# Timeline of Australian history

This is a timeline of Australian history, comprising important legal and territorial changes and political events in Australia and its predecessor states. To read about the background to these events, see history of Australia.

## Pre-written history

| Year | Date | Event |
| c. 48,000–63,000 BC | – | The ancestors of Aboriginal Australians began arriving from south-east Asia 50,000 to 65,000 years ago, during the last glacial period. Arriving by sea, they settled the continent and had formed approximately 250 distinct language groups by the time of European settlement, maintaining some of the longest known continuing artistic and religious traditions in the world. |
| c. 2000 BC | – | The Torres Strait Islander people first settled Torres Strait Islands around 4000 years ago. Culturally and linguistically distinct from mainland Aboriginal peoples, they were seafarers and obtained their livelihood from seasonal horticulture and the resources of their reefs and seas. |
| – | – | In 1944, nine coins were found on Marchinbar Island, the largest island in the Wessel Islands of the Northern Territory of Australia. While four coins were identified as Dutch duits dating from 1690 to the 1780s, five with Arabic inscriptions were identified as being from the Kilwa Sultanate. The coins are now held by the Powerhouse Museum, Sydney, Australia. In 2018 another coin, also thought to be from Kilwa, was found on a beach on Elcho Island, another of the Wessel Islands. |

## 16th century

| Year | Date | Event |
| 1521 | | Several writers have argued that Portuguese expeditions visited Australia at this time. However, historians generally disagree and the evidence remains contentious. (to 1522) |

## 17th century

| Year | Date | Event |
| 1606 | February/March | The Dutch East India Company (VOC) ship Duyfken, under Captain Willem Janszoon, explored the western coast of Cape York Peninsula, near what is now Weipa. This was the first recorded landfall by a European on Australian soil. |
| 1606 | August | Spanish seaman Luís Vaz de Torres sailed through the Torres Strait, between Australia and New Guinea, along the latter's southern coast. Torres reported 'shoals', some of which may have been the northernmost atolls of the Great Barrier Reef. |
| 1616 | 25 October | Dutch captain Dirk Hartog in the Eendracht made the second recorded landfall by a European, at Dirk Hartog Island on the western coast of Australia. He left a commemorative plate, the Hartog Plate. |
| 1618 | July | VOC ship Mauritius under command of Supercargo Willem Janszoon, landed near North West Cape, near the modern town of Exmouth, and named Willem's River, later renamed Ashburton River. |
| 1622 | 1 May | The English ship Tryall sighted Point Cloates on the west coast of Australia. |
| 1622 | 25 May | The Tryall was wrecked on Tryal Rocks, northwest of the Montebello Islands, crew spent seven days ashore before sailing a longboat to Bantam in Java – this was the first recorded shipwreck in Australian waters and first extended stay in Australia by Europeans. |
| 1623 | | Dutch captain Jan Carstensz navigated the Gulf of Carpentaria aboard the Pera and Arnhem. The Arnhem crossed the Gulf to reach and name Groote Eylandt. |
| 1623 | | First white child in Australia was Born. Seebaer van Nieuwelant (born 27 July 1623), son of Willemtgen and Willem Janszoon, was born south of Dirk Hartog Island, in present-day Western Australia. |
| 1629 | 4 June | VOC ship Batman wrecked on Houtman Abrolhos, off Geraldton. Mutiny ensued and at least 110 men, women and children were murdered. First European structure in Australia – Wiebbe Hayes Stone Fort on West Wallabi Island. |
| 1642 | | Dutch explorer Abel Tasman explored the west coast of Tasmania, landed on its east coast and named the island Anthoonij van Diemenslandt. |
| 1656 | 28 April | In 1656 the Vergulde Draeck struck a submerged coral reef midway between what are now the coastal towns of Seabird and Ledge Point, Western Australia. On board were 193 crew, eight boxes of silver coins worth 78,600 guilders and trade goods to the value of 106,400 guilders. Of the 193 crew, 118 are believed to have perished. The initial 75 survivors, including the ship's captain Pieter Albertszoon, and the under steersman, made it to shore. They had with them the ship's boat, a schuyt, along with a small amount of provisions and stores washed on shore. A number of rescue attempts was conducted by the Dutch East India Company once the loss was reported. |
| 1681 | | English navigator John Daniel on the New London charted the west coast of Australia, including Rottnest Island and the Wallabi Group of the Houtman Abrolhos. |
| 1688 | | English explorer William Dampier explored the west coast of Australia. |
| 1696 | | Dutch explorer Willem de Vlamingh charted the southwestern coast of Australia, making a landfall at Rottnest Island and the site of the present-day city of Perth. |

