Detachment (territory)
Detachment (Old French de, from, and [at]tach, joining with a stake) under international law is the formal, permanent separation of and loss of sovereignty over some territory to another geopolitical entity (either adjacent or noncontiguous). Detachment can be considered the opposite or reverse of annexation.
A prominent example of detachment is the official and formal relinquishment of
Washington DC. The formal removal of a smaller area from a city, town, or incorporated, non-urban district is also considered to be a form of detachment.[1][3] For example, while the city of Alexandria, Virginia and the neighboring Alexandria County were detached from Virginia, to become a founding parts of the District of Columbia, the residents of Alexandria and Alexandria County (later Arlington County) began to campaign for the area's "retrocession" (or reattachment) to Virginia. This occurred in 1847
.
Suez Canal
The formal detachment of Egypt from the Ottoman Empire was a condition for British investment in the Suez Canal.[4]
League of Nations mandates
After World War I, a number of colonial territories and border territories were detached from the
Chefoo. From a rule of law standpoint, the protectorates were not war booty but "mandates" from a legally-constituted international body and so detachment occurred without annexation.[5]
References
- ^ a b "Detachment from a City Government". Alaska Division of Community and Regional Affairs. Archived from the original on 24 June 2011.
- ^ Towne, George (2003). "State Notes: Topics of Legislative Interest: Annexation and Detachment In Michigan" (PDF). Senate Fiscal Agency, Michigan State Senate. Archived (PDF) from the original on 4 March 2016.
- ^ "Detachment of Territory". U.S. Legal, Inc.
- ^ Lawrence, Thomas Joseph (1884). "The Suez Canal in International Law". The Law Magazine and Review. 5th Series. 9: 117–143, page 137.
- ISBN 978-0-19-828007-1.
Sources
- Roberts, Adam (2006). "Transformative military occupation: applying the laws of war and human rights" (PDF). The American Journal of International Law. 100: 580–622. doi:10.1163/ej.9789004154285.i-590.90. Archived from the original(PDF) on 2011-07-25.
- Aldrich, Richard and Orange County LAFCO Staff (2012). "Annexations, Incorporations, and Reorganizations: Here's how we do it in California. How does your state do it?". American Planning Association.