Genre: Information/Explanation

Queensland ( abbreviated as QLD ) is the second-largest and third-most-populous state in the Commonwealth of Australia . Situated in the north-east of the country , it is bordered by the Northern Territory , South Australia and New South Wales to the west , south-west and south respectively . To the east , Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean . Queensland has a population of 4,750,500 , concentrated along the coast and particularly in the state's South East . The state is the world's sixth largest sub-national entity , with an area of 1,852,642 km 2 . The capital and largest city in the state is Brisbane , Australia's third largest city . Often referred to as the " Sunshine State " , Queensland is home to 10 of Australia's 30 largest cities and is the nation's third largest economy . Tourism in the state , fuelled largely by its warm tropical climate , is a major industry . The history of Queensland spans thousands of years , encompassing both a lengthy indigenous presence , as well as the eventful times of post-European settlement . The north-eastern Australian region was explored by Dutch , Spaniards and French navigators before being encountered by Lieutenant James Cook in 1770 . The state has witnessed frontier warfare between European settlers and Indigenous inhabitants ( which did not result in any settlement or treaty ) , as well as the exploitation of cheap Kanaka labour sourced from the South Pacific through a form of forced recruitment known at the time as " blackbirding " . The Australian Labor Party has its origin as a formal organisation in Queensland and the town of Barcaldine is the symbolic birthplace of the party . [ 10 ] June 2009 marked the 150th anniversary of its creation as a separate colony from New South Wales . [ 11 ] A rare record of early settler life in north Queensland can be seen in a set of ten photographic glass plates taken in the 1860s by Richard Daintree , in the collection of the National Museum of Australia . [ 12 ] The Aboriginal occupation of Queensland is thought to predate 50,000 BC , likely via boat or land bridge across Torres Strait , and became divided into over 90 different language groups . During the last ice age Queensland's landscape became more arid and largely desolate , making food and other supplies scarce . This led to the world's first seed-grinding technology . Warming again made the land hospitable , which brought high rainfall along the eastern coast , stimulating the growth of the state's tropical rainforests . [ 13 ] In February 1606 , Dutch navigator Willem Janszoon landed near the site of what is now Weipa , on the western shore of Cape York . This was the first recorded landing of a European in Australia , and it also marked the first reported contact between European and Aboriginal Australian people . [ 13 ] The region was also explored by French and Spaniards explorers ( commanded by Louis Antoine de Bougainville and Luís Vaez de Torres , respectively ) prior to the arrival of Lieutenant James Cook in 1770 . Cook claimed the east coast under instruction from King George III of the United Kingdom on 22 August 1770 at Possession Island , naming Eastern Australia , including Queensland , ' New South Wales ' . [ 14 ] The Aboriginal population declined significantly after a smallpox epidemic during the late 18th century . [ 15 ] ( There has been controversy regarding the origins of smallpox in Australia ; while many sources have claimed that it originated with British settlers , this theory has been contradicted by scientific evidence . [ 16 ] [ 17 ] [ 18 ] There is circumstantial evidence that Macassan mariners visiting Arnhem Land introduced smallpox to Australia . [ 17 ] ) In 1823 , John Oxley , a British explorer , sailed north from what is now Sydney to scout possible penal colony sites in Gladstone ( then Port Curtis ) and Moreton Bay . At Moreton Bay , he found the Brisbane River . He returned in 1824 and established a settlement at what is now Redcliffe . The settlement , initially known as Edenglassie , was then transferred to the current location of the Brisbane city centre . Edmund Lockyer discovered outcrops of coal along the banks of the upper Brisbane River in 1825 . [ 19 ] In 1839 transportation of convicts was ceased , culminating in the closure of the Brisbane penal settlement . In 1842 free settlement was permitted . In 1847 , the Port of Maryborough was opened as a wool port . The first free immigrant ship to arrive in Moreton Bay was the Artemisia , in 1848 . In 1857 , Queensland's first lighthouse was built at Cape Moreton . Fighting between Burke and Wills ' s supply party and Indigenous Australians at Bulla in 1861 A war , sometimes called a " war of extermination " [ citation needed ] , erupted between Aborigines and settlers in colonial Queensland [ citation needed ] . The Frontier War was notable for being the most bloody in Australia [ citation needed ] , perhaps due to Queensland's larger pre-contact indigenous population when compared to the other Australian colonies . About 1,500 European settlers and their allies ( consisting of