## 18th century

| Year | Date | Event |
| Since middle of 18th century | – | Makassar people from the region of Sulawesi in Indonesia began visiting the coast of Northern Australia sometime around the middle of the 18th century, first in the Kimberley region, and some decades later in Arnhem Land. |
| 1770 | | English Lieutenant James Cook's expedition in HMS Endeavour charted the eastern coast, and claimed it for the British Crown. Australia was dubbed "terra nullius" i.e., according to the European legal precepts of the era, it was unclaimed by any sovereign nation. |
| 1787 | 13 May | The First Fleet of 11 ships, led by Governor Arthur Phillip, departed from Great Britain for Australia to begin European colonisation. |
| 1788 | 3 January | Captain Arthur Phillip of the (First Fleet), having decided to sail ahead of the rest of the fleet to prepare for the new settlement, sighted the coast of Van Diemen's Land. |
| 1788 | 18 January | At 2:15 pm, the brig HMS Supply anchored on the northern side of Botany Bay. He began exploring the surrounding countryside and made contact with the Aboriginal Australians. |
| 1788 | 19 January | In the morning, the transports Alexander, Friendship and Scarborough arrived at Botany Bay, watched by a large number of Indigenous Australians who gathered on Point Solander. |
| 1788 | 20 January | The remaining seven ships of the First Fleet, led by HMS Sirius, anchored in Botany Bay. |
| 1788 | 21 January | Deciding that Botany Bay was unsuitable for settlement, Captain Arthur Phillip set out with a party in three open boats to seek out another site. He later reported to Lord Sydney, British Secretary of State; "We got into Port Jackson early in the Afternoon, and had the satisfaction of finding the finest harbour in the world, in which a thousand Sail of the line may ride in the most perfect security." He selected a cove with a stream and named it Sydney Cove. |
| 1788 | 24 January | The French ships Boussole and Astrolabe commanded by Jean-François de Galaup, comte de Lapérouse appeared off Botany Bay. |
| 1788 | 25 January | Captain Phillip sailed out of Botany Bay aboard the Supply and reached Sydney Cove in the evening. |
| 1788 | 26 January | Early in the morning, Captain Phillip took a party ashore at Sydney Cove, raised the British colours and formally proclaimed British sovereignty over New South Wales. This day is now celebrated as Australia Day. In a ceremony at sunset Phillip and the officers drank to the health of the king and the royal family, and success to the new colony. In the meantime, La Perouse entered Botany Bay as the remaining British ships prepared to leave. |
| 1788 | 27 January | Convicts disembarked at Sydney Cove and helped clear the ground. |
| 1788 | 28 January | 17 Wives of marines and 14 children disembarked from Prince of Wales. They were the first women and children to land. The first of the livestock was brought ashore. |
| 1788 | 3 February | Rev. Richard Johnson held the colony's first religious service ‘on the grass’. |
| 1788 | 6 February | The women convicts came ashore. There was a violent thunderstorm. |
| 1788 | 7 February | The whole party assembled on the west side of Sydney Cove, where the deputy judge-advocate David Collins read the King's commission establishing Phillip's governorship over the colony and the letters patent establishing civil and criminal courts. Phillip addressed the convicts, wishing them ‘reformation, happiness, and prosperity, in this new country'. |
| 1788 | 11 February | At the first criminal court, Samuel Barnsley was sentenced to 150 lashes for assault and Thomas Hill to confinement in irons on a small rocky island at the head of the cove for stealing bread. |
| 1788 | 14 February | Lt. Philip Gidley King sailed with a party of 23 including 15 convicts, in Supply to found a settlement on Norfolk Island, where native flax was to be harvested and others grown. |
| 1788 | 17 February | Rev. Johnson celebrated Holy Communion for the first time in the colony, according to the rites of the Church of England (see Book of Common Prayer (1662)). The Communion took place in the tent of Lt. Ralph Clark. Lt. Henry Ball, commander of the Supply on its way to Norfolk Island, discovered an island that he named after Admiral Lord Howe. |
| 1788 | 27 February | Thomas Barratt was hanged for stealing in stores, the first execution. |
| 1788 | 29 February | James Freeman was pardoned for stealing flour, on the condition that he become public executioner. |
| 1788 | 2 March | Phillip set out to explore Broken Bay. On this trip he visited and named Pittwater. |
| 1788 | 6 March | Lt. King took possession of Norfolk Island. British settlement founded. |
| 1788 | 10 March | The two French ships left Botany Bay, and were later wrecked near Santa Cruz (Solomon Islands). |
| 1788 | March | Phillip issued the first government conservation order: that no trees should be cut down within 50 feet (15 metres) of the stream that ran into Sydney Cove. |
| 1788 | 26 April | An exploring party led by Phillip sighted and named the Blue Mountains. |
| 1788 | 6 May | Following an outbreak of scurvy, HMS Supply sailed for Lord Howe Island to catch turtles to supplement the settlement's meat supply. Having failed to catch any, it returned on 25 May. |
| 1788 | 21 May | Aboriginal peoples killed a convict and seriously injured another. |
| 1788 | 30 May | The bodies of two rushcutters, William Okey and Samuel Davis, were found pierced with spears and beaten, evidently on reprisal for stealing a canoe belonging to Aboriginals. The next day Phillip led a party to apprehend the murderers, but he was unable to identify them. |
| 1788 | June | Owing to the neglect of the convict who was supposed to look after them, two bulls and four cows strayed from the settlement and were lost. |
| 1788 | 5 July | In a despatch to the under-secretary of state, Evan Nepean, Phillip recorded the rations for marines and male convicts. For seven days each received 7 pounds of bread or in lieu thereof 7 pounds of flour, 7 pounds of beef or in lieu thereof pork, 3 pins of pease, 6 ounces of butter, 1 pound of flour or in lieu thereof 12 pounds of rice. The women received two-thirds of this amount and the children generally had one-third although some received as much as the women. |
| 1788 | 20 August | Lt. William Bligh in HMS Bounty, en route to Tahiti, anchored at Adventure Bay, Van Diemen's Land. The party planted apple trees, fruit stones and various vegetables before departing on 4 September. |
| 1788 | 28 September | Phillip decided to send HMS Sirius to Cape Town for urgently needed food supplies. |
| 1788 | September | The last remaining cow was killed. |
| 1788 | 2 November | A party of marines from the New South Wales Marine Corps and 10 convicts left to establish a farming settlement at Rose Hill (Later called Parramatta). |
| 1788 | 19 November | The last two ships of the First Fleet, Golden Grove and Fishburn, sailed for England with despatches and reports. |
| 1788 | 11 December | Phillip set out to explore Botany Bay, where he examined the Cook's, George's and Woronora Rivers. |
| 1788 | 31 December | Because the Aboriginal Australians could not be coaxed into the settlement, one named Arabanoo was captured and held in confinement. Phillip hoped to learn his language and so to promote good relations between Aboriginal Australians and Europeans. |
| 1790 | 3–28 June | 5 of 6 ships of the beleaguered Second Fleet arrived. The colony was gripped by a food crisis. |
| 1791 | 9 July | The first ship of the Third Fleet arrived at Sydney Cove. |
| 1792 | – | Two French ships, Recherche and Espérance, anchor at Recherche Bay, near the southernmost point of Tasmania. |
| 1792 | – | Governor Philip returned to England, accompanied by Bennelong, who became the first Australian-born person to sail to Europe. |
| 1797 | – | Sydney Cove was wrecked and some survivors travelled from Bass Strait to Port Jackson, enabling the rescue of others. This also furthered knowledge of the geography of Australia. |
| 1798 | – | George Bass and Matthew Flinders sailed from Sydney and circumnavigated Tasmania, thus proving it to be an island. (to 1799) |

