Page 66 - New Zealand: Natural Wonders North & South

After New South Wales, Van Diemen’s Land (renamed Tasmania in 1854) was the next colony
settled, beginning in 1803. Perth and the colony of Western Australia were settled in 1829, but
languished until the discovery of gold in the 1890s. Adelaide was established as the capital of
South Australia in 1837, and Melbourne (which had been settled in 1836) became the capital
of the colony of Victoria in 1850. Queensland, which today includes Brisbane, Cairns, and the
/LTY_]PP ^[WT_ Zʬ Q]ZX 9Pb >Z`_S BLWP^ TY # $

In 1851 Edward Hargraves struck gold in New South Wales, an event that led to the tripling of
Australia’s population during the next 11 years. However, immigration from countries outside
of Europe, Canada, and America was prevented for the next 100 years under a policy called
“White Australia.” It was not until the 1970s that immigration restrictions were relaxed.

Creation of a National Identity

In contrast to the United States, which became a federal republic in 1789, and Canada, which
became a Commonwealth in 1867, Australia remained a collection of distinct colonies until the
dawn of the 20th century. In some ways, each colony’s ties to Great Britain were closer than
they were with the other Australian colonies.

Australian folk tales and bush ballads celebrate the lives of the farmhands, miners, and sheep
shearers whose rugged perseverance built a prosperous nation in a challenging environment
during this 19th-century colonial period. This was also a time when a panoply of newspapers
trumpeted diverse local points of view in the various colonies. A milestone in the emergence
of a uniquely Australian literature occurred in 1874 with the publication of Marcus Clarke’s
For the Term of His Natural Life, a graphic account of prison life in Tasmania earlier in
the century.

After some earlier attempts at establishing greater unity had failed, the Commonwealth of
Australia became a reality on January 1, 1901. A true national identity was forged only in the
aftermath of World Wars I. Anzac Day, celebrated on April 25, commemorates the Australian
and New Zealand Army Corps’ landing at Gallipoli in the First World War, a milestone in the
growth of national consciousness.

World War II compelled Australians to look beyond their traditional ties to Great Britain,
QZ]RP _SP YPb ,9E@> LWWTLYNP bT_S _SP @ > LYO ^PP _SPX^PWaP^ LYPb L^ L ;LNTʭN =TX YL_TZY
Australia celebrated its bicentennial in 1988, and Aussies took great pride in having Sydney
selected as the site for the 2000 Summer Olympics.

Recently Australia has been on the forefront of environmental activism, especially in regards
to the question of water management, which came under scrutiny during a severe drought in
2005-2006. On the other end of the spectrum, Queensland had too much water a few years
WL_P] ]P^`W_TYR TY O]LXL_TN ʮL^S ʮZZO^ L_ _SP PYO ZQ ,YZ_SP] ]PNPY_ ^_]`RRWP SL^ MPPY
the question of how to handle asylum seekers; this issue has been in the forefront of public
debate and generated some controversial policies.

66