Queensland#Climate

{{Main|History of Queensland}}

{{Main|History of Indigenous Australians}}

Queensland was one of the largest regions of pre-colonial Aboriginal population in Australia.{{Sfnp|Ørsted-Jensen|2011|pp=10–11}} The Aboriginal occupation of Queensland is thought to predate 50,000 BC, and early migrants are believed to have arrived via boat or land bridge across Torres Strait. Through time, their descendants developed into more than 90 different language and cultural groups.

During the last ice age, Queensland's landscape became more arid and largely desolate, making food and other supplies scarce. The people developed the world's first seed-grinding technology.{{cite journal|title=65,000-years of continuous grinding stone use at Madjedbebe, Northern Australia {{!}} Abstract|journal=Scientific Reports|publisher=Nature|date=11 July 2022|volume=12 |issue=1 |page=11747 |doi=10.1038/s41598-022-15174-x |last1=Hayes |first1=Elspeth H. |last2=Fullagar |first2=Richard |last3=Field |first3=Judith H. |last4=Coster |first4=Adelle C. F. |last5=Matheson |first5=Carney |last6=Nango |first6=May |last7=Djandjomerr |first7=Djaykuk |last8=Marwick |first8=Ben |last9=Wallis |first9=Lynley A. |last10=Smith |first10=Mike A. |last11=Clarkson |first11=Chris |pmid=35817808 |pmc=9273753 }} The end of the glacial period brought about a warming climate, making the land more hospitable. It brought high rainfall along the eastern coast, stimulating the growth of the state's tropical rainforests.A History of Queensland by Raymond Evans, Cambridge University Press, 2007 {{ISBN|978-0-521-87692-6}}.

The Torres Strait Islands is home to the Torres Strait Islander peoples. Torres Strait Islanders are ethnically and culturally distinct from mainland Aboriginal peoples. They have a long history of interaction with both Aboriginal peoples of what is now Australia and the peoples of New Guinea.

File:Captain Cook at Possession Island.jpg claims the east coast of Australia for the Kingdom of Great Britain at Possession Island in 1770]]

File:Bulla Queensland 1861.jpg's supply party and Aboriginal Australians at Bulla in 1861]]

In February 1606, Dutch navigator Willem Janszoon landed near the site of what is now Weipa, on the western shore of Cape York. This was the first recorded landing of a European in Australia, and it also marked the first reported contact between Europeans and the Aboriginal people of Australia. The region was also explored by French and Spanish explorers (commanded by Louis Antoine de Bougainville and Luís Vaez de Torres, respectively) before the arrival of Lieutenant James Cook in 1770. Cook claimed the east coast under instruction from King George III of the Kingdom of Great Britain on 22 August 1770 at Possession Island, naming eastern Australia, including Queensland, New South Wales.{{cite web|website=culture.gov.au |url=https://www.cultureandrecreation.gov.au/articles/australianhistory/ |title=European discovery and the colonisation of Australia |access-date=24 February 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110216230554/https://www.cultureandrecreation.gov.au/articles/australianhistory/ |archive-date=16 February 2011}}

The Aboriginal population declined significantly after a smallpox epidemic during the late 18th century and massacres by the European settlers.{{cite book|last=Cumpston|first=JHL|title=The History of Small-Pox in Australia 1788–1908|year=1914|publisher=Australian Government Printer|location=Melbourne}}{{Page needed|date=January 2024}}

In 1823, John Oxley, a British explorer, sailed north from what is now Sydney to scout possible penal colony sites in Gladstone (then Port Curtis) and Moreton Bay. At Moreton Bay, he found the Brisbane River. He returned in 1824 and established a penal settlement at what is now Redcliffe. The settlement, initially known as Edenglassie, was then transferred to the current location of the Brisbane city centre. Edmund Lockyer discovered outcrops of coal along the banks of the upper Brisbane River in 1825.{{cite web|url=https://www.newhopegroup.com.au|title=New Hope Group|access-date=25 February 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140227032917/https://www.newhopegroup.com.au/|archive-date=27 February 2014}} In 1839 transportation of convicts was ceased, culminating in the closure of the Brisbane penal settlement. In 1842 free settlement, which had already commenced, was officially permitted. In 1847, the Port of Maryborough was opened as a wool port. While most early immigrants came from New South Wales, the first free immigrant ship to arrive in Moreton Bay from Europe was the Artemisia, in 1848.

Earlier than this immigrant ship was the arrival of the Irish famine orphan girls to Queensland. Devised by the then British Secretary of State for the Colonies, The Earl Grey Scheme established a special emigration scheme which was designed to resettle destitute girls from the workhouses of Ireland during the Great Famine. The first ship, the "Earl Grey", departed Ireland for a 124-day sail to Sydney. After controversy developed upon their arrival in Australia, a small group of 37 young orphans, sometimes referred to as The Belfast Girls or the Feisty Colleens, never set foot on Sydney soil, and instead sailed up to Brisbane (then Moreton Bay) on 21 October 1848 on board the Ann Mary. This scheme continued until 1852.{{Citation|author1=Harrison|first=Jennifer|title=The Forty-Niners: Brisbane : schemes and dreams nineteenth century arrivals|date=4 July 2014|pages=47|publication-date=2014|publisher=Brisbane History Group; Salisbury Qld. : Boolarong Press|isbn=978-1-925046-99-1}}

In 1857, Queensland's first lighthouse was built at Cape Moreton.{{cite QHR||Cape Moreton Lightstation|600257|access-date=11 January 2024}}

{{Further|Australian frontier wars#Queensland||List of massacres of Indigenous Australians#Queensland}}

The frontier wars fought between European settlers and Aboriginal tribes in Queensland were the bloodiest and most brutal in colonial Australia.{{cite thesis |last1=Loos |first1=Noel |title=Frontier conflict in the Bowen district 1861–1874 |date=1970 |publisher=James Cook University of North Queensland |doi=10.25903/mmrc-5e46 |url=https://researchonline.jcu.edu.au/1136/ |access-date=11 September 2019 |type=other |archive-date=26 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240126071541/https://researchonline.jcu.edu.au/1136/ |url-status=live }} Many of these conflicts are now seen as acts of genocide.{{cite journal |last1=Baldry |first1=Hannah |last2=McKeon |first2=Alisa |last3=McDougal |first3=Scott |title=Queensland's Frontier Killing Times{{Snd}} Facing Up to Genocide |url=https://lr.law.qut.edu.au/article/view/583/564 |journal=QUT Law Review |volume=15 |issue=1 |pages=92–113 |issn=2201-7275 |access-date=27 August 2023 |archive-date=28 December 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231228031650/https://lr.law.qut.edu.au/article/view/583/564 |url-status=live }}{{cite journal |last=Palmer |first=Alison |year=1998 |title=Colonial and modern genocide: explanations and categories |journal=Ethnic and Racial Studies |volume=21 |issue=1 |pages=89–115 |doi=10.1080/014198798330115}}{{cite journal |last=Tatz |first=Colin |date=2006 |title=Confronting Australian Genocide |url=https://press-files.anu.edu.au/downloads/press/p72971/pdf/ch0251.pdf |journal=The Indigenous Experience: Global Perspectives |publisher=Canadian Scholars Press |volume=25 |pages=16–36 |isbn=978-1551303000 |pmid=19514155 |editor-first1=Roger |editor-last1=Maaka |editor-first2=Chris |editor-last2=Andersen |access-date=9 February 2024 |archive-date=14 November 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231114055722/https://press-files.anu.edu.au/downloads/press/p72971/pdf/ch0251.pdf |url-status=live }}{{cite journal |last1=Rogers |first1=Thomas James |last2=Bain |first2=Stephen |date=3 February 2016 |title=Genocide and frontier violence in Australia |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/14623528.2016.1120466 |journal=Journal of Genocide Research |volume=18 |issue=1 |pages=83–100 |doi=10.1080/14623528.2016.1120466 |s2cid=147512803 |access-date=8 March 2022 |archive-date=31 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220331143722/https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/14623528.2016.1120466 |url-status=live }}

The wars featured the most frequent massacres of First Nations people, the three deadliest massacres on white settlers, the most disreputable frontier police force, and the highest number of white victims to frontier violence on record in any Australian colony.{{Sfnp|Ørsted-Jensen|2011}} Across at least 644 collisions at least 66,680 were killed — with Aboriginal fatalities alone comprising no less than 65,180.Evans, Raymond & Ørsted–Jensen, Robert: 'I Cannot Say the Numbers that Were Killed': Assessing Violent Mortality on the Queensland Frontier" (paper at AHA 9 July 2014 at University of Queensland) publisher Social Science Research Network Of these deaths, around 24,000 Aboriginal men, women and children were killed by the Native Police between 1859 and 1897.R Evans, quoted in T Bottoms (2013) Conspiracy of Silence: Queensland's Frontier Killing Times, Allen & Unwin, p.181

The military force of the Queensland Government in this war was the Native Police, who operated from 1849 to the 1920s. The Native Police was a body of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander troopers that operated under the command of white officers. The Native Police were often recruited forcefully from far-away communities.{{cite web|url=https://www.abc.net.au/frontier/stories/ep3.htm |title=Episode Three |work=Frontier |publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation |access-date=4 August 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060718191740/https://www.abc.net.au/frontier/stories/ep3.htm |archive-date=18 July 2006}}{{Cite web |date=29 May 2023 |title=Frontier wars |url=https://www.qld.gov.au/recreation/arts/heritage/archives/collection/war/frontier-wars |access-date=2023-08-27 |website=Queensland Government |language=en |archive-date=27 August 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230827144736/https://www.qld.gov.au/recreation/arts/heritage/archives/collection/war/frontier-wars |url-status=live }}

File:Wills_Tragedy_1861.jpg in which 19 settlers were killed by Aboriginal people, the deadliest attack on settlers in the frontier wars]]

Conflict spread quickly with free settlement in 1838, with settlement rapidly expanding in a great rush to take up the surrounding land in the Darling Downs, Logan and Brisbane Valley and South Burnett onwards from 1840, in many cases leading to widespread fighting and heavy loss of life. The conflict later spread north to the Wide Bay and Burnett River and Hervey Bay region, and at one stage the settlement of Maryborough was virtually under siege.{{Sfnp|Broome|1988|p=102}}