## 19th century

| Year | Date | |
| 1803 | | Matthew Flinders completed the first circumnavigation of the continent |
| 1804 | | A settlement was founded at Risdon on the Derwent River in Van Diemen's Land |
| 1804 | 4–5 March | Castle Hill convict rebellion, also known as the second Battle of Vinegar Hill, occurred in New South Wales. |
| 1804 | 20 February | The Risdon settlement was moved to Sullivan's Cove (now Hobart) by Colonel David Collins. |
| 1808 | | The Rum Rebellion |
| 1813 | | Blaxland, Lawson and Wentworth crossed the Blue Mountains. |
| 1813 | | Matthew Flinders referred to New South Wales by the name "Australia". |
| 1817 | | John Oxley charts the Lachlan River |
| 1817 | | Australia's first bank, the Bank of New South Wales, opened in Macquarie Place, Sydney. (The bank became Westpac in 1982). |
| 1817 | | Governor Lachlan Macquarie petitioned the British Admiralty to use the name "Australia" instead of "New Holland" |
| 1818 | | Oxley charted the Macquarie River. |
| 1824 | | A penal colony was founded at Moreton Bay, now the city of Brisbane. |
| 1824 | | Bathurst and Melville Islands were annexed. |
| 1824 | | Permission was granted to change the name of the continent from "New Holland" to "Australia" |
| 1824 | | The Hume and Hovell expedition travelled overland to Port Phillip Bay and encountered the Murray River |
| 1825 | | The New South Wales western border was extended to 129° E. Van Diemen's Land was proclaimed. |
| 1826 | 26 December | New South Wales established first settlement in Western Australia at King George Sound as a convict-supported military garrison, named Frederick Town but renamed Albany in 1832 |
| 1827 | 21 January | The whole of Australia was claimed as British territory when Major Edmund Lockyer formally annexed the western portion in a ceremony at King George Sound. |
| 1829 | | Charles Sturt charted the Darling River. |
| | 2 May | Captain Charles Fremantle took possession of the western side of Australia for the British crown. |
| | 12 August | The settlement of Perth was founded. |
| 1830 | | Sturt arrived at Goolwa, having charted the Murray River. |
| | 7 October | The Black Line, a huge six-week military offensive, is launched, using moving cordons to drive all Aboriginal Tasmanians from the colony's settled districts to the Tasman Peninsula. |
| 1831 | 7 March | Administration of King George Sound passes to Swan River Colony, convicts returned to New South Wales. |
| 1831 | 18 April | The Sydney Herald (later to become The Sydney Morning Herald) was first published. |
| 1832 | | Swan River Colony had its name changed to Western Australia. |
| 1833 | | The penal settlement of Port Arthur was founded in Van Diemen's Land. |
| 1834 | | The Tolpuddle Martyrs are transported to Sydney and Hobart. |
| 1835 | 30 August | John Batman and John Pascoe Fawkner established a settlement at Port Phillip, now the city of Melbourne. |
| 1835 | | William Wentworth established Australian Patriotic Association, Australia's first political party, to demand democracy for New South Wales. |
| 1836 | 28 December | Province of South Australia proclaimed with its western border at 132° E. |
| 1838 | | First Prussian settlers arrived in South Australia; the largest group of non-British migrants in Australia at the time. |
| 1839 | | Paul Edmund Strzelecki became the first European to ascend and name Australia's highest peak, Mount Kosciuszko. |
| | 9 September | HMS Beagle sailed into Darwin Harbour during its surveying of the area. John Clements Wickham named the area Port Darwin in honour of their former shipmate Charles Darwin. The settlement became the town of Palmerston in 1869 and was renamed Darwin in 1911. |
| 1840 | | Australia's first municipal authority, the City of Adelaide, was established, followed by Sydney City Council. |
| 1841 | 1 July | New Zealand was proclaimed as a separate colony, no longer part of New South Wales. |
| 1842 | | Copper was discovered at Kapunda in South Australia. |
| 1843 | | Australia's first parliamentary elections was held for the New South Wales Legislative Council (though voting rights are restricted to males of certain wealth or property). |
| 1845 | 4 August | The ship Cataraqui was wrecked off King Island in Bass Strait. It is Australia's worst civil maritime disaster, with 406 lives lost. |
| 1845 | | Copper was discovered at Burra in South Australia. |
| 1849 | 1 June | Western Australia became a penal colony. |
| 1850 | | Australian Colonies Government Act [1850] granted representative constitutions to New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania. These colonies set about writing constitutions which produced democratically progressive parliaments. |
| 1850 | 1 October | Australia's first university, the University of Sydney, was founded. |
| 1851 | 1 July | Victoria separated from New South Wales. |
| 1851 | | The Victorian gold rush started when gold was found at Summerhill Creek and Ballarat. |
| 1851 | 15 December | Forest Creek Monster Meeting of miners at Chewton near Castlemaine |
| 1852 | | Francis Cadell, in preparation for the launch of his steamer service, explored the Murray River in a canvas boat, travelling 1,300 miles (2,100 km) downstream from Swan Hill. |
| 1853 | | First paddle steamers on Murray River on the spring flood. From South Australia, the Lady Augusta captained by Francis Cadell, reached Swan Hill while Mary Ann captained by William Randell, made it as far as Moama (near Echuca). |
| 1853 | | Bendigo Petition and Red Ribbon Rebellion at Bendigo |
| 1854 | 3 December | The Eureka Stockade |
| 1855 | | The transportation of convicts to Norfolk Island ceased. |
| 1855 | | All men over 21 years of age obtained the right to vote in South Australia. |
| 1856 | 1 January | Van Diemen's Land name changed to Tasmania. |
| 1857 | | Victorian Committee reported that a 'federal union' would be in the interests of all the growing colonies. However, there was not enough interest in or enthusiasm for taking positive steps towards bringing the colonies together. |
| 1857 | | Victorian men achieved the right to vote. |
| 1858 | | Sydney and Melbourne linked by electric telegraph. |
| 1858 | | New South Wales men achieved the right to vote. |
| 1859 | 6 August | SS Admella wrecked off south-east coast of South Australia with the loss of 89 lives. |
| 1859 | | Australian rules football codified, Melbourne Football Club founded |
| 1859 | 6 June | Queensland separated from New South Wales with its western border at 141° E. |
| 1860 | | John McDouall Stuart reached the centre of the continent. The South Australian border changed from 132° E to 129° E. |
| 1861 | | The ill-fated Burke and Wills expedition occurred. |
| 1861 | | Skiing in Australia introduced by Norwegians in the Snowy Mountains goldrush town of Kiandra. |
| 1862 | | Stuart reached Port Darwin, founding a settlement there. Queensland's western border was moved to 139° E. |
| 1863 | | South Australia took control of the Northern Territory which was previously part of the colony of New South Wales. |
| 1864 | | Great Fire of Brisbane |
| 1867 | | Gold was discovered at Gympie, Queensland. |
| 1867 | | Saint Mary MacKillop founded Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart. |
| 1868 | | The transportation of convicts to Western Australia ceased. |
| 1869 | | Children of Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander descent are removed from their families by Australian and State government agencies. This practice lasted 100 years and is known as the Stolen Generation. |
| 1872 | 22 August | The Overland Telegraph Line linking Darwin and Adelaide opened. |
| 1873 | | Uluru was first sighted by Europeans, and named Ayers Rock. |
| 1875 | 24 February | SS Gothenburg strikes Old Reef off Bowen, North Queensland and sank with the loss of approximately 102 lives. |
| 1875 | September | Adelaide Steamship Company was formed. |
| 1878 | | First horse-drawn trams in Australia commenced operations in Adelaide. |
| 1877 | 15–19 March | The first internationally recognised game of Test Cricket is played between Australia and England at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG). |
| 1879 | | The first congress of trade unions was held. |
| 1880 | 11 November | The bushranger Ned Kelly was hanged. |
| 1880 | | Parliamentarians in Victoria became the first in Australia to be paid for their work. |
| 1882 | | First water-borne sewerage service in Australia commenced operations in Adelaide. |
| 1883 | | The opening of the Sydney–Melbourne railway. |
| 1883 | | Silver was discovered at Broken Hill |
| | | The first direct Inter-colonial passenger trains began running between Adelaide and Melbourne. |
| | | Gold was discovered at Southern Cross, Western Australia. |
| 1888 | | Louisa Lawson established The Dawn: A Journal for Australian Women. |
| 1889 | | The completion of the railway network between Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney. |
| 1889 | 24 October | Sir Henry Parkes delivered the Tenterfield Oration. |
| 1890 | | The Australian Federation Conference called a constitutional convention. |
| 1890 | 26 April | Banjo Paterson published "The Man from Snowy River" |
| 1891 | | A National Australasian Convention met and agreed on adopting the name "the Commonwealth of Australia," also drafting a constitution. |
| 1891 | | The first attempt at a federal constitution was drafted. |
| 1891 | | The Convention adopts the constitution, although it had no legal status |
| 1891 | | A severe depression hit Australia |
| 1893 | | The Corowa Conference (the "people's convention") called on the colonial parliaments to pass enabling acts, allowing the election of delegates to a new constitutional convention aimed at drafting a proposal and putting it to a referendum in each colony. |
| 1894 | | South Australia became the first Australian colony, and the second place in the world, to grant women the right to vote, as well the first Parliament in the world to allow women to stand for office with the Constitutional Amendment (Adult Suffrage) Act 1894. |
| 1895 | | The premiers, except for those of Queensland and Western Australia, agreed to implement the Corowa proposals. |
| 1895 | | "Waltzing Matilda" was first sung in public, in Winton, Queensland |
| 1896 | | The Bathurst Conference (the second "people's convention") met to discuss the 1891 draft constitution. |
| 1897 | | In two sessions, the Second National Australasian Convention met (with representatives from all colonies except Queensland present). They agreed to adopt a constitution based on 1891 draft, and then revised and amended it later that year. Catherine Helen Spence became the first female political candidate for political office, standing for election as a representative for South Australia. |
| 1898 | | The Convention agreed on a final draft to be put to the people. |
| 1898 | | After much public debate, the Victorian, South Australian and Tasmanian referendums were successful; the New South Wales referendum narrowly failed. Later New South Wales voted "yes" in a second referendum. |
| 1899 | | The decision was made to site the national capital in New South Wales, but not within 100 miles of Sydney. |
| 1899 | 22 September | Queensland's offer of troops for the Second Boer War is accepted by the Imperial Government. |
| 1899 | 4 November | The New South Wales Lancers arrived in Cape Town from London to begin Australia's participation in the Second Boer War. |
| 1899 | 6 November | The Australian contingent to the Boer War departs Albany on the Medic. |
| 1899 | 1–7 December | The Australian Labor Party held office for a few days in Queensland, becoming the first trade union party to do so anywhere in the world. |
| 1899 | 22 December | Western Australia enacted full women's suffrage. |
| 1900 | | Several delegates visited London to resist proposed changes to the agreed-upon constitution. |
| 1900 | | The constitution was passed by the Parliament of the United Kingdom as a schedule to the Commonwealth of Australia Constitution Act, and was given royal assent |

