July 2, 2025
The Origin of Weird: Prince of Poyais - Gregor MacGregor
Have you ever wondered what happens when charisma, opportunity, and audacity collide? The result might look something like Gregor MacGregor's breathtaking 19th-century fraud that cost hundreds of lives yet went largely unpunished.
Step into the 1820s where a young Scottish adventurer transforms himself from military man to royalty through sheer imagination and chutzpah. After participating in Latin American revolutionary conflicts, MacGregor returned to London bearing an impressive title: "His Serene Highness Gregor I, Sovereign Prince of Poyais and Cacique of the Poyer Nation." The catch? Poyais didn't exist.
MacGregor's genius lay in his comprehensive approach to nation-building—on paper. He created currency, a constitution, a flag, detailed maps, guidebooks, and even a coat of arms for his fictional paradise. His descriptions of Poyais were masterfully crafted: rivers flowing with gold, hillsides scattered with gemstones, perfect weather, and a magnificent capital city complete with an opera house and cathedral. British citizens, entranced by the promise of new opportunities in the tropics, sold everything they owned to purchase land in this Eden.
The tragic reality revealed itself when approximately 270 settlers arrived at the uninhabited jungle of the Mosquito Coast in modern-day Nicaragua. Finding no development whatsoever, they faced deadly tropical diseases instead of prosperity. Before rescue arrived, about two-thirds perished from malaria, yellow fever, and dysentery—a devastating human cost of MacGregor's elaborate lie.
Perhaps the most astonishing part of this story isn't the fraud itself but its aftermath. Despite exposure in Parliament and newspapers, MacGregor was never successfully prosecuted in Britain. He simply moved to France, continued his scheme there, and eventually returned to London to sell even more Poyais bonds! He finally retired to Venezuela where, incredibly, he received military honors and a hero's funeral upon his death.
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00:00 - Meet Gregor McGregor and His Titles
02:06 - Latin American Revolution Opportunity
05:40 - Creating the Fantasy Nation of Poyais
08:44 - The Elaborate Marketing Campaign
12:40 - Settlers Find Jungle, Disease and Death
16:18 - McGregor Escapes Justice and Continues Swindling
WEBVTT
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Oh, hey there, oh hey there, I'm Kate.
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And I'm Bradley.
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And this is the origin of weird.
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But history buffoons.
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Yeah.
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Which he said.
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So I've had this story for a couple weeks, a couple weeks.
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So Bear with us, yeah, bear with her, yeah yeah, yeah, yeah, bear with her.
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Yeah, yeah, yeah, and the cats are out.
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So let's do this quick Like okay.
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Yeah.
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We're going to talk about his serene highness.
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His serene highness.
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Gregor the first.
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Gregor the.
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Why does that sound familiar?
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Sovereign Prince of Poyais.
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Of where Poyais?
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Okay.
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And cacique of the poie nation, poyer nation.
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Where is that?
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yeah, I will tell you.
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I bet, you will that sounds fucking fancy as shit I mean it does, oliver, don't be a dick his serene highness gregor, the first sovereign prince of poies and cacique of the poyer nation.
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Wow, that's a mouthful that is a huge mouthful and I'm just nervous what oliver is gonna do he slipped into london with zero fanfare okay okay, so he sounds fancy right yeah, I mean, that's quite the title for someone who rolled into london.
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He said fanfare yeah, so he came into london in about the 1820s, okay, um, but within months, um, he was kind of one of those society people that like brought in a ton of drama, if you will okay but let's rewind to about nine years earlier.
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So 1811 1811 he was 25 scottish firecracker oh, so he's from scotland gregor mcgregor gregor mcgregor he set sail for venezuela okay, latin america yeah his mission was to insert himself into the revolutionary free-for-all that was happening in Latin America.
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Okay.
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Okay, he wanted to make a name for himself.
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Right.
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So Latin America between 1808 and 1826 was pretty much on fire.
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Okay.
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Latin America was inspired by American revolutions and the French revolutions, sure, and they wanted to start breaking up with Spain and Portugal.
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Right.
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To become their own nation.
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Yeah, to be independent.
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Yes, exactly Okay.
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So between 1810 and 1825, pretty much every Spanish colony in the Americas either started or finished.
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It's right for independence, okay, okay.
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So latin america during this time was a gold mine for bold opportunists, sure, okay, mcgregor, yeah, gregor mcgregor gregor mcgregor he wasn't just bold.
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Oh, what did he do?
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Oh, he was full-on delusional.
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Oh really, oh yeah.
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Okay.
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Okay, so this is why this setup is perfect.
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Okay, the region was politically unstable.
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Yeah, everyone was trying to figure out who was in charge.
