Ruqayyah Snyder
Australia is a federation of six states: New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria, and Western Australia. These states were originally six separate British colonies, founded between 1788 and 1859. The term province is used to refer to administrative divisions within a country or state, and while it is used in some countries with federal systems, such as Canada, it is not commonly used in Australia, which instead uses the term state to refer to its main administrative divisions.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Reason for having states instead of provinces | Australia was originally comprised of six colonies, which were not constitutionally connected to each other, but to Britain. Each colony had its own parliament, courts, and constitution, and their laws were subject to British laws. When these colonies united under a new Constitution in 1901, they became the founding states of the Commonwealth of Australia. |
| Number of states | 6 |
| State names | New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia, and Tasmania |
| Number of territories | 10 (3 internal and 7 external) |
| Self-governance | Each state and internal territory (except Jervis Bay Territory) is self-governing with its own independent executive government, legislature, and judicial system. |
| Federal government powers | The Federal Parliament can override territorial legislation. The federal High Court of Australia acts as the final court of appeal and can override any state judiciary. |
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What You'll Learn
Australia's six founding colonies
Australia's system of states and territories is the result of its colonial history, which saw the establishment of six separate British self-governing colonies. These colonies, each with their own legislature and government, eventually united to form the Commonwealth of Australia, becoming the founding states of the new nation.
The Colony of New South Wales was the first to be established in 1788, originally encompassing much of the Australian mainland, as well as Lord Howe Island, New Zealand, Norfolk Island, and Van Diemen's Land. Over time, new colonies were formed through the separation of large areas from New South Wales, including the Colony of Tasmania (established as Van Diemen's Land in 1825), the Colony of Western Australia (established as the Swan River Colony in 1829), the Province of South Australia (1836), the Colony of New Zealand (1840), the Victoria Colony (1851), and the Colony of Queensland (1859).
These six colonies—New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia, and Tasmania—became the founding states of Australia upon federation in 1901. Each state retained its own system of government, including a bicameral legislature, while also agreeing to the establishment of a federal government to handle nationwide matters.
The process of federation was driven by the desire to unite the colonies under a single legislative and executive government, addressing issues such as tariffs, transport, defence, and intercolonial matters. The Australasian Federal Convention played a key role in drafting the Constitution of Australia, which came into force on 1 January 1901. The constitution was supported by referendums in four of the colonies and marked the transition of the colonies into states within the Commonwealth of Australia.
Today, Australia has six federated states, each with its own governor, constitution, legislature, executive government, judiciary, and law enforcement agencies. These states are partially sovereign and self-governing, while also ceding certain rights to the federal government. Additionally, Australia has ten federal territories, three of which are internal territories (Australian Capital Territory, Jervis Bay Territory, and Northern Territory) and seven are external territories, located offshore.
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The distinction between provinces and territories
Australia has six federated states: New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria, and Western Australia. It also has ten federal territories, three of which are internal territories: the Australian Capital Territory, the Jervis Bay Territory, and the Northern Territory. The remaining seven are external territories: the Ashmore and Cartier Islands, the Australian Antarctic Territory, Christmas Island, the Cocos (Keeling) Islands, the Coral Sea Islands, Heard Island and McDonald Islands, and Norfolk Island.
Historically, the term "province" referred to the major territorial and administrative units of the Roman Empire's possessions outside Italy. The term has since been adopted by many countries, including colonial powers who artificially created provinces within their colonies. In the context of British colonies, the term "province" was often used to distinguish certain colonies as places for free immigrants rather than convicts, as was the case with the Province of South Australia.
In a decentralized federal system like Australia, certain powers lie at the provincial or state level, whereas in a centralized federal system like Canada, these powers are retained at the federal level. Canadian provinces have considerable power and sovereignty over important matters such as property, civil rights, education, social welfare, and medical services. While Australian territories are legally subordinate to the federal government, they can still be autonomous in administering local policies and programs, much like the states.
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The Northern Territory's history
The Northern Territory is a self-governing territory in Australia, occupying the central section of the northern part of the continent. It is largely tropical in the north and semiarid in the far south. The Northern Territory shares its borders with Western Australia to the west, South Australia to the south, and Queensland to the east. To the north, the Northern Territory looks out to the Timor Sea, the Arafura Sea, and the Gulf of Carpentaria, including Western New Guinea and various other islands of the Indonesian archipelago.
