Australia and the World Short Answer Test Flashcards
Short Answer History Quiz
Who discovered Australia?
Aboriginal People 65,000 years ago by crossing the Timor Sea
Which colonial power first contacted Australia? When? Why did they not settle here?
The Dutch reached Aus 150 years before Cook, but they did not settle here because they did not think it was profitable
When did the British arrive in Australia? Who was the first?
Captain James Cook discovered and ‘claimed’ in NSW in 1770
When did the first fleet arrive? How many people did it carry? Where did it settle?
-First Fleet landed 26 January 1788
-Carried 1300 people (11 ships)
-Settlement in Port Jackson (Sydney)
What are two reasons for why the British settled in Australia?
-The British needed a place to put their convicts (of which there was 165,000)
-The British wanted a strategic economic base to facilitate control over Asia and the Pacific region (as well as cultivation of Norfolk Island timber and flax)
What was the first colony in Australia?
Sydney/NSW which spanned across the Eastern seaboard
What was the second colony is Australia?
Van Diemen’s Land
When and why did Van Diemen’s land rebrand?
Van Diemen’s Land rebranded to Tasmania in 1858 after convict transportation ceased and it rebranded as a tourist destination
What was the third and forth colonies?
Port Phillip (Melb/Vic)
Morton Bay (QLD)
Why was South Australia different to the rest of the colonies
SA was a free settlement and there was never any intention to bring convicts here
What was the Wakefield plan?
The Crown sold SA land and used to money to subsidise poor people moving to SA and working as labourers
Land was sold in SA by the Crown and the proceeds of those land sales were used to subsidise the fares of poorer people to come to SA and work as labourers
What were the 5th and 6th colonies?
Swan River Colony (WA)
South Australia
What year did the colonies achieve self-governance? What is meant by self-governance?
- British allow NSW a partially elected Legislative Council in 1842
o i.e. men who owned property could elect representatives which formed a council and the council would then liaise with the Governor - Extended to SA, Tasmania and Victoria by 1851
- Britain then allowed us to Draft own constitutions, enacted (by British parliament) in mid-1850s
- Enable popular election of parliament consisting of 2 chambers
At its inception, who could vote in Legislative Assembly (Lower House) elections?
Men (SA allowed all men to vote)
At its inception, who could vote in Legislative Council (Upper House) elections?
Men who owned property
Which states’ Council selected Governors for life?
NSW and QLD
Which state has a unicameral system?
QLD since 1922 (Abolished upper house/Legislative Council)
How was the property restriction on the franchise (i.e. the right to vote) justified?
- That people with land and enterprises had more of a stake in the outcome, therefore, they would think more about their vote i.e. preserving the purity of the ballot box
- And the feminine mind and body was seen as inherently unsuited for making responsible voting decisions
- Additionally, it was implied the men (fathers and husbands) would take into consideration the interests of the women in their lives when voting
- Also it was believed that women would just vote the same way as their husbands or fathers, therefore, their husband or father would get two votes
- Women got the right to vote in 1894 in South Australia (it was opposed 7 times before then)
How were Governor’s initially appointed?
*Britian appoints the Governor who supposed to follow advice of elected government, but also took orders from Colonial Office in London
What power did Britain have over Australian Laws? On what issues might they exercise this?
Veto powers essentially
*Colonial law could be overturned by Britain esp. when concerning imperial interests or uniformity: e.g. foreign policy, shipping and trade, marriage and divorce
What are the 5 key reasons for federation?
- Foreign policy concerns
- Develop defensive capability
- Tariff/economic policy (i.e. Vic not having any tariffs, so all imports went there and disadvantaged other colonies)
- Immigration control
- Facilitating transport (single-gauge rail) and communication (est. national postal service)
Name three Liberal/progressive fathers of federation? Why did the advocate for federation?
- Alfred Deakin, Henry Higgins (Vic), Edmund Barton (NSW), Charles Kingston (SA)
- Democrats
- Pro-federation (nationalists)
- Protectionists (national, not internal tariffs)
- Anti-class (profound for the time)
- Pro-interventionist state (they thought the government should have a big say in people’s lives like taking care of unemployed and sick and old people, even if it meant paying for them)
Name two state-centred fathers of federation? Why did the advocate for?
