Australia and the Global Economy - Why Was Australia Settled - Case Study Example

Name Institution Tutor Task Date Australia and the Global Economy: Why was Australia settled? Introduction The earliest inhabitants in the Australian continent were the aborigines. It is now widely believed that they migrated from Asia from around 60, 000 to 40, 000 BC in successive waves. This period coincides with the Pleistocene era, which was the last great ice age. During this era, sea levels were 60 to 200 metres below current levels and the coastline coincided with continental shelves. This resulted in the formation of the Indonesian land bridge whereby the islands of Indonesia were joined together to form a continuous land mass from South East Asia to the Australian continent (Bowler, 1971). Though there were regions where narrow straits cut the land mass in several places, they were still traversable by foot. From about 15,000 BC, global temperatures started rising, the ice melted and receded, resulting in rising sea levels. Consequently, by 9,000 BC, the current coastline had formed and Australia was isolated again from the rest of the world. This period of isolation ended in 1788 when the first fleet of British ships comprising 11 ships and 1,322 people landed at Botany Bay on 26 January 1788 (Mulvaney & Kamminga, 1999). This essay examines the reasons behind why the British decided to settle in Australia with respect to prevailing odds of doing this and various aspects concerning initial economic development and trends of settlement. In looking at the reasons why Australia was settled, the traditional view is that the British needed the continent as a penal colony, that is, a place where convicts from British jails could be “dumped”. The population of prisoners in British prisons almost doubled between 1782 and 1787, the authorities were therefore under were under immense pressure to find a place to take the convicts. Before 1776, prisoners sentenced to transportation would sold be taken to the American colonies where they would be sold to plantation owners for labour provision. This was especially so for landowners in the southern colonies where vast tracts of land under tobacco that required extensive human labour. It is natural therefore to put the issue of the convict’s problem first (Shaw, 1966). However, this reasoning has some loopholes. After the revolution of 1776, increasing philanthropic and humanitarian activities opposed the use of humans as a source of slave labour. Landowners in the south increasingly rejected these convicts as a source of labour. Therefore, it left the British with an urgent problem, in spite of this it appears Britain surprisingly took a long time in addressing this issue. Britain would have exported the convicts to Canada, other colonies (that required labour) or expand the system of jails and prison hulks. These three options would have been far cheaper options than sending prisoners thousands of miles to Australia. Then this then leads back to the original question of the reason behind the settling of Australia (Blainley, 1966). Britain was becoming increasingly aware of the precarious position of relying on foreign sources of naval supplies such as timber for general shipbuilding and for the masts and flax for making ropes and canvas sails. Britain regarded Norfolk Island an ideal place for establishing farms to cultivate these raw materials. It however turned out later that Norfolk Island’s flax and timber was inferior and unsuitable for the making of canvas and masts respectively. However, the settling of Australia starting at Botany Bay still gave hope of planting the same plants(and others) in the interior with good measure of success (Blainley, 1966). Another plausible reason for settling may have been that the British viewed New South Wales as a strategic location from a military and economic viewpoint. By establishing its presence there, Britain could expand its empire in the East through an established port of call for refurbishment of supplies and for rest. A base at Botany Bay would enhance the tea trade with China and facilitate the fur trade with the pacific north west of America. At the same time, such a base would check American expansion in the south pacific and provide a base for British whalers. In addition, the base would serve as a route for British expansion into the Dutch East Indies especially with the 1784 signing of the Treaty of Paris, which allowed the British free travel this region (Dallas, 1952). The fact that Botany Bay was an important strategic location for the British is not in doubt, but due to the extreme distances involved, the base had to find a means of supporting itself. The answer to this problem was to transport convicts there to provide labour for agricultural production. The question of escape did not arise since the land was virtually isolated from the rest of the world. The settling as discussed hereafter directly or indirectly created the pathway of economic development and trends in Australia traceable that era (Clark, 1960). Australia ranks as one of the most urbanised nations in the world, a trend that started since its colonisation. One of the reasons for this was the high transport costs involved, the other reason was the result of the forward and backward linkages associated with wool, the only crop produced and marketed profitably in spite of the high transport costs (Gilbert, 1966).Territories such as the USA were characterised by the presence of long and navigable rivers that provided the cheapest mode of transport in the 18th and 19th centuries. This enabled cheap transport of farm produce over long distances to designated markets in urban areas from the rural areas along the rivers, lakes or canals. The situation in Australia was different, the expansion of agriculture resulted in closer settlements characterised by dense rural population densities with a system of inland tows and cities. Since there was no system of inland waterways, farm produce had to be transported over land essentially by means of the bullock tray. For instance, the price of wheat in Sydney around 1820s was $ 40 per ton, which meant that wheat required close proximity to potential markets. In contrast, wool could comfortably be transported over longer distances at a much cheaper cost and was therefore more profitable. For instance, over the same period wool sold at $ 448 per ton. Furthermore, the demand value of most agricultural produce was a function market size. At this time, the population of New South Wales was growing slowly and this in effect curtailed the growth of the agricultural sector. However, demand for wool was driven more by global and not local demand. Wool was in great demand in Britain while European production was low (Sinclair, 1976). Since the cost of wool transport and labour demand was low, rural settlement remained sparse. Huge flocks of sheep required