Australia history

40,000 BC - The first Aborigines arrive from south-east Asia. By 20,000 BC they have spread throughout the mainland and Tasmania.

4000 BCE

the first Aboriginal people arrived

Captain James Cook charts the east coast in his ship HM Endeavour. Cook claims it as a British possession and names eastern Australia "New South Wales".

Jan 1, 1770

captain James cook discovered Australia

captain Arthur Phillip settle in sydney cove carrying nearly 800 convicts.

Jan 1, 1788

The gold was found at multiple locations leading to the gold rushes throughout the decade

Apr 1, 1850

Australia becomes the first country to introduce the secret ballot - or 'Australian ballot' - for elections.

Jun 1, 1856

Canberra is founded and designated as the capital.

Jul 5, 1911

Canberra was founded and designated as the capital of Australia

Outbreak of World War I.

Feb 5, 1914

Outbreak of World War I. Australia commits hundreds of thousands of troops to the British war effort.Their participation - alongside New Zealanders - in the Gallipoli campaign in Turkey in 1915 leads to heavy casualties. The Gallipoli landings help cement a sense of identity in the young nation.

The Great Depression following the Wall Street Crash hits Australia hard. Recovery is uneven, and the Labor government is defeated in the election in 1931.

Feb 19, 1929

Australia follows Britain's lead and declares war on Nazi Germany.

Feb 20, 1939

he US declares war on Japan. Australia turns to the US for help in its defence after the Japanese take Singapore. Australia allows the US to base its supreme command for the Pacific war on its territory.

Feb 18, 1941

Australia begins a scheme for immigration from Europe. Over the next 30 years, more than two million people arrive, about one-third of them from Britain, and hundreds of thousands from Italy, Greece and Germany.

Feb 22, 1948

Australia commits troops to the UN forces in the Korean war.

Feb 16, 1950

Olympic Games held in Melbourne.

Feb 19, 1956