## 20th century

| Year | Date | Event |
| 1901 | 1 January | Australia becomes a federation. Edmund Barton becomes the 1st Prime Minister of Australia; the 7th Earl of Hopetoun becomes Governor-General. Black death strikes Australia, just over 100 people killed in Sydney . |
| 1901 | | The first parliament met in Parliament House, Melbourne |
| 1901 | | The Immigration Restriction Act was introduced forming the basis of the White Australia policy |
| 1901 | | The Australian National Flag was flown for the first time |
| 1902 | | The Franchise Act guarantees women the right to vote in federal elections (by this stage, most states had already done this). However, it excludes most non-European ethnic groups, including Aboriginal people, unless already registered to vote on State roles. |
| 1902 | | King Edward VII approved the design of the Australian flag. |
| 1902 | 27 February | Breaker Morant is executed for having shot Boers who had surrendered |
| 1903 | 25 August | The High Court of Australia is established with Samuel Griffith as the first Chief Justice. |
| 1903 | | The Defence Act gives the federal government full control over the Australian Army |
| 1903 | 16 December | 1903 Australian federal election: Alfred Deakin is elected as the 2nd Prime Minister of Australia. |
| 1904 | | A site at Dalgety, New South Wales chosen for the new national capital |
| 1904 | | Chris Watson forms the first federal Labor (minority) government |
| 1904 | 27 April | Deakin resign and Chris Watson assumes office as the 3rd Prime Minister of Australia. |
| 1904 | 18 August | George Reid became the 4th Prime Minister of Australia. |
| 1905 | 5 July | Alfred Deakin return to the position of prime minister. |
| 1906 | | Australia takes control of south-eastern New Guinea |
| 1906 | 12 December | 1906 Australian federal election: Alfred Deakin was reelected. |
| 1908 | | Dorothea Mackellar publishes My Country |
| 1908 | | The Dalgety proposal for the national capital is revoked, and Canberra is chosen instead. |
| 1908 | 27 August | Birth of Donald Bradman in Cootamundra, New South Wales. |
| | 13 November | Andrew Fisher became 5th Prime Minister of Australia. |
| 1909 | | The first powered aeroplane flight in Australia is made. |
| 1909 | 2 June | Alfred Deakin become prime minister. |
| 1910 | | Andrew Fisher forms the first federal majority Labor government. |
| 1910 | 29 April | Andrew Fisher become prime minister. |
| 1911 | | The Royal Australian Navy is founded |
| 1911 | | The Northern Territory comes under Commonwealth control, being split off from South Australia |
| 1911 | | The first national census is conducted. |
| 1911 | | Australian Capital Territory proclaimed. |
| 1912 | July | Australia sends women to the Olympic Games for the first time |
| 1912 | 22 October | The Central Flying School RAAF in founded which was the foundation for the present force, the Royal Australian Air Force |
| 1912 | 23 May | Walter Burley Griffin and Marion Mahony Griffin win the design competition for the new city of Canberra |
| 1913 | 20 February | The foundation stone for the city of Canberra is put in place |
| 1913 | 20 March | Canberra is officially named as the Capital of Australia. |
| | 31 May | 1913 Australian federal election: Joseph Cook elected as the 6th Prime Minister of Australia. |
| 1914 | | Australian soldiers are sent to the First World War. This was first time Australians had fought under the Australian flag, as opposed to that of Britain's. |
| 1914 | 17 September | Andrew Fisher become prime minister. |
| 1915 | 25 April | Australian soldiers land at ANZAC Cove on the Gallipoli Peninsula in Turkey. |
| 1915 | | Jervis Bay Territory comprising 6,677 hectares surrendered and becomes part of the Australia Capital Territory. |
| 1915 | | Surfing is first introduced to Australia |
| 1915 | 27 October | Billy Hughes became the 7th Prime Minister of Australia. |
| 1916 | | Hotels are forced to close at 6 p.m., leading to the beginning of the "six o'clock swill" |
| 1916 | | Australia suffers heavy casualties in the Western Front Battle of the Somme |
| 1916 | | The Returned Sailors’ and Soldiers’ Imperial League of Australia, the forerunner to the Returned and Services League of Australia is founded |
| 1916 | | The Labor government under Billy Hughes splits over conscription. First referendum on conscription is rejected |
| 1917 | | Second referendum on conscription is rejected. Transcontinental railway linking Adelaide to Perth is completed. |
| 1917 | 5 May | 1917 Australian federal election: Billy Hughes reelected as prime minister. |
| 1917 | 31 October | Battle of Beersheba: Australian 4th Light Horse Brigade launches last cavalry charge in modern warfare to capture Beersheba from the Ottoman Turks. |
| 1918 | | Battle of Amiens: Australian troops spearhead 8 August offensive against Hindenburg Line: the "black day of the German Army". On 12 August, Australian commander General Sir John Monash is knighted in the field of battle by King George V |
| 1918 | 11 November | First World War ends – 60,000 Australians dead. |
| 1918 | 17 December | The Darwin Rebellion takes place, with 1,000 demonstrators demanding the resignation of the Administrator of the Northern Territory, John A. Gilruth. |
| 1919 | | Prime Minister Billy Hughes signs Treaty of Versailles: the first signing of an international treaty by Australia. Australia obtains League of Nations mandate over German New Guinea. |
| 1919 | 13 December | 1919 Australian federal election: Billy Hughes reelected as prime minister. |
| 1920 | | The airline Qantas is founded |
| 1921 | 12 March | Edith Cowan becomes the first woman elected to an Australian parliament |
| 1922 | | The Smith Family charity is founded in Sydney |
| 1922 | 2 September | Death of Henry Lawson aged 55. |
| | 16 December | 1922 Australian federal election: Billy Hughes reelected as prime minister. |
| 1923 | | Vegemite is first produced |
| 1923 | 9 February | Stanley Bruce became 8th Prime Minister of Australia. |
| | 28 July | Construction begins on the Sydney Harbour Bridge. |
| 1925 | 16 December | 1925 Australian federal election: Stanley Bruce reelected as prime minister. |
| 1926 | | The first Miss Australia contest is held |
| 1927 | 9 May | The tenth parliament is formally opened in Canberra, finalising the move to the new capital. |
| | 13 June | Slim Dusty (David Kirkpatrick), Country Music Singer and Musician is Born in Kempsey, New South Wales. |
| 1928 | | Bert Hinkler makes the first successful flight from Britain to Australia, and Charles Kingsford Smith makes the first flight from the United States to Australia. The Shrine of Remembrance is built. |
| 1929 | | Western Australia celebrates its centenary |
| 1929 | | Labor returns to office under James Scullin. The Great Depression hits Australia. |
| 1930 | 6 January | New South Wales batsman Don Bradman scores a world record first-class individual innings of 452 not out in a Sheffield Shield match against Queensland |
