The Commonwealth of Australia & New Zealand

Australia (An Historical Perspective) New Zealand

Compiled by Prof.T.Pattabiraman

The flag of Australia is the only one to fly over a whole continent. The small Union Jack represents the historical link with Britain, the large sevenpointed star represents the six States and Territories, and the small stars from the Southern Cross a prominent feature of the southern hemisphere night sky.

Australia's coat of arms the official emblem of the Australian Government was granted by George V in 1912. The arms consist of a shield containing the badges of the six states. The supporters are native Australian fauna a kangaroo and an emu. A yellow-flowered native plant, wattle, also appears in the design.

First Settlers
40,000 years ago, during the Ice Age, people from Southeast Asia traveled to Australia either by land or canoe. Several thousand years later when the Ice Age was over, ocean levels rose, and these people were cut off from the rest of the world.

Ice Age Migration

https://genographic.nationalgeographic.com/genographic/atlas.html

The Commonwealth of Australia is a country in the southern hemisphere comprising the mainland of the world's smallest continent, the major island of Tasmania and a number of other islands in the Southern, Indian and Pacific Oceans. The neighbouring countries are Indonesia, East Timor and Papua New Guinea to the north, the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu and New Caledonia to the northeast, and New Zealand to the south-east.

The Australian mainland has been inhabited for more than 42,000 years by Indigenous Australians. After sporadic visits by fishermen from the north and by European explorers and merchants starting in the 17th century, the eastern half of Australia was claimed by the British in 1770 and initially settled through penal transportation as part of the colony of New South Wales on 26 January 1788.

As the population grew and new areas were explored, another five largely self-governing Crown Colonies were established during the 19th century. On 1 January 1901, the six colonies became a federation, and the Commonwealth of Australia was formed. Since federation, Australia has maintained a stable liberal democratic political system and remains a Commonwealth Realm. The capital city is Canberra, located in the Australian Capital Territory. The population is 21 million, and is concentrated in the mainland state capitals of Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, and Adelaide.

The name "Australia" is derived from the Latin Australis, meaning "of the South". Legends of an "unknown land of the south" (terra australis incognita) dating back to Roman times were commonplace in medival geography, but were based on no actual knowledge of the continent. The name "Australia" was popularised by the 1814 work A Voyage to Terra Australis by the navigator Matthew Flinders, the first recorded person to circumnavigate Australia. Despite its title, which reflected the view of the British Admiralty, Flinders used the word "Australia" in the book, which was widely read and gave the term general currency. Governor Lachlan Macquarie of New South Wales subsequently used the word in his dispatches to England, and in 1817 recommended that it be officially adopted. In 1824, the Admiralty agreed that the continent should be known officially as "Australia".

History of Australia
The first human habitation of Australia is estimated to have occurred between 42,000 and 48,000 years ago. These first Australians were the ancestors of the current Indigenous Australians; they arrived via land bridges and short seacrossings from present-day South-East Asia. Most of these people were huntergatherers, with a complex oral culture and spiritual values based on reverence for the land and a belief in the Dreamtime. The Torres Strait Islanders, ethnically Melanesian, inhabited the Torres Strait Islands and parts of far-north Queensland; their cultural practices were and remain distinct from those of the Aborigines.

The Aborigines are the Australian natives that had been living there for thousands of years before the first Europeans came to Australia in the 1600s.

Explorers 16th Century explorations began *Portugese able to see Australia but didnt land there * Abel Tasman- Dutch explorer

Abel Tasmans routes

Portrait of Abel Tasman

The first undisputed recorded European sighting of the Australian mainland was made by the Dutch navigator Willem Janszoon, who sighted the coast of Cape York Peninsula in 1606. During the 17th century, the Dutch charted the whole of the western and northern coastlines of what they called New Holland, but made no attempt at settlement.

In 1770, James Cook sailed along and mapped the east coast of Australia, which he named New South Wales on HM Bark Endeavour, claiming the land for Great Britain in 1770. The expedition's discoveries provided impetus for the establishment of a penal colony there.

