Australian International History - Essay Example

Download file to see previous pages... ts, Australia would still be under the umbrella of the empire and not completely control it's own foreign policy. In the words of B.R. Wise, "I certainly did not anticipate at the time (1888), that in such short a period of twelve years, the then prevalent indifference on the part of Great Britain and suspicion on ours would have given place to the mutual confidence which is now so significant of the relations between the two countries."[1]
called "the crimson thread of kinship"[2] with the British, this basically meant that most Australians could trace their roots to the United Kingdom, be it England, Ireland or New Wales, however, in Australia, developed a mix of nationalism and imperialism. The militarizations of Europe posed many threats to Australia and slowly lead to the rise of Australian Nationalism and in time to the formation of a navy under the command of the Commonwealth government in 1909. These events mainly shaped the Australian foreign policy in the period of 1900-1914.

According to Paul Kelly, the early commonwealth period saw the establishment of 'The Australian Settlement' comprising five planks:

1. White Australia
2. Industry Protection
3. Wage Arbitration
4. State Paternalism
5. Imperial Benevolences[3]

It aimed to create an environment that would be a modified version of capitalism which would function under the already existing imperial machine. The empire was to be responsible to ensure that racial purity (the concept of White Australia) would be protected and enforced and also provide the Commonwealth with the markets and work force for it to establish its presence and develop its resources. However, this goal was easier set than achieved, for Japan allied with Britain in 1902 and even though the British Forces provided the main defences for Australia,
[2]. Paul Kelly, The Elf Certainty: The Story of the 19805, Allen & Unwin, St. Leonards (NSW), 1992, pp. 1-2
[3]. Paul Kelly, The Elf Certainty: The Story of the 19805, Allen & Unwin, St. Leonards (NSW), 1992, pp. 1-2
Britain itself was being challenged by Germany in the northern hemisphere, which left it weak in the pacific and the Commonwealth government anticipated that it may be left dependent on Japan for its defence. This in itself proved to be a challenge to the concept of White Australia as this policy aimed to exclude coloured people from Australia and that included the Asians. Even in being dependent on solely the British Empire, the White Australia policy faced many challenges as the majority of the ...Download file to see next pagesRead More