The Cambridge History of Australia: Volume 1, Indigenous and Colonial Australia

Volume 1 of The Cambridge History of Australia explores Australia's history from ancient times through to Federation in 1901. It begins with an archaeological examination of the continent's Indigenous history, which dates back 50,000 years. This volume examines the first European encounters with Australia and its Indigenous people, and the subsequent colonisation of the land by the British in the late eighteenth century, providing insight into the realities of a convict society and how this shaped the nation's development. Part I traces the dynamic growth in Australia's economy, demography and industry throughout the nineteenth century, as it moved towards a system of liberal democracy and one of the most defining events in its history: the Federation of the colonies in 1901. Part II offers a deeper investigation of key topics, such as relations between Indigenous people and settlers, and Australia's colonial identity. It also covers the economy, science and technology, law and literature.

Volume 1. Indigenous and Colonial Australia: Part I: 1. The last 50,000 years: an archaeological view Peter Veth and Susan O'Connor; 2. Newcomers, c.1600–1800 Shino Konishi and Maria Nugent; 3. Convict transportation in global context, c.1700–88 Emma Christopher and Hamish Maxwell-Stewart; 4. The early colonial presence, 1788–1822 Grace Karskens; 5. Expansion, 1820–50 Lisa Ford and David Andrew Roberts; 6. The advent of self-government, 1840s–1890 Ann Curthoys and Jessie Mitchell; 7. The gold rushes of the 1850s David Goodman; 8. Colonial states and civil society, 1860–90 Stuart Macintyre and Sean Scalmer; 9. Rethinking the 1890s Melissa Bellanta; 10. Making the Federal Commonwealth, 1890–1901 Helen Irving; Part II: 11. Population and health Janet McCalman and Rebecca Kippen; 12. Environmental transformations Andrea Gaynor; 13. The economy Lionel Frost; 14. Indigenous and settler relations Tracey Banivanua Mar and Penelope Edmonds; 15. Education Julia Horne and Geoffrey Sherington; 16. Law and regulation Mark Finnane; 17. Religion Anne O'Brien; 18. Science and technology John Gascoigne and Sara Maroske; 19. Gender and colonial society Penny Russell; 20. Art and literature: a cosmopolitan culture Robert Dixon and Jeanette Hoorn; 21. Empire: Australia and 'Greater Britain', 1788–1901 Deryck Schreuder; 22. Colonial Australia and the Asia-Pacific region Marilyn Lake; 23. Australian colonies in a maritime world Cindy McCreery and Kirsten McKenzie.