Captain Cooks Routes

1st European Contact

British sailor Captain James Cook made 3 voyages to the area between 1768 & 1779 He claimed eastern Australia for Great Britain Produced some of the first fairly accurate maps of the area When Cook discovered Australia there were about 300,000 Aborigines

The British Crown Colony of New South Wales started with the establishment of a settlement at Port Jackson by Captain Arthur Phillip on 26 January 1788. This date was later to become Australia's national day, Australia Day. Van Diemen's Land, now known as Tasmania, was settled in 1803 and became a separate colony in 1825. The United Kingdom formally claimed the western part of Australia in 1829.

Separate colonies were created from parts of New South Wales: South Australia in 1836, Victoria in 1851, and Queensland in 1859. The Northern Territory was founded in 1911 when it was excised from South Australia. South Australia was founded as a "free province" that is, it was never a penal colony. Victoria and Western Australia were also founded "free", but later accepted transported convicts. The transportation of convicts to the colony of New South Wales ceased in 1848 after a campaign by the settlers.

The Indigenous Australian population, estimated at 350,000 at the time of European settlement, declined steeply for 150 years following settlement, mainly because of infectious diseases combined with forced re-settlement and cultural disintegration. The removal of children from their families, which some historians and Indigenous Australians have argued could be considered to constitute genocide by some definitions, may have contributed to the decline in the indigenous population.

Such interpretations of Aboriginal history are disputed by some as being exaggerated or fabricated for political or ideological reasons. This debate is known within Australia as the History Wars. Following the 1967 referendum, the Federal government gained the power to implement policies and make laws with respect to Aborigines. Traditional ownership of land native title was not recognised until 1992, when the High Court case Mabo v Queensland (No 2) overturned the notion of Australia as terra nullius ("empty land") at the time of European occupation.

A gold rush began in Australia in the early 1850s, and the Eureka Stockade rebellion against mining licence fees in 1854 was an early expression of civil disobedience. Between 1855 and 1890, the six colonies individually gained responsible government, managing most of their own affairs while remaining part of the British Empire. The Colonial Office in London retained control of some matters, notably foreign affairs, defence and international shipping. On 1 January 1901, federation of the colonies was achieved after a decade of planning, consultation and voting, and the Commonwealth of Australia was born as a Dominion of the British Empire.

The Australian Capital Territory (ACT) was formed from a part of New South Wales in 1911 to provide a location for the proposed new federal capital of Canberra (Melbourne was the temporary capital from 1901 to 1927 while Canberra was being constructed). The Northern Territory was transferred from the control of the South Australian government to the Commonwealth in 1911. Australia willingly participated in World War I. Many Australians regard the defeat of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZACs) at Gallipoli as the birth of the nation its first major military action. The Kokoda Track Campaign is regarded by many as an analogous nation-defining event during World War II

British Colonization

Australia the Colony

The colony of Australia began with the establishment of Port Jackson, a settlement in New South Wales on January 26, 1788.

The History of Australia

Founding of Port Jackson

The History of Australia

Prison Colonies
1787 British ships called the First Fleet left England with convicts to establish a prison colony at Port Jackson convicts settled in 1788.

Convicts Take Over Australia

The British experienced overcrowding in their prison system and sought to solve the problem by sentencing their prisoners to transportation -Australia.

Here they founded a system of labor in which people, whatever their crime, were employed according to their skills.
From 1810, convicts were seen as a source of labor to advance and develop the British colony. Convict labor was used to develop the public facilities of the colonies - roads, bridges, courthouses, and hospitals. Convicts also worked for free settlers and small land holders.

Port Arthur
Port Arthur was named after Van Diemen's Land lieutenant governor George Arthur. The settlement started as a timber station in 1830, but it is best known for being a penal colony. From 1833, until the 1850s, it was the destination for the hardest of convicted British and Irish criminals, those who were secondary offenders having re-offended after their arrival in Australia. Rebellious personalities from other convict stations were also sent here. In addition, Port Arthur had some of the strictest security measures of the British penal system.

Port Arthur Prison

The History of Australia

Convict-built chapel at Port Arthur Prison

The History of Australia

Port Arthur
Some tales suggest that prisoners committed murder (an offence punishable by death) just to escape the desolation of life at the camp. The Island of the Dead was the destination for all who died inside the prison camps.

