On 1 January 1901, not only a new century but also a new nation would be born � Australia. In September 1900, Queen Victoria of England regally proclaimed the birth of a new nation. The table at which she signed this proclaimation was then shipped from London to Sydney, where on the 1st. January 1901 at Centennial Park, Sydney, the Federal Commonwealth of Australia was inaugurated by the first Governor-General of Australia � Lord Hopetoun. Australia�s first Prime Minister was Edmund Barton of the Liberal Protectionist Party. (the other two political parties were the Labor Party and the Conservative Free Traders).

New nation, but still attached to Mother England Like a little child stepping out, Australia�s constitution was rather tame compared to the United States of America. The Queen of Britain remained the head of state, retaining the power over all foreign affairs; her direct represantative in Australia was the Governor-General. British parliamentary legislation could overrule any laws passed by the Commonwealth of Australia, and legal appeals ultimately were settled by the Privy Council in London. Few Australians objected to this arrangement, for each of the six colonies felt more at ease dealing with England (�motherland�) than with dealing with one another. For her part, Mother England did not let the �baby� new nation escape the interests of imperialism. She expected and got continuing support in her military involvements, and ample returns on her substantial investments in Australia.

Canberra, as the future capital city of Australia As an interim, the first Federal Parliament was located at the Parliament House in Melbourne. (see picture, right) For the longer term, a capital city was needed and both Sydney and Melbourne each wished that it to be in its own state. However, neither of the longstanding rivals would permit it in the other�s backyard ! After considerable backbiting, a separate Australian Capital Territory was proposed at a point between the two cities. Hence the future city of Canberra (meaning �meeting place� in Aboriginal language), to be the Australian Capital Territory, was thus allocated on the beautiful Monaro Tablelands area. [see panorama of Canberra from top of Mt. Ainslie]