Federation of Australia dates from 1901, when the six Australian colonies became states of the Commonwealth of Australia. Several methods of combining the colonies had been tried unsuccessfully before 1889. In that year, Sir Henry Parkes, the premier of New South Wales, urged the colonists to form a federal union. During the 1890’s, many attempts to federate failed. Colonial representatives met in 1891, 1893, 1898, and 1899. In 1899, a drafting committee drew up the federal Constitution, and the Australian people voted in favor of federation. The Duke of York, later King George V, proclaimed the Commonwealth of Australia on Jan. 1, 1901.
The first phase
Self-government.
Fifty years after the British government had sent the first convicts to the penal settlement on the eastern coast of Australia, colonists in five areas of the continent began seeking self-government. By 1850, the British government was prepared to grant their request. The possibility of a federal government was also considered, but the colonists also wanted independence from one another.
Between 1855 and 1859, New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, and Victoria gained “responsible government.” This meant that they each had their own elected governments. Only the western third of the continent, where the colonists still wanted to maintain the convict system, was under British control. Western Australia remained virtually a crown colony until 1890.
Problems of separate development.
From 1863 to 1880, intercolonial conferences discussed matters requiring cooperative effort. Already the difficulties caused by development without full consultation had become apparent. For example, New South Wales had constructed its railroad system with a different gauge (track width) from those of its neighbors.
But none of the colonial leaders was prepared to sacrifice his own colony’s interests for the good of the others’. The weaker colonies feared the strong ones, and the strong ones were jealous of one another. They were fully in agreement only on defense. They all believed the United Kingdom should protect them against any external threat.
The second phase (1880-1889)
Growing national awareness.
By 1880, Australia’s population had passed the 2 million mark. About 60 percent of these people had been born in Australia, and about 34 percent were immigrants from the United Kingdom.
During the 1880’s, several issues came up that needed united action. The first of these was the need the colonial governments felt to restrict Chinese immigration. Another important issue was the blackbirding (kidnapping) of Pacific Islanders to work on the sugar and cotton plantations in Queensland.
The colonial governments also feared European expansion into islands close to Australia. One of Sir Thomas McIlwraith’s last actions as Queensland’s premier was to annex New Guinea in an effort to forestall German designs on Papua. The Australian colonies felt that if the United Kingdom did not act on their behalf, then they should act themselves. Parkes proposed in 1880 that the colonies consider some form of permanent intercolonial legislative body. James Service, the premier of Victoria, called for an intercolonial conference. It was organized before the end of 1883. Sir Samuel Griffith, the premier of Queensland, drew up a draft constitution for a federal council. The United Kingdom gave its consent in 1885. It authorized the Australian colonies, plus New Zealand and Fiji, to be represented at the first meeting of the Federal Council in 1886. 
New Zealand was not represented at the Federal Council. Fiji and Western Australia each sent one representative. Queensland, South Australia, and Victoria each sent two. But the representatives of New South Wales did not appear. Sir Henry Parkes had decided that the proposed body would hinder rather than aid the federation movement.
The fiscal problem.
The absence of New South Wales, the oldest, and in most ways the strongest, colony, hindered the work of the Federal Council. But the greatest obstacle to achieving federation was known as the fiscal problem. Colonists in Victoria strongly believed in import duties to protect the colony’s manufacturers against the competition of goods not made in Victoria. The people of New South Wales were equally firm in their belief that trade should be free.
The fiscal argument as to which policy was better, protection or free trade, divided New South Wales and Victoria on the question of federation. It also divided New South Wales and Victoria into political parties. Another area of conflict arose over the matter of financing a federal body. Everybody knew that this revenue would be gained by imposing taxes on goods coming into Australia. New South Wales colonists wanted to limit such tariffs. The colonial governments also needed revenue to manage their own affairs. They did not want a federal government to take most of the revenue. Raising and spending its own money seemed an essential part of self-government for every colony. The fiscal problem was always in the background in intercolonial meetings.
There were other difficulties. The Federal Council could make laws, but the laws required approval by both the British government and the governments of the colonies. The council had to depend on the colonial governments to carry them out. It could not raise any revenue, and could not, under any conditions, take action independently of the colonial governments. But the Federal Council did begin to popularize the idea of federation throughout Australia.
Sir Henry Parkes reentered the federation campaign in 1889. At Tenterfield, in New South Wales, he made a widely publicized speech calling on all Australians to work for the establishment of a central parliament with executive powers.
The third phase (1891-1893)
The preliminary conference
organized by Sir Henry Parkes took place in Melbourne in 1890. It was a great success. Elected delegates and invited guests included strong supporters of federation. James Service, the former Victorian premier, was present. Duncan Gillies and Alfred Deakin, leaders of Victoria’s coalition government, were also there. Deakin later became prime minister. Edmund Barton, another future prime minister, represented New South Wales with Parkes. Sir Samuel Griffith was one of the Queensland representatives. Andrew Inglis Clark came from Tasmania. All the colonies, as well as New Zealand, had sent delegates. When Parkes spoke at the banquet that opened the conference, he was greeted with great applause. However, he became too ill to participate in the conference. 