The history of the Northern Territory began over 60,000 years ago when Indigenous Australians settled the region. Makassan traders began trading with the indigenous people of the Northern Territory for trepang from at least the 18th century onwards. Europeans first sighted the coast of the future Territory in the 17th century. The first recorded sighting of the Northern Territory coastline was by Dutch navigator Willem Janszoon in 1606. Abel Tasman and numerous French navigators also charted the coast, naming many prominent features.
Following British settlement in New South Wales in 1788, four unsuccessful attempts were made to settle coastal areas of the Northern Territory prior to the establishment of Darwin. On 30 September 1824, British Captain Gordon Bremer established Fort Dundas on Melville Island as a part of the Colony of New South Wales. Fort Dundas was the first settlement in Northern Australia. However, poor relations with the Tiwi people, cyclones, and other difficulties of tropical living, led to the Fort being abandoned in 1828. A second settlement was established on the Cobourg Peninsula at Raffles Bay in 1827. In 1869, the Port of Darwin was established and became the major supply point for the Territory for many decades.
During World War II, most of the Top End was placed under military government. This is the only time since Federation that part of an Australian state or territory has been under military control. After the war, control for the entire area was handed back to the Commonwealth. The Bombing of Darwin occurred on 19 February 1942 and was the largest single attack ever mounted by a foreign power on Australia.
In 1978, the Northern Territory was granted self-government, and its development has been a major item of expenditure since. The Country Liberal Party (CLP) was established in the Northern Territory in 1974 and enjoyed considerable electoral success. The Australian Labor Party won the 2001 territory election, and Clare Martin became the first Labor Party and first female Chief Minister.
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The Australian Capital Territory
Australia is divided into states and territories, which are the national subdivisions and second level of government of the country. The six founding states of the Commonwealth of Australia were New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia, and Tasmania.
The ACT has a continental climate with marked seasonal and diurnal variations in temperature. Temperatures range between 14 and 108 °F (−10 and 42 °C); the daily maximum often exceeds 86 °F (30 °C) in summer (December through February). During the winter (June through August), temperatures are lower, and the higher parts of the mountains are covered with snow. Frosts occur on most winter nights, but the days are usually sunny and often warm. The average annual precipitation is 25 inches (630 mm).
The territory is home to many important institutions of the federal government, national monuments and museums. These include the Parliament of Australia, the High Court of Australia, the National Gallery of Australia, the Australian War Memorial, the National Portrait Gallery, the National Library, the National Archives, the Australian Academy of Science, the National Museum of Australia, and the National Film and Sound Archive. It also hosts the majority of foreign embassies in Australia, as well as regional headquarters of many international organisations, not-for-profit groups, lobbying groups and professional associations.
The ACT has a locally elected legislative assembly that has governed the territory since 1988. However, the Commonwealth maintains authority over the territory and may disallow or overturn local laws. Residents of the territory, together with residents of the Jervis Bay Territory and Norfolk Island, elect three members of the House of Representatives and two senators.
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The states' partial sovereignty
Australia's six states—New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria, and Western Australia—are partially sovereign, self-governing polities. They have their own constitutions, legislatures, executive governments, judiciaries, and law enforcement agencies. The states have ceded some sovereign rights to the federal government, which can override territorial legislation.
Each state has a governor, appointed by the monarch, who acts on the advice of the state premier. The states have the power to administer and deliver public policies and programs. They can legislate on matters concerning their citizens, subject to the limits of the federal constitution.
The Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory are treated as states in intergovernmental bodies, although they have less autonomy than the six states. The Australian Parliament can override laws made by these territories' institutions, and they do not have a governor.
The remaining territories are legally subordinate to the federal government, overseen by federal departments. However, they can be autonomous and administer local policies and programs.
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Frequently asked questions
Australia has states instead of provinces because each state began as a separate British colony, and upon federation, these colonies became the founding states of the new Commonwealth of Australia.
Australia has six federated states: New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria, and Western Australia.
Australia also has ten federal territories, three of which are internal territories: the Australian Capital Territory, the Jervis Bay Territory, and the Northern Territory. The other seven are external territories: the Ashmore and Cartier Islands, the Australian Antarctic Territory, Christmas Island, the Cocos (Keeling) Islands, the Coral Sea Islands, Heard Island and McDonald Islands, and Norfolk Island.