- Premiers - George Turner (Vic), George Reid (NSW), John Forrest (WA)
- Pro-federation (NSW’s Reid, initially opposed federation – concerned NSW would lose power)
- Defend states interests
- Concerned about federal power
Who was Alfred Deakin?
second Prime Minister of Aus
Served as PM 3 times in first decade
studied law and Uni of Melb
* Young adulthood interest in spiritualism and occult
* Concern for social justice – he tried to improve working conditions in factories, and that factories should be regularly inspected, he fought for compensation of injured workers, he tried to limit the hours worked by children
Who was Edmund Barton?
First Prime Minister of Aus
Lawyer who wrote and then interpreted the constitution
What were two reasons ‘outside the conventions’ (against federation?)
- Those opposed to federation because it was not sufficiently democratic (less populous states had disproportionate Senate seats; voting rights)
- nor republican (retained Imperial ties to Britain / the Crown as the head of state and we did not try and sever these ties the way the Americans had)
What were some key interests groups that opposed federation?
Organised Labour
Feminist and Women’s groups (Rose Scott, Women’s Christian Temperance Movement) although most women supported federation
When did SA give women the vote?
1894
Why was federation a miracle?
- As a lot of new regimes and countries are formed through wars, civil wars and bloodshed, but in Australia it happens through a series of conversations
Though it was an arduous journey as: - Aust. historian John Hirst, Sentimental Nation: the process of federation was so vexed that the achievement of federation could not be celebrated as such
Who said “federation “must always appear to have been accomplished by a series of miracles”?
Alfred Deakin
What was the Commonwealth Franchise Act (1902)?
- Commonwealth Franchise Act (1902) gave all women the right to vote – over the age of 21, but it took away the right to vote for Indigenous People where those who could vote could continue to vote, but younger generations would not receive the franchise as they turned 21
What were some social security provisions introduced in Australia pre and post 20th c?
- In 19thC the norm was that charitable relief was provided by voluntary organisations and the Church (very little govt assistance; i.e. rations for relief work)
- In 1908 – introduction of old-age and invalid (disabled) pensions (means tested, men over-65, women over-60)
- In 1912 – gov created a maternity allowance (‘baby bonus’)
- No unemployment benefits until after WW2!
- Australia was the first country in the world to establish and guarantee a minimum wage for workers – the rest of the world called us a social laboratory for this
Why did the rest of the world call Australia a social laboratory?
Introduction of minimum wage to support a worker, wife and three children
What was the old protection of arbitration? Who came up with abitration?
- Old Protection – ‘tariff-and-hope’ where tariffs were set high so that workers could be paid properly but this was merely left in the hands of the employer (this is pre-federation)
- Pre-federation wage boards (where they tried to set a minimum wage) (not in all states, and couldn’t intervene in disputes that crossed borders)
- After federation, the federal government establishes a court of Arbitration to try and set a minimum wage
- Justice Henry Bournes Higgins
Who was Henry Bournes Higgins?
Justice of the Arbitration Court
What was the new protection of arbitration?
- Henry Bournes Higgins becomes the Justice of the Arbitration court
- 1906 – Protectionist Party and Labor Party → ‘New Protectionism’ where they create a new policy where workers have to be paid a fair page that supports themselves, a wife and three children – and if the workers are not paid a proper amount, then the employers will be taxed
- Excise Tariff (Agricultural Machinery) Act (1906)
What was the Harvest Case? Who won?
- 1907, Hugh Victor McKay owner of the Harvester Company
- Tax is put on McKay for not paying workers enough, but he appeals it
- Higgins determines a ‘fair and reasonable wage’, based on definition provided by Pope Leo XIII’s encyclical Rerum Novarum
- Higgins decides wage Must support wife and family of 3 children
- wage of the employee need not depend on profits of the employer – revolutionary!
- High Court appeal – victory for McKay and he doesn’t have to pay the tax
- Ultimately victory for Higgins: regarded the minimum wage as sacrosanct (sacred), applied it to subsequent judgements
- Basis of centralised wage fixing system
Did women get paid minimum wage? Give an example
When did women agin equal wages?
No, women were paid half because it was assumed that women would be married to a man receiving a full wage sufficient to support a family
* 1974 - legislation mandated an equal wage for equal work for men and women
1912 Arbitration Case – Mildura fruit pickers (male) and
packers (female)
Packers wage set at 52% of pickers wage
1974 - legislation mandated an equal wage for equal work
for men and women
What was Paul Kelley’s Five Pillars of the Australian Settlement?