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If anyone was, sure, armies were being formed left and right.
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Okay.
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Foreign military experience was high in demand right, and everyone thought the land was bursting with riches gold, silver, mahogany, magical fruit, farting trees I don't know you name it farting trees but the revolutionary leaders often welcomed outsiders, sure, who claimed to support their cause.
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Okay, okay, back in Europe, there was a huge interest in Latin America, sure, especially in Britain, where investors were practically throwing money at anything labeled a new world opportunity.
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Well, I mean with Britain, the were they have been throughout history.
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They, they conquered a lot they sure fucking did, I mean, and lost a lot well, yeah, I mean especially towards the end.
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There, I mean it's amazing how much land they had.
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I mean look, that's where we started from, in the states south africa, latin america, austral, I mean all these things, india, I mean a lot of fucking things from them.
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So they were all about expanding their footprint.
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Yes, so, but 1819.
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Yeah.
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With his military resume stuffed and his ego like supercharged.
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Okay, mcgregor found himself a little bored.
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So, because the tide was turning in Latin America and the Spanish were losing ground, revolutions, they were becoming nations.
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The peace was beginning to ruin all the fun, but for a man addicted to adventure, this was a golden opportunity.
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you see, you see, you see opportunity you see, yes, she, yes, she, yeah, yes she.
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McGregor decided to start his own country.
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Really, oh yeah, okay, and of course he didn't wait for any permission or anything.
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He was the man, he had it all.
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He was going to do it all Honestly if, if you're gonna just up and start your own country, you don't wait for somebody like no, that's for amateurs hey, um, do you mind if I do this?
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Yeah, no, yeah, they're like no, so I'm not gonna ask, I'm just gonna do it.
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So, yeah, okay, makes sense in 1820?
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yeah, mcgregor mcgregor sailed to mosquito coast I've heard of that.
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Where is that?
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It is in modern day Nicaragua and Honduras.
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Oh duh, I shouldn't know that.
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And that is Frankie rubbing up against the microphone, frankie's like, I'm going to lay on your lap.
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So Humid AF, right.
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Yeah, it had a messy colonial history.
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Lots of trading posts from the British half-hearted settlements.
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Most of it was kind of long abandoned because it was kind of swallowed up by jungle.
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It was remote, it was forgotten, it was vague.
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So McGregor managed to convince the local Mosquito leader to grant him a massive swath of land.
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Okay.
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Could you imagine just going like hey, man, you want to do this.
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Like you know what I do, I do, here you go.
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I really do.
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Okay, I'm not sure the king fully understood what was happening.
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I'm going to go with, probably not.
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But McGregor left the meeting with a signed document, a newfound nation and an absolutely crazy idea in his head.
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Okay, he went back to London, no longer Gregor McGregor.
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He was King Gregor.
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He was Gregor I, prince of Poyais.
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Poyais, okay, a tropical sovereign.
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Wow, the ruler of a glorious new kingdom just waiting for settlers, investors and suckers.
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Or suckers.
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According to His Serene Highness Gregor I of Poyais, poyais wasn't just some patch of jungle, it was a paradise in full technicolor, a la wizard of oz over the rainbow.
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shit did they know about that back in 1820 okay.
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So mcgregor painted a picture of poies as a sun-drenched paradise, sure, where the weather was always perfect, the soil practically was begging you to grow crops and you could basically retire the moment you arrived well, who wouldn't?
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There were majestic mountains cloaked in redwood, and mahogany spilled golden rivers into the sea, he claimed.
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The riverbanks were literally made of gold.
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That's a bold claim, but okay.
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And quote gemstones sparkled the hillsides like confetti.
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I really don't believe that.
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I don't think Frankie plays either.
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That's why he's getting up.
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Sugar, coffee, cotton and indigo plantations lined scenic roads.
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Cattle run the meadows.
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Exotic fruits dropped from freeze like snacks.
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Birds were so pretty.
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What were they?
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Dropped from Trees like snacks.
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Okay, because that's not the word you said at first.
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Dropped from trees like snacks.
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You said freeze?
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Okay, I have literally audio proof.
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Sorry, okay.
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So poise wasn't just a good investment.
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It was literally like a tropical paradise, a utopia of such okay, sold by mcgregor yes.
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So his grand pitch, the capital of poise, sat proudly at the mouth of a broad bridge, crossed river, okay, gazing out toward the Atlantic like it knew better than anything else in Central America.
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Sure, okay, okay.
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Tree-lined boulevards, tree-lined boulevards Framed the skyline.
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Oh my God, sparkling domes, duh, impressive buildings yeah, the Royal Palace, parliament, an opera, opera house and a grand cathedral how did it have all this already?