The largest reasonably well-documented massacres in southeast Queensland were the Kilcoy and Whiteside poisonings, each of which was said to have taken up to 70 Aboriginal lives by use of a gift of flour laced with strychnine. At the Battle of One Tree Hill in September 1843, Multuggerah and his group of warriors ambushed one group of settlers, routing them and subsequently others in the skirmishes which followed, starting in retaliation for the Kilcoy poisoning.{{cite web |last=Kerkhove |first=Ray |date=19 August 2017 |title=Battle of One Tree Hill and Its Aftermath |url=https://frontierbattle.wordpress.com/battle-of-one-tree-hill-and-its-aftermath/ |access-date=5 August 2020 |archive-date=29 October 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201029130225/https://frontierbattle.wordpress.com/battle-of-one-tree-hill-and-its-aftermath/ |url-status=live }} Ray Kerkhove, owner of this site, is a reputable historian. See [https://uniqld.academia.edu/raykerkhove here] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200824020134/https://uniqld.academia.edu/raykerkhove |date=24 August 2020 }} and [https://www.boolarongpress.com.au/our-authors/authors-k/ray-kerkhove/ here] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201020113350/https://www.boolarongpress.com.au/our-authors/authors-k/ray-kerkhove/ |date=20 October 2020 }}.{{cite news |last=Marr |first=David |date=14 September 2019 |title=Battle of One Tree Hill: remembering an Indigenous victory and a warrior who routed the whites |work=The Guardian |url=http://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2019/sep/15/battle-of-one-tree-hill-cutting-through-silence-to-remember-a-warrior-who-routed-the-whites |access-date=5 August 2020 |archive-date=5 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200805060402/https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2019/sep/15/battle-of-one-tree-hill-cutting-through-silence-to-remember-a-warrior-who-routed-the-whites |url-status=live }}

Central Queensland was particularly hard hit during the 1860s and 1870s, several contemporary writers mention the Skull Hole, Bladensburg, or Mistake Creek massacre{{efn|Not to be confused with the 1915 Mistake Creek massacre in Western Australia.}} on Bladensburg Station near Winton, which in 1901 was said to have taken up to 200 Aboriginal lives.Queenslander 20 April 1901, page 757d-758c and Carl Lumholtz Among Cannibals (London 1889) page 58–59; See also {{harvnb|Bottoms|2013|pp=172–174}}. First Nations warriors killed 19 settlers during the Cullin-La-Ringo massacre on 17 October 1861.{{Sfnp|Connor|2008|p=220}} In the weeks afterwards, police, native police and civilians killed up to 370 members of the Gayiri Aboriginal people in response.{{cite web |last=Jackson |first=Russell |date=18 September 2021 |title=Research discovery suggests AFL pioneer Tom Wills participated in massacres of Indigenous people |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-09-18/suggests-afl-pioneer-tom-wills-participated-indigenous-massacres/100463708 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210917193518/https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-09-18/suggests-afl-pioneer-tom-wills-participated-indigenous-massacres/100463708 |archive-date=17 September 2021 |access-date=17 September 2021 |website=ABC News |publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation}}

Frontier violence peaked on the northern mining frontier during the 1870s, most notably in Cook district and on the Palmer and Hodgkinson River goldfields, with heavy loss of Aboriginal lives and several well-known massacres.Queenslander, 8 March 1879, page 313d Raids conducted by the Kalkadoon held settlers out of Western Queensland for ten years until September 1884 when they attacked a force of settlers and native police at Battle Mountain near modern Cloncurry. The subsequent battle of Battle Mountain ended in disaster for the Kalkadoon, who suffered heavy losses.{{Sfnp|Coulthard-Clark|2001|pp=51–52}} Fighting continued in North Queensland, however, with First Nations raiders attacking sheep and cattle while Native Police mounted heavy retaliatory massacres.{{Sfnp|Connor|2008|p=221}}Queensland State Archives A/49714 no 6449 of 1884 (report); QPG re 13 July 1884, Vol 21:213; 21 July 1884 – COL/A395/84/5070; Q 16 August 1884, p253; 20 August 1884 Inquest JUS/N108/84/415; POL/?/84/6449; 15 Queensland Figaro November 1884 and Queensland State Archives A/49714, letter 9436 of 1889.

{{Further information|Blackbirding#Queensland}}

Tens of thousands of South Sea Islanders were forced, deceived or coerced into indentured servitude and slavery on Australia's agricultural plantations. This process was known as blackbirding.Mortensen, Reid, 2000. "Slaving in Australian courts: Blackbirding cases, 1869-1871." Journal of South Pacific Law, 4, pp.7-37: "Between 1863 and 1904, over 62,000 people from the Melanesian archipelagos provided the colony of Queensland with indentured labour for its emerging agricultural industries. [...] Although by the latter nineteenth century, abolitionism had ended both the transatlantic slave trade and slavery in European colonies, indentured labourers (or libres engagés) were sought as an alternative: working under limited term contracts and wages but otherwise, on occasion, similar conditions to the slaves."McDonald, Willa, 2023. "Blackbirding, Subjectivity and the Unseeing 'I'." Literary Journalism in Colonial Australia, pp. 189-216. Cham: Springer International Publishing: "Whether or not the Pacific Island labour trade was a form of slavery is still being debated in Australia. On the one hand, unlike slavery, the indenture contracts were of limited duration, the Islanders were paid, and the rights of the plantation owners over the labourers were extensive

but not absolute. [...] As Brooke Kroeger says, the blackbirding trade, if not slavery itself, was at least slavery's 'just-as-evil twin'."{{cite news |url=https://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article22275598 |title=General news |newspaper=The Queenslander |date=9 November 1907 |access-date=5 July 2019 |page=32 |via=Trove |archive-date=24 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201224003143/https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/22275598 |url-status=live }} This trade in what were then known as Kanakas was in operation from 1863 to 1908, a period of 45 years. Some 55,000 to 62,500 were brought to Australia, most being recruited or blackbirded from islands in Melanesia, such as the New Hebrides (now Vanuatu), the Solomon Islands and the islands around New Guinea.Tracey Flanagan, Meredith Wilkie, and Susanna Iuliano. [http://www.hreoc.gov.au/racial_discrimination/forum/Erace/south_sea.html "Australian South Sea Islanders: A Century of Race Discrimination under Australian Law"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110314080249/http://www.hreoc.gov.au/racial_discrimination/forum/Erace/south_sea.html|date=14 March 2011}}, Australian Human Rights Commission.

File:Australian South Sea Islander cane cutters on a sugar cane plantation in Queensland (9205204184).jpg plantation in Queensland.]]

The majority of those taken were male and around one quarter were under the age of sixteen.{{Citation |author1=Corris, Peter |title=Passage, port and plantation: a history of Solomon Islands labour migration, 1870–1914 |date=2013-12-13 |url=https://trove.nla.gov.au/work/188267294 |type=Thesis |access-date=5 July 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200727000253/https://trove.nla.gov.au/work/188267294 |url-status=live |archive-date=27 July 2020}} In total, approximately 15,000 South Sea Islanders (30%) died while labouring in Queensland – excluding those who died in transit or were killed in the recruitment process – mostly during three-year contracts.{{cite news |last1=McKinnon |first1=Alex |date=July 2019 |title=Blackbirds, Australia had a slave trade? |page=44 |newspaper=The Monthly}} This is similar to the estimated 33% death rate among enslaved Africans in the first three years of arriving in America,{{cite web |last1=Ray |first1=K.M. |title=Life Expectancy and Mortality rates |url=https://www.encyclopedia.com/humanities/applied-and-social-sciences-magazines/life-expectancy-and-mortality-rates |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190705070912/https://www.encyclopedia.com/humanities/applied-and-social-sciences-magazines/life-expectancy-and-mortality-rates |archive-date=5 July 2019 |access-date=5 July 2019 |website=Encyclopedia.com |publisher=Gale Library of Daily Life: Slavery in America}} Brazil, and the Caribbean; the conditions were often comparable to those of the Atlantic slave trade.

The trade was legally sanctioned and regulated under Queensland law, and prominent men such as Robert Towns made massive fortunes through blackbirding, helping to establish some of the major cities in Queensland today.{{Cite web |last=Sparrow |first=Jeff |date=2022-08-04 |title=Friday essay: a slave state - how blackbirding in colonial Australia created a legacy of racism |url=http://theconversation.com/friday-essay-a-slave-state-how-blackbirding-in-colonial-australia-created-a-legacy-of-racism-187782 |access-date=2023-08-27 |website=The Conversation |language=en |archive-date=27 August 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230827144739/http://theconversation.com/friday-essay-a-slave-state-how-blackbirding-in-colonial-australia-created-a-legacy-of-racism-187782 |url-status=live }} Towns' agent claimed that blackbirded labourers were "savages who did not know the use of money" and therefore did not deserve cash wages.{{cite news |date=20 March 1871 |title=A fair thing for the Polynesians |page=7 |newspaper=The Brisbane Courier |url=https://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article1300671 |access-date=1 June 2019 |via=Trove}}

Following Federation in 1901, the White Australia policy came into effect, which saw most foreign workers in Australia deported under the Pacific Island Labourers Act 1901, which saw the Pacific Islander population of the state decrease rapidly.{{cite web |title=Documenting Democracy |url=https://www.foundingdocs.gov.au/item.asp?sdID=86 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091026225820/https://www.foundingdocs.gov.au/item.asp?sdID=86 |archive-date=26 October 2009 |access-date=4 August 2010 |publisher=Foundingdocs.gov.au}}

File:StateLibQld 2 93580 Parade of troops in Queen Street, Brisbane, March, 1900.jpg in South Africa]]

File:Groupe de Kanakas dans une exploitation de canne à sucre du Queensland.jpg in a sugar cane plantation, late 19th century]]

A public meeting was held in 1851 to consider the proposed separation of Queensland from New South Wales. On 6 June 1859, Queen Victoria signed letters patent{{cite web|title=Documenting Democracy|url=https://www.foundingdocs.gov.au/item-did-60.html|access-date=27 November 2021|website=Museum of Australian Democracy|archive-date=3 March 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220303143343/https://www.foundingdocs.gov.au/item-did-60.html|url-status=live}} to form the separate colony of Queensland as a self-governing Crown colony with responsible government. Brisbane was selected as the capital city. On 10 December 1859, a proclamation was read by George Bowen, the first Governor of Queensland, formally establishing Queensland as a separate colony from New South Wales.{{cite web|url=https://www.osr.qld.gov.au/historical-information/revenue-history-timeline/static-timeline.shtml|title=Q150 Timeline|publisher=Queensland Treasury|access-date=28 October 2011|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110903032933/https://www.osr.qld.gov.au/historical-information/revenue-history-timeline/static-timeline.shtml|archive-date=3 September 2011}} On 22 May 1860 the first Queensland election was held and Robert Herbert, Bowen's private secretary, was appointed as the first Premier of Queensland.