The delegates agreed that an Australian federal government with powers to make laws and carry them out should be established. They decided to ask the colonial governments to appoint members to a formal National Australasian Convention in 1891. The plans and the constitution would be drawn up at that meeting.
The first federal convention
took place in Sydney early in 1891. All the colonies, as well as New Zealand, were represented. There were 46 delegates, all experienced politicians. A large number of premiers and former premiers attended. Nearly all of the members of the 1890 conference were present.
Parkes presided at first. But ill health again forced him to retire from the proceedings. Sir Samuel Griffith took his place. The constitution was drawn up by Griffith, representing Queensland; Edmund Barton, from New South Wales; Andrew Inglis Clark, from Tasmania; and Charles Cameron Kingston, from South Australia. These men were all experienced in both politics and law. 
The first draft of the constitution
proposed a federal government in the Commonwealth of Australia, consisting of six states instead of six colonies. Some aspects of the 1891 draft were altered over the next 10 years. However, its overall shape remained the same. As leader of the drafting committee, Sir Samuel Griffith is recognized by historians as one of the great architects of federation in Australia.
After the 1891 proceedings were completed, the colonial governments had to agree to the decisions made and endorse the constitution. Victoria and South Australia adopted the proposals, despite misgivings. But New South Wales caused difficulties. Parkes faced opposition, even inside his own party, concerning the clauses on finance and trade. He decided not to put the matter before his parliament. The other colonies then felt that there was no point in continuing. Throughout Australia, the colonial governments were facing the effects of economic depression. Industrial disputes and financial hardships in the colonies drew more concern than federation.
Parkes stepped down as premier of New South Wales in 1891. He stayed in parliament but died without regaining the premiership.
The fourth phase (1893-1897)
Federation becomes a popular movement.
Edmund Barton, who was to be the first prime minister in Australia’s federal government, began a campaign for federation in 1893. He toured New South Wales, appealing to the members of all electorates to support the cause of federation. Federal leagues began to spring into existence. They were aided by Barton’s enthusiasm and advice. A similar movement gained momentum in Victoria. A group of professional and business people called the Australian Natives’ Association fostered this movement. These parallel campaigns succeeded so well that federal leagues from both colonies were able to call a conference in 1893. It took place in Corowa, on the border of Victoria and New South Wales. 
The Corowa Conference
had no official parliamentary standing. But it provided a lead for the colonial parliaments to follow. Its main proposals were put forward by a lawyer, John Quick. He proposed that another convention should take place. The members of this convention were to be representatives elected by the people. Quick also proposed that each colony should hold a referendum on the draft constitution. 
The newly elected premier of New South Wales, George Reid, took up Quick’s suggestion in 1894. The other premiers joined him in a conference in 1895. At this conference, they reached an agreement to hold a convention of elected representatives from all colonies.
The final phase (1897-1900)
Victory for federation.
The decisive convention took place in three sessions, held during 1897 and 1898. However, Queensland was not represented. The debate about the separation of the northern area of that colony had prevented the election of delegates. But the other colonies sent 10 representatives each. All delegates were elected directly by the people, except those from Western Australia, who were chosen by parliament. New Zealand was no longer involved.
The 1897-1898 national convention
redrafted the constitution and then submitted it in referendum form in four colonies. Neither Queensland nor Western Australia took part. A majority favored the constitution in all the other colonies. But the majority in New South Wales was too small to satisfy either its government or the other colonies. Further amendments, drafted to satisfy the New South Wales government, were made at a premiers’ conference.
All colonies participated in a second referendum in 1899. All recorded majorities. The government of Western Australia attempted to get further concessions but came in at the last moment. Finally, all the colonies were prepared to become states in a federal system consisting of five parts. They decided that a House of Representatives would represent all the electorates equally. The Senate was to represent the six states equally. An executive, consisting of the prime minister and Cabinet, was to be elected by the majority party. A High Court was to be set up to interpret the Constitution. A governor general was to represent the British monarchy. The Australian Commonwealth flag, instead of being the British Union Jack, would have a small replica of the British flag in one quarter and six stars representing the Southern Cross and the six states. The British government consented to these proposals. See Australia, Government of; Constitution of Australia. 
The powers of the federal Parliament were limited to a defined list. The states maintained their powers over all the areas not listed as federal powers. The main source of federal revenue would come from customs duties. But interstate trade would be free.
The founding fathers.
The new federal Constitution was proclaimed and the Commonwealth of Australia came into being amid great rejoicing on Jan. 1, 1901. Not all the founding fathers were in the first federal Parliament. Death or ill health had removed some of them, including Parkes and Service. Griffith had become Queensland’s chief justice and was to be the chief justice of the High Court. Andrew Inglis Clark had become a senior judge on Tasmania’s Supreme Court. Barton became the first prime minister of Australia. Other supporters of federation, such as Deakin, Kingston, and Quick, were in the first Parliament.
Some people had opposed federation until late in the 1800’s. These people included George Reid, who was leader of the opposition. Sir John Forrest, another member of the federal government, had stopped Western Australia’s entry until the last possible moment. Joseph Cook, a future prime minister, had also opposed federation. Other future prime ministers in the first federal government were John (Chris) Watson, Andrew Fisher, and William Morris Hughes.