- White Australia
- Industry Protection
- Imperial Protection/Benevolence - Defence umbrella of the British navy, and continued reliance on British capital to finance Australian business and industrial growth
- State Intervention/Paternalism - provision of state welfare e.g. old age pensions
- Wage Arbitration - fair wages for workers - maintain Australian living standards against the rest of the world
Which two states resisted the Federation the longest? Google Docs Q
WA and QLD
In 2-3 sentences explain who was William Morris ‘Billy’ Hughes and why is he an important figure in Australian history? Google Docs Q
Leader of Labor Party – became PM in 1915
* Split with Labor over conscription, formed new
governing party - Nationalist Party - by the end of war
* 1922: Forced to form coalition govt with Country
Party, who demanded Hughes be replaced as PM by
Stanley Melbourne Bruce in 1923
helped found 3 political parties, and was expelled from them all: the Labor Party (expelled 1916), the Nationalist Party (expelled 1929), and the United Australia Party (expelled 1944)
In what decade of the 19th century did most Australian colonies/states achieve ‘responsible government’? Google Docs Q
1850s
Name the 6 principles that the Australian states agreed to found the Commonwealth on. Google Docs Q
Principles that needed to be agreed upon before Federation could occur, and which became the defining social, economic and political characteristics of the nation:
* Union under the crown
* A federal union – not a uniform system
* A democratic union
* White Australia
* Industrial protection
* A just society
In 1-2 sentences, explain what the Commonwealth Franchise Act did for Australian women’s voting rights. Google Docs Q
Commonwealth Franchise Act (1902) gave all women the right to vote – over the age of 21, but it took away the right to vote for Indigenous People where those who could vote could continue to vote, but younger generations would not receive the franchise as they turned 21
When did SA, WA and Vic get the franchise for women?
SA - 1894
WA - 1899
Vic - 1908
Briefly state in two-three sentences some exclusions from the popular ANZAC legend. Google Docs Q
before being shipped to war, recruits indulged in group sex with an 18-year-old girl at barracks; brawled with police
o in Egypt: some ANZACs burned belongings of local people, brawled, got drunk and rioted; spent sufficient time in local brothels for many to contract venereal disease
In 1-2 sentences, what were the main economic reasons Australia was hit hardest during the Great Depression? Google Docs Q
Australian economy suffered from falling wheat and wool prices, and competition from other commodity-producing countries.
We relied too much on foreign trade
To what extent was Jack Lang significant to Australia’s political landscape in the 1930s. Google Docs Q
As premier of NSW, Jack Lang argued during the depression for Australia to not pay back their loans to England
What were the main causes of the Battle of Brisbane. Just knowing what the Battle of Brisbane was, and when it occurred, would be a good start. Google Docs Q
26 November 1942 – night of fist-fights and rioting
involving American military and Australian soldiers and
civilians
* 1 Australian solider killed, 100s injured
* Censorship
* US soldier found ‘not guilty’ of manslaughter
Give three reasons for Menzies’ sheer longevity as Prime Minister. Google Docs Q
Menzies’ unique talents
* Menzies’ able team
* The weakness and stupidity of his opponents
* The right man at the right time: Australian aspirations in
the 1950s
What were the main issues that plagued the Labour Party during the Cold War that saw them fail to gain power? Google Docs Q
Fears of communism
Name two locations where the British tested the atomic bomb on Australian soil. Good question. Also worthwhile knowing when the testing occurred.
Maralinga, SA - 1956-57
Emu Field, SA - 1956-57
Monte Bello, WA - 1952, 1956
Name three policy achievements of the Whitlam administration and two flaws of his leadership. Either part of this question would be a good question. Google Docs Q
Education: creates Universities Commission and
abolishes student fees (hooray!)
