Who made Canberra the capital of Australia?

Answer 1

Australia's national capital of Canberra was designed by Walter Burley Griffin.

Born on 24 November 1876, in Chicago, USA, Griffin worked for Frank Lloyd Wright in Oak Park, Illinois, designing houses in the Chicago area. In April 1911, the Australian Government held an international competition to produce a design for its new capital city. Burley Griffin produced a design with impressive renderings of the plan produced by his wife, Marion Mahony Griffin. They had only heard about the plan in July, while on honeymoon, and worked feverishly to prepare the plans. On 23 May 1912 Griffin's design was selected as the winner from among 137 entries, whereupon he and his wife moved to Australia, where Griffin was appointed as the Federal Capital Director of Design and Construction.

Difficulties with Federal government bureaucrats forced Griffin's resignation from the project in 1920, but he remained in Australia, later designing the Sydney suburb of Castlecrag and the Melbourne suburb of Eaglemont. Griffin also helped design the New South Wales towns of Leeton, Griffith and Culburra Beach.

Answer 2

No one made Canberra the capital city of Australia. The city of Canberra was built for the purpose of it becoming the national capital of Australia, and land for the Australian Capital Territory (originally Federal Territory of Australia) was purchased from New South Wales for the purpose.

Australia's two largest cities, Sydney and Melbourne, had been rivals since before the goldrush days. After Federation in 1901, it was therefore decided that the nation's capital should be situated between the two cities. A location was chosen which was 248km from Sydney and 483km from Melbourne.

Section 125 of the Constitution of Australia provided that:

"The seat of Government of the Commonwealth shall be determined by the Parliament, and shall be within territory which shall have been granted to or acquired by the Commonwealth, and shall be vested in and belong to the Commonwealth, and shall be in the State of New South Wales, and be distant not less than one hundred miles from Sydney.

Such territory shall contain an area of not less than one hundred square miles, and such portion thereof as shall consist of Crown lands shall be granted to the Commonwealth without any payment therefore. The Parliament shall sit at Melbourne until it meets at the seat of Government."

Answer 3

The layout of the city of Canberra was designed by Sir Walter Burley Griffin.

Answer 4

Sir Walter Burley Griffin