Chinese , Aboriginal and Melanesian assistants ) [ citation needed ] , were killed in frontier skirmishes during the nineteenth century . [ citation needed ] Casualties among the Aboriginal people may have exceeded 30,000 . [ citation needed ] The " Native Police Force " , employed by the Queensland government , was key in the oppression of the indigenous people . [ 20 ] On 27 October 1857 , aborigines of Martha Fraser's Hornet Bank station on the Dawson River killed eleven Europeans . This was the largest massacre of Australian colonists by aborigines . [ 21 ] [ 22 ] [ 23 ] [ 24 ] One author [ 25 ] estimates 24,000 Aboriginal men , women and children died at the hands of the Native Police in colonial Queensland between 1859 and 1897 alone . A public meeting was held in 1851 to consider the proposed separation of Queensland from New South Wales . On 6 June 1859 , Queen Victoria signed Letters Patent to form the separate colony of what is now Queensland . Brisbane was appointed as the capital city . On 10 December 1859 , a proclamation was read by British author George Bowen , whereby Queensland was formally separated from the state of New South Wales . [ 26 ] As a result , Bowen became the first Governor of Queensland . On 22 May 1860 the first Queensland election was held and Robert Herbert , Bowen's private secretary , was appointed as the first Premier of Queensland . Queensland also became the first Australian colony to establish its own parliament rather than spending time as a Crown Colony . In 1865 , the first rail line in the state opened between Ipswich and Grandchester . Queensland's economy expanded rapidly in 1867 after James Nash discovered gold on the Mary River near the town of Gympie , sparking a gold rush . While still significant , they were on a much smaller scale than the gold rushes of Victoria and New South Wales . During the period from the 1860s till the early 20th century , many labourers , known at the time as Kanakas , were brought to Queensland from neighbouring Pacific Island nations to work in the state's sugar cane fields . Some of these people had been kidnapped under a process known as blackbirding or press ganging , and their employment conditions amounted to indentured labour or even slavery . During the Australian federation of 1901 , the White Australia policy came into effect , which saw all foreign workers in Australia deported under the Pacific Island Labourers Act of 1901 , which saw the Pacific Islander population of the state decrease rapidly . [ 27 ] On 1 January 1901 , Australia was federated following a proclamation by Queen Victoria . During this time , Queensland had a population of half a million people . Brisbane was subsequently proclaimed a city in 1902 . In 1905 , women voted in state elections for the first time , and the University of Queensland was established in 1909 . In 1911 , The first alternative treatments for polio were pioneered in Queensland and remain in use across the world today . Australia's first major airline , Qantas , was founded in 1920 to serve outback Queensland . In 1922 , Queensland abolished the Upper House , becoming the only state parliament in Australia to have one house . In 1935 , cane toads were deliberately introduced to Queensland from Hawaii in a poorly-thought-out and unsuccessful attempt to reduce the number of French's cane and greyback cane beetles that were destroying the roots of sugar cane plants , which are integral to Queensland's economy . In 1962 , the first commercial production of oil in Queensland and Australia began at Moonie . The humid climate – regulated by the availability of air conditioning – saw Queensland become a more accommodating place to work and live for Australian migrants . [ 29 ] To this day , it is one of Australia's economic powerhouses and the third most populous state in the country . In 2009 , Queensland celebrated Q150 , its 150th anniversary as an independent colony and state . [ 30 ] The Queensland government and other Queensland organisations commemorated the occasion with many events and publications , including the announcement of the top 150 icons of Queensland by the Queensland Premier Anna Bligh , [ 31 ] [ 32 ] and the creation of monuments at significant survey points in Queensland's history to honour the many early explorer / surveyors who mapped the state . [ 33 ] [ 34 ] Queensland borders the Torres Strait to the north , with Boigu Island off the coast of New Guinea representing the absolute northern extreme of its territory . The triangular Cape York Peninsula , which points toward New Guinea , is the northernmost part of the state's mainland . West of the peninsula's tip , northern Queensland is bordered by the Gulf of Carpentaria , while the Coral Sea , an arm of the Pacific Ocean , borders Queensland to the east . To the west , Queensland is bordered by the Northern Territory , at the 138 ° E longitude , and to the southwest by the northeastern corner of South Australia . Because of its size , there is significant variation in climate across the state . Low rainfall and hot humid summers are typical for the inland and west , a