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Violence occurs towards Chinese on the gold fields.
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The Eureka rebellion takes place.
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Men in South Australia get to vote.
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Men in Victoria get to vote.
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Men in New Soth Wales get to vote.
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There were six British colonies in Australia. They could decide ome things themselves,but the laws were made in Britian.
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Men in Queensland get to vote.
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This decade is a boom time for Australia.
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Premiers from the six Australian colonies and New Zealand meet in Sydney. They are afraid that the French, Germans or Japanese may invade Australia or New Zealand. They discuss ways to build a stronger defence force. Federation is put forward as a solution. Melbourne and Sydney are linked by rail - the first train service to run between two colonies.
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Melbourne and Adelaide are linked by a train service.
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Sydney and Brisbane are linked by a train service.
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Sir Henry Pakes, premier for New South Wales, suggests drawing up a constitution for a fedral parliament.
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Martime workers' strike occurs. The Maritime Strike lasted about two months and was actually the way the employers tried to stop the early Australian trade union movement.
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Each colony was now able to elect their own government, but still the big decisions were made in Britian. People in the colonies were starting to talk about joining together to be one ntion instead of six little colonies. Joining together like this is called federation.
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A meeting was held to dicuss federation. Each colony sent seven people. They started to write a constitution which is a list of rules about how the nation's parliament will work.
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Delegates from the six Australian colonies and New Zealand hold a federal conference. Sir Henry Parkes, the leader of the conference, makes a speech calling for 'One People One Desiny'. These words become the catchcry for federation. Deleates draw a draft constitution for federation ad take it back to their colonies to show their governments. The New Suouth Wales government does not like the Constitution. The project is shelved.
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A National Convention to draft the Constitution is held.
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The federation groups decided that the people of Australia should vote to decide if federation should take place.
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The people living in the colonies begin to demand Federation. They form groups called Federation leagues.
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Men in Western Australia get the vote.
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Women in South Australia get the vote.
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South Australia becomes one of the first places in the world to allow women to vote.
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Premiers' conferences discuss federation.
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Second Convention to draft the Constitution takes place.
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People in all the colonies except Queensland and Western Australia voted on Constitution, but in New South Wales they did not agree to what was written and the vote failed.
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Several conventions are held to rewrite the Constitution. referendum are held in New South Wales, Victoria, Tasmania and South Australia to decide about the Constitution. The 'yes' vote wins. However the New South Wales government says that not enough people voted yes.
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Meetings discussed the draft constitution and made changes and a new draft. Queensland was the only colony that did not send people to the meetings. Because some colonies were much smaller than others, it was decided to have parliament the way the United States did - the number of people from each state in the House of Representitives depends on how many people live in a state, but each state has the same number of people in the senate.
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First referendum for federation occurs.
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The second referendum for federation occurs. Women in Western Australia get the vote.
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The premiers met to discuss the things that worried those three colonies, Queensland, New South Wales and Western Australia, and changes were to the Constitution. One change was that there would be a new capital built between Sydney and melbourne, because both thought they shpuld be the capital city. People in Western Australia voted for the new Constitution, and this time it was succssful.
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The Constitutuion is changed again and new referendums are held. this time all the Australian colonies, except Western Australia take part and the yes vote is overwhelming.
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Men in Tasmania get the vote.
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A committe took the Constitution to London to persuade the British Parliment to pass a law allowing five colonies to join together to become a nation. The law was passed in May and signed by Queen Victoria in July saying that on the first of January 1901, New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia and Tasmania would become tates in the Commonwealth of Australia.
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Meanwhile there was a gold rush in Western Australia and people from all over the country went there to look for gold. The Western Australians started to change their minds about federation and in August they voted to be part of it.
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Australia becomes a nation. The Ausralian Government takes control of all Australian colonial and naval forces. Australia's population reaches 3 773 801, but Aboriginal peoples are not included in the census. the winning design for the Australian flag is announced.Tthe Autralian flag was made by five people who all had almost identical designs.
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Edmund Barton becomes Australia's first prime minister.
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On the first of January 1901 the first Governer General, Lord Hopetoun, officially declared that there were now six states forming the Commonwealth of Australia. The first Parliament was opened in Melbourne on the 9th of May.
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Finally the new commonwealth of Australia is made on the first of January. Finally all the colonies have joined to make a whole nation. But the Aboriginals are not passed as 'Australian citizens'. The armies of Australia also joined as one to make the first totally Australian controlled Army. The White Australia Policy is passed as well.
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Women get the right to vote in Australian federal elections. Women in New South Wales get the vote in their state.
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The Commonwealth Franchise Act is passed, giving the vote to all British subjects over the age of 21 who have lived in Australia for at least six months. This right includes women but not Indigenous Australians.
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Women in Tasmania get the vote. The High Court of Australia is formed. Alfred Deakin becomes the secnd prime minister of Australia.
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The High Court of Australiais opened.
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The federal government sets up court to listen to arguments between workers and employers. It is called the Conciliation and Arbitration Commission.
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Women in Queensland get the vote. Deakin becomes prime minister for the second time.
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Australia becomes responsible for British New Guinea.
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Melbourne and Sydney are the first capital cities to be linked by telephone. The Consiliation and Arditration Commission makes a historic ruling that workers in a particular factory must be paid a fair wage, and decides what this wage should be.
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Women in Victoria get the vote. the site of the national capital is chosen. Andrew Fisher becomes prime minister.
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A site is chosen for the national capital.
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The Conciliation and Arbitrtion Commission is given the power to decide what a minimum wage has to be paid to any worker in Australia. It is also given power to force workers and employers to bring their arguments to court. The federal government introduces invalid pensions. The first Commonwealth coins come into use. The Royal Australian Navy (RAN) is formed.
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The Commonwealth Bank is set up.
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The Royal Australian Navy is formally established.
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Prime minister Fisher commits Australian forces to fighting in World War 1.