In 1865, the first rail line in the state opened between Ipswich and Grandchester. Queensland's economy expanded rapidly in 1867 after James Nash discovered gold on the Mary River near the town of Gympie, sparking a gold rush and saving the Colony of Queensland from near economic collapse. While still significant, they were on a much smaller scale than the gold rushes of Victoria and New South Wales.

Immigration to Australia and Queensland, in particular, began in the 1850s to support the state economy. During the period from the 1860s until the early 20th century, many labourers, known at the time as Kanakas, were brought to Queensland from neighbouring Pacific Island nations to work in the state's sugar cane fields. Some of these people had been kidnapped under a process known as blackbirding or press-ganging, and their employment conditions constituted an allegedly exploitative form of indentured labour. Italian immigrants entered the sugar cane industry from the 1890s.{{cite book|first=John|last=Rickard|title=Australia: A Cultural History|year=2017|pages=173|publisher=Monash University |isbn=978-1-921867-60-6}}

During the 1890s, the six Australian colonies, including Queensland, held a series of referendums which culminated in the Federation of Australia on 1 January 1901. During this time, Queensland had a population of half a million people. Since then, Queensland has remained a federated state within Australia, and its population has significantly grown.

File:StateLibQld 1 114168 Returned World War Two soldiers march in Queen Street, Brisbane, 1944.jpg

In 1905 women voted in state elections for the first time. The state's first university, the University of Queensland, was established in Brisbane in 1909. In 1911, the first alternative treatments for polio were pioneered in Queensland and remain in use across the world today.{{cite encyclopedia |last1=Patrick |first1=Ross |title=Kenny, Elizabeth (1880–1952) |chapter=Elizabeth Kenny (1880–1952) |url=https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/kenny-elizabeth-6934 |encyclopedia=Australian Dictionary of Biography |publisher=National Centre of Biography, Australian National University |access-date=1 January 2023 |archive-date=17 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220117014457/https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/kenny-elizabeth-6934 |url-status=live }}

World War I had a major impact on Queensland. Over 58,000 Queenslanders fought in World War I and over 10,000 of them died.{{cite web|title=Queensland Registry of Births, Deaths, and Marriages World War One commemorative death certificates {{!}} Queensland's World War 1 Centenary |url=https://blogs.slq.qld.gov.au/ww1/2015/04/02/queensland-registry-of-births-deaths-and-marriages-world-war-one-commemorative-death-certificates/ |website=blogs.slq.qld.gov.au |access-date=20 January 2016|url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160203144252/https://blogs.slq.qld.gov.au/ww1/2015/04/02/queensland-registry-of-births-deaths-and-marriages-world-war-one-commemorative-death-certificates/ |archive-date=3 February 2016 }}

Australia's first major airline, Qantas (originally standing for "Queensland and Northern Territory Aerial Services"), was founded in Winton in 1920 to serve outback Queensland.

In 1922 Queensland abolished the Queensland Legislative Council, becoming the only Australian state with a unicameral parliament.

In 1935 cane toads were deliberately introduced to Queensland from Hawaii in an unsuccessful attempt to reduce the number of French's cane and greyback cane beetles that were destroying the roots of sugar cane plants, which are integral to Queensland's economy. The toads have remained an environmental pest since that time. In 1962, the first commercial production of oil in Queensland and Australia began at Moonie.

During World War II Brisbane became central to the Allied campaign when the AMP Building (now called MacArthur Central) was used as the South West Pacific headquarters for General Douglas MacArthur, chief of the Allied Pacific forces, until his headquarters were moved to Hollandia in August 1944.{{cite web|url=https://home.st.net.au/~dunn/ausarmy/hiringsno1lofc.htm|title=Hirings Section|publisher=Australia @ War|author=Peter Dunn|date=2 March 2005|access-date=7 January 2008|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071012165321/https://home.st.net.au/~dunn/ausarmy/hiringsno1lofc.htm|archive-date=12 October 2007}} In 1942, during the war, Brisbane was the site of a violent clash between visiting US military personnel and Australian servicemen and civilians, which resulted in one death and hundreds of injuries. This incident became known colloquially as the Battle of Brisbane.{{cite web|url=https://home.st.net.au/~dunn/ozatwar/bob.htm|title=The Battle of Brisbane — 26 & 27 November 1942 |publisher=Australia @ War |access-date=7 January 2008 |first=Peter |last=Dunn |date=27 August 2005 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080110092844/https://home.st.net.au/~dunn/ozatwar/bob.htm |archive-date=10 January 2008}}

The end of World War II saw a wave of immigration from across Europe, with many more immigrants coming from southern and eastern Europe than in previous decades.

In the later decades of the 20th century, the humid subtropical climate—regulated by the availability of air conditioning—saw Queensland become a popular destination for migrants from interstate.{{cite book|title=Bigger Or Better?: Australia's Population Debate|last=Lowe|first=Ian|year=2012|publisher=University of Queensland Press|isbn= 9780702248078}} Since that time, Queensland has continuously seen high levels of migration from the other states and territories of Australia.

In 1966, Lyndon B. Johnson became the first U.S. president to visit Queensland. During his visit, he met with Australia prime minister Harold Holt.{{CN|date=July 2024}}

The end of the White Australia policy in 1973 saw the beginning of a wave of immigration from around the world, and most prominently from Asia, which continues to the present.

In 1981 the Great Barrier Reef off Queensland's northeast coast, one of the world's largest coral reef systems, was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

In 2003 Queensland adopted maroon as the state's official colour. The announcement was made as a result of an informal tradition to use maroon to represent the state in association with sporting events.{{cite web | url=https://www.qld.gov.au/about/how-government-works/flags-emblems-icons/state-colour | title=State colour | State flags, emblems, and icons | access-date=7 December 2022 | archive-date=7 December 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221207015933/https://www.qld.gov.au/about/how-government-works/flags-emblems-icons/state-colour | url-status=live }}

After three decades of record population growth, Queensland was impacted by major floods between late 2010 and early 2011, causing extensive damage and disruption across the state.{{cite news|last=Berry|first=Petrina|title=Brisbane braces for flood peak as Queensland's flood crisis continues|url=https://www.couriermail.com.au/news/breaking-news/brisbane-braces-for-flood-peak-as-queenslands-flood/story-fn7ik8u2-1225986784487|access-date=14 January 2011|newspaper=The Courier-Mail|date=13 January 2011|url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110816145500/https://www.couriermail.com.au/news/breaking-news/brisbane-braces-for-flood-peak-as-queenslands-flood/story-fn7ik8u2-1225986784487|archive-date=16 August 2011}}{{cite web|url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/infographics/qld-floods/beforeafter2.htm/ |title=Brisbane floods: Up close |date=Jan 18, 2011 |publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation |access-date=4 November 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110712045536/https://www.abc.net.au/news/infographics/qld-floods/beforeafter2.htm |archive-date=12 July 2011}}

In 2020 Queensland was impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite a low number and abrupt decline in cases from April 2020 onward, social distancing requirements were implemented from March 2020 including the closure of the state borders.

{{Main|Geography of Queensland}}

File:Qld region map 2.PNG, with Central Queensland divided into Mackay and Fitzroy subregions]]

File:La Gran Barrera 2.jpg, which extends along most of Queensland's Coral Sea coastline]]

File:Mossman River during the wet season.jpg, flowing through the Daintree Rainforest in Far North Queensland]]

File:BinnaBurra5.JPG at Lamington National Park in South East Queensland]]

File:Fraser Island Lake McKenzie - panoramio.jpg]]

With a total area of 1,729,742 square kilometres (715,309 square miles), Queensland is an expansive state with a highly diverse range of climates and geographical features. If Queensland were an independent nation, it would be the world's 16th largest.

Queensland's eastern coastline borders the Coral Sea, an arm of the Pacific Ocean. The state is bordered by the Torres Strait to the north, with Boigu Island off the coast of New Guinea representing the northern extreme of its territory. The triangular Cape York Peninsula, which points toward New Guinea, is the northernmost part of the state's mainland. West of the peninsula's tip, northern Queensland is bordered by the Gulf of Carpentaria. To the west, Queensland is bordered by the Northern Territory, at the 138th meridian east, and to the southwest by northeastern South Australia. The state's southern border with New South Wales is constituted in the east by the watershed from Point Danger to the Dumaresq River, and the Dumaresq, Macintyre and Barwon rivers. The west of the southern border is defined by the 29th parallel south (including some minor historical encroachments) until it reaches South Australia.

Like much of eastern Australia, the Great Dividing Range runs roughly parallel with, and inland from, the coast, and areas west of the range are more arid than the humid coastal regions. The Great Barrier Reef, which is the world's largest coral reef system, runs parallel to the state's Coral Sea coast between the Torres Strait and K'gari (Fraser Island). Queensland's coastline includes the world's three largest sand islands: K'gari (Fraser Island), Moreton, and North Stradbroke.

The state contains six World Heritage-listed preservation areas: the Great Barrier Reef along the Coral Sea coast, K'gari (Fraser Island) on the Wide Bay–Burnett region's coastline, the wet tropics in Far North Queensland including the Daintree Rainforest, Lamington National Park in South East Queensland, the Riversleigh fossil sites in North West Queensland, and the Gondwana Rainforests in South East Queensland.

The state is divided into several unofficial regions which are commonly used to refer to large areas of the state's vast geography. These include:

• South East Queensland in the state's coastal extreme south-eastern corner, an urban region which includes the state's three largest cities: capital city Brisbane and popular coastal tourist destinations the Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast. In some definitions, it also includes the city of Toowoomba. South East Queensland accounts for more than 70% of the state's population.
• The Darling Downs in the state's inland southeast, which consists of fertile agricultural (particularly cattle grazing) land and in some definitions includes the city of Toowoomba. The region also includes the mountainous Granite Belt, the state's coldest region which occasionally experiences snow.
• Wide Bay–Burnett in the state's coastal southeast, to the north of the South East Queensland region. It is rich in sugar cane farms and includes the cities of Bundaberg, Hervey Bay as well as K'gari (Fraser Island), the world's largest sand island.
• Central Queensland on the state's central coastline, which is dominated by cattle farmland and coal mining. It contains the Capricorn Coast and Whitsunday Islands tourist regions, as well as the cities of Rockhampton and Mackay.
• North Queensland on the state's northern coastline, which is dominated by cattle farmland and mining and which includes the city of Townsville.
• Far North Queensland on the state's extreme northern coastline along the Cape York Peninsula, which includes tropical rainforest, the state's highest mountain, Mount Bartle Frere, the Atherton Tablelands pastoral region (dominated by sugar cane and tropical fruits), the most visited section of the Great Barrier Reef, as well as the city of Cairns.
• South West Queensland in the state's inland south-west, which is a primarily agricultural region dominated by cattle farmland, and which includes the Channel Country region of intertwining rivulets.
• Central West Queensland in the state's inland central-west, dominated by cattle farmland and which includes the city of Longreach.
• The Gulf Country (also known as North West Queensland), in the state's inland north-west along the Gulf of Carpentaria, which is dominated by savanna and mining and includes the city of Mount Isa.