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exactly oh dear oh, we're talking elegant mansions, big banks, merchant halls that line the streets, warehouses, busy docks was there a mall?
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We're gonna say there's a mall, oh that's great his serene highness would parade through the city like a like, like a napoleon, cheap napoleon I like that and he was covered in jewels.
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No, the knights of the green cross what's that?
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Basically, he created an order of chivalry like his own, like decor, essentially to wear knights of the round table.
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Yes, yes, okay so basically, poise was in eden and people ate the shit up?
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of course they did, because they don't know they're from england they had no idea and didn't know better no they're being sold a bill of goods that they had no basis on.
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Yes, so he opened offices in London and Edinburgh, edinburgh, edinburgh, thank you and he printed maps and guidebooks.
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He offered land employees at the very reasonable price of four shillings per acre, which is $31 an acre.
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As of today.
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As of today.
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Oh wow, that's actually not bad.
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Yeah.
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I'd do that.
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But a beachside fantasy fake government.
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Fake government.
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Just fake government, everything Right.
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He even produced a constitution oh wow.
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Engraved currency, okay, diplomatic documents complete with a made up coat of arms.
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Man, he went all out oh yeah, jesus christ, yeah, okay.
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So he had pamphlets and it was yeah, he basically went all out it was crazy, no doubt.
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And by late 1822 mcgregor had convinced hundreds of people, from poor families to retired officers, that police was their shot at a new life A better life, if you will.
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Yeah, I mean, that's the whole selling point, honestly.
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And so they boarded ships bound for the Caribbean.
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Wow, okay.
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And what they found wasn't quite the same thing as what they were sold.
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Yeah, how dare he?
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Yeah, I assume he already had the money from them.
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Oh, for sure yes.
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So so I mean, he's selling this fantasy is what it is, how, when they, what happens when they get there and be like what the fuck?
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oh, I'll, I'll tell you, okay, okay.
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So he left with um, left london with 70 immigrants and a second vessel sailed a couple months later of 200 more scottish men or english men okay, so 270 between the two ships most had sold all of their possessions and invested their life savings in poyes right.
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I mean because it's not like they had a lot so they put everything into it and they converted all of their sterling into poiesian banknotes which was fake yes, what they found was a jungle.
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I was gonna say it was a jungle.
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That's exactly what I was gonna say with bugs, lots of bugs and heat, oh dear and fucking.
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No opera house.
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Like what the fuck?
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We don't even have an opera house.
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It would have been okay if there was an opera house, but since there's no opera house, this is shit.
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Well, that's my point, though.
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He's selling a palace, that's there an opera house.
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And what was the other thing?
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You said something else.
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I thought Another building, it doesn't matter, but it's like why.
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How are you?
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Oh, the cathedral, yeah, yeah, it's just like.
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No, I mean, that's just straight up fucking swindling.
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Oh yeah, Wow.
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So the Voyagers set up makeshift huts and attempted to farm small plots of land, but they were desperate.
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Within weeks, malaria, yellow fever, dysentery, hey, dysentery, oh, our favorite dysentery.
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Yeah, we love dysentery on this podcast Yep, they all swept through the camps.
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Of course they did so.
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Okay, oliver.
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Oliver, don't be a douche.
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Help arrived in May of 1823 when a passing British ship from nearby British Honduras rescued some of the last survivors.
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Okay, oh, so a lot of them were dead.
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Oh, about two-thirds died.
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Oh shit, Two-thirds died.
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150 to 170 people died.
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Out of 270.
00:15:12.932 --> 00:15:17.106
Yes out of wow yes, not awful, that's fucking terrible.
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Yes, okay, so did mcgregor get his?
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no, so the survivors would return to britain.
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Yeah, or they would settle in belize and honduras, which were operated by the britain, the british government.
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Only a handful ever really made it back to england, um and, but they did in about october 1823 and confirmed the horror that was.
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Quote-unquote poies so the poies tale became a sensational scandal.
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Sure, newspaper accounts and parliamentary debates quickly exposed the fraud.
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Okay, by 1824, the story was out.
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The news that Poyce was not an independent and flourishing state had spread, and McGregor was denounced as an audacious fraud.
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Clearly.
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Who had duped respectable Britons into investing in a land that never was.
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I mean, he was literally just a fucking fraud.
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He was, I mean, simple as that.
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So yeah, that's fucking wild.
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However, the duped colonists refused to blame McGregor himself why?
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He's the one who sold him this bullshit.
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That's wild.
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So the victims instead attacked Poyace's local agents and leaders, suggesting various excuses for the failure.
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However, he's still considered a leader, leader of poise.
