Who has helped to shape Australia from 1788 onwards?

Answer 1

Australia has been shaped by a number of different groups of people and individuals through the years. First credit, of course, belongs to the indigenous people, the first Australians, also known as the Aborigines. they owned the land: their spirituality is present still in so many ways. Following them, the convicts shaped Australia, as they were the early builders of the colony, and the ones who, when they were given free pardons, took risks and built their farms and businesses with limited support. The Irish convict rebels brought their own brand of individuality, and the attitude that questioned authority. Soon after this, a new mix of people was added: the "currency lads and lasses", or the native-born whites who had freedom, independence, and a determination not to kowtow to the British aristocracy. Free settlers brought their own influences from Britain, as did the various other cultural groups who migrated from their European homelands for various reasons, in the 1800s. Each cultural group brought their own knowledge and skills, helping contribute to the great agricultural history of our country. The explorers were particularly significant for the way they opened up new land, found new stock and trade routes, and filled in the missing information about what lay in Australia's interior. The gold-diggers also brought a new wave of cultural influence with them. The Eureka Stockade on the Ballarat goldfields in 1854 saw the birth of Australian democracy, certainly shaping Australia's political future. Later on, the shearers also had a hand in the development of Australian democracy and politics, with the Great Shearers' Strike of 1891. Other politicians such as Sir Henry Parkes, who really pushed for Federation, also helped shaped Australia. Authors, painters and poets such as A.B.'Banjo' Paterson, Henry Lawson, Hal Gye, Adam Lindsay Gordon, Steele Rudd and many others also shaped the direction of Australian patriotism and the search for an individual identity apart from Great Britain. The ANZACs' influence cannot be ignored - those hundreds of thousands of brave young men who went out to fight on behalf of their new, young country, some never returning. Their stories of mateship still endure, in the ethos that Australians should always "stand by their mates".

Answer 2

The people who shaped Australia were the first people who inhabited the land. This was a combination of the Aborigines tribe, along with the British prisoners sent to the country. Over time, they developed into a very liberal, progressive country.

Answer 3

The term of "shaped" would generally rule out the Aborigine peoples. That would be the answer to "who were the native peoples of Australia. With that being said, the prisoner colony there, taking with them a good deal of British government practices and British culture, could be said to have helped "shape" Australia.