File:Queensland Köppen.svg in Queensland]]

Because of its size, there is significant variation in climate across the state. There is ample rainfall along the coastline, with a monsoonal wet season in the tropical north, and humid sub-tropical conditions along the southern coastline. Low rainfall and hot humid summers are typical for the inland and west. Elevated areas in the south-eastern inland can experience temperatures well below freezing in mid-winter providing frost and, rarely, snowfall. The climate of the coastal regions is influenced by warm ocean waters, keeping the region free from extremes of temperature and providing moisture for rainfall.{{cite web|author=National Climate Centre|url=http://www.bom.gov.au/lam/climate/levelthree/ausclim/ausclimqld.htm|title= Climate of Queensland|publisher=Bureau of Meteorology|access-date=4 August 2010|archive-url=https://webarchive.nla.gov.au/awa/20090317054300/https://pandora.nla.gov.au/pan/96122/20090317-1643/www.bom.gov.au/lam/climate/levelthree/ausclim/ausclimqld.html|archive-date=17 March 2009}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}

There are six predominant climatic zones in Queensland,{{cite web|url=http://www.bom.gov.au/cgi-bin/climate/cgi_bin_scripts/clim_classification.cgi|title=Australian Government, Bureau of Meteorology – Australian climatic zones|publisher=Bom.gov.au|access-date=4 August 2010}}{{dead link|date=December 2021|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}} based on temperature and humidity:

• Hot humid summer, warm humid winter (far north and coastal): Cairns, Innisfail
• Hot humid summer, warm dry winter (north and coastal): Townsville, Mackay
• Hot humid summer, mild dry winter (coastal elevated areas and coastal south-east): Brisbane, Bundaberg, Rockhampton
• Hot dry summer, mild dry winter (central inland and north-west): Mt Isa, Emerald, Longreach
• Hot dry summer, cool dry winter (southern inland): Roma, Charleville, Goondiwindi
• Warm humid summer, cold dry winter (elevated south-eastern areas): Toowoomba, Warwick, Stanthorpe

The annual average climatic statistics{{cite web|url=http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/averages/index.shtml|title=Australian Government, Bureau of Meteorology – Climate statistics for Australian locations|publisher=Bureau of Meteorology|date=19 July 2010|access-date=4 August 2010|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110224073401/https://www.bom.gov.au/climate/averages/index.shtml|archive-date=24 February 2011}} for selected Queensland cities are shown below:

The coastal far north of the state is the wettest region in Australia, with Mount Bellenden Ker, south of Cairns, holding many Australian rainfall records with its annual average rainfall of over {{convert|8|m}}.{{cite web|url=http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/extreme/records.shtml|title=Rainfall and Temperature Records|date=28 February 2013|work=Climate Extremes|publisher=Bureau of Meteorology|access-date=26 March 2014|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140313040735/https://www.bom.gov.au/climate/extreme/records.shtml|archive-date=13 March 2014}} Snow is rare in Queensland, although it does fall with some regularity along the far southern border with New South Wales, predominantly in the Stanthorpe district although on rare occasions further north and west. The most northerly snow ever recorded in Australia occurred near Mackay; however, this was exceptional.{{cite web|title=Queensland Snow Events|url=https://www.weatherarmidale.com/Qld%20Snow%20Table.htm|access-date=16 May 2014|publisher=Weather Armidale|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131210210100/https://www.weatherarmidale.com/Qld%20Snow%20Table.htm|archive-date=10 December 2013}}

Natural disasters are often a threat in Queensland: severe tropical cyclones can impact the central and northern coastlines and cause severe damage,{{cite web|title = Queensland Cyclones|url=https://www.emergency.qld.gov.au/emq/css/cyclone.asp |publisher=Emergency Management Queensland|access-date=4 June 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140528055451/https://www.emergency.qld.gov.au/emq/css/cyclone.asp |archive-date=28 May 2014 |url-status=dead }} with recent examples including Larry, Yasi, Ita and Debbie. Flooding from rain-bearing systems can also be severe and can occur anywhere in Queensland. One of the deadliest and most damaging floods in the history of the state occurred in early 2011.{{cite web|title=Queensland Floods Summary |url=http://www.bom.gov.au/qld/flood/fld_history/floodsum_2010.shtml |publisher=Bureau of Meteorology |access-date=4 June 2014 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140606224918/https://www.bom.gov.au/qld/flood/fld_history/floodsum_2010.shtml |archive-date=6 June 2014 }} Severe springtime thunderstorms generally affect the south-east and inland of the state and can bring damaging winds, torrential rain, large hail and even tornadoes.{{cite web|title=Queensland Severe Storms |url=https://www.emergency.qld.gov.au/emq/css/severe_storm.asp |publisher=Emergency Management Queensland |access-date=4 June 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140710081838/https://www.emergency.qld.gov.au/emq/css/severe_storm.asp |archive-date=10 July 2014 }} The strongest tornado ever recorded in Australia occurred in Queensland near Bundaberg in November 1992.{{cite web|title=Tornadoes|url=http://www.bom.gov.au/lam/climate/levelthree/c20thc/storm1.htm |publisher=Bureau of Meteorology |access-date=6 April 2008 |archive-url=https://webarchive.nla.gov.au/awa/20090317054300/https://pandora.nla.gov.au/pan/96122/20090317-1643/www.bom.gov.au/lam/climate/levelthree/c20thc/storm1.html |archive-date=17 March 2009}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}} Droughts and bushfires can also occur; however, the latter are generally less severe than those that occur in southern states.

The highest official maximum temperature recorded in the state was {{convert|49.5|C}} at Birdsville Police Station on 24 December 1972.{{cite web|title=Rainfall and Temperature Records|url=http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/extreme/records.shtml|publisher=Bureau of Meteorology (Australian Government)|access-date=13 June 2013|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130604220616/https://www.bom.gov.au/climate/extreme/records.shtml|archive-date=4 June 2013}} The lowest recorded minimum temperature is {{convert|−10.6|C}} at Stanthorpe on 23 June 1961 and at The Hermitage (near Warwick) on 12 July 1965.{{cite web|url=http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/extreme/records/national.pdf|title=Rainfall and Temperature Records: National|publisher=Bureau of Meteorology|access-date=14 November 2009|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101110130846/https://www.bom.gov.au/climate/extreme/records/national.pdf|archive-date=10 November 2010}}{{Weather box

| location = Queensland

| metric first = Yes

| single line = Yes

| Jan record high C = 49.0

| Feb record high C = 47.2

| Mar record high C = 46.7

| Apr record high C = 41.7

| May record high C = 39.3

| Jun record high C = 36.0

| Jul record high C = 36.1

| Aug record high C = 38.5

| Sep record high C = 42.8

| Oct record high C = 45.1

| Nov record high C = 48.7

| Dec record high C = 49.5

| year record high C = 49.5

| Jan record low C = 5.4

| Feb record low C = 3.3

| Mar record low C = -0.2

| Apr record low C = -3.5

| May record low C = -6.9

| Jun record low C = -10.6

| Jul record low C = -10.6

| Aug record low C = -9.4

| Sep record low C = -5.6

| Oct record low C = -3.6

| Nov record low C = 0.0

| Dec record low C = 2.2

| year record low C = -10.6

| source 1 = Bureau of Meteorology{{cite web|url=http://www.bom.gov.au/cgi-bin/climate/extremes/daily_extremes.cgi?climtab=tmax_high&area=qld&year=2017&mon=02&day=12|title=Official records for Queensland in February|date=30 June 2017|work=Daily Extremes|publisher=Bureau of Meteorology|access-date=8 July 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180312213434/http://www.bom.gov.au/cgi-bin/climate/extremes/daily_extremes.cgi?climtab=tmax_high&area=qld&year=2017&mon=02&day=12|archive-date=12 March 2018}}

| source 2 = Bureau of Meteorology{{cite web|url=http://www.bom.gov.au/cgi-bin/climate/extremes/daily_extremes.cgi?period=%2Fcgi-bin%2Fclimate%2Fextremes%2Fdaily_extremes.cgi&climtab=tmin_low&area=qld&year=2016&mon=10&day=31|title=Official records for Queensland in October|date=30 June 2017|work=Daily Extremes|publisher=Bureau of Meteorology|access-date=8 July 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180312213437/https://www.bom.gov.au/cgi-bin/climate/extremes/daily_extremes.cgi?period=%2Fcgi-bin%2Fclimate%2Fextremes%2Fdaily_extremes.cgi&climtab=tmin_low&area=qld&year=2016&mon=10&day=31|archive-date=12 March 2018}}

| date = July 2017

| source = Bureau of Meteorology{{cite web|url=http://www.bom.gov.au/cgi-bin/climate/extremes/monthly_extremes.cgi?period=%2Fcgi-bin%2Fclimate%2Fextremes%2Fmonthly_extremes.cgi&climtab=tmax_high&area=qld&year=2018&mon=9year=2016&mon=10&day=31|title=Official records for Queensland in September|date=December 31, 2022|work=Daily Extremes|publisher=Bureau of Meteorology|access-date=December 24, 2023|archive-date=4 January 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240104142803/http://www.bom.gov.au/cgi-bin/climate/extremes/monthly_extremes.cgi?period=/cgi-bin/climate/extremes/monthly_extremes.cgi&climtab=tmax_high&area=qld&year=2018&mon=9year=2016&mon=10&day=31|url-status=live}}

| source 3 =

}}

{{See also|Demographics of Australia|Demographics of Brisbane}}

{{Redirect|Queenslanders|other uses|Queenslander (disambiguation){{!}}Queenslander}}

File:Skylines of Brisbane in winter misty morning seen from Kangaroo Point, Queensland 04.jpg, capital and most populous city of Queensland]]

In December 2021, Queensland had an estimated population of 5,265,043. Approximately half of the state's population lives in Brisbane, and over 70% live in South East Queensland. Nonetheless, Queensland is the second most decentralised state in Australia after Tasmania. Since the 1980s, Queensland has consistently been the fastest-growing state in Australia, as it receives high levels of both international immigration and migration from interstate. There have however been short periods where Victoria and Western Australia have grown faster.