00:16:48.153 --> 00:16:54.432
But whatever, they did not blame mcgregor that's so weird but the newspapers and parliament.
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Yes, we are blaming mcgregor.
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He is the villain yes, 100.
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He's the one who convinced these people to go and give up all their literally all their money for a better life.
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That wasn't there.
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Yes, holy shit, I mean, I just wanted to go to an opera so he left england pretty quietly sure in late 1823 okay he slipped into france.
00:17:23.087 --> 00:17:42.554
No british court ever tried him that's so weird, that's wild even though the house of commons debate in march 1824 concluded that place was a bogus scheme yeah so even as the place fiasco kind of collapsed in britain, gregor mcgregor continued his charade in france, did he really?
00:17:42.994 --> 00:17:54.689
oh yes, and he sold more plots of land that weren't there he again printed poies, propaganda, sold bonds and immigration packages to french citizens.
00:17:54.689 --> 00:18:03.125
He raised about 300 pounds in paris, which equals to 50 million dollars today.
00:18:03.125 --> 00:18:14.285
Holy fuck, he raised that much money in paris 300 pounds in 1824 is 50 million dollars today.
00:18:14.285 --> 00:18:21.479
But authorities seized a ship bound for Colonnais des Poyers and grew suspicious.
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McGregor was arrested by the French in December 1825 and tried in 1826 on fraud charges okay in his trial he insisted on his innocence well, of course he did, because he didn't want to get killed the court needing proof of intent ultimately acquitted mcgregor wow to london by 1827 and resumed selling poyes stock.
00:19:01.529 --> 00:19:33.970
He issued an 800 pound bond, which is 125 million dollars today, and continued trying to push poise in 1828 that's wild by this time, most investors had heard the rumors but, mcgruther still found plenty of backers to buy his bonds, because they didn't know because they I mean news is a lot different back then than it is today.
00:19:33.970 --> 00:19:43.148
Wow, that's wild, that's so weird financial crisis in 1825 also bankrupt many, dampening further interest.
00:19:43.148 --> 00:19:46.053
So eventually mcgregor retired the scheme.
00:19:46.053 --> 00:19:47.994
In the late 1830s oh, thank god.
00:19:48.035 --> 00:20:04.090
And in 1838, late 1830s, so he kept it going for like 15 fucking years oh my god in 1838 he sailed for venezuela, where revolutionaries still remembered him as being a war hero once upon a time that's wild.
00:20:04.090 --> 00:20:11.901
He was given a pension, a lieutenant general's rank and a hero's funeral at his death in 1845.
00:20:11.901 --> 00:20:18.278
He was never successfully prosecuted in France or Britain.
00:20:18.585 --> 00:20:27.414
That's just crazy that he could sell that bullshit for so long and nothing ever happened and he got fucking honors for his death and shit.
00:20:27.585 --> 00:20:30.193
He's like the Georgia tan of 1828.
00:20:31.046 --> 00:20:31.386
Georgia.
00:20:31.386 --> 00:20:34.330
Tan's a cunt, I know but she was never prosecuted.
00:20:34.391 --> 00:20:35.555
No, because she died.
00:20:36.405 --> 00:20:37.351
But that is the story.
00:20:37.351 --> 00:20:39.507
But he was alive and they tried.
00:20:39.747 --> 00:20:40.167
I know the.
00:20:40.208 --> 00:20:41.009
French tried.
00:20:41.009 --> 00:20:43.111
The British is like yeah, you're cool man.
00:20:43.270 --> 00:20:46.194
But I'm going to say this one more time because I think it's a fantastic title.
00:20:46.194 --> 00:20:56.346
That is the story of his serene highness Gregor I, sovereign prince of Poyais and cacique of the Poyair nation.
00:20:56.346 --> 00:20:57.607
Such a fucking mouthful.
00:20:57.627 --> 00:20:58.788
That is a huge mouthful.
00:20:58.788 --> 00:21:03.834
So, Poyais, is there anything there today?
00:21:04.835 --> 00:21:07.116
No, it's Mosquito Coast in Venezuela.
00:21:07.116 --> 00:21:10.299
And there's just no like settlements as far as you know.
00:21:10.299 --> 00:21:10.960
No, there's nothing.
00:21:11.280 --> 00:21:25.101
Okay, that's crazy, the fact that he could sell this shit for years, for literally for years, and go back to the place where he kind of got like ousted if you will, but nothing happened to him.
00:21:25.565 --> 00:21:33.218
But like all these colonists or not colonists, but all of these british were like I want to be in a part of the new world I want to go there.
00:21:33.459 --> 00:21:35.226
Yeah, that sounds like a great fucking idea.
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We can make our millions there.
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