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Australian Constitutional History
The Constitutional history of Australia is the history of Australia's foundational legal principles. Australia's legal origins as a nation state began in the colonial era, with its legal system reliant initially upon a legal fiction of terra nullius to impose British law upon the colony of New South Wales. As the colonies expanded, Australia gradually began to achieve de facto independence. Over the years as a result the foundations of the Australian legal system gradually began to shift. This culminated in the Australia Act, an act formally ending legal ties with the UK. Settlement & Terra Nullius Prior to European settlement of Australia, Europeans had been to the land merely as explorers. The only exception was James Cook who in 1770 sailed up most of the east coast of Australia and then claimed the entire coastline he had just explored as British territory. The basis of the claim is not clear, but it is clear that the indigenous peoples were not consulted and no treaty was ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Terra Nullius
''Terra nullius'' (, plural ''terrae nullius'') is a Latin expression meaning " nobody's land". It was a principle sometimes used in international law to justify claims that territory may be acquired by a state's occupation of it. : : : : : : There are currently three territories claimed to be ''terra nullius'', two of which caused by border disputes between sovereign states, and one caused by no sovereign state claiming the land. Doctrine In international law, ''terra nullius'' is territory which belongs to no state. Sovereignty over territory which is ''terra nullius'' can be acquired by any state by occupation. According to Oppenheimer, “‘The only territory which can be the object of occupation is that which does not already belong to another state, whether it is uninhabited, or inhabited by persons whose community is not considered to be a state; for individuals may live on as territory without forming themselves into a state proper exercising sovereign ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians or Australian First Nations are people with familial heritage from, and membership in, the ethnic groups that lived in Australia before British colonisation. They consist of two distinct groups: the Aboriginal peoples of the Australian mainland and Tasmania, and the Torres Strait Islander peoples from the seas between Queensland and Papua New Guinea. The term Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples or the person's specific cultural group, is often preferred, though the terms First Nations of Australia, First Peoples of Australia and First Australians are also increasingly common; 812,728 people self-identified as being of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander origin in the 2021 Australian Census, representing 3.2% of the total population of Australia. Of these indigenous Australians, 91.4% identified as Aboriginal; 4.2% identified as Torres Strait Islander; while 4.4% identified with both groups. [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Letters Patent
Letters patent ( la, litterae patentes) ( always in the plural) are a type of legal instrument in the form of a published written order issued by a monarch, president or other head of state, generally granting an office, right, monopoly, title or status to a person or corporation. Letters patent can be used for the creation of corporations or government offices, or for granting city status or a coat of arms. Letters patent are issued for the appointment of representatives of the Crown, such as governors and governors-general of Commonwealth realms, as well as appointing a Royal Commission. In the United Kingdom, they are also issued for the creation of peers of the realm. A particular form of letters patent has evolved into the modern intellectual property patent (referred to as a utility patent or design patent in United States patent law) granting exclusive rights in an invention or design. In this case it is essential that the written grant should be in the form of a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Colony Of New Zealand
The Colony of New Zealand was a Crown colony of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland that encompassed the islands of New Zealand from 1841 to 1907. The power of the British government was vested in the Governor of New Zealand, as the representative of their monarch. The colony had three capitals: Old Russell in 1841; Auckland from 1841 to 1865; and Wellington, which was the capital until the colony's reorganisation into a Dominion, and continues to be the capital of New Zealand till the present day. In 1852, the colony was granted self-government with the passage of the New Zealand Constitution Act 1852. Subsequently, the first parliament was elected in 1853, and responsible government was established in 1856. In 1907, the colony became the Dominion of New Zealand, which heralded a more explicit recognition of self-government within the British Empire. History Establishment Following a proclamation of sovereignty over New Zealand from Sydney in January ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
British Sovereignty
A list of former British colonies, dependencies and dates when they severed legal ties with Britain: Gains in sovereignty *Rockall (1955) – annexed to the Crown on 18 September. Losses in sovereignty or other jurisdiction *The Thirteen Colonies declared independence from Great Britain on 4 July 1776. * (1922) – see Unilateral Declaration of Egyptian Independence. *, , the , , , and (1926) – Dominions at the time of the Balfour Declaration of 1926. *Weihai (1930) – fully restored to Republic of China sovereignty on 1 October. *, , the , , , and (1931) – Recognized Dominions as "autonomous communities within the British Empire" as per the Statute of Westminster.https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1931/4/pdfs/ukpga_19310004_en.pdf The Statue also affirmed the British Parliament wouldn't legislate for the Dominions unless explicitly requested. * (1947) – partitioned on 15 August into the independent dominions of India and Pakistan. * and (1948) – independenc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
William Hobson
