Australia

• situated on the southern hemisphere
• the smallest continent
• surrounded by the Indian and Pacific oceans
• first discovered by the Portuguese, Spanish and Dutch navigators in the 17^th century (Abel Tasman)
• for England it was discovered by Captain James Cook in 1770, he landed at Botany Bay (today Sydney)
• about 20 years later – there were established the first British colony New South Wales – it was a penal colony, because England deported it’s convicts to the new continent
• during 19^th century – came many more immigrants from all over the world
• 1901 Australia became a British dominion and it was called the Commonwealth of Australia
• the original inhabitants = aborigines – the Australian blacks, they were hunters and they invented many peculiar weapons – e.g. boomerang.
• similarly as in Canada there were trends to assimilate the Australian blacks – it damaged their culture and their tribes
• the estimations there are about 150 000 of these people; they were forced to live in reservations, very often in Northern Territory, where are the worst conditions
• today there live about 17 million people

Political system

• Australia is the federation of 6 states and 2 territories (the third may be Norfolk isles)
• STATES:
  • Western Australia – capital Perth
  • South Australia – cap. Adelaide
  • Queensland – Brisbane
  • New South Wales – Sydney
  • Victoria – Melbourne
  • Tasmania – cap. Hobart, isle
• TERRITORIES
  • Australian Capital Territory of Canberra
  • Northern Territory
• the formal head – the British monarch (in the last referendum the Australians were voting to stay in the British Commonwealth
• government general – the representative of the queen
• each state has its own government called councils and constitution
• in Canberra: Federal Parliament, Federal Government, Federal Constitution
• Federal Government is headed by the Prime Minister, which is the most powerful person – today it is John Howard

Geographical characteristic

• dry climate
• little rainfall
• many deserts – the best known: The Great Sandry Desert (WA), The Gibson Desert (WA), The Great Victoria Desert (WA-SA)
• in the centre of Australia (in NT) – Ayers Rock – unique rock formation, the symbol of aborigines
• along the eastern coast there stretches the highest mountain range of the continent – it is called the Great Dividing Range
• in the south of these range there are the Australian Alps with the highest mountain of Australia – Mt. Kosciusko
• along the north eastern there is the sea reserve – the Great Barrier Reef
• because of the climate not many rivers
• some of the rivers are only temporarily – if it is too hot, they dry up
• the best known rivers (in the south east) – The Murray, The Darling
• temporarily lakes
• in the SA – Lake Gairdner, Lake Torrens, Lake Frome, Lake Eyre

Fauna

• as the continent was isolated from the others, during a long time there have evolved quite a few peculiar animal species
• the best known are marsupials
• the symbol of Australia – the koala bear, it lives in eucalyptus trees
• wombat
• possum
• kangaroo –they carry their youngs in pouches
• Platypus – it lays eggs like a reptile, but suckles it’s youngs like a mammal; it lives under the water, it has flat bill and webbed feet
• Echidna
• Ostrich Emu
• the wild dog Dingo
• the black swan

Australia is a highly developed country with developed industries (mining, food industries – meat dairy products; textile industry – wool) and agriculture. Australia is the biggest producer of wool and meat especially lamb (they breed sheep). It’s economically closely linked with strong economies of Asia and America.