Commonwealth of Australia
Preserved but no longer current.
It was so named in 1770 by Captain Cook from its fancied resemblance from the sea to the northern shores of the Bristol Channel. The famous penal settlement of Botany Bay was founded there in 1787, five miles south of the present city of Sydney, itself named after Thomas Townshend, 1st Viscount Sydney, at that time secretary of state in charge of colonial affairs.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “Commonwealth of Australia” mean?
It was so named in 1770 by Captain Cook from its fancied resemblance from the sea to the northern shores of the Bristol Channel. The famous penal settlement of Botany Bay was founded there in 1787, five miles south of the present city of Sydney, itself named after Thomas Townshend, 1st Viscount Sydney, at that time secretary of state in charge of colonial affairs.
Is “Commonwealth of Australia” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.