answersLogoWhite

0


Best Answer

Australia, or New South Wales as the eastern coast was then known, was originally a penal colony, meaning it was a colony for convicts from Great Britain.

Australia was first colonised by the British in order to relieve the overly full British prisons. However, only relatively small parts of Australia were used as penal settlements. Indigenous Australians inhabited the rest of the continent as well. As well as Sydney (the first settlement in New South Wakes), convict colonies were begun in Victoria, Moreton Bay (Queensland), Hobart and Newcastle. The colony of South Australia was never a penal settlement. Swan River (Perth) began as a free settlement, but convicts were sent there later as free labour.

User Avatar

Wiki User

11y ago
This answer is:
User Avatar
More answers
User Avatar

Wiki User

12y ago

Australia was founded as a British colony, but it was not specifically for any one group of people. Initially, the colony housed convicts from Great Britain, but there were also large numbers of officers and marines, as well as the wives and children of some of the marines.

This answer is:
User Avatar

Add your answer:

Earn +20 pts
Q: Australia was founded as a British colony for?
Write your answer...
Submit
Still have questions?
magnify glass
imp
Related questions

Who founded the first british colony of Singapore?

the first British colony in Singapore is......................................


What US colony was founded as a British prison?

There was not a colony that was founded by prisoners. However, there was a colony founded so that it could be used as a British penal colony. That colony was Georgia.


In 1607 the British founded their first colony and called it?

The British colony of Jamestown was founded on the coast of what is now the state of Virginia in 1607. The colony was named after King James of England.


Who was to settle the British colony in Australia?

Governor Arthur Phillip led the First Fleet to Australia, establishing the first British colony in the land.


Who began the country of Australia?

The British Colony's


Why did British Columbia become a British colony?

Because British Columbia was found, settled, and founded by the British.


What US colony was founded as home for British prisoners?

Georgia


What US colony was founded home for British prisoners?

Georgia


Why did Australia become an English colony?

because the English founded it and were the first overseas colony to live here.


What was Australia like under the british colony?

hard


Which large city became the first British colony in Australia?

The first British colony in Australia was Sydney. It was not a large city, but a very small settlement originally established as a penal colony at Port Jackson.


What type of colony did Britain establish in Australia?

Australia was originally a penal colony. This means that British convicts were shipped off to Australia to serve their sentences.