History of Australia

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History of Australia

• Standards
• SS6H8 The student will describe the culture and
  development of Australia prior to contact with
  Europeans.
• a. Describe the origins and culture of the
  Aborigines.
• SS6H9 The student will explain the impact
  European exploration and colonization had on
  Australia.
• a. Explain the reasons for British colonization
  of Australia include the use of prisoners as
  colonists.
• b. Explain the impact of European colonization of
  Australia in terms of diseases and weapons on the
  indigenous peoples of Australia.

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The Aborigines

• Historians believe the first humans arrived in
  Australia between forty thousand and sixty
  thousand years ago.
• They traveled from Southeast Asia.
• They first settled in northern Australia.
• They may have used boats or walked across land
  that once connected Australia to Asia.
• Europeans later called these people Aborigines,
  which means from the very first.
• Aborigines formed many different groups that
  lived in different parts of Australia.
• They spoke different languages.
• They developed their own cultures.

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Early Aboriginal Culture

• Aborigines usually lived and traveled in small
  groups called clans.
• Clans included one to five families.
• They shared a common language and religion.
• Neighboring clans often traded food, tools, and
  other goods.

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Hunters and Gatherers

• Early Aborigines were hunter-gatherers,
• They hunted kangaroos, possums, turtles and
  seals.
• They used bones, wood, and stones, to construct
  tools and weapons for hunting.
• They used nets and harpoons to catch fish.
• In the Outback, Aborigines used spears and
  boomerangs to hunt.
• A boomerang is a piece of carved wood thrown by
  hunters at their prey.
• Many Aboriginal tribes also gathered edible
  fruits and plants.

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Religion and Art

• The religious beliefs of the Aborigines centered
  on the environment.
• Their myths explained the creation of the world
  and the origin of plants and animals.
• Aborigines used dances and songs to pass stories
  from generation to generation.
• Early Aborigines valued art.
• They added charcoal and colored dirt to pint
  their bodies.
• They painted pictures on rocks, trees, and other
  surfaces too.
• Their ceremonies features dances, songs, and
  instruments.
• The Aborigines made baskets and necklaces.
• They also liked to tell stories to entertain and
  pass down their beliefs and history.

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European Exploration and Colonization
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Captain James Cook

• In 1770, an English explorer, Captain James Cook,
  arrived in Australia.
• He claimed the territory for Great Britain.
• Most of the early European visitors only stayed
  temporarily.
• They traded with the native populations, but did
  not try to take their land.
• They tended to have peaceful relations with the
  Aborigines.

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Guns, Alcohol, and Disease

• Europeans traded many things in Australia.
• Sometimes they brought advanced European weapons.
• Advanced weapons made wars between Aboriginal
  peoples deadlier than ever before.
• Europeans introduced another dangerous product to
  Australia alcohol.
• Alcohol became very popular among the Aborigines.
• Many abused the new product and fighting
  increased.
• European also brought diseases.
• During the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries,
  European diseases killed thousands of Aborigines.
  

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The Prison Colony

• In the late 1700s, a new group of Europeans
  arrive.
• Unlike previous explorers and traders, these
  people came to stay.
• In 1788, Britain sent one thousand people to
  settle in Australia.
• Most of these settlers were prisoners.
• As cities in Great Britain grew, so did crime.
• Great Britain decided to use Australia as a
  prison colony.
• Prisoners performed hard labor until they
  finished their sentences.
• Eventually, more than one hundred fifty thousand
  British prisoners lived in Australia.
• Many remained in Australia after their release.

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Colonial Conflict

• Australias usable land was limited.
• Colonists in Australia needed space to build
  prisons, farms, and towns.
• In many cases, they simply took the land they
  needed from the Aborigines.
• Hostility between the settlers and the Aborigines
  increased between 1840 and 1860.
• A number of violent battles occurred.
• Because of their advanced weapons, the British
  settlers usually won.

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Gold

• For years, Europeans believed that large amounts
  of gold existed in Australia.
• Some people sold all of their possessions to
  travel to the continent in search of wealth.
• A gold rush began in the late 1850s that brought
  tens of thousands of foreigners to Australia and
  surrounding islands.
• The growth in population caused by the gold rush
  made Australia very wealthy.
• The Aborigines did not share in the prosperity.

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Australian Independence

• In 1931, Great Britain passed a law giving
  Australia the right to be an independent nation.
• Australia became an independent country in 1942
  after it voted to accept the new law.

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POP QUIZ
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Question 1

• Australia used to be a colony of
• France
• Spain
• Portugal
• Great Britain

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Question 2

• Captain James Cook is famous because he
• Claimed Australia for Great Britain
• Started a prison colony in Australia
• Discovered gold in Australia
• Led Australia to independence

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Question 3

• Native inhabitants of Australia are known as
• Aborigines
• Native Americans
• Colonists
• Missionaries

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Question 4

• Which of the following existed among the
  Aborigines before Europeans arrived?
• Guns and alcohol
• Smallpox
• Religion and art
• Prisons

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Question 5

• European weapons and diseases had which of the
  following effects on native populations in
  Australia?
• They allowed Aborigines to get rich
• Wars became deadlier, and many natives died of
  diseases
• They helped natives increase their immunity to
  diseases and defend their land against colonists
• Diseases did not hurt native populations because
  they were immune to them