Canberra

Canberra, federal capital of the Commonwealth of Australia. It occupies part of the Australian Capital Territory (ACT), in southeastern Australia, and is about 150 miles (240 km) southwest of Sydney. Canberra lies astride the Molonglo River, which is a tributary of the Murrumbidgee River.

A small squatters’ settlement of stockmen, called Canberry or Canbury (a derivation of an Aboriginal term meaning “meeting place”), was made there as early as 1824. By 1836 the name had evolved to Canberra. Following the inauguration of the commonwealth in 1901, the site was chosen for the new capital in 1909, and the delineation of the ACT followed. A worldwide competition was launched in 1911 to find a design for a new federal capital, and the winning plan was submitted by the American architect Walter Burley Griffin. Construction began in 1913 but was interrupted by World War I. On May 9, 1927, ceremonies marked the official transfer of the federal Parliament from Melbourne to the new capital.

Canberra lies on a plain at the foot of 6,200-foot (1,900-metre) spurs of the Australian Alps, enjoying warm summers and cool winters and receiving considerably less rainfall than the surrounding highlands. The city has been expanding, and its population has grown steadily. Only the centre and inner suburbs have continued to conform to the original plans, which included Lake Burley Griffin, an ornamental water axis formed in 1963 by a dam across the Molonglo River. Residential development has been mainly in satellite towns, including Weston Creek (1962), Belconnen (1966), and Tuggeranong (1975). Planning for that growth was controlled by the National Capital Development Commission and was administered by the Department of Territories until 1989, when the National Capital Planning Authority was established.

There are light industries and a growing tourist trade. Notable features of the city are Mount Stromlo Observatory (established 1924), the National Library of Australia (1968), the High Court of Australia (1981), the Australian National Gallery (1982), the Church of St. John the Baptist (1845), the Australian National War Memorial (1941), and Parliament House (1988). Old Parliament House, where the national legislature met between 1927 and 1988, is now the Museum of Australian Democracy. Canberra is home to the Australian National University (1936) and colleges of technical and further education. The city is also the headquarters of the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation and the Australian Defence Force Academy.

In early 2003, wildfires caused extensive damage to Canberra and its suburbs, where some 500 homes were destroyed and several people died. The fire also severely damaged Mount Stromlo Observatory, which subsequently was only partially restored. Pop. (2006) 323,327; (2011) 355,596.