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Around 60,000 years ago, the first people settled Australia and New Guinea.
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By 1,000 years ago, people had sailed across the ocean to New Zealand and other Pacific islands.
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In the late 1700s, British explorer James Cook claimed Australia and New Zealand for Great Britain.
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British settlement of Australia began in 1788
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Treaty of Waitangi resulted in the declaration of British sovereignty over New Zealand.
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In 1851, colonists discovered gold, and the British population soared.
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The British colonists force Aborigines to adopt British customs
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By the early 1900s, the United States, France, Great Britain, and Japan controlled most of the Pacific islands
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In 1901, British allow six Australian colonies to have their own rights.
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In 1962, January first, Samoan become a independence country.
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This is where we are.
