Why and how did Canberra become the capital of Australia?

Answer 1

Although Australia's two largest and wealthiest cities were Sydney and Melbourne, rivalry between them since before the goldrush days essentially prohibited either city from becoming the national capital. It was therefore decided that the nation's capital should be situated between the two cities. However, the capital could not be on the coast, as it was felt that this would render the nation's capital vulnerable to attack from enemy ships. Climate and setting were also important: the climatto could not be warm and tropical, as there were concerns this could lead to "torpor" for the country's top decision makers, and the setting needed to be elevated with a grand outlook, so surrounding mountains were desirable.

Section 125 of the Constitution of Australia provided that:

"The seat of Government of the Commonwealth shall be determined by the Parliament, and shall be within territory which shall have been granted to or acquired by the Commonwealth, and shall be vested in and belong to the Commonwealth, and shall be in the State of New South Wales, and be distant not less than one hundred miles from Sydney.

Such territory shall contain an area of not less than one hundred square miles, and such portion thereof as shall consist of Crown lands shall be granted to the Commonwealth without any payment therefore. The Parliament shall sit at Melbourne until it meets at the seat of Government."

Numerous locations were checked over by federal parliamentarians. They included Albury, Armidale, Bathurst, Bombala, Dalgety, Delegate, Goulburn, Lake George, Lyndhurst, Orange, Queanbeyan, Tumut, Wagga Wagga and Yass. Although the first preferred site was Dalgety, this was discounted as being too close to Melbourne and too far from Sydney. A location was chosen which was 248km from Sydney and 483km from Melbourne, within easy access of both cities. Farming land was taken up for this purpose.

The first survey peg marking the beginning of the development of the city of Canberra was driven in on 20 February 1913. The foundation stone was laid on 12 March 1913. Lady Denman, wife of the Governor-General, then announced the name of the city as Canberra, believed to be a derivation of an Aboriginal word for 'meeting place'.

Answer 2

The city of Canberra was built for the purpose of it becoming the national capital of Australia. The area was once a farming region, and land for the Australian Capital Territory (originally Federal Territory of Australia) was purchased from New South Wales for the purpose of building Australia's new Federal capital. The land for Canberra was set aside for the purpose of becoming Australia's capital in 1911. From this point on, Canberra essentially became the capital, even though the city was neither designed nor even named at this stage.

From 1901 to 1927, the Australian Parliament met in Parliament House, Melbourne, which it borrowed from the parliament of the state of Victoria, which in turn sat in the Exhibition Building. However, Melbourne was never the capital city of Australia.

The Yass area had actually been settled as far back as the 1820s. Once it was decided that Australia's capital would be neither Melbourne nor Sydney, the Federal Capital Territory was founded, on 1 January 1911, in the Yass-Canberra district. The competition to design Australia's new capital city, Canberra, was won in 1911 by Walter Burley Griffin and the first survey peg marking the beginning of the development of the city of Canberra was driven in on 20 February 1913. On 9 May 1927, Parliament moved to the new national capital at Canberra, where it met in what is now called Old Parliament House.

Answer 3

The location for the new federal Australian parliament was chosen after Federation in 1901. A location was chosen which was 248km from Sydney and 483km from Melbourne. The name of Canberra was not selected until 1913.

Answer 4

There was no definite date for Canberra to "officially open". European exploration and settlement actually started in the Canberra area as early as the 1820s. The first survey peg marking the beginning of the development of the city of Canberra was driven in on 20 February 1913. However, the city did not yet have a name. The final choice of name remained a secret until the laying of the foundation stones on 12 March 1913.

Answer 5

Cities themselves are not discovered, but the regions where they come to be built are discovered.

The local Aboriginal nation, comprising the Ngambri and the Ngunnawal people, had been living in the Canberra region long before Europeans first found it.

Following European settlement of the continent, where Australia's capital city, Canberra, is now located became rich farming land known as Limestone Plains. Little-known Australian explorer Joseph Wild, an ex-convict, together with James Vaughan and Charles Throsby, first explored the area in 1815. However, it was not until after Federation in 1901 that discussions were opened up about the site as a possibility for Australia's national capital.