Health: creation of Medibank – universal health insurance
providing free health care for all
Elderly: increases pension to 25% of average wage;
begins to abolish means testing
- Autocratic leader
- Whitlam’s inattention to detail – left major policy decisions
in the hands of ministers - Difficulty in controlling errant ministers…
When did the bombing on Darwin occur, and how many were killed? Google Docs Q
1942
230 killed
Who were 3 of the ‘fathers’ of Federation? Google Docs Q
Edmund Barton, Alfred Deakin, Henry Higgins
Name Kelleys ‘5 pillars of the Australian settlement’ Good question (though the question would be a bit easier, such as naming or briefly explaining 3 of the 5 ‘pillars’. Google docs Q
- White Australia
- Industry Protection
- Imperial Protection/Benevolence - Defence umbrella of the British navy, and continued reliance on British capital to finance Australian business and industrial growth
- State Intervention/Paternalism - provision of state welfare e.g. old age pensions
- Wage Arbitration - fair wages for workers - maintain Australian living standards against the rest of the world
What was the impact of the provision of the maternity allowance on perception of women? Google Docs Q
Woman’s civic duty was to produce healthy babies
Who was Vida Goldstein? Google docs q
Suffragette – fought for Victorian women’s right to vote
Est. Australian Women’s Association and Women’s Parliament
Campaigned for peace and disarmament and women’s right to birth control
1903-17 – unsuccessful candidate in 5 federal elections
Worked to encourage women’s involvement in political process
How was the exclusion of Aboriginal Australians from the census justified? Google docs q
- The census defined electoral boundaries and the number of representatives that could be elected (in Fed. parliament) from each state…
- states with relatively small ‘white’ populations but high numbers of Indigenous people (such as WA) might receive more parliamentary reps = deemed unfair (since Fed. Govt had no power over Indigenous affairs)
- used as a measure to allocate income (from tariffs) returned by the Commonwealth to the States…
o if Indigenous people were counted in the Census, States with large Indigenous population would receive income even though Indigenous people didn’t, in general, purchase imported goods
What were the 3 imperatives of peace between the wars? Google docs q
- As a result of the sacrifices they had made during War,
Australians made three demands of the peace: - Compensation for losses
- Security
- National efficiency – a world in which science and
technology would make life easier
How did the government respond to the push for greater national efficiency? Google Docs Q
WW1 reinforces the belief that science and technology
will reshape the world
* Technology shrinks time and space → greater efficiency
and productivity
* Charles Kingsford-Smith, 1st trans-Pacific flight, 1928
* Improvement and productivity through the application of
science:
- CSIR: application of science to agriculture
* Improve children (race):
- medical inspections of children at school
- est. free kindergartens
Why was Australia vulnerable after the Wall St crash? Google Docs Q
24 October 1929 – Wall St. stocks plunge: value of
shares drop 27% in single day
* Australia vulnerable due to reliance on foreign capital
and commodity markets
When was the communist party dissolution bill passed? Important question! Google Docs Q
1950
What is ASIO? Who formed it? First part of this question is worthwhile. Google Docs Q
Australian Security Intelligence Organisation
Chifley’s ‘socialist tendencies’: control of economy and
production through rationing and tariffs
* 1947 plan to nationalise the banks
* US refuses to share military technology and intelligence
When was the referendum held to ban the communist party? Good question Google Docs Q
1951
What is the Naturalisation Act? Question would have to be framed more specifically. Google Docs Q
Naturalisation Act (1903) – denies citizenship rights to “aboriginal natives of Asia, Africa, or the Islands of the Pacific, excluding New Zealand”
When was the department of immigration created? What was the aim? Google Docs Q
Creation of Department of Immigration in 1946, aim to increase population by 1% every year through immigration (70,000 immigrants/year)
* Preference for British migrants
Who was Vladimir Petrov? Why was he important? Google Docs Q
Petrov was a Soviet Spy who failed to set up communist links and defected to Australia after Stalin’s death …
Who was the leader of the Allied Forces in the Pacific? Google Docs Q
General Douglas Macarthur / USA
What event caused the political downfall of Dr H.V. Evatt? Google Docs Q
He appeared as a communist sympathiser/communist after defending the Communist Party Dissolution Bill
Menzies claimed that the Petrov’s had bought evidence of a communist spy ring in the Labor Party
Dr H.V. Evatt went made trying to defend himself
Drawing from the lectures, was Menzies a skilful or lucky politician? Google Docs Q
Menzies’ unique talents
* Menzies’ able team
* The weakness and stupidity of his opponents
* The right man at the right time: Australian aspirations in
the 1950
Who led the Wave Hill walk-off from 1966 to 1975? Google Docs Q
Vincent Lingiari of the Gurindji country
What year did women get the vote in the Commonwealth and sates?
Commonwealth & WA & NSW - 1902
SA - 1894
WA - 1899
TAS - 1903
QLD - 1905
Vic - 1908
On what basis were women excluded from the franchise at the start of the 20th c?
- Court of Arbitration defined women as ‘dependents’ and effectively excluded them from category of ‘worker’
- Women received 52% the ‘fair and reasonable’ wage of men (this kept women dependent on men)
- Government Inquiries defined women as ‘mothers’ or ‘breeders’: (women’s civic job was to have children)
In which states could Aboriginal People vote before the Commonwealth Franchise Act? Why?
