The Great Return
The Great Return, also called the 2010 Coup, and the Overthrow of Grand Duke Jon-Lawrence, was an important turning point in the history of Westarctica that involved the return of the nation's founder, Travis McHenry, to a position of power in Westarctica.
Pre-coup activities
On 22 May 2010, Wolf Tulier, Westarctica's Minister of Defense, sent an e-mail to Travis McHenry, who at that time was just beginning to rule over a new micronation in the California desert called Calsahara. In the e-mail, Wolf expressed frustration that he had not been able to get in contact with the ruler of Westarctica, Grand Duke Jon-Lawrence, for several months. He was concerned that having an absentee ruler and a leaderless country would result in the death of Westarctica and the claim to Marie Byrd Land that Travis had made in 2001.
Travis was surprised by Jon-Lawrence's disappearance, since he had come to the throne on a promise to revitalize Westarctica's fortunes after the disappearance of his predecessor, Grand Duke Philip. On 23 May, Travis sent Jon-Lawrence three e-mails to three different accounts, including the official Westarctica contact e-mail.
Over the next few days, Wolf and Travis discussed possible scenarios to take control of the government of Westarctica. They both agreed that their best path forward would be to create a new official website for Westarctica proclaiming themselves to be the legitimate leaders of the nation. Then they would have the power to begin immediate negotiations with the various micronations that had opposed Westarctica during the Siple War.
Wolf and Travis felt that so long as the founder of the country was authorizing the negotiations, the other countries would respect the outcome.
Coup
After waiting five days for a reply from Grand Duke Jon-Lawrence, on 28 May 2010 at midnight Pacific Standard Time, Travis McHenry instructed Wolf Tulier to contact the government of the Grand Duchy of Flandrensis and inform them that Grand Duke Jon-Lawrence was no longer the ruler of Westarctica and the new leaders were eager to secure a peaceful resolution to their competing claims on the continent of Antarctica.
At the same time, Travis sent an e-mail to Jon-Lawrence Langer informing him that, due to his failure to protect the 2001 claim to Marie Byrd Land as well as his failure to represent Westarctica as a public figurehead, his service as Grand Duke of Westarctica was no longer needed; however, he was free to retain his title and lands as the Duke of Moulton-Berlin.
Over the next the next three days, negotiations between Westarctica and the allied nations of the Antarctic Micronational Union (AMU) erupted at a feverish pace. Wolf was the guiding voice in the negotiations, but eventually, Travis was communicating directly with Grand Duke Niels of Flandrensis and the opposing parties quickly came to a tacit resolution.
On 3 June 2010, Travis launched a new official Website for Westarctica at Westarctica.info. On the site, he announced the formation of a Transitional Government that had full power to negotiation treaties, create noble titles, and generally run the machinery of government.
Moments after the website went live, Grand Duke Niels sent a secret e-mail to the members of the AMU informing them that Westarctica's founder had returned to lead the nation and the disputed claims of all Antarctic micronations were being successfully resolved. Although some members of the AMU did not immediately embrace Travis' return, eventually, all parties accepted the terms of the peace settlement and recognized the joint rule of Travis and Wolf, who was appointed to the post of Prime Minister of Westarctica.
Post-coup celebration
On 4 June 2010, the day following the successful overthrow of Grand Duke Jon-Lawrence, Travis threw a lavish birthday party in a large suite at Disneyland's Grand Californian Hotel. As the conclusion of the coup coincided with his 30th birthday, many of Travis' friends were present at the party, including the Viscount of Whitmore, who had been flown in from Pennsylvania to enjoy the festivities.
Aftermath
The negotiations between the Antarctic Micronational Union and Westarctica continued until 24 September 2010 when the final peace terms were agreed upon and all parties signed the West-Antarctic Treaty.