AUSTRALIA DAY

Happy Birthday Australia. I gave up a beautiful sunrise for this Blip; however it's our Birthday today and I thought an image of some flags outside a beautiful old building would suffice.

For at least 40,000 years before European settlement in the late 18th century, Australia was inhabited by indigenous Australians.

After sporadic visits by fishermen from the immediate north and discovery by Dutch explorers in 1606, Australia's eastern half was claimed by the British in 1770 and initially settled through penal transportation to the colony of New South Wales, founded on 26 January 1788. The population grew steadily in the following years; the continent was explored and an additional five largely self-governing Crown Colonies were established during the 19th century.

On 1 January 1901, the six colonies became a federation and the Commonwealth of Australia was formed. Since Federation, Australia has maintained a stable liberal democratic political system and is a Commonwealth realm. The population is 22 million, with approximately 60% concentrated in and around the mainland state capitals of Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide. The nation's capital city is Canberra, in the Australian Capital Territory.