monsoonal " wet " season in the far north , and warm , temperate conditions along the coastal strip . Elevated areas in the south-east inland can experience temperatures well below freezing in mid-winter . The climate of the coastal strip is influenced by warm ocean waters , keeping the region free from extremes of temperature and providing moisture for rainfall . [ 35 ] Natural disasters are often a threat in Queensland ; severe tropical cyclones can impact the coast and cause severe damage , [ 36 ] with recent examples including Larry , Yasi and Ita . Flooding from rain-bearing systems can also be severe and can occur anywhere in Queensland . One of the deadliest and most damaging floods in the history of the state occurred in early 2011 . [ 37 ] Droughts and bushfires can also occur ; however , the latter are generally less severe than those that occur in southern states . Severe springtime thunderstorms generally affect the south-east and inland of the state and can bring damaging winds , torrential rain , large hail and even tornadoes . [ 38 ] The strongest tornado ever recorded in Australia occurred in Queensland near Bundaberg . [ 39 ] There are five predominant climatic zones in Queensland , [ 40 ] based on temperature and humidity : Dickson's Inlet , Port Douglas , Queensland during the dry season However , most of the Queensland populace experience two weather seasons : a " winter " period of mild to warm temperatures and minimal rainfall , and a sultry summer period of hot , sticky temperatures and higher levels of rainfall . The coastal far north of the state is the wettest place in Australia , with Mount Bellenden Ker , south of Cairns , holding many Australian rainfall records with its annual average rainfall of over 8 metres . [ 41 ] It is not uncommon for locations in this area to receive more rain in 24 hours during the wet season than the majority of Queensland receives in a year . Snow is rare in Queensland , although it does fall with some regularity along the far southern border with New South Wales , predominantly in the Stanthorpe district although on rare occasions further north and west . The most northerly recorded snow in Australia occurred near Mackay ; however , this was exceptional . [ 42 ] The annual mean statistics [ 43 ] for some Queensland centres are shown below : The highest official maximum temperature recorded in the state was 49.5 ° C ( 121 . 1 ° F ) at Birdsville Police Station on 24 December 1972 , [ 48 ] although the Moderate-Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer ( MODIS ) on NASA's Aqua satellite measured a ground surface temperature of 69.3 ° C ( 156 . 7 ° F ) . This temperature was the hottest value worldwide measured by MODIS in 2003 . [ 49 ] Queensland has the highest average maximums of any Australian state , and Toowoomba , Stanthorpe , Hervey Bay , Mackay , Atherton , Weipa and Thursday Island are the only large population centres not to have recorded a temperature above 40 ° C ( 104 ° F ) . The lowest minimum temperature is − 10 . 6 ° C ( 12 . 9 ° F ) at Stanthorpe on 23 June 1961 and at The Hermitage ( near Warwick ) on 12 July 1965 . [ 50 ] Temperatures below 0 ° C ( 32 ° F ) are , however , generally uncommon over the majority of populated Queensland . State capital and most populous city , Brisbane , located in southeast Queensland . Queensland has a less centralised population than other states , with significant populations in regional cities such as Townsville ( above ) . Queensland is less centralised than most other Australian states , with 50 % of the population living outside the state capital , and 25 % living outside the South East Queensland urban agglomeration . Queensland is home to many regional cities , the most populous being the Gold Coast , the Sunshine Coast , Townsville , Cairns , Toowoomba , Mackay , Rockhampton and Bundaberg . For decades , Queensland has consistently been the fastest growing state in Australia , while Western Australia has grown faster in the 2010s . [ 53 ] At its peak growth in 2007 , it was estimated that over 1,500 people moved to the state per week including 1,000 to the southern part of the state alone . [ 54 ] According to the 2011 Census , principal religious affiliations in Queensland are distributed as follows : [ 55 ] Sugar cane fields south of Childers . Queensland's climate is ideal for growing the crop . In the 1880s and 1890s , sea ports were established on the coast , adjacent to the mouth of the Fitzroy River . Broadmount was on the northern side and Port Alma on the south . Railways were subsequently constructed to carry goods to the wharves at these locations , the railway to Broadmount opening on 1 January 1898 and the line to Port Alma opened on 16 October 1911 . Maintenance on the Broadmount line ceased in August 1929 . The following month , the wharf caught fire and the line was effectively closed in July 1930 . The line to Port Alma closed on 15 October 1986 . [ 56 ] Queensland's economy has enjoyed a boom in the tourism and mining industries over the past 20 years . A sizeable influx of interstate and overseas migrants , large amounts