Timelines

         The fact that Australia was declared a colony is similar to the United States, because were are also a colony of Britain in the 1770's. British did have control of the American Colonies, but were slowly losing them, while Australia on the other hand was becoming part of the British Colonies (Wikipedia). New Zealand and Australia also are similar, due to the fact they both had gold rushes but came at different times. The Victorian Gold Rush in Australia came in the 1850's and had made an impact on the economy without a doubt. Edward Hargraves was the first one to discover gold in this area of Australia. In New Zealand on the other hand, Gold was discover in 1861 on May 25th by Gabriel Read in the town of Lawrence Tuapeka (www.lawrence.co.nz).
          In 1901, the commonwealth of Australia was created when all the colonies joined together to become one nation. They created a democracy and were under the rule of Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain (www.eoas.com). The United States also have a democracy which shows that the governing of Australia is similar to that of ours. Switching over to New Zealand's government, they are also similar to Australia and the United States because they have a self-governing form of government that was established in 1907. Prior to this government being established, there were many wars taking place between the Maori (the natives of NZ) and the European settlers. Many Europeans were looking to discover New Zealand due to recent voyages, and the Maori were not in favor of this. Following this, they created a self-governing dominion.
          In 1962, the native Aborigines of Australia were given the right to vote. In the U.S., people are allowed to vote as well, which shows a clear similarity, that everyone can vote, besides women. These two countries differ from New Zealand because they were the first country to give the vote to women in 1893. Referring back to the Natives of Australia, there was an act passed in 1976 giving Aborigines the ability to claim their native land. This is similar to the United States, giving Native American's reserves. Eventually for both Australia and New Zealand, the natives are finally content. In 2008, the Australian Parliament apologized for any past actions that were wrong committed against the Aborigines. As for New Zealand, it was a struggle but they finally achieved independence through many revolutions and through much time. Independence day is officially celebrated on the 6th of February for New Zealand and is a very special holiday for many citizens (www.123independenceday.com).

The Independent country of New Zealand

The native Aborigine people of Australia