Henry Parkes

Federation of Australia - Part 2: 1880-1900

The 1880s proved to be 'the turning point at which the 'federal idea' found in all the schemes of the previous forty years would be transformed into the Federation movement'

Federation of Australia - Part 1: 1840-1879

The process to federate the six Australian colonies into the Commonwealth of Australia took over fifty years from its beginnings in the 1840s

Federation timeline

Significant events in the 50 year process to federate the six Australian colonies into the Commonwealth of Australia, 1846-2001

Black and white photo of a portrait of a young man
On This Day

25 July 1839 Henry Parkes arrived in Sydney

Henry Parkes arrived in Sydney on 25 July 1839 on the 'Strathfieldsaye' with his wife, Clarinda. He became known as the Father of Federation

A man sits at a desk in a large office surrounded by bookshelves and a fireplace
On This Day

Henry Parkes ‘Tenterfield Oration’

On 24 October 1889, Sir Henry Parkes, then Premier of NSW, made his famous speech, the ‘Tenterfield Oration’, in favour of Federation

Sydney visionaries

Cities are collective enterprises that reflect the decisions, dreams and lives of innumerable citizens, past and present