of federal government investment , increased mining of vast mineral deposits and an expanding aerospace sector have contributed to the state's economic growth . The 2008 – 09 saw the expansion slow to just 0.8 % , the state's worst performance in 18 years . [ 57 ] Between 1992 and 2002 , the growth in the Gross State Product of Queensland outperformed that of all the other states and territories . In that period Queensland's GSP grew 5.0 % each year , while growth in Australia's Gross Domestic Product ( GDP ) rose on average 3.9 % each year . Queensland's contribution to the Australian GDP increased by 10.4 % in that period , one of only three states to do so . [ 58 ] In 2003 Brisbane had the lowest cost of living of all Australia's capital cities . In late 2005 Brisbane was the third most expensive capital for housing after Sydney and Canberra and just ahead of Melbourne by $ 15 , 000 . Primary industries include : bananas , pineapples , peanuts , a wide variety of other tropical and temperate fruit and vegetables , grain crops , wineries , cattle raising , cotton , sugar cane , wool and a mining industry including bauxite , coal , silver , lead , zinc , gold , and copper . Secondary industries are mostly further processing of the above-mentioned primary produce . For example , bauxite is shipped by sea from Weipa and converted to alumina at Gladstone . [ 59 ] There is also copper refining and the refining of sugar cane to sugar at a number of mills along the eastern coastline . Major tertiary industries are the retail trade and tourism . Interests in Crown land in Queensland are primarily regulated by the Land Act 1994 . [ 60 ] [ 61 ] Summer at Burleigh Heads beach with the Gold Coast skyline in the distance . Gold Coast beaches are world-renowned . Tourism is Queensland's leading tertiary industry with millions of interstate and overseas visitors flocking to the Sunshine State each year . The industry generates $ 4 . 0 billion annually , accounting for 4.5 % of Queensland's GSP . [ 62 ] Queensland is a state of many landscapes which range from sunny tropical coastal areas , lush rainforests to dry inland areas and temperate highland ranges . Cairns is renowned as the " Gateway to the Barrier Reef " and the heritage listed Daintree Rainforests . The Gold Coast of Queensland is also sometimes referred to as " Australia's Theme Park Capital " , with five major amusement parks . These are Dreamworld , Movie World , Sea World , Wet ' n ' Wild and WhiteWater World . Accommodation in Queensland caters for nearly 22 % of the total expenditure , followed by restaurants / meals ( 15 % ) , airfares ( 11 % ) , fuel ( 11 % ) and shopping / gifts ( 11 % ) . [ 66 ] Queensland is served by a number of National Highways and , particularly in South East Queensland , motorways such as the M1 . The Department of Transport & Main Roads oversees the development and operation of main roads and public transport , including taxis and local aviation . South East Queensland has an integrated public transport system operated by TransLink , which provides services bus , rail , light rail and ferry services through contracted bus , ferry and light rail operators and Queensland Rail . The TransLink network operates a fare system which allows a single ticket to be used across all modes for the same price irrespective of the number of transfers made on the trip . Regional bus and long-distance rail services are also provided throughout the State . Local bus services are also available in most regional centres . Executive authority is vested in the Governor , who represents and is appointed by Elizabeth II , Queen of Australia , Queen's Counsel on the advice of the Premier . The current governor is His Excellency , The Hon. Paul de Jersey , AC . The head of government is the Premier , who is appointed by the Governor but must have the support of the Legislative Assembly . The current Premier is Annastacia Palaszczuk of the Labor Party . Other ministers , forming the Executive Council , are appointed by the governor from among the members of the Legislative Assembly on the Premier's recommendation . Parliament House , Brisbane ( photo taken in 2003 ) The Queensland Parliament or the Legislative Assembly , is unicameral . It is the only Australian state with a unicameral legislature . A bicameral system existed until 1922 , when the Legislative Council was abolished by the Labor members ' " suicide squad " , so called because they were appointed for the purpose of voting to abolish their own offices . [ 67 ] The Parliament is housed in the 19th century Parliament House and 20th century Parliamentary Annexe in Brisbane . The state's politics are traditionally regarded as being conservative relative to other states . [ 68 ] [ 69 ] [ 70 ] [ 71 ] [ 72 ] The judicial system of Queensland consists of the Supreme Court and the District Court , established by the Constitution of Queensland , and various other courts and tribunals established by ordinary Acts of the Queensland Parliament . In 2001 Queensland adopted a new codified constitution , repealing most of the assorted Acts of Parliament that had previously