Australian History

By treigh.ivimy
  • 40,000 BCE

    Aborigines

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

  • Captain Cook

    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".

  • Arthur Phillip

    British Navy captain Arthur Phillip founds a penal settlement at Sydney. He had arrived with a fleet of 11 vessels, carrying nearly 800 convicts. The Aboriginal population at the time is thought to number several hundred thousand.

  • Captivity

    Aborigines taken to captivity

  • Malcolm Fraser

    Malcolm Fraser becomes Prime Minister

  • Bob Hawke

    Bob Hawke becomes Prime Minister

  • Paul Keating

    Paul Keating becomes Prime Minister

  • John Howard

    John Howard becomes Prime Minister

  • Julia Gillard

    Julia Gillard becomes Prime Minister.

  • Kevin Rudd

    Kevin Rudd becomes Prime Minister

  • Tony Abbott

    Tony Abbott becomes prime minister

  • Malcolm Turnbull

    Malcolm Turnbull becomes Prime Minister

  • Indigenous Leaders

    Indigenous leaders from across the country reject a bid for recognition in the country's constitution, deciding instead to push for representation in parliament.

  • Scott Morrison

    Scott Morrison becomes Prime Minister.