He Spotted Empty Land Patch Near Danube River, Made It His Own Country: How Daniel Jackson Found Verdis

They say that anyone can dream of building an empire, but the 21-year-old Daniel Jackson actually turned an empty river patch into a country. At 14, when most of us were busy with school and figuring out a career, Daniel and his friends noticed that several patches of land along the Danube River were unclaimed by Croatia or Serbia after a border dispute. 

So, on May 30, 2019, he declared one of these land pockets the Free Republic of Verdis, officially marked as Pocket-3 on the map. What started as a boundary quirk between Croatia and Serbia has given the 21-year-old Daniel an award from the United Nations. 

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How Was Verdis Born?

The Free Republic of Verdis was born when Daniel was 14. Near the Danube River, between Croatia and Serbia, roughly a 0.5-square-kilometre plot of land was unclaimed by either of the two countries. Jackson and his friend seized the moment and decided to plant a flag and claim the territory. He named it the Free Republic of Verdis and declared himself as its president.

Over the years, Jackson, along with his supporters, drafted the constitution and government framework, created flags, passports, and merchandise. What started as an online community has become an independent country with hundreds of citizens. People from around the world are still asking how to register for the country. At about 125 acres, Verdis is the second-smallest country in the world, after Vatican City, covering just 0.44 square kilometres.

Two Embassies

Daniel and his friends have opened two embassies for Verdis. One is in Dover and one in Novi Sad, Serbia. With 400 official citizens, the official languages of the country are English, Croatian, and Serbian. The euro has been chosen as the official currency. Daniel, who identifies himself as both British and Australian, has received over 1,000 emails every month from people asking to become citizens.

Since he started the country, it has gained social media traction. Daniel has given up his day job of designing Roblox worlds and taken Verdis full time. He said, "I am very amazed by it but I am not surprised by how well it is pushing because there is an amazing team behind us and the support has not stopped."

Recognition At The Global Stage

Despite Verdis being recognised as a sovereign country, Jackson has worked hard to build its international visibility. The recent UN-adjacent award in New York was given in recognition of the humanitarian efforts linked to Verdis. It included aid work directed toward the Ivory Coast. The award was presented by the Institute of Public Policy and Diplomacy Research. Receiving the award, Danile said, "Being only 21 years old, I am still sort of getting used to this experience of turning up to these events with such interesting and influential people."

In 2023, Jackson was handed a lifetime ban from entering Croatia after police detained him and several others. He also revealed that the Croatian authorities have "installed cameras along the Verdisian coastline" to stop them from accessing it from Serbia, making them a "government in exile."