Minister of Colonial Affairs
The Minister of Colonial Affairs was a position on the Royal Council responsible for overseeing Westarctica's extra-territorial holdings. The post was held by the His Grace, the Duke of Tapley.
The ministry was deemed redundant and dissolved on 12 February 2025.
Duties
Westarctica's three colonial holdings are not part of its contiguous claimed territory in Marie Byrd Land. As each has their own governor, it was decided in 2021 that there should be a council-level position in the Government of Westarctica to ensure the needs of the colonies are being addressed. To this end, the Ministry of Colonial Affairs was created on 2 November 2021.
During Westarctica's 20th Anniversary Celebration in Charlotte, North Carolina, the Duke of Tapley and Grand Duke Travis discussed plans for the future of the ministry beyond simply managing the nation's colonies. The Duke presented a plan to mentor newer micronations, which would initially join Westarctica as a colony before branching off on their own. This would allow micronational leaders who had little experience in governance an opportunity to learn the ropes of micronationalism, thereby raising the overall quality of nations in the greater micronational community.