Capital letter, an upper-case letter in any type of writing; Capital city, the area of a country, province, region, or state, regarded as enjoying primary status, usually but not always the seat of the government; Capital (economics), a factor of production that is not wanted for itself but for its ability to help in producing other goods Brisbane is named after the river which snakes through the city. Australia, the smallest continent and one of the largest countries on Earth, lying between the Pacific and Indian oceans in the Southern Hemisphere. At least 60,000 years before European explorers sailed into the South Pacific, the first Aboriginal explorers had arrived from Asia, and by 20,000 years ago they had spread throughout the mainland and its chief island outlier, Tasmania. Australia's most experienced private capital manager. By road it's some 2750 kilometers from the nearest Australian state capital, Adelaide in South Australia, and nearly 4000 kilometers from Sydney on the east coast. Capital most commonly refers to: . The ruins of the Port Arthur convict penitentiary and the historic village of Richmond are but two popular Hobart day trip destinations. The official visitor information website for Port Lincoln, a seafood, fishing and coastal adventure playground on the Eyre Peninsula, South Australia. Author of. Largely nomadic hunters and gatherers, the Aboriginals had already transformed the primeval landscape, principally by the use of fire, and, contrary to common European perceptions, they had established robust, semipermanent settlements in well-favoured localities. Lakehouse Capital is a Sydney-based funds management business launched, and wholly owned, by The Motley Fool Australia Pty Ltd (ACN 146 988 052). The Great Barrier Reef, off the east coast of Queensland, is the greatest mass of coral in the world and one of the world’s foremost tourist attractions. It's a city that's suffered the brunt of war and natural catastrophes but has seemed to rise stronger than ever before. It occupies part of the Australian Capital Territory, in southern Australia, and is about 150 miles (240 km) southwest of Sydney. Ah, Melbourne. From Darwin in the North to Hobart in the South. It is the city of the iconic Sydney Opera House, yachts, and ferries on Sydney Harbour, a string of white-sand beaches, galleries and museums in the heart of the city, restaurants and fine dining, and a variety of many other city attractions. Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. If, like the English novelist D.H. Lawrence, visitors from the Northern Hemisphere are at first overwhelmed by “the vast, uninhabited land and by the grey charred bush…so phantom-like, so ghostly, with its tall, pale trees and many dead trees, like corpses,” they should remember that to Australians the bush—that sparsely populated Inland or Outback beyond the Great Dividing Range of mountains running along the Pacific coast and separating it from the cities in the east—is familiar and evokes nostalgia. By Georgia Rickard. Sydney, the capital of New South Wales, is Australia's first city, having grown from the first European settlement in 1770 on Sydney Cove into the vibrant metropolis that it is today. Australia, the smallest continent and one of the largest countries on Earth, lying between the Pacific and Indian oceans in the Southern Hemisphere. By signing up for this email, you are agreeing to news, offers, and information from Encyclopaedia Britannica. It's one of my favorite cities, and always a pleasure to visit. Capital punishment remained the law in five of the six states after Ryan’s death—Queensland had abolished it as early as 1922—but not for long. Extremely remote from their traditional allies and trading partners—it is some 12,000 miles (19,000 km) from Australia to Great Britain via the Indian Ocean and the Suez Canal and about 7,000 miles (11,000 km) across the Pacific Ocean to the west coast of the United States—Australians have become more interested in the proximity of huge potential markets in Asia and in the highly competitive industrialized economies of China, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan. The capital of South Australia, Adelaide, is on the Gulf St Vincent which leads through Investigator Strait to the Southern Ocean. As with most major Australian cities, a river runs through the city, and in Adelaide, this is the Torrens. Australians are in many respects fortunate in that they do not share their continent—which is only a little smaller than the United States—with any other country. Canberra might be smaller than Sydney to its north and Melbourne to its south, but there's still plenty to discover. And where exactly are Australia's capital cities and to which state or territory do they belong? It's alive in its streets, its trams, its sights, its arts and entertainment venues, its restaurants and bars, and its day-to-day activities. Australia has a federal form of government, with a national government for the Commonwealth of Australia and individual state governments (those of New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia, and Tasmania). Uluru/Ayers Rock, Uluru–Kata Tjuta National Park, southwestern Northern Territory, central Australia. Find out how quickly you criss-cross Australia. Canberra, federal capital of the Commonwealth of Australia. It has grown on the banks of the Derwent River and is the end point of the annual sea classic, the Sydney Hobart Yacht Race, which starts on Sydney Harbour on Boxing Day. Australia’s isolation from other continents explains much of the singularity of its plant and animal life. Be on the lookout for your Britannica newsletter to get trusted stories delivered right to your inbox. Find a mix of history, art and the outdoors in Australia's capital city. Australia has been called “the Oldest Continent,” “the Last of Lands,” and “the Last Frontier.” Those descriptions typify the world’s fascination with Australia, but they are somewhat unsatisfactory. Australia’s capital is Canberra, located in the southeast between the larger and more important economic and cultural centres of Sydney and Melbourne. Australia is separated from Indonesia to the northwest by the Timor and Arafura seas, from Papua