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States and Territories 
The British colonies in Australia came together in 1901 at what is called Federation. Federation meant that the colonies agreed to have a central government, but to keep their own seperate governments.
Australia was divided into states which were based on the original British colonies but formed one nation - the Commonwealth of Australia.
Australia is now made up of six states and two self-governing territories. There are also a number of offshore Australian territories. Some of these offshore territories have permanent populations and some do not.
Find out more about the following -
New South Wales
New South Wales has the biggest population of all the Australian states and its capital, Sydney, has the biggest population of all Australian cities. Click here to find out more.
Victoria
Victoria has the second largest population of the Australian states and its capital, Melbourne, is Australia's second largest city. Click here to find out more.
Queensland
Queensland is a favourite holiday destination for Australians. The capital city of the "Sunshine State" is Brisbane. Click here to find out more.
South Australia
South Australia is the driest state in Australia, yet it is famous for beautiful wines, lovely churches and green gardens in the capital, Adelaide. Click here to find out more.
Western Australia
Western Australia is easily Australia's largest state, and occupies about a third of the continent, although the capital of Perth is tucked away in the bottom left corner. Click here to find out more.
Tasmania
Tasmania is Australia's only island state and is also the smallest state and has the smallest population. The capital, Hobart, is Australia's second oldest city. Click here to find out more.
Australian Capital Territory (ACT)
Home of the nation's capital Canberra, the Australian Capital Territory lies in the southern part of New South Wales. Click here to find out more.
Northern Territory
The Northern Territory is not a state but an Australian Territory. With only 1% of Australia's population, there aren't many people, and nearly half of those live in the Territory's capital, Darwin. Click here to find out more.