Island of the Dead

Aborigines vs. British

British settlers brought disease and guns to Australia. The Aborigines had no immunity against European diseases. In the 19th & 20th centuries, conflict worsened. Surviving Aborigines were forced onto reservations in the interior.

Australia Grows Up!

1851- Gold was discovered in New South Wales and Victoria, attracting a large population. Australias population quadrupled!! Independence became an issue.

Convicts-debtors shipped to Australia from Britain to work out their sentence

First Fleet of prisoners to arrive in Australia

Convicts building roads

Jail Gang

Port Royal penal colony

Early settlements difficult because soil was poor *people didnt like the native plants for food

Sheep-introduced in 1805 by retired British navy captain , John Macarthur

John Macarthur later had his picture on a 2 dollar bill in Australia.

Sheep shearing-The sheep are shaved and the wool is sold.

Australian Gold Rush gold was discovered in the interior of Australia and caused the west to grow

Edward Hargreaves 1st to discover gold in Australia

"There is as much gold in the country Im going to as there is in California, and Her Most Gracious Majesty, the Queen, God bless her, will appoint me one of her Gold Commissioners". Edward Hargraves

The Commonwealth of Australia is a constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary system of government. Queen Elizabeth II is the Queen of Australia, a role that is distinct from her position as monarch of the other Commonwealth realms. The Queen is represented by the Governor-General at Federal level and by the Governors at State level. Although the Constitution gives extensive executive powers to the GovernorGeneral, these are normally exercised only on the advice of the Prime Minister. The most notable exercise of the Governor-General's reserve powers outside the Prime Minister's direction was the dismissal of the Whitlam Government in the constitutional crisis of 1975.

Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II

Governor General The House of Representatives

Prime

Minister The Senate

The Commonwealth Parliament The High Court of Australia

The Federal Executive Council

There are three branches of government: The legislature: the Commonwealth Parliament, comprising the Queen, the Senate, and the House of Representatives; the Queen is represented by the Governor-General, whose powers are limited to assenting to laws. The executive: the Federal Executive Council (the Governor-General as advised by the Executive Councillors); in practice, the councillors are the Prime Minister and Ministers of State. The judiciary: the High Court of Australia and other federal courts. The State courts became formally independent from the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council when the Australia Act was passed in 1986.

The bicameral Commonwealth Parliament consists of the Queen, the Senate (the upper house) of 76 senators, and a House of Representatives (the lower house) of 150 members. Members of the lower house are elected from single-member constituencies, commonly known as 'electorates' or 'seats'. Elections for both chambers are held every three years; Senators have overlapping six-year terms, and only half of the seats are put to each election unless the cycle is interrupted by a double dissolution. The party with majority support in the House of Representatives forms government, and its leader becomes Prime Minister. There are three major political parties: the Australian Labor Party, the Liberal Party and the National Party. Independent members and several minor parties including the Greens and the Australian Democrats have achieved representation in Australian parliaments, mostly in upper houses.

States and territories

Australia consists of six states, two major mainland territories, and other minor territories. The states are New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria and Western Australia. The two major mainland territories are the Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory. In most respects, the territories function similarly to the states, but the Commonwealth Parliament can override any legislation of their parliaments. All residual legislative powers are retained by the state parliaments, including powers over hospitals, education, police, the judiciary, roads, public transport and local government.

Australia is situated south of Asia, between the Pacific and the Indian Oceans. Australia is a continent, a country and an island at the same time. Australia is located in the southern hemisphere.

New South Wales

Capital of New South Wales. Leading industrial city. Population: 3,200,000 people.

Sydney AMP Tower

St. Maria Cathedral The Harbour Bridge Sydney

Opera House

The Australian Capital Territory

Canberra the capital of Australia

The Parliament House

Canberra is the capital of Australia. It is very young city. Population is about 310,000 people.

Capitol Hill

Canberra Fountain

Queensland

Capital of Queensland. It is a year-round vocation place. Population is about 1,400,000 people.

Brisbane Skyscrapers

Brisbane Bridge

Brisbane

Brisbane

South Australia

Capital of South Australia. A pretty and industrial city. Population: 1,100,000 people.