made up the constitution . The new constitution took effect on 6 June 2002 , the anniversary of the formation of the colony of Queensland by the signing of Letters patent by Queen Victoria in 1859 . Local government is the mechanism by which towns and districts can manage their own affairs to the extent permitted by the Local Government Act 1993 – 2007 . Queensland is divided into 73 local government areas which may be called Cities , Towns , Shires or Regions . [ 73 ] Each area has a council which is responsible for providing a range of public services and utilities , and derives its income from both rates and charges on resident ratepayers , and grants and subsidies from the State and Commonwealth governments . [ 74 ] The state's first university , The University of Queensland , was established in 1909 . It was moved to St Lucia in 1945 , where it remains today . The University of Queensland ranks amongst the top 100 universities in several global rankings . The state of Queensland is represented in all of Australia's national sporting competitions and is also host to a number of domestic and international sporting events . The most popular winter and summer team sports are Rugby league , Rugby union and cricket , respectively . Rugby league ' s annual State of Origin series is a major event in the Queensland sporting calendar , with the Queensland Maroons in 2013 winning a record eighth series in a row . The Brisbane Broncos are the state's most successful team of any sport , having won 3 premierships in the NRL rugby league era and 6 in total during their 23-year existence . The Brisbane Broncos participated in the 2015 NRL Grand Final losing to the North Queensland Cowboys 17 – 16 in extra time , claiming their first premiership in its history . It is considered one of the greatest Grand Finals in NRL history . The other two NRL teams in Queensland are the North Queensland Cowboys and Gold Coast Titans . Queensland's dominance is not restricted to rugby league . The early part of this century saw the AFL's Brisbane Lions claim a hat-trick of premierships between 2001 and 2003 inclusive , whilst in soccer , Brisbane Roar FC won back to back A-League titles in the 2010 / 11 and 2011 / 12 season , and also set an Australian sporting record of 36 consecutive games unbeaten . Just four years after being branded " the joke of rugby union " , the Queensland Reds won its first Super Rugby title in July 2011 . In netball the Queensland Firebirds went undefeated in the 2011 season as they went on to win the Grand Final . Swimming is also a popular sport in Queensland , with a majority of Australian team members and international medalists hailing from the state . At the 2008 Summer Olympics , Queensland swimmers won all six of Australia's gold medals , all swimmers on Australia's three female ( finals ) relays teams were from Queensland , two of which won gold . ^ Dortch , C.E. and Hesp , P.A. 1994 . " Rottnest Island artifacts and palaeosols in the context of Greater Swan Region prehistory " ( Journal of the Royal Society of Western Australia 77 : 23 – 32 ) ^ " Archived copy " . Archived from the original on 13 October 2007 . Retrieved 13 October 2007 . CS1 maint : Unfit url ( link ) ^ a b A History of Queensland by Raymond Evans , Cambridge University Press , 2007 ISBN 978-0-521-87692-6 ^ European discovery and the colonisation of Australia culture . gov . au " Archived copy " . Archived from the original on 16 February 2011 . Retrieved 24 February 2014 . ^ Cumpston , JHL ( 1914 ) . The History of Small-Pox in Australia 1788 – 1908 . Melbourne : Australian Government Printer . ^ a b Campbell , Judy ; 2002 , Invisible Invaders : Smallpox and Other Diseases in Aboriginal Australia 1780 – 1880 , Carlton , Melbourne University Press , pp60 – 2 , 80 – 1 , 194 – 6 , 201 , 216 – 7 ^ Willis , H.A. ( 2011 ) . " Bringing Smallpox with the First Fleet " . Quadrant ( Sydney ) . 55 ( 7 – 8 ) : 2 . ISSN 0033-5002 . ^ Book : Reid , Gordon : A Nest of Hornets : The Massacre of the Fraser family at Hornet Bank Station , Central Queensland , 1857 , and related events , Melbourne 1982 . ^ R Evans , quoted in T Bottoms ( 2013 ) Conspiracy of Silence : Queensland's frontier killing times , Allen & Unwin , p. 181 ^ " Q150 Timeline " . Queensland Treasury . Retrieved 28 October 2011 . ^ " Tornadoes " . Bureau of Meteorology . Archived from the original on 17 March 2009 . Retrieved 6 April 2008 . ^ " Gladstone " . Comalco.com . Rio Tinto Aluminium . Archived from the original on 17 August 2009 . Retrieved 9 March 2016 . ^ Lucy Cradduck and Andrea Blake , Dealing with unique interests in Crown Land : A Queensland perspective , 2010 . [ 1 ] ^ Land Act 1994 , Long title An Act to consolidate and amend the law relating to the administration and management of non-freehold land and deeds of grant in trust and the creation of freehold land , and for related purposes [ 2 ] ^ George Megalogenis , " The Green and the Grey " , Quarterly Essay , Vol. 40 , 2010 , p69 . ^ " Rates and valuations " . Queensland : Department of Local Government , Sport and Recreation . 26 July 2007 . Retrieved 5 April 2008 .