Category Social Sciences

          Nauru had to pay a heavy price for the riches it mined. By the end of the twentieth century, phosphate mines started to run dry.

          The money from mining was invested in various businesses abroad. Unfortunately, this turned out to be a failure that left Nauru bankrupt. Its telecommunications network collapsed in 2003 and the country was cut off from the rest of the world for nearly two months!

          Moreover, more than 80 percent of the island became infertile due to extensive mining. In 1993, the Nauru Rehabilitation Corporation filed a case in the International Court of Justice to claim compensation from Australia for the exploitation of its phosphate resources. Both the countries later came to a friendly settlement. Today, the people of Nauru are tirelessly working to make its land once again suitable for agriculture.

Picture Credit : Google

          Nauru is a tiny coral island in the Pacific Ocean. It is one of the smallest independent nations of the world. Not much was known about this island country until the whale hunters started halting at Nauru for collecting food and water. Nauru came under German control by 1888.

         The people of Nauru thrived on fishing and small scale farming. Little did they know that their life was going to change when they discovered phosphate deposits in its plateaus.

          There was a heavy demand for phosphate in England for making chemical fertilizers and the Pacific Phosphate Company owned by the British made an agreement with the German administration to mine the phosphate deposits in Nauru. This happened in 1906 and in the following year, they started mining.

         By 1920, the phosphate industry was taken over by the British Phosphate Commission, a joint Australian, British, and New Zealand enterprise. Nauru became an independent country in 1968 and took control over its phosphate business by 1970; the money from phosphate made Nauru one of the richest countries in the world.

Picture Credit : Google

          By 1860, the Maoris were forced to give up their lands for establishing settlements. This was a result of the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi. This led to a brutal war in the North Island. The war lasted for twenty years, thousands of Maoris were killed and much of their land was confiscated.

          Though the Maoris waged many wars against the British, they stayed loyal to the British crown. They even fought for the British in their war against South Africa. This happened in 1890, almost ten years after the conflict.

          New Zealand became an independent dominion in 1907, but it maintained strong political and economic links with the United Kingdom.

          Today New Zealand attracts people all over the world with quality education and employment.

Picture Credit : Google

          New Zealand is a country spread across the Pacific Ocean, near Australia. It is made up of two large islands- North and South islands.

          The history of New Zealand cannot be told without mentioning the British interventions. Abel Tasman, a Dutch explorer was the first European to discover the island. With the arrival of Captain James Cook, Britishers founded Wellington in the North Island. New Zealand became a British colony in 1840. Maoris were the original inhabitants of the island. William Hobson, New Zealand’s first governor made an agreement with 500 Maori chiefs to establish British sovereignty over the country. This landmark document is known as the Treaty of Waitangi. This treaty helped the British to establish their government.

Picture Credit : Google

          Like many other British colonies, Australia too experienced the ill effects of racism. The British settlers wanted to establish White supremacy over the country.

          Moreover, traders from Asian countries, especially China were posing a threat to the British trade. To counter it, the government came up with the White Australia Policy in 1901. The policy banned all non-White immigrants.

          The White Australia Policy was in the rule books till the 1960s. It was ultimately banned in 1966 and the country invited immigrants from all parts of the world. It also opened its gates to the refugees of the Vietnam War! People all over the world now move in to Australia for quality education and employment. And it has people of all races; 26 percent of its population is immigrants!

Picture Credit : Google

          Australia is unique in many ways. The country has pink lakes like Lake Hillier. It has more than ten thousand beaches. There are more kangaroos than people in the country. The Great Barrier Reef, the largest living structure in the world is in Australia. It also shares a legacy with many other countries in the world- Australia too was once a British colony!

          Australia was inhabited by the Aboriginals alone till the British settlers came. In the 1700s, criminals of Britain were given two options- either to die or to live in the difficult bushes of the newfound continent. As many as 700 convicts were sent to Australia in the beginning, who struggled hard to survive the harsh climate, the difficult land and of course, the Aboriginals. More convicts were transported and Australia became an established penal colony of the British. By the 1800s, there were many such penal colonies.

          The 1850s witnessed a historical discovery! Gold was discovered in Victoria which created a boom. The Victorian gold rush was so massive that the government had to resort to issuing miners’ licenses to regulate the crowd.