| 1930 | 11 July | In the Third Test at Leeds against England, Don Bradman scored a Hundred before Tea, a Hundred before lunch, and a Hundred by the end of the day's play, 309 in Total. He went on to make 334. Altogether in his 52 Test career, Bradman scored 29 Hundreds, 12 Double Hundreds and 2 Triple Hundreds. This is therefore the fastest Triple Hundred in Test History. |
| 1930 | 27 September | Sydney–Brisbane railway opens connecting New South Wales with Queensland by rail |
| | 4 November | Phar Lap wins his only Melbourne Cup |
| 1931 | | Sir Douglas Mawson charts 4,000 miles of Antarctic coastline and claims 42% of the icy mass for Australia |
| | 23 February | Death of Dame Nellie Melba aged 69. |
| 1932 | 19 January | Construction on the Sydney Harbour Bridge is completed. |
| 1932 | 19 March | The Sydney Harbour Bridge opens. |
| 1932 | | The Labor government falls and Joseph Lyons becomes prime minister. |
| 1933 | 8 April | Western Australia votes at a rerefendum to secede from the Commonwealth, but the vote is ignored by both the Commonwealth and British governments. |
| 1935 | 8 November | Sir Charles Kingsford Smith disappears. He was 38. |
| 1936 | | The last thylacine dies. |
| 1937 | | The radio series Dad and Dave begins. |
| 1938 | 5–12 February | Sydney hosts the Empire Games, the forerunner to the Commonwealth Games. |
| 1939 | 13 January | Victoria is devastated by the Black Friday bushfires. |
| 1939 | 7 April | Prime Minister Joseph Lyons dies in office and is replaced by Robert Menzies and the first Menzies Government. |
| 1939 | September | Australia enters the Second World War following the German Invasion of Poland. The 2nd Australian Imperial Force is raised. |
| 1939 | | The first flight is made by an Australian-made warplane, the Wirraway. |
| 1940 | | A team of scientists, under Howard Florey, develops penicillin |
| 1940 | | Fascist Italy enters war, Royal Australian Navy engages Italian Navy in the early stages of the Battle of the Mediterranean. |
| 1941 | | 3 Divisions of the 2nd Australian Imperial Force join operations in the Mediterranean. After initial successes against Italy, 2nd AIF suffered defeat against the Germans in Greece, Crete, and North Africa. |
| 1941 | | Apr–Aug, Australian garrison (Rats of Tobruk) halt advance of Hitler's panzers for the first time during the Siege of Tobruk. |
| 1941 | | Menzies resigns and John Curtin becomes prime minister in the Curtin government of 1941–45. |
| 1942 | February | Singapore falls, 15,000 Australians become Prisoners of War of the Japanese |
| 1942 | | Japanese air raids – almost 100 attacks against sites in the Northern Territory, Western Australia and Queensland (to 1943). Bombing of Darwin sees largest attack on Australia by a foreign power. |
| 1942 | | The Royal Australian Navy and 6th and 7th Divisions of 2nd AIF are recalled from Mediterranean Theatre to participate in the anticipated Battle for Australia. |
| 1942 | | Sparrow Force engages in guerilla campaign in Battle of Timor (to 1943) |
| 1942 | 4 May – 8 May | Battle of the Coral Sea: United States and Royal Australian Navy halt advance of the Japanese towards Port Moresby (Australian Territory of Papua) |
| 1942 | 21 July – 16 November | Battle of Kokoda Trail: Australian soldiers halt Japanese march on Port Moresby |
| 1942 | Aug–Sep | Australian forces inflict the first defeat on the Imperial Japanese Army in the Battle of Milne Bay. |
| 1942 | Jul–Nov | Australia's 9th Division plays crucial role in the First and Second Battle of El Alamein, which turned the North Africa Campaign in favour of the Allies. |
| 1942 | | National daylight saving is introduced as a war time measure. |
| 1942 | 9 October | The UK Statute of Westminster is formally adopted by Australia. The Statute formally grants Australia the right to pass laws that conflict with UK laws. |
| 1943 | 4 March | Australia wins its first Oscar, with cinematographer Damien Parer honoured for Kokoda Front Line! documentary. |
| 1943 | | 2,815 Australian POWs die constructing Japan's Burma-Thailand Railway |
| 1943 | | Australian forces engage Japan in New Guinea, Wau, and the Huon peninsula. (to 1944) |
| 1944 | 5 August | Cowra breakout, mass escape of Japanese prisoners of war occurs in NSW. |
| 1944 | | Japanese inflict Sandakan Death March on 2,000 Australian and British prisoners of war – only 6 survive. The single worst war crime perpetrated against Australians. |
| 1944 | | Australian forces battle Japanese garrisons from Borneo to Bougainville. |
| 1944 | | The Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme is introduced, providing subsidised medicine to all Australians |
| 1945 | | the Liberal Party of Australia is established with Robert Menzies as its first leader. |
| 1945 | | Australian forces lead Battle of Borneo |
| 1945 | 7 May | Nazi Germany surrenders |
| 1945 | July | Prime Minister Curtin dies and is replaced, briefly by Frank Forde, then by Ben Chifley and the Chifley Labor government |
| 1945 | 14 August | Japan surrenders |
| 1945 | | Australia becomes a founding member of the United Nations |
| 1945 | 26 December 1945 – 3 January 1946 | The Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race is held for the first time |
| 1946 | | Minister for Immigration Arthur Calwell introduces the major post-war immigration scheme |
| 1946 | | Norman Makin, is voted in as the first President of the United Nations Security Council. |
| 1948 | | Minister for External Affairs, Dr. H. V. Evatt is elected President of the United Nations General Assembly. |
| 1948 | | Holden starts manufacturing its first Australian designed and built car. The First Model is the 48/215 followed by the FJ, FE, FC, FB, EK, EJ, EH, HD, HR, HK, HT, HQ, HJ, HX. The Holden Commodore was introduced in 1978 and started off with the VB, VH, VK, VL, VN, VT, VY, VZ, VE. Due to financial problems, Holden will no longer manufacture cars in Australia from 2017. |
| 1948 | | Australia becomes a signatory to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. |
| 1949 | | All indigenous ex-servicemen and any Indigenous Australians who are eligible to vote in State Elections (NSW, VIC, SA and TAS) are given an unrestricted right to vote in federal elections. |
| 1949 | 26 January | The Nationality and Citizenship Act is passed. Rather than being identified as subjects of Britain, the Act established Australian citizenship for people who met eligibility requirements. |
| 1949 | 17 October | Construction of the Snowy Mountains Hydro-Electric Scheme officially begins |
| 1949 | 10 December | 1949 Australian federal election: Robert Menzies returns to power as leader of the new Liberal Party Menzies Government. |
| 1950 | | Australian troops are sent to the Korean War to assist South Korea. (to 1953) |
| 1951 | | Voters reject a referendum to change the Constitution to allow the Menzies Government to ban the Communist Party |
| 1951 | 1 September | Australia signs the ANZUS treaty with the United States and New Zealand |
| 1952 | 3 October | Operation Hurricane: First nuclear test conducted in Australian territory by the United Kingdom off the coast of Western Australia. |
