User:Lankiveil/Brisbane

Brisbane is the state capital of Queensland. With a population of 1,820,400, Brisbane is the third largest city in Australia and the most populous city in Queensland. It is situated on the Brisbane River on low-lying Floodplain between Moreton Bay and the Great Dividing Range in south-eastern Queensland. A large portion of Brisbane is controlled by the Brisbane City Council and also covers parts of several adjoining local government areas. In 1925, the City of Brisbane Act was passed by the Queensland Government, abolishing 20 local government authorities in the city and forming the largest local authority in Australia, covering 1200 sqkm.

The city is named after Sir Thomas Brisbane, the Governor of New South Wales from 1821 – 1825. The settlement grew from a penal colony established at his direction in 1824 at Redcliffe, 28 km to the north. The colony moved to the current location of the Brisbane CBD in 1825, and free settlers were permitted from 1842. It was chosen as the capital when Queensland was proclaimed a separate colony in 1859. The city played a central role in the Allied campaign during World War II as the South West Pacific headquarters for General Douglas MacArthur.

As the capital of Queensland, the Parliament of Queensland sits in Brisbane, and the city is the location of many significant buildings and institutions, including the State Library of Queensland and South Bank Parklands, as well as being the base of operations for major Australian companies such as Virgin Blue and Suncorp.

The local indigenous people knew the area as Mian-jin, meaning 'place shaped as a spike'.

The city is named after Sir Thomas Brisbane, the Governor of New South Wales from 1821 – 1825. The settlement grew from a penal colony established at his direction in 1824 at Redcliffe, 28 km to the north. The colony moved to the current location of the Brisbane CBD in 1825, and free settlers were permitted from 1842. It was chosen as the capital when Queensland was proclaimed a separate colony in 1859.

A large portion of Brisbane is controlled by the Brisbane City Council and also covers parts of several adjoining local government areas. In 1925, the City of Brisbane Act was passed by the Queensland Government, abolishing 20 local government authorities in the city and forming the largest local authority in Australia, covering 1200 sqkm.

The city played a central role in the Allied campaign during World War II as the South West Pacific headquarters for General Douglas MacArthur.

More recently, Brisbane hosted the 1982 Commonwealth Games, 1988 World's Fair (Expo '88), and 2001 Goodwill Games.

Canberra is the capital city of the Commonwealth of Australia. With a population of over 334,000, it is Australia's largest inland city. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory, 280 km south-west of Sydney, and 650 km north-east of Melbourne. The site of Canberra was selected for the location of the nation's capital in 1908 as a compromise between age-old rivals Sydney and Melbourne, Australia's two largest cities. It is unusual among Australian cities, being an entirely purpose-built, planned city. Following an international contest for the city's design, a design by the Chicago architects Walter Burley Griffin and Marion Mahony Griffin was selected and construction commenced in 1913. The city's design was heavily influenced by the garden city movement and incorporates significant areas of natural vegetation that have earned Canberra the title "bush capital". Although the growth and development of Canberra were hindered by the World Wars and the Great Depression, it emerged as a thriving city after World War II.

As the seat of the government of Australia, Canberra is the site of Parliament House, the High Court of Australia and numerous government departments and agencies. It is also the location of many social and cultural institutions of national significance, such as the National Gallery of Australia and the National Museum of Australia. The federal government contributes the largest percentage of Gross State Product and is the largest single employer in Canberra.