Captain William Hobson (26 September 1792 – 10 September 1842) was a British Royal Navy officer who served as the first Governor of New Zealand. He was a co-author of the Treaty of Waitangi. Hobson was dispatched from London in July 1839, with instructions to take the constitutional steps needed to establish a British colony in New Zealand. He was sworn in as Lieutenant-Governor in Sydney (under George Gipps) and arrived in New Zealand on 29 January 1840. On 5 February 1840, Hobson met with Māori chiefs at Waitangi, and the following morning they signed a treaty by which the chiefs purportedly voluntarily transferred sovereignty to the British Crown in return for guarantees respecting their lands and possessions and their rights as British subjects. Three months later, Hobson proclaimed British sovereignty over the islands of New Zealand. He also selected the site for a new capital, which he named Auckland. In May 1841, New Zealand was constituted as a separate Cro ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Treaty Of Waitangi
The Treaty of Waitangi ( mi, Te Tiriti o Waitangi) is a document of central importance to the History of New Zealand, history, to the political constitution of the state, and to the national mythos of New Zealand. It has played a major role in the treatment of the Māori population in New Zealand, by successive governments and the wider population, a role that has been especially prominent from the late 20th century. The treaty document is an agreement, not a treaty as recognised in international law and it has no independent legal status, being legally effective only to the extent it is recognised in various statutes. It was first signed on 6 February 1840 by Captain William Hobson as Administrative consul, consul for the British The Crown, Crown and by Māori people, Māori chiefs () from the North Island of New Zealand. The treaty was written at a time when the New Zealand Company, acting on behalf of large numbers of settlers and would-be settlers, were establishing a colo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Swan River Colony
The Swan River Colony, also known as the Swan River Settlement, or just Swan River, was a British colony established in 1829 on the Swan River, in Western Australia. This initial settlement place on the Swan River was soon named Perth, and it became the capital city of Western Australia. The name was a '' pars pro toto'' for Western Australia. On 6 February 1832 the colony was renamed the Colony of Western Australia, when the colony's founding lieutenant-governor, Captain James Stirling, belatedly received his commission. However, the name "Swan River Colony" remained in informal use for many years afterwards. European exploration The first recorded Europeans to sight land where the city of Perth is now located were Dutch sailors. Most likely the first visitor to the Swan River area was Frederick de Houtman on 19 July 1619, travelling on the ships and . His records indicate he first reached the Western Australian coast at latitude 32°20', which is approximately at Wa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Old Parliament House, Canberra
Old Parliament House, formerly known as the Provisional Parliament House, was the seat of the Parliament of Australia from 1927 to 1988. The building began operation on 9 May 1927 after Parliament's relocation from Melbourne to the new capital, Canberra. In 1988, the Commonwealth Parliament transferred to the new Parliament House on Capital Hill. It also serves as a venue for temporary exhibitions, lectures and concerts. On 2 May 2008 it was made an Executive Agency of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. On 9 May 2009, the Executive Agency was renamed the Museum of Australian Democracy at Old Parliament House, reporting to the Special Minister of State. Designed by John Smith Murdoch and a team of assistants from the Department of Works and Railways, the building was intended to be neither temporary nor permanent—only to be a "provisional" building that would serve the needs of Parliament for a maximum of 50 years. The design extended from the building it ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tasmania
) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_date = Colony of Tasmania , established_title2 = Federation , established_date2 = 1 January 1901 , named_for = Abel Tasman , demonym = , capital = Hobart , largest_city = capital , coordinates = , admin_center = 29 local government areas , admin_center_type = Administration , leader_title1 = Monarch , leader_name1 = Charles III , leader_title2 = Governor , leader_name2 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Batman's Treaty
Batman's Treaty was an agreement between John Batman, an Australian grazier, businessman and coloniser, and a group of Wurundjeri elders, for the purchase of land around Port Phillip, near the present site of Melbourne. The document came to be known as Batman's Treaty and is considered significant as it was the first and only documented time when Europeans negotiated their presence and occupation of Aboriginal lands directly with the traditional owners.Richard Broome, pp10-14, ''Aboriginal Victorians: A History Since 1800'', Allen & Unwin, 2005, , The treaty was implicitly declared void on 26 August 1835 by the Governor of New South Wales, Richard Bourke. Making of the treaty In January 1827, John Batman and Joseph Gellibrand applied for a grant of land at Port Phillip,Joseph Gellibrand "Austra ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Colonial Office
The Colonial Office was a government department of the Kingdom of Great Britain and later of the United Kingdom, first created to deal with the colonial affairs of British North America but required also to oversee the increasing number of colonies of the British Empire. Despite its name, the Colonial Office was never responsible for all Britain's Imperial territories; for example, protectorates fell under the purview of the Foreign Office, and British India was ruled by the East India Company until 1858 (the British Raj ruled the India Office as a result of the Indian Mutiny), while the role of the Colonial Office in the affairs of the Dominions changed as time passed. It was headed by the Secretary of State for the Colonies, also known more informally as the Colonial Secretary. First Colonial Office (1768–1782) Prior to 1768, responsibility for the affairs of the British colonies was part of the duties of the Secretary of State for the Southern Department and a committ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
