Australian Federation Or “How the States Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Being a Nation”

Australian Federation Or “How the States Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Being a Nation” I’m not worried!

What was Australia Like Before Federation? Why did people start to become interested in what it meant to be Australian? What was the first state to be created?

What was Australia Like Before Federation? Before 1901, Australia was just a number of separate British Colonies, who were more or less like separate countries. Australia as one nation, under one government, didn’t exist.

No-one on the mainland Cares about us We don’t actually exist yet. A Divided Country We have nice weather, So we’re fine. We have all the best Resources and we’re keeping them To ourselves. We don’t have to listen to anything those Victorians say Where is Tasmania? We look after ourselves No-one on the mainland Cares about us

The Changing States

So who wanted Federation then? In 1901 Australia’s population numbered 3,788,123, but these people were split over 6 states. (The NT and ACT didn’t exist yet.) Australia had been settled over 100 years earlier, which meant that a lot of people (that is, people from European backgrounds) in the country had actually been born there, rather than being shipped in from overseas. Understandably, these people were interested in what it actually meant to be Australian.

The Rise of Nationalism The idea of being "Australian" began to be celebrated in songs and poems. It was also helped by improvements in transport and communications, such as the establishment of a telegraph between the colonies in 1872. This surge of interest in what it meant to be Australian led to a movement called “Nationalism”. Nationalists wanted to define Australia as a country, instead of just a group of separate states.

What was Australia Like Before Federation? Why did people start to become interested in what it meant to be Australian? What was the first state to be created?

Why were some Australians so inspired by the USA? The United States Why were some Australians so inspired by the USA? What was the cause of some concern, given what had happened in the USA?

The United States Nationalists were very inspired by what had recently happened in the USA. Like Australia, the USA had started out as a mostly British Colony. However, tensions had broken out between the British and American Colonists, mostly to do with having to pay tax to the British. These tensions led to open warfare in 1775. To combat the British, the Americans formed a government to co-ordinate the states in their military effort. It was the first time the states had functioned as one country.

Civil War However, it wasn’t all clear sailing for the Americans. After winning the war with the British, more and states became part of the Union, which led to more tensions! Arguments over the rights and powers of individual states (mostly to do with slavery and how much control the federal government would have) ended up in the States going to war with each other in 1861. Lots of people died. You can understand why some Australians would be worried about forming such a Union…

Why were some Australians so inspired by the USA? The United States Why were some Australians so inspired by the USA? What was the cause of some concern, given what had happened in the USA?

The Road to Federation Who was Henry Parkes? When did he first suggest Australia should become one nation? What were the states starting to worry about? When did most states meet and agree that Federation sounded like a good idea? What did they then spend 10 years deciding?

The People of Federation Henry Parkes, then the Colonial Secretary of New South Wales, first proposed a Federal Council body in 1867. Born in 1816, Henry had no formal education. He first worked as a brickie before starting his own business which quickly failed. He actually left Australia in 1838 with his wife (the daughter of a butcher) to find work in the UK. 6 months later, after working as a labourer, he and his family returned to Sydney, where he found work as an Ironmonger.

Henry Parkes Henry then opened an Ivory Tuner business, which failed, leaving him in deep financial trouble. By this time though, Henry had started becoming involved in local politics and had taken up writing. For a lousy businessman with no formal education, it seems Henry could actually write really well. He had several books of poetry published that were very well received.

The Road to Federation Henry quickly rose through the political world and was soon the Colonial Secretary of NSW. In 1867, he put forward the idea for a National Union to the NSW government. Unfortunately, the British Representative for the Colonies said no. NO!!

The Road to Federation continues… Luckily, Henry didn’t give up. Even if he was getting older and his beard was getting longer. (check out the picture to the left) Henry ended up being the Premier of NSW 5 times between 1872 and 1891. In 1880, as Premier, he brought up the idea of Federation again at a meeting of all of the Australian Premiers. I still think we should have a national government. What do you guys reckon?

Worries… The heads of the individual states were starting to worry about quite a few things. Communication… a telegraph system was already established in most parts of the country but needed more expansion. Who was going to pay for it and organise it? People were also worried about the number of Chinese workers coming to Australia. They wanted to set up some form of Immigration Control.

More Worries… They also worried about the workers bandying together and forming unions, which would make them harder to control. People also wanted to make sure taxes would be more or less the same across the country. Too many takes would be bad for business and trade with other countries. Also, people were a bit nervous about the large number of Germans and French who were gathering in Papua New Guinea. Australia needed a military force of its own…

The First Federation Because of these fears, a Federal Council of Australasia was formed in 1888, to represent the affairs of the colonies in their relations with the South Pacific islands. New South Wales and New Zealand didn’t join. Without NSW, the Federation wasn’t as strong as it should have been. NSW was one of the strongest, wealthiest states. All the same, it was a good start.

”I could confederate these colonies in twelve months" Getting Closer… Henry Parkes was still keen to establish a Federal Government involving all of the states. Not many people thought he would be able to do it though. At a conference in 1889, he claimed: ”I could confederate these colonies in twelve months" To which someone replied that he should, as it would be a great finish to his life. In other words, doing so would kill him.

Conferences and Congresses By the end of a conference in 1890 (which took place in February in a blistering 39 degrees), most people seemed to think a Federal Government was a good idea. However, first off they had to decide what sort of government they wanted. A lot of arguments went on about this over the next few years. Some people thought it was a good idea to have an American System of Government. (The Americans were seen as being a good example to the young Australian nation.)

Which Government? British Government was split between two houses, an upper house and lower house. It also provided a good model for government beneath a Monarch, unlike the US. Ultimately the American model was mixed with the British system. Members of the upper house would be chosen by Ministers appointed by the government. These Ministers would come from whichever party had the majority in the lower house. Everything was sorted, now they just needed to get the Australian people (the white Australians anyway) to agree to join a federation.

The Road to Federation Who was Henry Parkes? When did he first suggest Australia should become one nation? What were the states starting to worry about? When did most states meet and agree that Federation sounded like a good idea? What did they then spend 10 years deciding?

Federation What is a referendum? Who was the last state to join? Why do you think they took so long to join? What happened to Henry Parkes?

Referendums A referendum is a poll in which citizens of a state or a country vote on whether to make a major change. In 1898, NSW, Victoria, Tasmania and South Australia voted to become part of the federation. In 1899, they voted again and even more people thought it was a good idea. Queensland also agreed to join the Federation. In 1900, Western Australia finally voted to join. In 1901, the first Australian Federal Government was created.

The Death of Henry Parkes The last few years of Henry’s life were pretty rough. He went through immense personal turmoil following the death of his first wife. He remarried quickly to Eleanor Dixon and they had two more children. Dixon soon died. Parkes remarried yet again, this time to Julia Lynch, but died of pneumonia on April 27, 1896, four years before Australia became a federation.

Federation What is a referendum? Who was the last state to join? Why do you think they took so long to join? What happened to Henry Parkes?