Ten of Australia's thirty largest cities are located in Queensland. In 2019, the largest cities in the state by population of their Greater Capital City Statistical Area or Significant Urban Area (metropolitan areas) as defined by the Australian Bureau of Statistics were:{{cite web |url=https://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/mf/3218.0 |title=Regional population |access-date=31 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190718073106/https://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/mf/3218.0 |archive-date=18 July 2019 |url-status=live |publisher=Australian Bureau of Statistics}}

{{columns-list|colwidth=16em|

• Brisbane: 2,514,184
• Gold Coast–Tweed Heads: 693,671
• Sunshine Coast: 341,069
• Townsville: 181,668
• Cairns: 153,951
• Toowoomba: 138,223
• Mackay: 80,264
• Rockhampton: 79,081
• Bundaberg: 71,309
• Hervey Bay: 55,345
• Gladstone–Tannum Sands: 45,631

}}

Early settlers during the 19th century were largely English, Irish, Scottish and German, while there was a wave of immigration from southern and eastern Europe (most notably Italy) in the decades following the second world war. In the 21st century, Asia (most notably China and India) has been the primary source of immigration.

At the 2016 census, the most commonly nominated ancestries were:{{refn|group="N"|As a percentage of 4,348,289 persons who nominated their ancestry at the 2016 census.}}

{{columns-list|colwidth=13em|

• English (41.3%)
• Australian (37.9%){{refn|group="N"|The Australian Bureau of Statistics has stated that most who nominate "Australian" as their ancestry are part of the Anglo-Celtic group.{{cite web|url=https://www.abs.gov.au/Ausstats/abs@.nsf/94713ad445ff1425ca25682000192af2/49f609c83cf34d69ca2569de0025c182!OpenDocument|title=Feature Article – Ethnic and Cultural Diversity in Australia (Feature Article)|date=January 1995|publisher=Australian Bureau of Statistics|access-date=28 May 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160420205113/https://www.abs.gov.au/Ausstats/abs%40.nsf/94713ad445ff1425ca25682000192af2/49f609c83cf34d69ca2569de0025c182%21OpenDocument|archive-date=20 April 2016|url-status=live}}}}
• Irish (13%)
• Scottish (11.2%)
• German (6.8%)
• Indigenous (4%){{refn|group="N"|Of any ancestry. Includes those identifying as Aboriginal Australians or Torres Strait Islanders. Indigenous identification is separate from the ancestry question on the Australian Census and persons identifying as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander may identify any ancestry.}}
• Chinese (3.1%)
• Italian (3%)
• Indian (1.7%)
• Dutch (1.6%)
• New Zealander (1.6%)
• Maori (1.2%)
• Filipino (1.2%)

}}

The 2016 census showed that 28.9% of Queensland's inhabitants were born overseas. Only 54.8% of inhabitants had both parents born in Australia, with the next most common birthplaces being New Zealand, England, India, Mainland China and South Africa. Brisbane has the 26th largest immigrant population among world metropolitan areas.

4% of the population, or 186,482 people, identified as Indigenous Australians (Aboriginal Australians and Torres Strait Islanders) in 2016.{{refn|group="N"|Of any ancestry. Includes those identifying as Aboriginal Australians or Torres Strait Islanders. Indigenous identification is separate from the ancestry question on the Australian Census and persons identifying as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander may identify any ancestry.}}

At the {{CensusAU|2016}}, 81.2% of inhabitants spoke only English at home, with the next most common languages being Mandarin (1.5%), Vietnamese (0.6%), Cantonese (0.5%), Spanish (0.4%) and Italian (0.4%).{{cite web |title=2016 Census Community Profiles |url=https://quickstats.censusdata.abs.gov.au/census_services/getproduct/census/2016/communityprofile/3?opendocument |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190622052159/https://quickstats.censusdata.abs.gov.au/census_services/getproduct/census/2016/communityprofile/3%3Fopendocument |archive-date=22 June 2019 |access-date=28 May 2020 |publisher=Australian Bureau of Statistics}}{{cite web |title=2016 Census of Population and Housing: General Community Profile |url=https://www.censusdata.abs.gov.au/CensusOutput/copsub2016.NSF/All%20docs%20by%20catNo/2016~Community%20Profile~3/$File/GCP_3.zip?OpenElement |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201222045156/https://www.censusdata.abs.gov.au/CensusOutput/copsub2016.NSF/All%20docs%20by%20catNo/2016~Community%20Profile~3/$File/GCP_3.zip?OpenElement |archive-date=22 December 2020 |access-date=31 May 2020 |publisher=Australian Bureau of Statistics |format=ZIP}}

At the {{CensusAU|2021}}, 80.5% of inhabitants spoke only English at home, with the next most common languages being Mandarin (1.6%), Vietnamese (0.6%), Punjabi (0.6%) and Spanish (0.6%).{{cite web |title=Snapshot of Queensland | date=28 June 2022 |url=https://www.abs.gov.au/articles/snapshot-qld-2021#:~:text=In%20the%202021%20Census%2C%20the,Census%20counted%201.7%20million%20people. |access-date=11 July 2022 |archive-date=29 June 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220629022215/https://www.abs.gov.au/articles/snapshot-qld-2021#:~:text=In%20the%202021%20Census%2C%20the,Census%20counted%201.7%20million%20people. |url-status=live }}

At the {{CensusAU|2016}}, the most commonly cited religious affiliations were 'No religion' (29.2%), Catholicism (21.7%) and Anglicanism (15.3%).{{cite web |date=27 June 2017 |title=Media Release – 2016 Census: Queensland |url=https://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/mediareleasesbyReleaseDate/ED6AC1443949FE77CA258148000C1A01?OpenDocument |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201222045155/https://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/mediareleasesbyReleaseDate/ED6AC1443949FE77CA258148000C1A01?OpenDocument |archive-date=22 December 2020 |access-date=1 April 2020 |website=Australian Bureau of Statistics |language=en}} In the 2016 Census the majority of Queenslanders were identified as Christian, most of which were of various Protestant denominations.{{cite web | title= | website=dataexplorer.abs.gov.au | url=https://dataexplorer.abs.gov.au/vis?tm=queensland&pg=0&fs[0]=Census%202016%2C1%7CGeneral%20Community%20Profiles%20for%20SA2%20and%20above%23GEN_PROFILE_C16%23%7CReligion%23RELIGION_C16_GP%23&fc=Census%202016&hc[State]=&snb=1&df[ds]=CENSUS_2016_TOPICS&df[id]=ABS_C16_T10_SA&df[ag]=ABS&df[vs]=1.0.0&dq=....3&pd=2016%2C&to[TIME_PERIOD]=false&ly[cl]=SEX_ABS&ly[rs]=STATE&ly[rw]=RELP_2016&vw=tb | access-date=2025-02-21}}

According to the {{CensusAU|2021}}, 45.7% of the population follows Christianity, and 41.2% identified as having No religion{{cite web|url=https://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/mediareleasesbyReleaseDate/ED6AC1443949FE77CA258148000C1A01?OpenDocument|title=Media Release – 2016 Census: Queensland|date=27 June 2017|website=Australian Bureau of Statistics|language=en|access-date=1 April 2020|archive-date=22 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201222045155/https://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/mediareleasesbyReleaseDate/ED6AC1443949FE77CA258148000C1A01?OpenDocument|url-status=live}} About 5% of people are affiliated with a non-Christian religion, mainly Buddhism (1.4%), Hinduism (1.3%) and Islam (1.2%). The 2021 census found that Protestants of various denominations outnumbered Catholics in Queensland.{{cite web | title= | website=dataexplorer.abs.gov.au | url=https://dataexplorer.abs.gov.au/vis?fs[0]=Census%202021%2C1%7CStatistical%20Areas%20%28ASGS%202021%29%23C21_ASGS%23%7CGeneral%20Community%20Profiles%23C21_ASGS_GCP%23&fs[1]=Region%2C1%7CAustralia%23AUS%23%7CQueensland%233%23&pg=10&fc=Region&snb=62&df[ds]=C21_ASGS&df[id]=C21_G14_SA2&df[ag]=ABS&df[vs]=1.0.0&dq=..3..&pd=2021%2C&to[TIME_PERIOD]=false&ly[cl]=SEXP&ly[rs]=STATE&ly[rw]=RELP | access-date=2025-02-21}}

File:University of Queensland.jpg in Brisbane, Queensland's oldest university]]

Queensland is home to numerous universities. The state's oldest university, the University of Queensland, was established in 1909 and frequently ranks among the world's top 50.{{cite web |url=https://www.topuniversities.com/university-rankings/world-university-rankings/2020 |title=World University Rankings |access-date=31 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201226033634/https://www.topuniversities.com/university-rankings/world-university-rankings/2020 |archive-date=26 December 2020 |url-status=live |publisher=QS Quacquarelli Symonds |website=TopUniversities.com}}{{cite web |url=https://www.usnews.com/education/best-global-universities/rankings |title=Top World University Rankings | US News Best Global Universities |access-date=28 May 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141028092904/https://www.usnews.com/education/best-global-universities/rankings |archive-date=28 October 2014 |url-status=live}}{{cite web |url=https://www.leidenranking.com/ranking/2017/list |title=CWTS Leiden Ranking - Ranking 2017 |access-date=28 May 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171223071037/https://www.leidenranking.com/ranking/2017/list |archive-date=23 December 2017 |url-status=dead}} Other major universities include Queensland University of Technology, Griffith University, the University of Southern Queensland, the University of the Sunshine Coast, James Cook University (which was the state's first university outside of South East Queensland), Central Queensland University and Bond University (which was Australia's first private university).

International education is an important industry, with 134,312 international students enrolled in the state in 2018, largely focused on Brisbane. Most of the state's international students are from Asia.{{cite web|url=https://internationaleducation.gov.au/research/Research-Snapshots/Documents/Location%20of%20International%20Students%20in%202018.pdf|title=International students studying in regional areas|date=February 2019|access-date=28 May 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190309065851/https://internationaleducation.gov.au/research/Research-Snapshots/Documents/Location%20of%20International%20Students%20in%202018.pdf|archive-date=9 March 2019|url-status=dead}}

At the primary and secondary levels, Queensland is home to numerous state and private schools.

Queensland has a public library system which is managed by the State Library of Queensland.{{Cite web |last=Queensland |first=c=AU; o=The State of Queensland; ou=State Library of |title=State Library of Queensland - Queensland public libraries directory |url=https://www.data.qld.gov.au/dataset/public-libraries |access-date=2024-05-21 |website=www.data.qld.gov.au |language=en-AU |archive-date=21 May 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240521103244/https://www.data.qld.gov.au/dataset/public-libraries |url-status=live }} Some university libraries are also open to the public.

