Canberra was founded as a planned capital for Australia, chosen as a compromise between the rival cities of Sydney and Melbourne after federation. An international competition to design the city was won by the American architects Walter Burley Griffin and Marion Mahony Griffin, whose plan included geometric avenues, a central lake and a clear separation of government and civic areas. The foundation stone was laid and the city was officially named in a ceremony on Capital Hill, with Lady Denman announcing the name. The national Parliament moved there in 1927, after a temporary period in Melbourne, and construction was slow because of the Depression and the Second World War. Lake Burley Griffin was completed in 1963.
Before and after
- 1913Ford introduces the moving assembly line
- 9 January 1913Birth of Richard Nixon
- 2 February 1913Construction of Grand Central Terminal
- 4 February 1913Birth of Rosa Parks
- 12 March 1913Founding of Canberra
- 30 May 1913Treaty of London
- from 29 June 1913 to 10 August 1913Second Balkan War
- 14 July 1913Birth of Gerald Ford
- 10 August 1913Treaty of Bucharest
More in Civilizations & archaeology
- from 1799 to 1849Sikh Empire
- 6 February 1819Founding of modern Singapore
- from 1839 to 1876Tanzimat
- 3 May 1841Founding of New Zealand
- 1891Discovery of Gundestrup cauldron
- March 1900Arthur Evans begins digging at Knossos
The era
This moment belongs to the Industrial era (1760 CE to 1914 CE), steam, factories and revolutions. You can also browse everything in the 20th century.