WA and Qld
Indigenous people no right to vote in Fed. elections unless already granted by the states
* Australian Constitution stated:
o ‘Protection’ of Indigenous people was responsibility of the states, not Commonwealth Parliament
o ‘Aborigines’ not to be counted in the Census
How did the Commonwealth Francise Act (1902) impact Indigenous people?
it took away the right to vote for Indigenous People where those who could vote could continue to vote, but younger generations would not receive the franchise as they turned 21
What were some reasons why Indigenous people were denied voting rights?
o fears that the vote of Indigenous workers could be ‘bought’ by their bosses, or unduly swayed by outside forces
o due to their general illiteracy and lack of education, fear that Indigenous people couldn’t exercise right to vote in responsible manner
o mostly didn’t pay taxes or own property, therefore had less ‘stake’ in the country and didn’t deserve right to have say in Commonwealth Govt affairs
o i.e. same argument used to deny poor/working class men the right to vote in 19thC
Why were Indigenous people excluded from the census?
- The census defined electoral boundaries and the number of representatives that could be elected (in Fed. parliament) from each state…
- states with relatively small ‘white’ populations but high numbers of Indigenous people (such as WA) might receive more parliamentary reps = deemed unfair (since Fed. Govt had no power over Indigenous affairs)
- used as a measure to allocate income (from tariffs) returned by the Commonwealth to the States…
o if Indigenous people were counted in the Census, States with large Indigenous population would receive income even though Indigenous people didn’t, in general, purchase imported goods
Which state was allowed to keep tariffs after federation?
WA because they were a less established colony that needed help but it was eventually phased out
Why were aboriginal people excluded from the constitution?
- Aboriginal people were excluded from the constitution because they were thought to be a dying race
- Indigenous people encouraged to live on large reserves, provided with rations and basic medical care
- public administrators became ‘Protectors’ and legal guardians of Indigenous people on reserves
This was enshrined in the WA Native Administration Act (1905)
What was the WA Native Administration Act (1905) ?
The act enabled the surveillance and control of Aboriginal people by agents of the colonial State government in the early 20th century.
Who was Edith Cowan?
First woman elected to State Parliament in WA, 1921
And she is on the $50 note
Who First women in Commonwealth Parliament (lower and upper house)?
1943: Dame Enid Lyons (House of Reps) and Dorothy Tangney (Senate)
Which was the last state to give women the franchise?
Victoria
What was the Australian Women’s Association?
group the informed women’s political consciousness, taught them how parliament works, how bills are passed, advocating for women voting as individuals (and not the same way as their husbands)
What was women’s parliament?
mock parliament when women pretended to be in parliament and pass bills and have political discussions, informing people how the political process works
In what ways were Indigenous People treated like children?
o couldn’t manage property sell (except without the permission of the protector)
o couldn’t buy or sell (except through the protector)
o couldn’t sue/exercise legal powers without the consent on protector
o couldn’t marry without consent
o NB: extent of rights varied between the States
* The rules were in part to protect Indigenous people from being exploited by White people forcing them into contracts, especially White men who wanted to sexually exploit Indigenous women for ancestral land
How many men enlisted in WW1? When was WWI? How many killed? How many wounded, gassed or taken prisoner?
- 417,000 men enlisted
1914-1918 - 59,000 killed
- 157,000 wounded, gassed or taken prisoner
- Aust casualty rate 65% (proportionate to total embarkations) highest of any country in the war
Why did Aus fight in WWI?
- As a Member of British Empire, Aus had the compulsion (to fight in any war the Britain waged, In turn, Aus would receive protection from Britain because of our):
- Fear of Japan – our reliance on British Navy
- Individual motivations for enlistment: unemployment, promise of adventure, opportunity to travel, to escape or hide, to test oneself, to display valour and courage, to ‘join the game’
- Belief war would be short: “over by Christmas 1914”
- Preserve freedoms – Germany invades Belgium (which is sovereign country), and threatens France and Britain (thus we needed to fight to preserve people’s freedoms)
- German atrocities eg. murder of nurse Edith Cavell (who sheltered British soldiers)– became theme of 1915 recruitment campaign
What is one of the population interpretations of Aus’s involvement in WWI that is embedded into our national consciousness?
Spiritual ‘birth’ of nation:
* Australia’s sacrifice in WW1 defined national character and secured our nationhood
* Allusions to France and the United States, whose nationhood and democratic freedoms were secured through bloody wars of independence
* This concept - most enduring legacy of WW1