| 1954 | | Elizabeth II and Prince Philip make a royal visit; the Soviet diplomat Vladimir Petrov defects, leading to the Petrov Affair and another split in the Labor Party |
| 1955 | | Democratic Labor Party splits from Australian Labor Party over concerns of Communist influence in the labour movement |
| 1955 | | Australia becomes involved in Malayan Insurgency |
| 1955 | | Hotels in New South Wales no longer have to close at 6 p.m., ending the "six o'clock swill" |
| 1956 | 16 September | Television in Australia is launched. |
| 1956 | 22 November – 8 December | The 16th Summer Olympics is held in Melbourne |
| 1956 | | Performing artist Barry Humphries introduces Edna Everage to the Australian stage |
| 1957 | | The song "Wild One" makes Johnny O'Keefe the first Australian rock'n'roller to reach the national charts. |
| 1957 | | Slim Dusty's Australian country music hit "A Pub with No Beer" becomes the first Australian song to attain international chart success. |
| 1959 | 1 March | Construction begins on the Sydney Opera House. It will eventually cost $102 Million. |
| 1962 | | Robert Menzies' Commonwealth Electoral Act provided that all Indigenous Australians should have the right to enrol and vote at federal elections, removing remaining restrictions applying in QLD, WA and NT. |
| 1962 | 16 April | Sydney–Melbourne rail corridor opens with Spirit of Progress connecting New South Wales to Victoria by rail |
| 1962 | | Malayan Insurgency ends |
| 1964 | 12–20 June | The Beatles' 1964 world tour reach Australia |
| 1964 | 10 February | 82 sailors die when HMAS Voyager sinks after collision with HMAS Melbourne |
| 1964 | | The editors of Oz magazine are charged with obscenity |
| 1964 | | Prime Minister Robert Menzies announces the reintroduction of compulsory military service for men aged from 18 to 25 years old |
| 1964 | | First troops sent to Vietnam War. |
| 1965 | | Indigenous Australians gain right to vote in state of Queensland |
| 1966 | | The ban on the employment of married women in the Commonwealth Public Service is lifted |
| 1966 | 26 January | Robert Menzies retire as Australia's longest-serving Prime Minister and is succeeded by Harold Holt. |
| 1966 | 26 January | The Beaumont Children Jane (9), Arnna (7), and Grant (4) disappear from Glenelg Beach. |
| | 14 February | Decimalisation; the Australian currency is changed to dollars and cents, with the Australian dollar replacing the Australian pound. |
| 1967 | 3 February | Ronald Ryan becomes the last person legally executed in Australia. |
| 1967 | 7 February | Black Tuesday bushfires devastate large areas of Hobart and south-eastern Tasmania; 64 people were killed. |
| 1967 | 9 February | Gough Whitlam becomes leader of the Labor Party |
| 1967 | 27 May | The constitution is changed to allow Aboriginal Australians to be included in the population count and for the federal government to legislate for them |
| 1967 | | Sydney is rocked by a series of brutal underworld killings |
| 1967 | | Talkback radio is introduced |
| 1967 | 17 December | Prime Minister Harold Holt disappears while swimming at Cheviot Beach, Victoria |
| 1967 | 19 December | Holt was officially presumed dead by the government. Governor-General Lord Casey swore John McEwen in as prime minister, on an interim basis pending the Liberal Party electing its new leader |
| 1968 | 10 January | John Gorton replaces John McEwen as Prime Minister |
| 1968 | 24 June | British comedian Tony Hancock commits suicide in Sydney |
| 1968 | 1 July | Australia signs the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons |
| 1968 | | Aboriginal boxing champion Lionel Rose defeats Masahiko "Fighting" Harada in Japan to become the world bantamweight champion |
| 1968 | | Australia's first liver transplant operation is performed in Sydney |
| 1969 | | French conceptual artist Christo 'wraps' Little Bay in Sydney |
| 1969 | November | Renowned author-artists Norman Lindsay and May Gibbs die |
| 1969 | | The Australian production of the rock musical Hair premieres in Sydney |
| 1969 | | Top pop groups the Easybeats and the Twilights break up; Tim Burstall directs 2000 Weeks, the first All-Australian feature released since Charles Chauvel's Jedda in 1958 |
| 1969 | 25 October | 1969 Australian federal election: John Gorton reelected as prime minister. |
| 1970 | | More than 200,000 people participate in the largest demonstrations in Australian history, against the Vietnam War |
| 1971 | | Neville Bonner becomes the first Aborigine to become an Australian Member of Parliament; |
| 1971 | 10 March | John Gorton resigns as prime minister and is succeeded by William McMahon |
| 1971 | | The 1971 South Africa rugby union tour of Australia sparks protest all throughout Australia. Premier of Queensland Joh Bjelke-Petersen declares a state of emergency in QLD in response to escalating protest. |
| 1971 | | Daylight saving is introduced to New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia and the Australian Capital Territory. |
| 1971 | | Green Bans begin in Hunters Hill, Sydney and spread across New South Wales. |
| 1972 | | The Commonwealth Conciliation and Arbitration Commission rules that women doing the same job as men have the right to be paid the same wage. |
| 1972 | | Queensland discontinues Daylight Saving. |
| 1972 | | Aboriginal Tent Embassy erected in response to the Coalition government's approval of exploration licences and mining tenements on reserves |
| 1972 | July | Supersonic passenger plane Concorde lands in Darwin |
| 1972 | 2 December | 1972 Australian federal election: The first Labor government since 1949 is elected under the leadership of Gough Whitlam |
| 1972 | | Australia recognises the People's Republic of China |
| 1973 | 20 October | The Sydney Opera House formally opened by Elizabeth II |
| 1973 | | The White Australian Policy (established 1901) is officially dismantled |
| 1973 | | Vietnam War ends |
| 1973 | | The federal voting age is dropped from 21 to 18 |
| 1973 | | Unionists save the historic "The Rocks" area of Sydney from demolition by introducing "Green Bans" |
| 1973 | | Patrick White becomes the first Australian to win the Nobel Prize in Literature |
| 1974 | | "Advance Australia Fair" recognised as Australia's national song, but not as national anthem. |
| 1974 | 24–25 December | Darwin is devastated by Cyclone Tracy. |
| 1975 | | The Privy Council (Appeals from the High Court) Act removes the right to appeal High Court decisions to the British Privy Council. Appeals to the Privy Council direct from State Supreme Courts remain until 1988. |
| 1975 | 5 January | The Hobart Bridge collapsed. A bulk ore carrier travelling on the Derwent River collided into several pylons of the Tasman Bridge killing a total of 12 people. These included 7 crew on board the ship and 5 people that were in 4 cars which drove 45m off the bridge into the Derwent River. |
| 1975 | | South Australia becomes the first state in Australia to legalise homosexuality between consenting adults in private. |