{{Main|Economy of Queensland}}

{{See also|Economy of Australia}}

File:Brisbane City Skyline.jpg. Brisbane is a global city and the state's largest economic hub.]]

File:Ravenswood, Queensland - Gold Mine 3.jpg at Ravenswood in North Queensland. Mining is one of the state's major industries]]

File:Gold Coast skyline.jpg, Queensland's second-largest city and a major tourist destination]]

File:Sunset in Noosa Heads, Queensland 02.jpg on the Sunshine Coast, Queensland's third largest city and a major tourist destination]]

In 2019, Queensland had a gross state product of A$357,044 million, the third-highest in the nation after New South Wales and Victoria.{{cite web |url=https://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/Lookup/5220.0Main+Features12018-19?OpenDocument |title=Australian National Accounts: State Accounts 2019-20 financial year |access-date=31 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200420082847/https://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/Lookup/5220.0Main+Features12018-19?OpenDocument |archive-date=20 April 2020 |url-status=live |publisher=Australian Bureau of Statistics }} The construction of sea ports and railways along Queensland's coast in the 19th century set up the foundations for the state's export-oriented mining and agricultural sectors. Since the 1980s, a sizeable influx of interstate and overseas migrants, large amounts of federal government investment, increased mining of vast mineral deposits and an expanding aerospace sector have contributed to the state's economic growth.{{cite news |url = https://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/queensland-falls-back-with-the-pack/story-e6frg6n6-1225811164206 |title=Queensland falls back with the pack |author=Tom Dusevic |access-date=10 January 2010 |date=17 December 2009 |work=The Australian |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120129171328/https://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/queensland-falls-back-with-the-pack/story-e6frg6n6-1225811164206 |archive-date=29 January 2012}}

Primary industries include bananas, pineapples, peanuts, a wide variety of other tropical and temperate fruit and vegetables, grain crops, wineries, cattle raising, cotton, sugarcane, and wool. The mining industry includes bauxite, coal, silver, lead, zinc, gold and copper.{{cite web |url=https://qurex.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/qld-significant-minerals1.pdf |title=Queensland's significant mineral mines, advanced mineral projects and new intersections |author= |date=July 2017 |website= |publisher=Queensland Government |access-date=7 November 2023 |quote= |archive-date=1 March 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230301054211/https://qurex.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/qld-significant-minerals1.pdf |url-status=dead }}{{cite web |url=https://www.business.qld.gov.au/industries/mining-energy-water/resources/minerals-coal/outlook-statistics |title=Mineral and coal industry outlook and statistics |author= |date=12 July 2018 |website=Business Queensland |publisher=Queensland Government |access-date=7 November 2023 |quote= |archive-date=7 November 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231107093702/https://www.business.qld.gov.au/industries/mining-energy-water/resources/minerals-coal/outlook-statistics |url-status=live }}

Secondary industries are mostly further processing of the above-mentioned primary produce. For example, bauxite is shipped by sea from Weipa and converted to alumina at Gladstone.{{cite web |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090817110714/https://www.comalco.com/localcommunities/294.asp |archive-date=17 August 2009 |url=https://www.comalco.com/localcommunities/294.asp |title=Gladstone |access-date=9 March 2016 |website=Comalco.com |publisher=Rio Tinto Aluminium}} There is also copper refining and the refining of sugar cane to sugar at a number of mills along the eastern coastline.

Major tertiary industries are retail, tourism, and international education. In 2018, there were 134,312 international students enrolled in the state, largely focused on Brisbane. Most of the state's international students are from Asia.

Brisbane is categorised as a global city, and is among Asia-Pacific cities with largest GDPs. It has strengths in mining, banking, insurance, transportation, information technology, real estate and food.{{cite web|url=https://www.etravelblackboard.com/index.asp?id=73027&nav=13|title=Brisbane business visitor numbers skyrocket|date=3 January 2008|work=Brisbane Marketing Convention Bureau|publisher=e-Travel Blackboard|access-date=13 January 2008|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110120134851/https://www.etravelblackboard.com/index.asp?id=73027&nav=13|archive-date=20 January 2011}} Some of the largest companies headquartered in Brisbane, all among Australia's largest, include Suncorp Group, Virgin Australia, Aurizon, Bank of Queensland, Flight Centre, CUA, Sunsuper, QSuper, Domino's Pizza Enterprises, Star Entertainment Group, ALS, TechnologyOne, NEXTDC, Super Retail Group, New Hope Coal, Jumbo Interactive, National Storage, Collins Foods and Boeing Australia.{{cite web|url=https://www.businessnewsaus.com.au/articles/brisbane-top-companies.html|title=Brisbane Top Companies|date=11 October 2019|publisher=Business News Australia|access-date=19 April 2020|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200423092037/https://www.businessnewsaus.com.au/articles/brisbane-top-companies.html|archive-date=23 April 2020}}

{{See also|Tourism in Brisbane}}

File:Whitsunday Islands National Park (23720070439).jpg.]]

As a result of its varied landscapes, warm climate, and abundant natural environment, tourism is Queensland's leading tertiary industry with millions of interstate and international visitors visiting the state each year. The industry generates $8.8 billion annually, accounting for 4.5% of Queensland's Gross State Product. It has an annual export of $4.0 billion annually. The sector directly employs about 5.7% of Queensland citizens.{{cite web |url = https://www.tq.com.au/about-tq/profile/profile_home.cfm |title=About TQ – Profile |publisher=Tourism Queensland |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20090914225016/https://www.tq.com.au/about-tq/profile/profile_home.cfm |archive-date=14 September 2009 |url-status=dead|access-date=6 January 2010}} Accommodation in Queensland caters for nearly 22% of the total expenditure, followed by restaurants/meals (15%), airfares (11%), fuel (11%) and shopping/gifts (11%).{{cite web |url=https://www.discoverqueensland.com.au |title=Tourism related information and statistics |website=Discoverqueensland.com.au |access-date=4 August 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110220121810/https://www.discoverqueensland.com.au/ |archive-date=20 February 2011}}

The most visited tourist destinations of Queensland include Brisbane (including Moreton and South Stradbroke islands and the Gold Coast) as well as the Sunshine Coast, the Great Barrier Reef, Cairns, Port Douglas, the Daintree Rainforest, K'gari and the Whitsunday Islands.{{cite web|url=https://www.lonelyplanet.com/australia/queensland/travel-tips-and-articles/the-great-barrier-reef-and-beyond-a-beginners-guide-to-queenslands-coast |title=The Great Barrier Reef and beyond: a beginner's guide to Queensland's coast |author= |date=1 September 2015 |website=Lonely Planet |access-date=20 October 2016 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161021140859/https://www.lonelyplanet.com/australia/queensland/travel-tips-and-articles/the-great-barrier-reef-and-beyond-a-beginners-guide-to-queenslands-coast |archive-date=21 October 2016 }}{{cite web |last=Haines |first=Kristof |date=19 August 2015 |title=Earth's Top Travel Destinations Revealed |url=https://www.airportrentals.com/blog/news/earths-top-travel-destinations-revealed |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161021140656/https://www.airportrentals.com/blog/news/earths-top-travel-destinations-revealed |archive-date=21 October 2016 |access-date=20 October 2016 |website=Writer for AirportRentals.com |publisher=AirportRentals.com |url-status=live }}{{cite web|url=https://www.discountmyflights.com.au/traveltreks/australias-top-50-small-towns/ |title=Australia's Top 50 Small Towns |author=TravelTreks |date=8 September 2016 |publisher=DiscountMyFlights.com.au |location=Stapylton, Queensland, Australia |access-date=20 October 2016 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161027011201/https://www.discountmyflights.com.au/traveltreks/australias-top-50-small-towns/ |archive-date=27 October 2016 }}

Brisbane is the third most popular destination in Australia following Sydney and Melbourne.{{cite web |url=https://www.tourismaustralia.com/content/Research/Factsheets/TopTen_Regions_Dec2006.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927062419/https://www.tourismaustralia.com/content/Research/Factsheets/TopTen_Regions_Dec2006.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=27 September 2007 |title=International Market Tourism Facts |publisher=Tourism Australia}} Major attractions in its metropolitan area include South Bank Parklands, the Queensland Cultural Centre (including the Queensland Museum, Queensland Art Gallery, Gallery of Modern Art, Queensland Performing Arts Centre and State Library of Queensland), City Hall, the Story Bridge, the Howard Smith Wharves, ANZAC Square, St John's Cathedral, Fortitude Valley (including James Street and Chinatown), West End, the Teneriffe woolstores precinct, the Brisbane River and its Riverwalk network, the City Botanic Gardens, Roma Street Parkland, New Farm Park (including the Brisbane Powerhouse), the Kangaroo Point Cliffs and park, the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary, the Mount Coot-tha Reserve (including Mount Coot-tha Lookout and Mount Coot-tha Botanic Gardens), the D'Aguilar Range and National Park, as well as Moreton Bay (including Moreton, North Stradbroke and Bribie islands, and coastal suburbs such as Shorncliffe, Wynnum and those on the Redcliffe Peninsula).{{cite web |url=https://visit.brisbane.qld.au/inspiration/top-attractions |title=DISCOVER BRISBANE'S TOP MAJOR ATTRACTIONS |author= |date=18 January 2023 |website=Brisbane |publisher=BEDA |access-date=23 November 2023 |quote= |archive-date=23 November 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231123033230/https://visit.brisbane.qld.au/inspiration/top-attractions |url-status=live }}{{cite web |url=https://www.tripadvisor.com.au/Attractions-g255068-Activities-oa0-Brisbane_Brisbane_Region_Queensland.html |title=Things to Do in Brisbane |author= |date= |website= |publisher=Tripadvisor |access-date=23 November 2023 |quote= |archive-date=22 November 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231122165116/https://www.tripadvisor.com.au/Attractions-g255068-Activities-oa0-Brisbane_Brisbane_Region_Queensland.html |url-status=live }}{{cite web |url=https://www.brisbane-australia.com/brisbane-destinations.html |title=BRISBANE TOURIST DESTINATIONS |author= |date= |website=Brisbane Australia |publisher=Intaanetto.com Social Media. |access-date=23 November 2023 |quote= |archive-date=22 November 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231122165111/https://www.brisbane-australia.com/brisbane-destinations.html |url-status=live }}

