The walk up to the Sydney Opera House, Australia.
Sydney’s history began somewhere between 40,000 and 60,000 years ago when the ancestors of Australian Aboriginals arrived from the country now known as Indonesia. Several Aboriginal tribes made the area around Sydney their home, but when the first Europeans arrived around 1770, the area started changing rapidly.
New South Wales was established on 7 February 1788 with just over 1,000 settlers, many of whom were convicts. The early days of European colonisation were perilous as Europeans struggled to establish a stable community. Disease swept through the Aboriginal populations, who had little or no immunity to such European diseases as measles and smallpox.
Between drought and disease, life in early Sydney was hard. Then-Governor William Bligh of the mutinous Bounty fame managed to trigger the Rum Rebellion, in which landowners sought control of the government in Australia’s only military insurrection.
Governor Macquarie took over shortly afterward, and it was thanks to his forward-thinking dreams that Sydney began to blossom, changing from a volatile penal colony to a thriving community with churches, the Royal Botanic Gardens, parks, and cultural institutions.
During the 19th century, Sydney experienced explosive population growth, and it was officially incorporated in 1842. A complex transportation network developed, with both railways and trams. By the 1880s, steam trams had replaced horse-drawn trams, and soon even steam trams were upgraded to electric trams to create what was then the largest tram system in the world. An underground railway opened in the early part of the 20th century.
Australia was now known as the Commonwealth of Australia; Sydney became the capital of New South Wales. Sydney continued to develop throughout the 20th century in spite of the Great Depression. Sydney Harbour Bridge construction was completed, and the city became a major tourist destination with its pleasant weather and attractive scenery.
Sydney today is known for its world-renowned Opera House, Darling Harbour, and its diverse cosmopolitan population. Once a lowly penal colony, Sydney, Australia, is now counted amongst the ten most liveable cities in the world. Visitors to Sydney can enjoy a variety of museums, cultural attractions, gardens, parks, zoos, and beaches.
