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Federation in Australia
A federation is the joining of states to become one nation.
Colonies
In 1860 there
were six British colonies in Australia. The main
laws of the colonies were made by the British Parliament.
The Idea of
Being Australian
At first the colonies had little to do with each other. But in
1872 telegraph linked the colonies, and the idea of being 'Australian'
began to be celebrated in songs and poems, and by the 1890s the
idea of 
federation was becoming popular. People began to realise
that for matters like defence, controlling immigration and economy,
a nation would be stronger than individual colonies.
Action Begins
The Premier of New South Wales, Henry Parkes, convinced the other
premiers to discuss federation and in 1890 the Australasian
Federation Convention , including representatives from New
Zealand, was held in Melbourne. Next, the National Australasian
Convention was held in Sydney in 1891. Each colony sent seven
representatives. Work began on an Australian constitution. A draft
was drawn up by a committee: Edmund Barton (New South Wales),
Andrew Inglis Clark (Tasmania), Samuel Griffith (Queensland),
and Charles Kingston (South Australia).They looked at the constitutions
of Great Britain, the United States, Canada and Switzerland.
Delay
Hard times across Australia drew people's attention away from
federation for several years but in 1893 there was a conference
of pro-federation groups. They agreed that a national meeting
would redraft the constitution and that all Australians should
have a chance to agree with the constitution by vote.
Drafting the Constitution
The National Australasian Convention met in 1897 and in
1898. Each colony elected representatives to attend, except Queensland,
which did not support federation. Committees debated each paragraph
of the draft constitution, changes were made, and a new constitution
was drafted by Edmund Barton, John Downer
and Richard O'Connor.
Equal Representation
The smaller colonies were afraid that the larger ones would have
more say in a federal parliament, so the conference adopted the
practice of the United States: in the House of Representatives
each state is represented according to the number of residents;
in the Senate each state has an equal number of representatives.
The Federation Flag- to encourage
support for federation 
The First Referendum
A special election called a referendum was held so that people
in the colonies could vote on the constitution. Queensland and
Western Australia did not take part, and in New South Wales it
did not get approved. The premiers met in 1899 to find ways of
meeting the concerns of those three colonies.
The Idea of a
National Capital
Among the changes that were made was the decision that a new capital
city be established between Sydney and Melbourne, both of which
wanted to be the nation's capital.
The Referendum
Succeeds
The amended constitution went to referendum once again in all
colonies except Western Australia, and the Bill was passed. The
Western Australians did not believe federation was the best thing
for the colony.
The Creation of
a Nation
The major laws affecting Australia were still made by the British
Parliament, which would have to make a new law to allow federation.
In 1900 a delegation of flve, plus an observer from Western Australia,
took the draft constitution to London. In May, the Commonwealth
of Australia Constitution Act 1900 was passed by the British
Parliament, and was signed by Queen Victoria on 9th July 1900,
and so became law. The Act declared that on 1st January 1901,
the colonies of New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, Queensland,
and Tasmania would be united and known as the 'Commonwealth of
Australia'.
The West Joins In
About this time, there was a gold rush in Western Australia. Many
people went there to seek their fortune. This contact with people
from the other colonies began to change ideas about federation
in Western Australia. In August 1900 a referendum was held, and
the people of Western Australia voted to join the Commonwealth.
The Commonwealth
of Australia is a Reality
The colonies became States, and a Federal Parliament was formed
according to the Constitution. On 1st January 1901 the Commonwealth
of Australia was proclaimed in Centennial Park, Sydney by Lord
Hopetoun, the first Governor General. Edmund Barton was the first Prime Minister of Australia.
Parliament 'Firsts'
The 1st Commonwealth
Parliament was opened on 9 May 1901, at 12 p.m. in the
Exhibition Building in Melbourne, followed by the first sitting
of the Senate in the Legislative Council chamber of the Victorian
Parliament House at 1.10 p.m. At 2.30 p.m. the House of Representatives
met in the Legislative Assembly chamber.
On 9 May 1927 Commonwealth Parliament first sat in Canberra in the provisional (temporary) Parliament House, which is now called 'Old Parliament House'.
On 10 May 1988 Commonwealth Parliament
sat in the new Parliament House in Canberra.
The new Parliament House, Canberra,
The Commonwealth
of Australia Constitution Act 1900 was presented to Australia
in 1988, and is on display in Parliament House, Canberra.
If you use any of
this information in your own work acknowledge this source in your
bibliography like this:
Federation in
Australia (2000).
[Online], Available: www.kidcyber.com.au
Go here for the Australian
Coat of Arms
http://www.dfat.gov.au/facts/coat_of_arms.html
Read The Australian Constitution
here
http://www.aph.gov.au/senate/general/constitution/
updated 30 October, 2000