The Gold Coast is home to numerous popular surf beaches such as those at Surfers Paradise and Burleigh Heads. It also includes the largest concentration of amusement parks in Australia, including Dreamworld, Movie World, Sea World, Wet 'n' Wild and WhiteWater World, as well as the Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary. The Gold Coast's hinterland includes Lamington National Park in the McPherson Range.{{Citation needed|date=July 2021}}

The Sunshine Coast includes popular surfing and beach destinations including Noosa Heads and Mooloolaba. It is also home to UnderWater World and Steve Irwin's Australia Zoo. Its hinterland includes the Glass House Mountains National Park.{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=2022-09-02 |title=Glass House Mountains National Park |url=https://parks.des.qld.gov.au/parks/glass-house-mountains |access-date=2022-12-23 |website=Parks and forests {{!}} Department of Environment and Science, Queensland |language=en-AU |archive-date=23 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221223160617/https://parks.des.qld.gov.au/parks/glass-house-mountains |url-status=live }}

Cairns is renowned as the gateway to the Great Barrier Reef, Far North Queensland (including Port Douglas) and the Daintree Rainforest. The Whitsunday Islands off the coast of North Queensland are a popular tourist destinations for their resort facilities and access to the Great Barrier Reef.{{Cite web |last=Australia |first=Tourism |date=2022-10-12 |title=Guide to the Whitsunday Islands - Tourism Australia |url=https://www.australia.com/en-us/places/whitsundays-and-surrounds/guide-to-the-whitsundays.html |access-date=2022-12-23 |website=www.australia.com |language=en-US |archive-date=23 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221223160617/https://www.australia.com/en-us/places/whitsundays-and-surrounds/guide-to-the-whitsundays.html |url-status=live }}

{{Main|Politics of Queensland}}

File:Parliament House, Brisbane, Queensland with Christmas tree in 2019, 05.jpg, seat of the Queensland Parliament]]

File:Government House seen from street, Brisbane, Queensland, 2019, 01.jpg, seat of the Governor]]

File:Queen Elizabeth II Courts of Law seen from Albert Street, Brisbane 02.jpg, headquarters of the Supreme Court of Queensland and District Court of Queensland]]

One of the six founding states of Australia, Queensland has been a federated state subject to the Australian Constitution since 1 January 1901. It may legislate on all matters not ceded in the Australian Constitution to the federal government. It is a parliamentary constitutional monarchy. The Constitution of Queensland sets out the operation of the state's government. The state's constitution contains several entrenched provisions which cannot be changed in the absence of a referendum. There is also a statutory charter of rights, the Queensland Human Rights Act 2019. Queensland's system of government is influenced by the Westminster system and Australia's federal system of government.

The government power can be divided into three groups:

• Legislature: the unicameral Parliament of Queensland, comprising the Legislative Assembly and the Monarch (represented by the Governor);
• Executive: the Queensland Government, which consists of the Executive Council of Queensland, which formalises decisions of the Cabinet of Queensland, which is composed of the Premier and other ministers of state appointed by the Governor on the advice of the premier;
• Judiciary: the Supreme Court and other state courts, whose judges are appointed by the Governor on the advice of Parliament.

Executive authority is nominally vested in the Governor of Queensland (currently Jeannette Young) who represents and is appointed by the Monarch (currently Charles III) on the advice of the Premier of Queensland. The Premier, who is the state's Head of government, along with the Cabinet of Queensland (whose decisions are formalised by the Executive Council), exercise executive authority in practice. The Premier is appointed by the Governor and must have support of the Legislative Assembly of Queensland. The Premier is in practice a leading member of the Legislative Assembly and parliamentary leader of his or her political party, or coalition of parties, and members of the Cabinet will be drawn from the same party or coalition. The current Premier and Deputy Premier are David Crisafulli and Jarrod Bleijie of the Liberal National Party respectively. Government House at Paddington in Brisbane is the seat of the Governor, having replaced Old Government House at Gardens Point in Brisbane's CBD in the early 20th century. The executive branch is simply referred to as the Queensland Government.

Legislative authority is exercised by the Queensland Parliament which uniquely for Australian states is unicameral, containing only one house, the Legislative Assembly. The Parliament was bicameral until 1922 when the Legislative Council was abolished by the Labor "suicide squad", so called because they were appointed for the purpose of voting to abolish their own offices.{{cite book |title=Australian Politics and Government: The Commonwealth, the States, and Territories |last=Wanna |first=John |editor-last=Moon |editor2-first=Jeremy |editor2-last=Sharman |editor-first=Campbell |chapter=Queensland |year=2003 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |location=Cambridge, United Kingdom |isbn=978-0-521-82507-8 |page=47 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=37Sel9HEYgUC |access-date=15 November 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160102073504/https://books.google.com/books?id=37Sel9HEYgUC |archive-date=2 January 2016}} Bills receive royal assent from the Governor before being passed into law. The Parliament's seat is at Parliament House at Gardens Point in Brisbane's CBD. Members of the Legislative Assembly represent 93 electoral districts. Elections in Queensland are held at the end of each fixed four-year parliamentary term and are determined by full preferential voting.

The state's judiciary consists of the Supreme Court of Queensland and the District Court of Queensland, established by the Queensland Constitution, as well as the Magistrates Court of Queensland and other courts and tribunals established by legislation. Cases may be appealed to the High Court of Australia. As with all Australian states and territories, Queensland has a common law legal system. The Supreme and District courts are headquartered at the Queen Elizabeth II Courts of Law in Brisbane's CBD.

The state's politics are traditionally regarded as being conservative relative to other states.{{cite book|first=Margo|last=Daly|year=2003|title=The Rough Guide To Australia|publisher=Rough Guides Ltd|isbn=978-1-84353-090-9|page=397}}{{cite book|first=Deborah|last=Penrith|year=2008|title=Live & Work in Australia|publisher=Crimson Publishing|isbn=978-1-85458-418-2|page=478}}{{cite web|url=https://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/federal-election/face-it-queensland-were-conservative-20100823-13ftu.html|title=Why Labor struggles in Queensland|work=Brisbane Times |url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130115235440/https://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/federal-election/face-it-queensland-were-conservative-20100823-13ftu.html|archive-date=15 January 2013|date=23 August 2010}}George Megalogenis, "The Green and the Grey", Quarterly Essay, Vol. 40, 2010, p69.{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10410929 |work=BBC News |title=Australia ready for first female leader |date=25 June 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120425041823/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10410929 |archive-date=25 April 2012 }} Historically, the lack of an upper house, the "Bjelkemander" (a malapportion favouring rural electoral districts) has meant that Queensland had a long tradition of domination by strong-willed, populist premiers, often accused of authoritarian tendencies, holding office for long periods. This tendency was exemplified by the government of the state's longest-serving Premier Joh Bjelke-Petersen.

{{Main|Local government in Queensland}}

Local government is the mechanism by which local government areas can manage their own affairs to the extent permitted by the Local Government Act 2009. Queensland is divided into 77 local government areas, which are created by the state government under the legislation.[https://www.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/qld/consol_act/lga1993182/ Local Government Act 1993] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110423015759/https://www.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/qld/consol_act/lga1993182/ |date=23 April 2011}}, s.34. (Reprint 11E, as in force at 22 November 2007.) Each local government area has a council responsible for providing a range of local services and utilities. Local councils derive their income from both rates and charges on resident ratepayers, and grants and subsidies from the state and federal governments.{{cite web |url=https://www.localgovernment.qld.gov.au/?id=2668 |title=Rates and valuations |publisher=Department of Local Government, Sport and Recreation |place=Queensland |date=26 July 2007 |access-date=5 April 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080319021454/https://www.localgovernment.qld.gov.au/?id=2668 |archive-date=19 March 2008 }}

In the federal Parliament, Queensland accounts for 30 of the 151 electoral divisions in the House of Representatives (based on population size) and 12 of the 76 seats in the Senate (based on equality between the states).

The current partisan makeup of Queensland's House of Representatives delegation is 21 Liberal National, 5 Labor, 3 Australian Greens, and 1 Katter's Australian Party.

The current partisan makeup of Queensland's Senate delegation is 5 Liberal National, 3 Labor, 2 One Nation, and 2 Green.

File:EKKA.jpg) is held each August at the Brisbane Showgrounds.]]

Queensland is home to major art galleries including the Queensland Art Gallery and the Queensland Gallery of Modern Art as well as cultural institutions such as the Queensland Ballet, Opera Queensland, Queensland Theatre Company, and Queensland Symphony Orchestra, all based at the Queensland Cultural Centre in Brisbane. The state is the origin of musicians such as the Bee Gees, the Go-Betweens, the Veronicas, the Saints, Savage Garden, and Sheppard as well as writers such as David Malouf, Nick Earls and Li Cunxin.

Major annual cultural events include the Royal Queensland Exhibition (known locally as the Ekka), an agricultural exhibition held each August at the Brisbane Showgrounds as well as the Brisbane Festival, which includes one of the nation's largest annual fireworks displays called 'Riverfire', and which is held each September.

{{Main|Sport in Queensland}}

File:The Gabba Panorama.jpg game at The Gabba, a 42,000-seat round stadium in Brisbane]]

The state of Queensland is represented in all of Australia's national sporting competitions and it is also host to a number of domestic and international sporting events. The most popular winter and summer team sports are rugby league and cricket, respectively.

In the National Rugby League, the Brisbane Broncos, North Queensland Cowboys, The Dolphins and Gold Coast Titans are based in the state. Rugby league's annual State of Origin series is a major event in the Queensland sporting calendar, with the Queensland Maroons representing the state.

In cricket, the Queensland Bulls represent the state in the Sheffield Shield and the Ryobi One Day Cup, while the Brisbane Heat compete in the Big Bash League.

Queensland is also home to the Brisbane Lions and the Gold Coast Suns in the Australian Football League (Australian rules football), and the Brisbane Roar FC in the A-League (soccer). In netball, the Queensland Firebirds went undefeated in the 2011 season as they went on to win the Grand Final. Other sports teams are the Brisbane Bullets and the Cairns Taipans, who compete in the National Basketball League.

The state is represented by the Queensland Reds in the Super Rugby (rugby union).

Swimming is also a popular sport in Queensland, with many Australian team members and international medalists hailing from the state.

Brisbane will host the 2032 Summer Olympics, marking the third time Australia hosted the Olympic Games following Melbourne 1956 and Sydney 2000.{{cite web|last=IOC|date=12 July 2021|title=Brisbane 2032 Summer Olympics - Summer Olympic Games in Australia|url=https://olympics.com/en/olympic-games/brisbane-2032|access-date=21 July 2021|website=Olympics.com|language=en|archive-date=21 July 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210721085138/https://olympics.com/en/olympic-games/brisbane-2032|url-status=live}} Major recurring sporting events hosted in Queensland include: the Gold Coast 600 (motorsport; since 1994), the Gold Coast Marathon (athletics; since 1979), the NRL All Stars Game (rugby league; since 2010), the Townsville 400 (motorsport; since 2009), the Quicksilver Pro and Roxy Pro (surfing) and Australian PGA Championship (golf; since 2000).

