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A Dictionary of World History Australia

Australia An island country and

continent in the Southern Hemisphere Read more
in the south‐west Pacific Ocean. about
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Surrounding it are numerous islands, "Australia" in
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the largest being Tasmania, and off other titles
its east coast lies the Great Barrier
« Search results Reef. Oxford
Reference Online
Physical. Links
Much of the continent has a hot, dry
World Flags
climate, and a large part of the central
area is desert or semi‐desert; the World Maps
In this entry most fertile areas are on the eastern A Guide to
Australia coastal plains and in the south‐west Countries of the
Physical. corner of Western Australia. World
Economy. A Dictionary of
History. Economy. Contemporary
Australia's economy is based on World History
See also mining, agriculture, and industry. The Oxford
Agricultural land, which is periodically
Barton, Sir Edmund devastated by drought, accounts for Companion to
Hawke, Robert 64% of Australia's territory, almost all the Politics of the
Howard, John of this being devoted to cattle and World
Keating, Paul sheep. Australia is the world's leading
Whitlam, Gough wool producer and largest beef
Aborigine exporter, as well as being an
important wheat producer. Paramount in mineral production,
ANZUS Australia is the world's leading exporter of iron ore and
gold rushes aluminium, and highly important in producing coal, nickel, zinc,
Iraq War and other metals. Australia's energy resources, which include
South-East Asia high quality black coal, oil, natural gas, and uranium, constitute
Treaty Organization 18% of global reserves. Domestic crude oil meets 70% of
Vietnam domestic needs and is also exported. Manufacturing industry is
aimed principally at domestic markets, and is comparatively
undeveloped and vulnerable to competition from Asian
Adjacent entries neighbours. Japan and the USA are Australia's main trading
Aurelian partners, to which raw materials are supplied. Although
Australia's trading relationship with countries of the Pacific Rim
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Aurelius, Marcus Australia's trading relationship with countries of the Pacific Rim
Aurignacian and Asia is well established, the formation of European and
Ausgleich American trading blocs is viewed with concern; there is also
recurrent concern over the servicing of a sizeable foreign debt.
Austerlitz, Battle of
Australia
History.
Australian
Australia was first inhabited by Aborigines thought to have
Federation
migrated from south‐east Asia 50,000–40,000 years ago.
Movement Although the first known European discoveries of the continent
Australoid were those made in the early 17th century, there may have been
australopithecines earlier Portuguese discoveries. It was visited by an Englishman,
Austria William Dampier , in 1688 and 1699 . Captain James Cook
Austria‐Hungary claimed British possession of the eastern part of the continent in
1770 , naming it New South Wales. The British penal colony of
New South Wales was founded in 1788 . Immigration of free
settlers from 1820 onwards aided the colony's development, as
did exploration, which opened pastures for the wool industry.
Squatter settlement of much of eastern Australia led to conflict
with the Aborigines, resulting in events such as the Myall Creek
Massacre ( 1838 ). Van Diemen's Land (from 1855 Tasmania),
settled in 1803 , became a separate colony in 1825 . Moreton
Bay , founded as a penal settlement in 1824 , became the colony
of Queensland in 1859 . The colony of Western Australia was
founded in 1829 . The Port Phillip District, settled illegally in
1834 , became the colony of Victoria in 1851 . South Australia,
founded as a province in 1834 , became a crown colony in 1842
. All of the colonies except Western Australia were granted
responsible government during the 1850s. The gold rushes of
the 1850s and 1860s brought many changes. The White
Australia Policy can be traced back to that period. Demands for
land to be opened for selectors increased. Western Australia,
granted responsible government in 1890 , developed more
slowly than the other colonies. In 1901 the six colonies were
federated as self‐governing states to form the Commonwealth of
Australia. Powers were distributed between the Commonwealth
and state governments, and with the crown through its
representative, the governor‐general, retaining (until 1931 )
overall responsibility for defence and foreign affairs. State
legislators would have full responsibility for internal state affairs.
Sir Edmund Barton , who had been prominent in the federation
movement, was the first Prime Minister. The Northern Territory
was transferred from South Australia to the Commonwealth in
1911 . In the same year land was transferred to the
Commonwealth from New South Wales, for the creation of the
Australian Capital Territory, Canberra. (Jervis Bay was added to
the Australian Capital Territory in 1915 .) The Commonwealth
Parliament met in Melbourne until 1927 , when it was transferred
to Canberra. In the 1930s reserves were established for the
Aborigines , and in 1981 the Pitjantjara Aborigines were
granted freehold titles to land in Southern Australia. Australia
fought with the Allies in both World Wars and with the USA in
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Australia : Oxford Reference Online 12/14/09 10:36 AM

fought with the Allies in both World Wars and with the USA in
Vietnam . After World War II ties with Britain diminished, and
Australia joined the ANZUS and South‐East Asia Treaty
Organization powers. The Labor governments of the 1970s
and 1980s, led by Gough Whitlam and Bob Hawke ,
strengthened trade ties with the non‐communist Far East, but a
deteriorating economy in the 1980s led to labour unrest and in
1991 to the replacement of Hawke by his deputy, Paul Keating
. In response to increasing support for Australia becoming a
republic, Queen Elizabeth II announced ( 1993 ) that she would
agree to such a constitutional change if the Australian people
wanted it. A referendum motion to replace the Queen with a
President was defeated in 1999 . Following the Labor Party's
heavy electoral defeat by a Liberal‐National Party coalition in
1996 , Liberal leader John Howard was appointed Prime
Minister; he was re‐elected in 1998 , 2001 , and 2004 . Australia
participated in the 2003 Iraq War and subsequent military
operations.

Capital: Canberra
7,682,300 sq km (2,966,200 sq
Area:
miles)
Population: 20,345,000 ( 2005 )
Currency: 1 Australian dollar = 100 cents
Roman Catholic 26.6%;
Anglican 20.7%; other
Religions: Protestant 15.8%; Eastern
Orthodox, Muslim, Jewish,
Hindu, and Buddhist minorities
native‐born 78.2% (of which
1.5% Aboriginal); country of
origin of foreign‐born: UK
Ethnic 7.2%; Asia and Middle East
Groups: 3.9%; New Zealand 1.9%; Italy
1.6%; Africa and Americas
1.5%; Yugoslavia 1.0%;
Greece 1.0%
English (official); minority and
Languages:
Aboriginal languages
UN; OECD; Colombo Plan;
ANZUS Pact; Secretariat of
International
the Pacific Community; Pacific
Organizations:
Islands Forum;
Commonwealth; WTO

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"Australia" A Dictionary of World History . Oxford University Press, 2000.
Oxford Reference Online . Oxford University Press. University of Tampa. 14
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