Robert Ben Madison decided to secede from his country, declaring his bedroom to be the sovereign nation named after the (quite lovely) Finnish word for "inside the house". On that day, Robert became the founder of one of the longest standing micro-nations still in existence, The Kingdom of Talossa.

At first, the constitutional monarchy created by the lonely boy was something to keep him busy—relatives and friends humored him by agreeing to become citizens. As Madison traveled through adolescence, he created a flag and published a newspaper and created an emblem that read in Finnish "A Man's Room Is His Kingdom". His subjects probably assumed it was a passing obsession, and Madison would grow out of it eventually. Then, the internet happened. Madison made his kingdom a website in the mid-90s, and suddenly Talossa was big news. The media caught wind of Madison's little hobby, and he and his micro-nation, a term he claims to have coined, went viral. The Kingdom expanded out of Madison's bedroom—first to a whopping 5 sq. miles, and eventually claimed a decent portion of Milwaukee, as well as several random locations around the world. (One of the more amusing land claims is a large portion of Antarctica, which they have dubbed "Penguin-Land.") The fantasy grew more and more detailed, playing out a bit like a very long-running role-playing game. Talossa developed a government with its own political parties, a culture, a fictional pre-history, and it's own anthem. Talossa eventually even developed its own language, which has been carefully curated and fine-tuned over the decades and has its own 28,000-word dictionary. 

Like any growing nation, the Kingdom of Talossa had its troubles. In 2004, some citizens of the seceded nation seceded themselves, developing the Republic of Talossa. Madison reigned as king until 2005, when he abdicated due to more trouble in little Talossa. Immigration policy had come under fire, and the king decided that maybe he should hand the keys of the kingdom over to someone a little younger, someone who had the energy to rule—his wife's 8-year-old grandson seemed up for the task, and King Louis was crowned. A year later, the 4th grader had had enough, and King John (a citizen named John W. Wooley) was elected into the office, where he still sits as head of state. Under his rule, the 18 disgruntled Republic members eventually came back into the fold, and Talossa is once again a peaceful, single nation.

Related Tags

Micro Nations Politics

Community Contributors

Added By

Rachel

Edited By

littlebrumble, midasblenny, xheralt, AttnFiend

  • littlebrumble
  • midasblenny
  • xheralt
  • AttnFiend

Published

June 9, 2013

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Sources
  • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talossan_language
  • http://www.thesecretbeach.org/p/normal-0-false-false-false-en-us-x-none_21.html
  • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talossan_language
Kingdom of Talossa
Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 53208
United States
43.05, -87.95
Visit Website

Nearby Places

Pabst Mansion

Milwaukee, Wisconsin

miles away

St. Joan of Arc Chapel

Milwaukee, Wisconsin

miles away

Mitchell Park Domes

Milwaukee, Wisconsin

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Milwaukee

Milwaukee

Wisconsin

Places 26
Stories 8

Nearby Places

Pabst Mansion

Milwaukee, Wisconsin

miles away

St. Joan of Arc Chapel

Milwaukee, Wisconsin

miles away

Mitchell Park Domes

Milwaukee, Wisconsin

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Milwaukee

Milwaukee

Wisconsin

Places 26
Stories 8

Related Stories and Lists

12 Quirky Treasures of Milwaukee

hidden

By Atlas Obscura

Related Places

  • Verdisian Flag Waving

    Kopačevo, Croatia

    Verdis

    A small self-proclaimed micro-state located on a piece of disputed territory between Croatia and Serbia, near Liberland.

  • Tourist office of the “Republic of Hualqui.”

    Hualqui, Chile

    'Independent Republic' of Hualqui

    Despite being of the most short-lived republics in history, this small Chilean town won’t forget its two days of independence.

  • The We Are Our Mountains monument.

    Stepanakert, Azerbaijan

    We Are Our Mountains

    This striking icon of the disputed Republic of Artsakh caused a stir at a Eurovision Song Contest.

  • From the side

    Moscow, Russia

    Independent Republic of California Embassy in Moscow

    The California secessionist movement has its own foreign embassy, in Russia of all places.

  • New Hampshire historical marker for the Republic of Indian Stream

    Pittsburg, New Hampshire

    Republic of Indian Stream

    An unrecognized nation-state created in the 1820s to avoid taxes.

  • Liberland flag.

    Croatia

    Liberland

    A self-proclaimed libertarian micro-state on a tiny bit of disputed territory between Serbia and Croatia.

  • The palace of the manor

    Merkinė, Lithuania

    Paulava Republic (Pavlov Republic)

    Once known throughout Europe, this tiny and unusually progressive 18th century micro-nation within Lithuania now lies in ruins.

  • The Constitution

    Vilnius, Lithuania

    Republic of Uzupis

    This micro-nation may be some sort of prank, but its constitution sure seems official.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.