{{Main|Symbols of Queensland}}

The official state emblems of Queensland are prescribed in the Emblems of Queensland Act 2005.

Queen Victoria granted the Queensland Coat of Arms to the Colony of Queensland in 1893, making it the oldest State Arms in Australia.{{cite web|title=Coat of Arms|url=https://www.qld.gov.au/about/how-government-works/flags-emblems-icons/coat-of-arms|access-date=26 August 2021|website=Queensland State Government Website|archive-date=17 December 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211217025147/https://www.qld.gov.au/about/how-government-works/flags-emblems-icons/coat-of-arms|url-status=live}} It depicts Queensland's primary industries in the 19th century with a sheaf of wheat, the heads of a bull and a ram, and a column of gold rising from a heap of quartz. Two stalks of sugar cane which surround the state badge at the top, and below is Queensland's state motto, Audax at Fidelis, which means "Bold but Faithful". In 1977, Queen Elizabeth II granted the supporting animals, the brolga and the red deer.{{cite web|title=Queensland Flags & Emblems|url=https://www.australias.guide/qld/flags-emblems/|access-date=26 August 2021|website=Australias Guide |language=en-AU|archive-date=26 August 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210826014630/https://www.australias.guide/qld/flags-emblems/|url-status=live}}

In November 2003 maroon was officially named Queensland's state colour, after many years of association with Queensland sporting teams.

The koala was officially named the animal or faunal, emblem of Queensland in 1971 after a newspaper poll showed strong public support. The Queensland Government introduced the poll due to a proposal by state tourism ministers for all states to adopt a faunal emblem. In January 1986, the brolga was announced as the official bird emblem of Queensland, after many years on the Coat of Arms.

The Cooktown orchid became known as Queensland's floral emblem in 1959, during celebrations to mark the state's centenary,{{cite web|last=|first=|title=Floral emblem {{!}} State flags, emblems, and icons|url=https://www.qld.gov.au/about/how-government-works/flags-emblems-icons/floral-emblem|access-date=26 August 2021|website=Queensland Government|language=en|archive-date=28 October 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211028191616/https://www.qld.gov.au/about/how-government-works/flags-emblems-icons/floral-emblem|url-status=live}}{{cite web |last=Parks Australia|title=Queensland - Floral Emblems - Australian Plant Information|url=https://www.anbg.gov.au/emblems/qld.emblem.html|access-date=26 August 2021|website=Australian National Botanic Gardens |language=en|archive-date=8 March 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120308010937/https://www.anbg.gov.au/emblems/qld.emblem.html|url-status=live}} and the Barrier Reef Anemone Fish was officially named as Queensland's aquatic emblem in March 2005.{{cite web|last=|first=|title=Aquatic emblem {{!}} State flags, emblems, and icons|url=https://www.qld.gov.au/about/how-government-works/flags-emblems-icons/aquatic-emblem|access-date=26 August 2021|website=Queensland Government|language=en|archive-date=18 November 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211118043120/https://www.qld.gov.au/about/how-government-works/flags-emblems-icons/aquatic-emblem|url-status=live}}

The sapphire was named the official state gem for Queensland in August 1985.{{cite web|last=|first=|title=State gem {{!}} State flags, emblems, and icons|url=https://www.qld.gov.au/about/how-government-works/flags-emblems-icons/state-gem|access-date=26 August 2021|website=Queensland Government|language=en|archive-date=27 October 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211027032933/https://www.qld.gov.au/about/how-government-works/flags-emblems-icons/state-gem|url-status=live}}{{cite web|title=Australia For Everyone: State and Territory Emblems|url=https://www.australiaforeveryone.com.au/state-emblems/|access-date=26 August 2021|website=Australia Guide|language=en|archive-date=26 August 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210826014624/https://www.australiaforeveryone.com.au/state-emblems/|url-status=live}}

{{more citations needed|section|date=June 2019}}

{{See also|Transportation in Australia|Transport in Brisbane|TransLink (South East Queensland)|Queensland Rail City network}}

File:NGR722 approaching Oxley railway station, Brisbane.jpg on the Ipswich/Rosewood line within the Queensland Rail City network]]

File:Port of Gladstone 1.jpg, Queensland's largest commodity seaport]]

Queensland is served by several National Highways and, particularly in South East Queensland, a network of freeways such as the M1. The Department of Transport & Main Roads oversees the development and operation of main roads and public transport, including taxis and local aviation.

Principal rail services are provided by Queensland Rail, predominantly between the major centres east of the Great Dividing Range. Freight rail services in Queensland have been provided mostly by Aurizon and Pacific National, with interstate intermodal services provided by Pacific National and SCT Logistics. Major seaports include the Port of Brisbane, Australia's third busiest by value of goods, as well as those at Gladstone, Townsville, and Bundaberg. There are large coal export facilities at Hay Point, Gladstone, and Abbot Point. Major sugar export facilities are located at Lucinda and Mackay.

Brisbane Airport is the main international and domestic gateway serving the state, and is the third busiest in Australia. Other international airports include the Gold Coast Airport, Cairns International Airport, and Townsville Airport. Regional airports with scheduled domestic flights include Toowoomba Wellcamp Airport, Great Barrier Reef Airport, Hervey Bay Airport, Bundaberg Airport, Mackay Airport, Mount Isa Airport, Proserpine / Whitsunday Coast Airport, Rockhampton Airport, and Sunshine Coast Airport.

South East Queensland has an integrated public transport system operated by Translink, which provides services bus, rail, light rail and Brisbane's ferry services through Queensland Rail and contracted operators. The region is divided into seven Fare zones radiating outwards from the Brisbane central business district, which is the central hub for the system. The Queensland Rail City network consists of 152 train stations along 13 suburban rail lines and across the region, and predominantly within Brisbane's metropolitan area. There is also a large bus network including Brisbane's large dedicated bus rapid transit network, the Brisbane busway network. Brisbane's popular ferry services include the CityCat, Cross River, and CityHopper services which have dedicated wharves along the Brisbane River. The G:link, Queensland's only light rail network, operates on the Gold Coast.{{cite web|url=https://www.qld.gov.au/transport/safety/rules/other/trams|title=Sharing the road with trams {{!}} Transport and motoring|website=Department of Transport and Main Roads|publisher=Queensland Government|language=en-AU|access-date=8 November 2017|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171109080808/https://www.qld.gov.au/transport/safety/rules/other/trams|archive-date=9 November 2017}}

The new Queensland Cross River Rail is a metro network that is currently under development within Brisbane and is part of infrastructure to prepare the city for the 2032 Olympic games.{{Cite web |title=Home |url=https://crossriverrail.qld.gov.au/ |access-date=2023-08-31 |website=Cross River Rail |language=en-AU |archive-date=31 August 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230831001432/https://crossriverrail.qld.gov.au/ |url-status=live }}

Queensland Health operates and administers the state's public health system. There are sixteen regional Health and Hospital Services corresponding to geographical regions which are responsible for delivering public health services within their regions. Major public hospitals include the Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital, Princess Alexandra Hospital, the Mater Hospital, the Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Hospital, and the Queensland Children's Hospital in Brisbane, as well as the Townsville University Hospital, Cairns Hospital, Gold Coast Hospital and Gold Coast University Hospital in the regional cities. There are smaller public hospitals, as well as private hospitals, around the state.

{{Portal|Queensland|Australia|Oceania|Geography}}

• Outline of Australia
• Index of Australia-related articles
• State of North Queensland (Proposed state)

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{{reflist|group="N"}}

{{reflist|group=lower-alpha}}

{{reflist}}

• {{cite book |last1=Bottoms |first1=Timothy |year=2013 |title=Conspiracy of Silence: Queensland's frontier killing times |publisher=Allen & Unwin |place=Sydney |isbn=978-1-74331-382-4 |url=http://www.allenandunwin.com/default.aspx?page=94&book=9781743313824}}
• {{cite book |last=Broome |first=Richard |author-link=Richard Broome |year=1988 |chapter=The Struggle for Australia : Aboriginal-European Warfare, 1770–1930 |pages=92–120 |editor1-last=McKernan |editor1-first=Michael |editor2-last=Browne |editor2-first=Margaret |editor3=Australian War Memorial |title=Australia Two Centuries of War & Peace |publisher=Australian War Memorial in association with Allen and Unwin, Australia |location= Canberra, A.C.T. |isbn=0-642-99502-8}}
• {{cite book |last1=Connor |first1=John |title=The Oxford Companion to Australian Military History |editor-last=Dennis |editor-first=Peter |chapter=Frontier Wars |publisher=Oxford University Press Australia & New Zealand |location=Melbourne |year=2008 |edition=Second |isbn=978-0-19-551784-2 |display-editors=etal}}
• {{cite book |last1=Coulthard-Clark |first1=Chris D. |year=2001 |edition=Second |title=The Encyclopedia of Australia's Battles |publisher=Allen & Unwin |place=Crows Nest, New South Wales |isbn=1865086347}}
• {{cite book |last1=Ørsted-Jensen |first1=Robert |year=2011 |title=Frontier History Revisited – Queensland and the 'History War' |place=Cooparoo, Brisbane, Qld |publisher=Lux Mundi Publishing |isbn=9781466386822}}

• {{Cite book |last=Fitzgerald |first=Ross |url=https://archive.org/details/madeinqueensland0000fitz |title=Made in Queensland: A New History |last2=Megarrity |first2=Lyndon |last3=Symons |first3=David |date=2009 |publisher=University of Queensland Press |isbn=978-0-7022-3663-1 |location=St Lucia, Queensland |display-authors=1}}

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{{wikivoyage}}

• {{osmrelation|2316595}}
• {{URL|https://www.qld.gov.au/|Queensland Government official website}}
• {{URL|https://www.qld.gov.au/recreation/arts/heritage/archives|Queensland State Archives}}
• {{URL|www.slq.qld.gov.au/|State Library of Queensland}}
• {{Gutenberg author |id=Queensland |name=Queensland}}
• {{Internet Archive author}}

{{Queensland}}

{{States and territories of Australia}}

{{Australia topics}}

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Category:Former British colonies and protectorates in Oceania

Category:States and territories of Australia

Category:States and territories established in 1859

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