vast tracts of land but fortunately, land was plentiful and cheap and at times free. People just squatted on the land and took as much land as they saw fit. These initial squatters were rather rich since sheep farming required high start up capital. Those who could afford it soon amassed wealth and political power. Therefore low carrying capacity of the land and size of the sheep runs brought about low population densities. Still, this does not fully account for the dominance of capital cities in terms of population. For example, Adelaide, Melbourne, Sydney and Perth account for approximately 70% of the countries population currently, a trend unchanged since their establishment (Mclean, 2004). This fact can only be explained in terms of forward and backward linkages of wool. Wool from Australia was transported overseas largely unprocessed. However, it contributed to forward linkages in the form of activities such as insurance, agents and transport. These activities were confined to the key port cities. Therefore, growth of wool industries spurred economic growth in the ports (Sinclair, 1976). Backward linkages were realised. The wool industry became increasingly capital intensive with time. Large amounts of capital resources, steam engines, shearing equipment, fencing and water conservation equipment were required. These products were either manufactured in the ports or sourced from Britain. Thus, the growth of the primate city was fuelled by expansion of the pastoral industry either through its manufacturing or import sectors. The transport focussed on the primate city was further stimulated since these goods had to make long trips back to the outback stations (Sinclair, 1976). Final demand linkages became evident. Economic growth resulted from the consumption patterns of squatters. These were wealthy people whose demand for final goods could not be adequately catered for locally. Annual shopping trips to the city to purchase necessities and other luxuries spurred the growth of the manufacturing and retail sectors. Where some goods were not locally available, they had to be imported. Other services were also required, for example, wealthy people needed schools to educate their children. Due to sparse populations of the hinterland, schools could not meet the threshold number of students required to sustain them. Since this could only be done in the primate cities, growth of the cities was enhanced (Sinclair, 1976). The railway transport sector revolutionised agriculture and land settlement patterns. Prices of agricultural goods fell drastically due to new technology, low transport costs and increased supply. By the 1880s, the price of wheat had fallen from 20 to 9 pounds per ton while wool prices fell from 224 to 90 pounds per ton over the same period. In comparison to wool, it was the wheat industry that benefited most. Railway transport opened up large tracts of land that were previously unexploited. Large-scale irrigation was possible due to steam engines. With railway transport, new irrigation regions were able to market both their fresh and dried farm produce profitably. This was previously impossible. The opening up of vast wheat lands facilitated closer settlement. Towns and cities where there was most intensive farming began to grow in earnest because population densities were higher. Nevertheless, the capital cities remained dominant (Lewis, Balderstone & Bowan, 2006). The first British farmers in Australia soon realised that their tools and methods of farming were not applicable in the new land. Therefore this necessity gave rise to agricultural innovations and entrepreneurship aimed at identifying crops and farming methods best suited for this land. Examples of these innovations include superphosphate fertilizer, the stump jump plough and new superior wheat strains such as federation wheat. The greatest innovation however, was the creation of institutions that supported the culture of innovation, for example, the Roseworthy agricultural college founded in 1878. Such centres undertook research to identify and solve problems in the agricultural sector and educated farmers. Agricultural shows served as melting pots of sharing ideas and experiences among farmers (Lewis, Balderstone & Bowan, 2006). Conclusion In conclusion, it is evident that the reason why Australia was settled remains a debate. For example it seems odd that the British government decided to send a fleet full of convicts first before without waiting for private settlers or investors. Blainley (1966) argues that flax was major consideration of settling and/or colonisation of Australia since traditional sources were shaky. For example, Russia was a major supplier of flax to Britain and was her natural ally. But at some time Anglo-Russian relations were strained in 1786 and even in 1787 when Russia went to war to Turkey. This would seemingly have provoked Britain to actively search for alternative sources. But according to Bolton (1966), this was not the case; in fact Britain still hoped to increase its ties with Russia and seemed unconcerned about its dependence on Russian flax. So there is contention on the issue of flax as the reason for settling in Australia. The fact that Britain had a convict problem is obvious, but sending them half-way across the world beats logic. Perhaps settling in Boston Bay for military and economic reasons appears to be the strongest reason for settling. Nevertheless the series of events that followed the settling in Australia helped create the series of events that led to the structure of present day Australia. Work cited Blainley, G. The tyranny of distance: how distance shaped Australia's history. Melbourne: Macmillan Company of Australia 1996. Print Bolton, G.C. The hollow conqueror: Flax and the foundations of Australia. Australian Economic History Review.1966, 8, 3-17. Print. Bowler, J.M. (1971). Pleistocene salinities and climatic change: Evidence from lakes and lunettes in Southeastern Australia. In Mulvaney, D.J. and Golson, J. (eds), Aboriginal Man and Environment in Australia. Canberra: Australian National University Press. Clark, M The choice of Botany Bay, Historical Studies. 1960, 9, 227. Dallas, K.M. First settlement of Australia: considered in relation to sea-power in world politics, Tasmanian Historical Research Association, (1952). 3, 12. Gilbert, L.AThe bush and the search for a staple in South Wales 1788-1910, Records for Australian Academy of Sciences, . (1966). 1 (1), 6 -19. Lewis, W., Balderstone, S., & Bowan. J. (2006). Events That Shaped Australia. New Holland McLean, I.W. Australian Economic Growth in Historical Perspective. The Economic Record, 2004. 80(250), 330-45. Mulvaney, J., & Kamminga, J. Prehistory of Australia. Sydney: Allen and Unwin. 1999. Shaw, A.G.L. Convicts and the colonies, Sydney: Oxford.1966. Sinclair, W. A The Process of Economic Development in Australia. Melbourne: Cheshire. 1976. Read More