Reasons for Australian Federation

Reasons for federation

• Free trade. While tariffs provided the colonial governments with much revenue , they restricted trade and movement between the colonies. ...
• Defence. ...
• Immigration. ...
• National pride. ...
• 1891 federation convention. ...
• The people's conventions. ...
• 1897–98 federation convention. ...
• First referendum: 1898.

1. What are the reasons for and against federation in Australia?
2. Why did South Australia want to federate?
3. Why did Western Australia want to federate?
4. What are some reasons against federation?
5. What did federation mean for Australia?
6. What was Australia called before Australia?
7. What was South Australia called before federation?
8. Why did New Zealand not federate with Australia?
9. What problems did South Australia have?
10. Why did Wa not want to join the federation?
11. How did Federation affect the indigenous?
12. How did federation change Australia?

What are the reasons for and against federation in Australia?

The capacity of a strong national government to manage issues such as trade, the economy, defence and immigration. The cost of setting up and running an Australian Parliament. Concerns we would lose our cultural ties to England and the emerging cultural identities of the 6 colonies would be lost.

Why did South Australia want to federate?

The issue of trade came to a head as people wanted the freedom to trade between the colonies without paying intercolonial tariffs. ... South Australians had their first opportunity to decide whether their colony would federate in 1898. Voting was not compulsory and many people did not vote in the referendum.

Why did Western Australia want to federate?

There were a number of reasons for Western Australia's leaders to be uncertain about Federation. The discovery of gold in the early 1890s led to rapid growth in the colony's population and wealth. Farming, the timber industry and shipping were also strong. This provided money to support its development.

What are some reasons against federation?

Arguments against Federation

All the colonies already had parliaments of their own. Federation would be expensive to achieve and a federated country would be expensive to run. The colonies had different policies about immigration, trade and other matters.

What did federation mean for Australia?

The Federation of Australia was the process by which the six separate British self-governing colonies of Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, Tasmania, South Australia, and Western Australia agreed to unite and form the Commonwealth of Australia, establishing a system of federalism in Australia.

What was Australia called before Australia?

After British colonisation, the name New Holland was retained for several decades and the south polar continent continued to be called Terra Australis, sometimes shortened to Australia.

What was South Australia called before federation?

Colony of South Australia (1834 - 1901)

In fact, South Australia was called a province rather than a colony, to help distinguish it from other colonies that had transportation in their histories. With Federation on 1 January 1901, it became the State of South Australia.

Why did New Zealand not federate with Australia?

Political cartoon from 1900 that shows the colonies of New Zealand and Fiji rejecting the offer to join the Federation of Australia, with Zealandia referencing Australia's origins as a penal colony.

What problems did South Australia have?

In the early days of settlement, South Australia was plagued with problems attributed to escaped convicts [called bolters] from the penal settlements in the east of the continent. These outlaws saw the colony as a safe haven but had to resort to a life of crime as they were unable to obtain legitimate work.

Why did Wa not want to join the federation?

Federation. Until 1901, Australia did not exist - it was six separate colonies governed by Britain. ... Western Australia did not want to join, because the other colonies were thousands of kilometres away. They joined when the other colonies promised to build a railway to Perth.

How did Federation affect the indigenous?

Aboriginal people lost power over their own lives. Their personal and working lives were tightly controlled. They could not vote for the federal government and, even if they could have done so, the federal government would not have changed the laws for the better anyway.

How did federation change Australia?

Australia became a nation on 1 January 1901, when the British Parliament passed legislation enabling the six Australian colonies to collectively govern in their own right as the Commonwealth of Australia. It was a remarkable political accomplishment that had taken many years and several referenda to achieve.