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Australia
Australia is with an area of 7.686.848 km² the smallest continent of the world, roughtly 21 times bigger as Germany. Compared with other continents Australia is also the most flatest. Bigger montains can only found in coast areas ans two areals in the centre with a height of around 1500 meters.
The middle of australia, the so called outback, consists mostly of deserts, where e.g. the world famous Ayers Rock, a huge single stone block surrounded by desert can be found.
The coast areas instead are subtropical rain forests in the north and rich grasslands in the south.
Because Australia lies on the southern half of the earth, everything is the "other way round": The summer is in december, winter in July, and the warm regions are in the north.
Because Australia was splitted from the other continents in primitve times, a unique wildlive envolved itself
Best known are the kangarros and Koala bears, but Australias offers much more: The rainforrests and also the city trees are filled with e.g. over 300 species of parrots, in front of the east coast there\'s the world largest coral reef (bigger as england), the big barrier reef, inhabited by such extraordinary lifeform like the box jellyfisch, the most dangerous sea animal of the world.
The poison of one little 20-30 cm long jellyfish is enough to kill 200 person, and each year more people dies through the box jellyfish as through sharks.
But also the land animals are not without surprises: The world largest earth worms with a length of nearly 4 meters can be found there as well as the seawater crocodile, but also such friendly animals like the Coala Bear, which isn\'t a bear in reality, but a marsupial.
The name koalo was given by the original inhabitants, the aborigines and means "no water".
The name aborigines, by the way, does not come from the original inhibitants, it was given by the settlers, as it come from the latin words "ab origine" (from start)
This coala bear lives on eucalyptus-trees, which also has above 400 species. Remarkable is e.g the eucalyptus-forest in the blue mountains, where the area got its name from the blue exhalation of the trees.
Many of these world unique animals where strongly jeopardized, as the european settler came in the 18 century to breed sheeps and cows and brought their own animals with them like dogs, but also on the first view harmless animals like cats, fox, rats or rabbits. All these didn\'t hat any natural enemies in australia, so they took over the land quickly by their own.
The first australian inhibitants came into anstralia around 50000 years ago, as because of the ice age in the northern hemisphere the sea level was much lower as today and there was a dry connection between australia , indonesia and asia
Around 10000 years ago the glaciers in europe melt, and australia was croped from the rest of the world.
Then for 10000 years the inihibitants had the country for their own, until in 1644 dutch sailors discoved australia - but they found it worthless, just gave it the name "New- holland" and sailed further.
In 1688 a first english sailor, William Dampier, landed at the north coast. But also he gave such a negative report back, that also england refused from further journeys to "new-holland".
In 1768 Chevalier Antoine de Bougainville wanted to take ownership of the east coast, but because of the bog barrier reef he couldn\'t reach the land- so after a while he gave up...
But in 1768 the situation changed completely: England had just lost the american indepentence war and was looking desperately for places for their prisoners, but also for new sources for wood for shipbuilding, so it was decided to set up a new penal colony in Botany Bay.
2 years later the first ship with prisoners and seetlers arrived, but the captian decided not to land at Botany bay, but in a river delta some part ago. That delta came out as one of the best natural habours of the world. The colony there is known today for its uniqe opera house and was called follwing the name of the british interior minister, Lord Sydney....
During the next decades the settlers tried more and more to get rid of the original inhibitants, which escalated e.g. In 1828, where areas where set under war law to give settlers the permission to kill inhibitants without penalty.
In 1850 Australia got a mostly indepentant own government, but they still belonged to Britain
5 years later in New-South Wales and Victory everywhere gold was found. Through this gold rush the number of inhibitants reached already 1 million in 1860
As Great Britan declared the War to Germany in 1914, australia as a british colony had to fight together with new sealand against the common enemy germany on the other half of the world. The loss of battle at the 25.4.1915 at Gallipoli in turkey is still a national bank holiday in australia.
Another battle Australia lost in 1973, as england joined the european community - Though that australia lost his biggest export market. Since then australia foccuses onto the asian market. But newerless Australia is still the global leader in iron ore, lead and clay, secound in black coal, wolfram and third in zinc and fourt in gold.
On agro-exports Australia leeds in beef, wools, shep meat, wheat and sugar.
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