| 1975 | | Whitlam government introduced the Aboriginal Land (NT) Bill into Parliament. The bill proposed land rights in the Northern Territory based on land claimed on grounds of need as well as traditional affiliation and traditional landowners maintaining control over mining and development. |
| 1975 | | A constitutional crisis occurs when Malcolm Fraser delays supply, threatening a government shutdown until Governor-General John Kerr dismisses Prime Minister Gough Whitlam on 11 November 1975. Kerr then appointed Malcolm Fraser, Leader of the Opposition, as caretaker prime minister. |
| 1975 | 13 December | 1975 Australian federal election: Malcolm Fraser wins elections and becomes Prime Minister |
| 1976 | | The Australian Capital Territory legalises homosexuality between consenting adults in private. |
| 1977 | 18 January | Granville rail disaster killed eighty-three people |
| 1978 | 24 June | First Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras |
| 1979 | | Australian women win the right to maternity leave |
| 1979 | | Kakadu National Park and the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park are both proclaimed. |
| 1980 | 17 August | Baby Azaria Chamberlain disappears from a campsite at Uluru (Ayers Rock), reportedly taken by a dingo. |
| 1980 | 18 October | 1980 Australian federal election: The Coalition is elected. |
| 1981 | | A referendum is held in Tasmania to vote for whether or not the Franklin Dam should be built. |
| 1982 | 30 September – 9 October | 12th Commonwealth Games held in Brisbane. |
| 1982 | | The National Gallery of Australia is opened. |
| 1983 | 16 February | The Ash Wednesday bushfires kill 71 people. |
| 1983 | 5 March | 1983 Australian federal election: Bob Hawke defeats Fraser and leads Labor back to government. |
| 1983 | 14 – 26 September | Australia wins the America's Cup |
| 1983 | 12 December | The Australian dollar is floated. |
| 1984 | 19 April | "Advance Australia Fair" is proclaimed as Australia's official national anthem. |
| 1984 | 1 February | Medicare is established. |
| 1984 | 14 May | The one dollar coin is issued to replace the one dollar note. |
| 1984 | 1 December | 1984 Australian federal election: Labor wins. |
| 1985 | | The government grants the freehold title of a large area of land in central Australia, including prominent landmarks Uluru and Kata Tjuta, to the Mutitjulu people, who in turn give them a 99-year lease. The last state to do so (New South Wales) abolishes capital punishment. |
| 1986 | | The Australia Act removes the right of appeal from State courts to the British Privy Council, making the High Court the final court of appeal in Australia. The Act also removes all remaining rights of the UK parliament to pass law for Australia. |
| 1986 | 2 February | Murder of Anita Cobby in Sydney. |
| 1986 | 27 March | Russell Street Bombing in Melbourne. |
| 1986 | | Crocodile Dundee is released in Australia. |
| 1987 | 9 August | Hoddle Street massacre kills 7 victims and injures 19 |
| 1987 | 1 December | Sir Joh Bjelke-Petersen resigns as Premier of Queensland after 19 years at the top. |
| 1987 | 8 December | Queen Street massacre kills 8 victims and injures 5. |
| 1988 | 26 January | Australia celebrates its bicentenary, with large celebrations and major funding for capital works projects. |
| 1988 | 3 September | Federal referendums on 4-year parliamentary terms, recognition of local government and other issues are defeated. |
| 1988 | 30 April – 30 October | Brisbane hosts World Expo 88. |
| 1988 | 9 May | The new Parliament House opens in Canberra. |
| 1989 | | Newcastle earthquake kills 13 people. ACT gains self-Government. The Kempsey bus crash and Grafton bus crash kill a total of 56 people. |
| 1989 | | Queensland commences three-year trial of Daylight Saving. |
| 1989 | | Rosemary Follett (Australian Labor Party) becomes the first Chief Minister of the Australian Capital Territory and the first woman to become head of government in an Australian state or territory. |
| 1990 | | Royal Australian Navy deployed in preparation for the First Gulf War. Carmen Lawrence becomes the first female premier of an Australian state. Labor wins the 1990 federal election. |
| 1991 | 4 July | Prominent heart surgeon Victor Chang is gunned down. |
| 1991 | 17 August | Seven people die in the Strathfield massacre. |
| 1991 | 21 August | The Coode Island chemical storage facility in Melbourne explodes, leaving a toxic cloud hanging over the city for days. |
| 1991 | 2 September | Council for Aboriginal Reconciliation Act 1991 is passed; reconciliation in Australia policy established. |
| 1991 | 20 December | Paul Keating replaces Bob Hawke to be the 24th Prime Minister of Australia. |
| 1992 | | The High Court delivers the Mabo Decision, which rules that indigenous native title does exist. This effectively extinguishes the concept of terra nullius. New South Wales Premier Nick Greiner resigns. |
| 1992 | 22 February | Queensland holds a referendum on daylight saving, which is defeated with a 54.5% 'no' vote. |
| 1993 | 13 March | 1993 Australian federal election: Keating defeats John Hewson; the Australian Greens stand candidates for the first time. |
| 1995 | | The Northern Territory legalises voluntary euthanasia, but it is overruled by the federal government when Liberal MP Kevin Andrews proposes the Euthanasia Laws Bill 1996 |
| 1996 | | The High Court hands down the Wik Decision, which holds that indigenous native title can survive the granting of pastoral leases. |
| 1996 | 2 March | 1996 Australian federal election: Liberal John Howard becomes prime minister, defeating Paul Keating after a record 13 years of Labor government |
| 1996 | | Howard government leads all Australian states and territories agree to introduce uniform gun laws following the deaths of 35 people in the Port Arthur massacre |
| 1997 | | Expelled Liberal MP Pauline Hanson forms the One Nation Party |
| 1997 | 1 May | Tasmania legalises homosexuality |
| 1997 | 30 July | 1997 Thredbo landslide: Eighteen people die when the Bimbadene and Carinya Lodges collapse at Thredbo Alpine Village at 11.30 p.m. |
| | 22 November | Michael Hutchence, lead singer of INXS, is found dead in his hotel room. |
| 1998 | | A major strike results when Patrick Stevedores attempt to introduce non-union labour to reduce the influence of the Maritime Union of Australia |
| 1998 | | The Australian Stock Exchange is demutualized and floated as a public company, becoming the world's first stock exchange to be listed on an exchange. |
| 1999 | 26 August | Both houses of the federal parliament pass a Motion of Reconciliation signifying both recognition of and regret at past mistreatment of indigenous Australians. |
| 1999 | 6 November | A referendum on changing to a republic is unsuccessful |
| 1999 | | Howard government deploys Australian forces to East Timor to lead the INTERFET mission, following violence in wake of East Timorese vote for independence. |
| 2000 | 1 July | Howard government introduces a Goods and Services Tax |
| 2000 | 15 September – 1 October | 27th Summer Olympic Games held in Sydney. |