New Guinea to the northeast by the Coral Sea and the Torres Strait, from the Coral Sea Islands Territory by the Great Barrier Reef, from New Zealand to the southeast by the Tasman Sea, and from Antarctica in the far south by the Indian Ocean. Please select which sections you would like to print: While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Geographically, the Australian Capital Territory is within, but not a part of, the state of New South Wales, in much the same way that the District of Columbia, where the US capital of Washington is located, is part of neither the states of Maryland nor Virginia. In simple physical terms, the age of much of the continent is certainly impressive—most of the rocks providing the foundation of Australian landforms were formed during Precambrian and Paleozoic time (some 4.6 billion to 252 million years ago)—but the ages of the cores of all the continents are approximately the same. Adelaide is named after Queen Adelaide, German-born consort of England's King William IV. This quiz is considerably smaller. Australia, the continent and the country, may have been quite isolated at the beginning of the 20th century, but it entered the 21st century a culturally diverse land brimming with confidence, an attitude encouraged by the worldwide fascination with the land “Down Under” and demonstrated when Sydney hosted the 2000 Olympic Games. Brisbane, the capital of Queensland, is located on the southeastern side of the state, just north of the Gold Coast. It can be an outcome that drives productivity, value and impact by unlocking human potential and creating an organisation that is resilient to risk, fit for the future and grounded in meaning for workers whose identity will drive sustained results. When reimagined, work can be more than a process. Honorary Emeritus Professor of History, University of Tasmania, Hobart, Australia. With our trusted capital partnerships and deep property expertise, we provide certainty in commercial property capital. Getting around Melbourne to view and experience its many city attractions is easy and pleasant with its free City Circle tram. As with most major Australian cities, a river runs through the city, and in Adelaide, this is the Torrens. Canberra in the Australian Capital Territory is Australia's national capital. To the south, Australian jurisdiction extends a further 310 miles (500 km) to the southern extremity of the island of Tasmania, and in the north it extends to the southern shores of Papua New Guinea. Human Capital Consulting. Australia is nearly 2,500 miles (4,000 km) from east to west. The river itself is named after Sir Thomas Brisbane, Governor of New South Wales from 1821 to 1825. Corrections? Hobart, Australia's southernmost state capital, is located on the southeastern side of island-state Tasmania. Ring in the new year with a Britannica Membership, First and second waves of postwar immigration, The ascendance of Australian popular culture, https://www.britannica.com/place/Australia, National Geographic - Australia and Oceania: Physical Geography, Official Site of the Embassy of Australia in Saudi Arabia, The Official Site of Royal Australian Navy, Australian Government - Department of Veterans' Affairs - World War I and Australia 1914 to 1918, Central Intelligence Agency - The World Factbook - Australia, Official Site of the Government of Australia, Australian War Memorial - First World War 1914–18, Official Site of the Embassy of Australia in Lebanon, Anzac Centenary - Australia’s Contribution to WWI, Australian Human Rights Commission - Face the facts: Cultural Diversity, Australia - Children's Encyclopedia (Ages 8-11), Australia - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up), Uluru/Ayers Rock, Northern Territory, Australia, Great Barrier Reef, off the coast of Queensland, Australia. The country’s low relief results from the long and extensive erosive action of the forces of wind, rain, and the heat of the sun during the great periods of geologic time when the continental mass was elevated well above sea level. We provide developers & property investors with access to a wide range of funding options. Browse accommodation, book tours and activities, discover local events, arts and culture, history and more. Stamford Capital is Australia's leading arranger and provider of commercial property finance. Hemmed in by the Indian Ocean in the west and the treeless Nullarbor Plain in the east, Perth is easily the most isolated state capital in the world. Canberra's Lake Burley Griffin was created when the Molonglo River was dammed in the early 1960s. In population, Brisbane ranks first in Queensland and third among Australia's cities after Sydney and Melbourne. The city has grown alongside the meandering Brisbane River with the city's eastern suburbs fronting Moreton Bay on the western side of the Pacific Ocean. The Great Barrier Reef, off the coast of Queensland, Australia. The federal authorities govern the external territories of Norfolk Island, the Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Christmas Island, Ashmore and Cartier islands, the Coral Sea Islands, and Heard Island and McDonald Islands and claim the Australian Antarctic Territory, an area larger than Australia itself. Read more… Contact Us The main island of Tasmania is no more than 62.5 square kilometers and most Tasmanian attractions can be reached in a day from Hobart or the northern city of Launceston. Adelaide city center has streets laid out in a grid surrounded by parklands. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. Papua New Guinea, formerly an Australian external territory, gained its independence in 1975. April in Australia: Weather, What to Pack, and What to See, Driving from Sydney to Melbourne on Highway 1, The Top 12 Wine Regions in Australia Australia, Your Month-to-Month Guide to Australia: Weather, Events, & Holidays, October in Australia: Weather and Event Guide, The Top Indigenous Travel Experiences in Australia, Your Trip to Brisbane: The Complete Guide, Exotic Wildflowers Dot the Landscape in Australia. Sharebroker in Perth - CPS Capital Group (08) 9223 2222 is a stock broking firm specialized in financial services, capital raising, stock brokerage services, corporate advice, company promotion and … Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). In the late 1990s these issues sparked a conservative backlash. We've made ~90 investments and maintain one of the largest investment teams in the region. When Captain Arthur Phillip of the British Royal Navy landed with the First Fleet at Botany Bay in 1788, there may have been between 250,000 and 500,000 Aboriginals, though some estimates are much higher. As the seat of national government, the Australian Parliament and the nation's central federal offices are located in Canberra, as are the nation's national galleries, museums, and library. It still retains some of the mystical quality it had for the first explorers searching for inland seas and great rivers, and it remains a symbol of Australia’s strength and independence; the Outback poem by A.B. The most striking characteristics of the vast country are its global isolation, its low relief, and the aridity of much of its surface. There was, rather, a series of comparatively independent expansions from the margins of the various colonies, which were not joined in an independent federated union until 1901. Larry Rivera is a Sydney-based writer, journalist, and editor who has covered the city and its surroundings since 1997. Assimilation, of course, is seldom a quick and easy process, and minority rights, multiculturalism, and race-related issues have played a large part in contemporary Australian politics. That honor belongs to Canberra in the Australian Capital Territory. Historically part of the British Empire and now a member of the Commonwealth, Australia is a relatively prosperous independent country. The city is named after evolutionist Charles Darwin who sailed on the HMS Beagle in the early 1800s, although Darwin was not on the Beagle when the ship sailed into Darwin Harbour in 1839. Omissions? Australia is the last of lands only in the sense that it was the last continent, apart from Antarctica, to be explored by Europeans. Catch either of these two visitor-friendly vehicles and get off at places that interest you and then get back on and head to your next destination. Its unique flora and fauna include hundreds of kinds of eucalyptus trees and the only egg-laying mammals on Earth, the platypus and echidna. For the visitor, Perth is not just a destination but also an accessible gateway to the state's beaches, wine regions, habitats of marine life, World Heritage sites, and striking natural landscapes. And, no, despite its prominence among the cities of the world, Sydney is not the capital of Australia. SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australia's Queensland state on Monday announced a three-day COVID-19 lockdown in its capital city of Brisbane after reporting four new locally acquired cases of … Updates? The Australian mainland extends from west to east for nearly 2,500 miles (4,000 km) and from Cape York Peninsula in the northeast to Wilsons Promontory in the southeast for nearly 2,000 miles (3,200 km). Dove Lake in Cradle Mountain–Lake St. Clair National Park, Tasmania, Australia. It is a city of many attractions and a popular first destination for visitors to Australia. (“Banjo”) Paterson, “Waltzing Matilda,” is the unofficial national anthem of Australia known the world over. On the other hand, whereas the landscape history of extensive areas in Europe and North America has been profoundly influenced by events and processes that occurred since late in the last Ice Age—roughly the past 25,000 years—in Australia scientists use a more extensive timescale that takes into account the great antiquity of the continent’s landscape. Here are the capital cities of Australia's six states and two major mainland territories: The capital of South Australia, Adelaide, is on the Gulf St Vincent which leads through Investigator Strait to the Southern Ocean. But an equally significant feature of modern Australian society is the representation of a broad spectrum of cultures drawn from many lands, a development stemming from immigration that is transforming the strong Anglo-Celtic orientation of Australian culture. As the Australian capital city closest to Southeast Asia, it is a melting pot of peoples and cultures, from Aboriginal and Islander Australians to the descendants of European settlers and Asian wayfarers and migrants. And feel the throb of this city. Its capital city is Canberra, and its most important economic and cultural centers are Sydney and Melbourne. But this is a city of the future, with a burgeoning population, new housing developments, and riches from the state's mineral resources. Each state has a constitution, and its government exercises a limited degree of sovereignty. It's often easy enough to know that Sydney and Melbourne are cities in Australia. There are also two internal territories: Northern Territory, established as a self-governing territory in 1978, and the Australian Capital Territory (including the city of Canberra), which attained self-governing status in 1988. The larger, longer Murray River empties into Lake Alexandrina and into the ocean southeast of Adelaide on the eastern side of the Fleurieu Peninsula. Get a Britannica Premium subscription and gain access to exclusive content. It's Australia's northernmost capital city in the region commonly referred to as the Top End. The American-style concept of a national “frontier” moving outward along a line of settlement is also inappropriate. Tasmania followed in 1968, Victoria in 1975, South Australia in 1976 and New South Wales and Western Australia in 1984. Frontier metaphors were long employed to suggest the existence of yet another extension of Europe and especially of an outpost of Anglo-Celtic culture in the distant “antipodes.”. Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students. Link Copied! Other plants and animals associated with Australia are various acacias (Acacia pycnantha [golden wattle] is the national flower) and dingoes, kangaroos, koalas, and kookaburras. Canberra lies astride the Molonglo River, which is a tributary of the Murrumbidgee River. Isolation is also a pronounced characteristic of much of the social landscape beyond the large coastal cities. Contact us on 02 9046 8900