Gold Beach Adelaide

Victoria Square Fountain

Adelaide

Tasmania

Hobart

Capital of island-state Tasmania. Winters are very cold. Population of about 200,000.
Lavender Farm

Bay of Fires

Remarkable Cave

Coles Bay

Victoria

Melbourne

Capital of Victoria. The worlds most livable city. Population: 3.200.000

Old House

Melbourne Bridge

Train Station

Western Australia

Perth

Capital of Western Australia. One of the best climates in Australia. Population: 1.200.000 people.
Perth Skyscrapers

Kings Park

The Northern Territory

Darwin

Norfolk Island

Christmas Island

Adelaide City

Ashfield City

Beudesert City

Brisbane City

Dalby Town

Sidney

Waggawagga City

Westtorrens City

Aboriginal Australia

Official Coat of Arms

Torrestrait Island

Geography of Australia, Climate of Australia, and Drought in Australia

Australia's 7,617,930 square kilometres (2,941,299 sq. mi) landmass is on the IndoAustralian Plate. Surrounded by the Indian, Southern and Pacific oceans, Australia is separated from Asia by the Arafura and Timor seas. Australia has a total 34,218 kilometres (21,262 mi) of coastline (excluding all offshore islands) and claims an extensive Exclusive Economic Zone of 8,148,250 square kilometres (3,146,057 sq. mi). This exclusive economic zone does not include the Australian Antarctic Territory.

The Great Barrier Reef, the world's largest coral reef, lies a short distance off the north-east coast and extends for over 2,000 kilometres (1,250 mi). Mount Augustus claimed to be the world's largest monolith, is located in Western Australia. At 2,228 metres (7,310 ft), Mount Kosciuszko on the Great Dividing Range is the highest mountain on the Australian mainland, although Mawson Peak on the remote Australian territory of Heard Island is taller at 2,745 metres (9,006 ft).

By far the largest part of Australia is desert or semi-arid. Australia is the flattest continent, has the oldest and least fertile soils, and is the driest inhabited continent. Only the southeast and south-west corners of the continent have a temperate climate. Most of the population lives along the temperate southeastern coastline. The landscapes of the northern part of the country, with a tropical climate, consist of rainforest, woodland, grassland, mangrove swamps and desert. The climate is significantly influenced by ocean currents, including the El Nio southern oscillation, which is correlated with periodic drought, and the seasonal tropical low pressure system that produces cyclones in northern Australia.

GENERAL INFORMATION
80% of endemic species.

Principal cause: Isolation

Different ecosystems Problems: Human activity Introduction of non-native species.

Flora of Australia and Fauna of Australia

Although most of Australia is semi-arid or desert, it covers a diverse range of habitats, from alpine heaths to tropical rainforests, and is recognised as a megadiverse country. Because of the great age and consequent low levels of fertility of the continent, its extremely variable weather patterns, and its long-term geographic isolation, much of Australia's biota is unique and diverse. About 85% of flowering plants, 84% of mammals, more than 45% of birds, and 89% of in-shore, temperate-zone fish are endemic. Many of Australia's ecoregions, and the species within those regions, are threatened by human activities and introduced plant and animal species. The federal Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 is a legal framework for the protection of threatened species. Numerous protected areas have been created under the national Biodiversity Action Plan to protect and preserve unique ecosystems; 64 wetlands are registered under the Ramsar Convention, and 16 World Heritage Sites have been established.

Flora of Australia and Fauna of Australia

Most Australian woody plant species are evergreen and many are adapted to fire and drought, including many eucalyptus and acacias. Australia has a rich variety of endemic legume species that thrive in nutrient-poor soils because of their symbiosis with Rhizobia bacteria and mycorrhizal fungi. Wellknown Australian fauna include monotremes (the platypus and echidna); a host of marsupials, including the kangaroo, koala, wombat; and birds such as the emu and kookaburra. The dingo was introduced by Austronesian people who traded with Indigenous Australians around 3000 BCE. Many plant and animal species became extinct soon after first human settlement, including the Australian megafauna; others have become extinct since European settlement, among them the Thylacine.