## 21st century

| Year | Date | Event |
| 2001 | | Australia celebrates centenary of federation. |
| 2001 | 25 February | Death of Donald Bradman, aged 92 in Kensington Park, Adelaide, South Australia. |
| 2001 | | Western Australia adopts a uniform age of consent of 16. |
| 2001 | | Boat load of asylum seekers is rescued by Norwegian ship, leading to the Tampa affair. |
| 2001 | | Australian forces deployed to War to topple Taliban for supporting Al-Qaeda. |
| 2001 | 10 November | 2001 Australian federal election: John Howard is reelected as prime minister. |
| 2002 | 12 October | 2002 Bali bombings, the deadliest act of terrorism in the history of Indonesia, killing 202 people (including 88 Australians). |
| 2003 | | Australian military deployed to Iraq War to oust the Saddam Hussein regime for serial non-compliance with the 1991 Gulf War Peace Treaty. |
| 2003 | | Northern Territory introduces uniform age of consent set at 16 for everyone. |
| 2003 | | New South Wales becomes the last State to have a uniform age of consent at 16 for everyone. |
| 2003 | | Australia hosts the Rugby World Cup, with the home side losing the final to England. |
| 2003 | 19 September | Country music singer and musician Slim Dusty dies, aged 76. |
| 2004 | 9 September | A bomb explodes outside the Australian embassy in Jakarta, Indonesia. |
| 2004 | 9 October | 2004 Australian federal election: Howard government (Liberal-National Coalition) wins fourth term and defeats Mark Latham led Australian Labor Party. |
| 2005 | December | Sydney beachside suburb of Cronulla sees a protest against the alleged bashing of a beach lifeguard, developing into an alcohol-fuelled, racially charged riot. |
| 2006 | 15–26 March | The Commonwealth Games are held in Melbourne. |
| 2006 | 4 September | Wildlife conservationist and television personality Steve Irwin dies, aged 44. |
| 2006 | 8 September | Motor racing driver Peter Brock dies, aged 61. |
| 2006 | | Australian Forces are again deployed to East Timor to help stabilize the country. |
| 2007 | | Australia avoids recession amidst Global Financial Crisis (to 2010). |
| 2007 | 24 November | 2007 Australian federal election: Kevin Rudd (Australian Labor Party) defeats John Howard (Liberal-National Coalition) to become the 26th Prime Minister of Australia. |
| 2008 | 22 January | Actor Heath Ledger dies from an accidental prescription drug intoxication, aged 28. |
| 2008 | 13 February | Kevin Rudd leads bi-partisan Parliament to formally apologise for the Stolen Generations. |
| 2008 | | Longest heatwave for an Australian capital city recorded in Adelaide. |
| 2008 | 15–20 July | Sydney hosts Catholic World Youth Day. |
| 2008 | 5 September | Quentin Bryce assumes office, becoming the first female Governor-General of Australia. |
| 2009 | 7 February – 14 March | Black Saturday bushfires: Massive bushfires swept across Victoria, resulting in 173 fatalities. |
| 2010 | 23–24 June | Julia Gillard challenged and replaced Kevin Rudd as leader of the Labor Party to become the 27th and first female Prime Minister of Australia. |
| 2010 | 17 October | Mary MacKillop canonised as Australia's first Saint of the Roman Catholic Church. |
| 2010 | 21 August | 2010 Australian federal election: Election results in hung Parliament and narrow victory by Julia Gillard (ALP) over Tony Abbott (Lib-Nat Coalition); Liberal Ken Wyatt becomes the first Aboriginal member elected to the Australian House of Representatives. |
| 2011 | | Queensland is affected by major flooding, followed by Cyclone Yasi. |
| 2012 | 1 July | Carbon price introduced by the Gillard government. |
| 2013 | 21 March | Julia Gillard apologises to victims of forced adoption practices for removal of babies from predominantly young single mothers. |
| 2013 | 26 June | Kevin Rudd defeats Julia Gillard in a leadership spill, 57 votes to 45. Gillard resigns from parliament, Rudd is again sworn in as prime minister. |
| 2013 | 7 September | 2013 Australian federal election: Tony Abbott defeats Kevin Rudd to become the 28th Prime Minister of Australia. |
| 2014 | 14 July | Carbon price is dropped by the Abbott government. |
| 2014 | 21 October | 21st Prime Minister of Australia Gough Whitlam dies, aged 98. |
| 2014 | 15–16 December | 2014 Sydney hostage crisis. |
| 2015 | 20 March | 22nd Prime Minister of Australia Malcolm Fraser dies, aged 84. |
| 2015 | 15 September | Malcolm Turnbull defeats Tony Abbott in a leadership spill, 54 votes to 44. Turnbull is sworn in as the 29th Prime Minister of Australia. |
| 2015 | | The Matagurup Refugee Camp is founded in Perth to defend Aboriginal Rights. |
| 2016 | 2 July | 2016 Australian federal election: Malcolm Turnbull remains as Prime Minister of Australia. |
| 2016 | 21 November | A Thunderstorm asthma event in Melbourne kills 10 people and sends thousands to emergency departments |
| 2017 | Late July | John Cameron sets off the chain of events that became the 2017 Australian parliamentary eligibility crisis. |
| 2017 | 9 December | Same-sex marriage is legalised by the Marriage Amendment (Definition and Religious Freedoms) Act 2017. |
| 2018 | 24 August | Following two leadership spills, Scott Morrison succeeds Malcolm Turnbull as leader of the Liberal Party and is sworn in as the 30th Prime Minister of Australia. |
| 2019 | 18 May | 2019 Australian federal election: Scott Morrison remains as Prime Minister of Australia. |
| 2019 | | Bushfires occur throughout late 2019 in every state and territory, destroying 2600 homes and killing 34 people. |
| 2020 | 31 January | The ACT becomes the first Australian region to legalise recreational cannabis. |
| 2020 | | Australia suffers lockdowns and social restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic. |
| 2021 | 15 September | The AUKUS security partnership between Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States is announced after negotiations. |
| 2022 | 23 February – 7 April | 2022 eastern Australia floods |
| 2022 | 23 May | 2022 Australian federal election: Anthony Albanese (Australian Labor Party) defeats Scott Morrison (Liberal-National Coalition) to become the 31st Prime Minister of Australia. |
| 2022 | 8 September | Elizabeth II, the longest-reigning Australian monarch in history, dies aged 96, after a reign of 70 years. Charles III becomes the new Australian monarch. |
| 2023 | 14 October | The Australian Indigenous Voice referendum fails to pass, with 60% of Australians voting "No". |
| 2024 | 14 January | Mary Donaldson becomes the first Australian-born queen consort of a European monarchy when she is proclaimed Queen of Denmark when her husband Frederik X ascends the throne. |
| 2024 | 13 April | Bondi Junction stabbings kills 6 victims and injures 12 |