Australia

Chapter 16

Geography and History

Contents

Geography1

History2

Look at the map of Australia carefully and find clues to the following items: size and location regions terrain and topography

Size and Location

the sixth largest country in the worldlocated in Oceania, the Southern Hemispherecompletely surrounded by water:

lying between the Indian and Pacific Oceans north: the Timor Sea, the Arafura Sea and the Torres

Strait east: the Coral Sea, the Tasman Sea south: the Bass Strait, the Indian Ocean west: the Indian Ocean

Regions

ACT—Australian Capital Territory NSW—New South Wales NT—Northern Territory QLD—Queensland SA—Southern Australia TAS—Tasmania VIC—Victoria WA—Western Australia

Terrain and Topography

The average elevation: 275m

Mount Everest is almost four times as high as Mount Kosciuszko.

The highest and lowest point in Australia

Name State Height (m)

Mawson Peak Heard Island 2,745

Mount Kosciuszko

NSW 2,228

Eyre Lake SA -15

Climate

an island continent with a diverse range of climate zones

north: tropical the interior: arid south: temperate Temperature: 50—0 ℃

Plants and Animals

indigenous plants: eucalyptus the golden wattle unique animals marsupials: kangaroo, koala, wombat monotremes: platypus and echidna (the only egg-laying mammals in the world) birds: black swan

EMU lyrebird white cockatoo

Natural Landscape

Great Barrier Reef Uluru (Ayers Rock) Alice Springs Barossa Valley

History

1 2 3 4

European Exploration and Settlement

Movement toward Federation

Influence of the War

Australia inDevelopment

European Exploration and Settlement

early exploration 1606: Torres, Spanish, Torres Strait

1642: Abel Tasman, Dutch, Tasmania Island

1688: William Dampier, British, northwest

1770: James Cook, British, Botany Bay and named it New South Wales

penal settlements 1783: the American Revolution ended and Australia was

established as a new penal settlement at Botany Bay in Australia.

expanding colonization: Growth of sheep grazing Gold rush

treatment of aborigines: 1788: 300,000 Australian aborigines 19th and 20th century: decline steeply

Movement toward Federation

1889: NSW began the movement to replace the Federal Council. Henry Parkes, its premier, announced that the colony would support a new form of federalism.

1900: the six colonies of Australia adopted a federal constitution and the Commonwealth of Australia was established.

Influence of the War

WWI: disaster to Australia 1914:

• total Australian men: 3 million• 400,000 volunteered to the war.• 60,000 died.• tens of thousands wounded

1915: April 25 became the Anzac Day, a day to remind the country’s most significant day of public homage.

interwar years: • uneven years, Great Depression

WWII:• sense of confidence enhanced• survived with a sense of pride

postwar peace and prosperity• the Snowy Mountains Scheme• the Menzies Era

Australia in Development

the lucky country:

postwar prosperity

an employment rate of almost 100%

1967 — passed legislation to protect the right of

indigenous people

1960s — baby boomers

2000 — the Sydney Olympic Games and the Sydney

Paralympic Games