Warumbungle NP

Crowdy Bay NP Cockatoo NP

Crowdy Bay NP

Australian Kangaroo

Wombat

Koala

Australian Antelope

Tasmanian Wolfe

Australian Bandicoots

Echidna

Platypus

Dingo

Dingoes

A Bat

Crimson Rosella

Crimson Rosella

Australian grebe wood duck

Azure Kingfisher

Blue Winged Kookaburra

Brown Falcon

Wild Turkey

Cassowary

Cockatoo

Common Bronzewing

Crested terns

Emu

Grey Curawong

Laughing Kookaburra

Lewins Honeyeater

Little Corellas

Little Pied Cormorant

Lyre Bird

Major Mitchell Cockatoo

Pacific Gull

Pacific Herron

Pelican

Tawny Frogmouth

Penguins

Rainbow Lorikeet

Royal Spoonbills

Swallow

Eagle

Snakes

Lizards

- What is the capital of Australia? a. Sydney b. Melbourne c. Canberra - Which city is the oldest and largest? a. Canberra b. Sydney c. Darwin - Which is a popular Australian animal? a. bear b. kangaroo c. fox - Who are the Australian natives a. Eskimos b. Aborigines c. Indians - Who discovered Australia? a. Columbus b. Captain Cook c. Lewis and Clark - What is the official Language in Australia? a. English b. German c. Spain

OFFITIAL NAME : Commonwealth of Australia CAPITAL: Canberra TOTAL AREA: 7,700,000 sq.km POPULATION: 20 million people HEAD OF STATE: Queen Elizabeth II represented by Governor-General FORM OF GVERNMENT: Constitutional monarchy PORTS: Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane LONGEST RIVER: the Darling (2,740 km) HIGHEST POINT: Mount Kosciusko (2,230 m) NATURAL RESOURCES: coal, zink, nickel, gold, wool NATIONAL HOLIDAY: Australian Day , 16 January (1788) MONEY: basic unit Australian dollar NATIONAL SYMBOLS: Kangaroo and Emu NATIONAL ANTHEM: Waltzing Matilda

Its the worlds largest coral reef (over 2000 km). It stretches along the east coast of Queensland. Its made up of over 2900 individual reefs very close to each other.

Dialects of Australia

British
barbecue kangaroo mosquito chicken candy slippers

Australian
barbie roo mozzie chook lollie thongs

TV
girl form sheep

tellie
sheila year jumbuck

cinema
postbox trainers

pictures
letterbox runners

freeway

main road

- What is the capital of Australia? a. Sydney b. Melbourne c. Canberra - Which city is the oldest and largest? a. Canberra b. Sydney c. Darwin - Which is a popular Australian animal? a. bear b. kangaroo c. fox - Who are the Australian natives? a. Eskimos b. Aborigines c. Indians - Who discovered Australia? a. Columbus b. Captain Cook c. Lewis and Clark - What is the official Language in Australia? a. English b. German c. Spain

Queensland Hobart
Western Australia

Melbourne Sydney

Tasmania
Perth

Victoria
Brisbane South Australia Adelaide New South Wales

Adelaide

South Australia Melbourne

Victoria

Sydney

New South Wales

Brisbane
Perth

Queensland

Western Australia

Hobart

Tasmania

Tell about Australia

Geographical location: south of Asia, between and Oceans. in the southern hemisphere. Capital: Total area: square kelometres. Population: people. Native Australians: Principal towns: Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane. Worlds famous sights: Principal industries: wool, metals and mineral producer. Head of State Queen represented by Animals: National emblems:

Colonization of New Zealand

Europeans in New Zealand

The

first Europeans settlers in New Zealand were probably shipwrecked sailors and escaped Australian convicts They set up small whaling villages along the coast The Maori were successful at fighting the Europeans however they too had no resistance to disease By 1840, their population had been cut by 50% to about 100,000

Building Empires
Many

Western countries set up colonies in the South Pacific The small islands were perfect for trading posts and refueling stations for ships

Independent Australia
In

1901 Australia became an independent country known as the Commonwealth of Australia It is a parliamentary democracy elective representatives choose the prime minister to head the government.

Independent New Zealand In 1907 New Zealand became an independent

country It is a parliamentary democracy elective representatives choose the prime minister to head the government. In 1893 NZ became the 1st country in the world to give women the right to vote NZ was also the first to give aid to the sick, poor, elderly, and jobless