Katana VentraIP

Queensland

Queensland (locally /ˈkwnzlænd/ KWEENZ-land, commonly abbreviated as Qld)[note 1] is a state in north-eastern Australia, the second-largest and third-most populous of the Australian states. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and the Pacific Ocean; to its north is the Torres Strait, separating the Australian mainland from Papua New Guinea, and the Gulf of Carpentaria to the north-west. With an area of 1,723,030 square kilometres (665,270 sq mi), Queensland is the world's sixth-largest subnational entity; it is larger than all but 16 countries. Due to its size, Queensland's geographical features and climates are diverse, including tropical rainforests, rivers, coral reefs, mountain ranges and sandy beaches in its tropical and sub-tropical coastal regions, as well as deserts and savanna in the semi-arid and desert climatic regions of its interior.

For other uses, see Queensland (disambiguation).

Queensland

6 June 1859

1 January 1901

Queenslander

12 senators (of 76)

30 seats (of 151)

1,723,030[1] km2 (665,270 sq mi)

1,622 m (5,322 ft)

5,556,682

2020 estimate

$70,862 (5th)

Increase 0.944[2]
very high · 5th

Brolga (Grus rubicunda)

Barrier Reef Anemone Fish
(Amphiprion akindynos)

Cooktown orchid
(Dendrobium phalaenopsis)[3]

Koala (Phascolarctos cinereus)

Queensland has a population of over 5.3 million,[5] concentrated along the east coast, particularly in South East Queensland. The capital and largest city in the state is Brisbane, Australia's third-largest city. Ten of Australia's thirty largest cities are located in Queensland, the largest outside Brisbane being the Gold Coast, the Sunshine Coast, Townsville, Cairns, Ipswich, and Toowoomba. 28.9% of the state's population were immigrants.[6][7]


Queensland was first inhabited by Aboriginal Australians, with the Torres Strait Islands inhabited by Torres Strait Islanders.[8][9] Dutch navigator Willem Janszoon, the first European to land in Australia, explored the west coast of the Cape York Peninsula in 1606. In 1770, James Cook claimed the east coast of Australia for the Kingdom of Great Britain. In 1788, Arthur Phillip founded the colony of New South Wales, which included all of what is now Queensland. Queensland was explored in subsequent decades, and the Moreton Bay Penal Settlement was established at Brisbane in 1824 by John Oxley. During the Australian frontier wars of the 19th century, tens of thousands of Aboriginal people were killed in Queensland as colonists consolidated control over the territory.


On 6 June 1859 (now commemorated as Queensland Day), Queen Victoria signed the letters patent to establish the colony of Queensland, separating it from New South Wales and thereby establishing Queensland as a self-governing Crown colony with responsible government. A large part of colonial Queensland's economy relied on blackbirded South Sea Islander slavery.


Queensland was among the six colonies which became the founding states of Australia with Federation on 1 January 1901. Since the Bjelke-Petersen era of the late 20th century, Queensland has received a high level of internal migration from the other states and territories of Australia and remains a popular destination for interstate migration.


Queensland has the third-largest economy among Australian states, with strengths in mining, agriculture, transportation, international education, insurance, and banking. Nicknamed the Sunshine State for its tropical and sub-tropical climates, Great Barrier Reef, and numerous beaches, tourism is also important to the state's economy.

in the state's coastal extreme south-eastern corner, an urban region which includes the state's three largest cities: capital city Brisbane and popular coastal tourist destinations the Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast. In some definitions, it also includes the city of Toowoomba. South East Queensland accounts for more than 70% of the state's population.

South East Queensland

The in the state's inland southeast, which consists of fertile agricultural (particularly cattle grazing) land and in some definitions includes the city of Toowoomba. The region also includes the mountainous Granite Belt, the state's coldest region which occasionally experiences snow.

Darling Downs

in the state's coastal southeast, to the north of the South East Queensland region. It is rich in sugar cane farms and includes the cities of Bundaberg, Hervey Bay as well as K'gari (Fraser Island), the world's largest sand island.

Wide Bay–Burnett

on the state's central coastline, which is dominated by cattle farmland and coal mining. It contains the Capricorn Coast and Whitsunday Islands tourist regions, as well as the cities of Rockhampton and Mackay.

Central Queensland

on the state's northern coastline, which is dominated by cattle farmland and mining and which includes the city of Townsville.

North Queensland

on the state's extreme northern coastline along the Cape York Peninsula, which includes tropical rainforest, the state's highest mountain, Mount Bartle Frere, the Atherton Tablelands pastoral region (dominated by sugar cane and tropical fruits), the most visited section of the Great Barrier Reef, as well as the city of Cairns.

Far North Queensland

in the state's inland south-west, which is a primarily agricultural region dominated by cattle farmland, and which includes the Channel Country region of intertwining rivulets.

South West Queensland

in the state's inland central-west, dominated by cattle farmland and which includes the city of Longreach.

Central West Queensland

The (also known as North West Queensland), in the state's inland north-west along the Gulf of Carpentaria, which is dominated by savanna and mining and includes the city of Mount Isa.

Gulf Country

Legislature: the Parliament of Queensland, comprising the Legislative Assembly and the Monarch (represented by the Governor);

unicameral

Executive: the , which formalises decisions of the Cabinet of Queensland, which is composed of the Premier and other ministers of state appointed by the Governor on the advice of Parliament;

Executive Council of Queensland

Judiciary: the and other state courts, whose judges are appointed by the Governor on the advice of Parliament.

Supreme Court

Outline of Australia

Index of Australia-related articles

Queensland Day

Blackbirding

Bottoms, Timothy (2013). . Sydney: Allen & Unwin. ISBN 978-1-74331-382-4.

Conspiracy of Silence: Queensland's frontier killing times

(1988). "The Struggle for Australia : Aboriginal-European Warfare, 1770–1930". In McKernan, Michael; Browne, Margaret; Australian War Memorial (eds.). Australia Two Centuries of War & Peace. Canberra, A.C.T.: Australian War Memorial in association with Allen and Unwin, Australia. pp. 92–120. ISBN 0-642-99502-8.

Broome, Richard

Connor, John (2008). "Frontier Wars". In Dennis, Peter; et al. (eds.). The Oxford Companion to Australian Military History (Second ed.). Melbourne: Australia & New Zealand. ISBN 978-0-19-551784-2.

Oxford University Press

Coulthard-Clark, Chris D. (2001). The Encyclopedia of Australia's Battles (Second ed.). Crows Nest, New South Wales: Allen & Unwin.  1865086347.

ISBN

Ørsted-Jensen, Robert (2011). Frontier History Revisited – Queensland and the 'History War'. Cooparoo, Brisbane, Qld: Lux Mundi Publishing.  9781466386822.

ISBN

Geographic data related to at OpenStreetMap

Queensland

Government of Queensland

, Government of Queensland

State Archives

, Government of Queensland

State Library

(historical footage), AU: National Film and Sound Archive, 21 August 2012, archived from the original on 31 October 2020, retrieved 31 December 2020.

Far North Queensland

Daintrees, Richard, , AU: National Museum.

Glass plates

at Project Gutenberg

Works by Queensland

at Internet Archive

Works by or about Queensland

State Library of Queensland holds the archive, a project conducted by the Queensland Family and Child Commission. The inaugural GUiQ was conducted in 2018 and gathered information about the thoughts and experiences of children and young people aged 4–18 years in Queensland.

Growing up in Queensland (GUiQ) 2018

- Online Digital Newspaper

Queensland News Today