Post war migrant arrivals, australia
Encyclopedia
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Ben Chifley
Ben Chifley
Joseph Benedict Chifley , Australian politician, was the 16th Prime Minister of Australia. He took over the Australian Labor Party leadership and Prime Ministership after the death of John Curtin in 1945, and went on to retain government at the 1946 election, before being defeated at the 1949...
, Prime Minister of Australia
Prime Minister of Australia
The Prime Minister of the Commonwealth of Australia is the highest minister of the Crown, leader of the Cabinet and Head of Her Majesty's Australian Government, holding office on commission from the Governor-General of Australia. The office of Prime Minister is, in practice, the most powerful...
from 1945 to 1949, established the Federal Department of Immigration and thereby launched a large scale immigration
Immigration to Australia
Immigration to Australia is estimated to have begun around 51,000 years ago when the ancestors of Australian Aborigines arrived on the continent via the islands of the Malay Archipelago and New Guinea. Europeans first landed in the 17th and 18th Centuries, but colonisation only started in 1788. The...
program. Chifley commissioned a report on the subject which found that Australia was in urgent need of a larger population for the purposes of defence and development and it recommended a 1% annual increase in population through increased immigration.
The first Minister for Immigration
Minister for Immigration and Citizenship (Australia)
In the Government of Australia, the Minister for Immigration and Citizenship is responsible for overseeing the Department of Immigration and Citizenship....
, Arthur Calwell
Arthur Calwell
Arthur Augustus Calwell Australian politician, was a member of the Australian House of Representatives for 32 years from 1940 to 1972, Immigration Minister in the government of Ben Chifley from 1945 to 1949 and Leader of the Australian Labor Party from 1960 to 1967.-Early life:Calwell was born in...
, commenced promoting mass immigration with the slogan "populate or perish". 182,159 people were sponsored by the International Refugee Organisation (IRO) from the end of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
up to the end of 1954 to resettle in Australia from Europe—more than the number of convicts transported to Australia
Convicts in Australia
During the late 18th and 19th centuries, large numbers of convicts were transported to the various Australian penal colonies by the British government. One of the primary reasons for the British settlement of Australia was the establishment of a penal colony to alleviate pressure on their...
in the first 80 years after European settlement.
Arthur Calwell coined the term "New Australians" in an effort to supplant such racist terms as pommy
Alternative words for British
Alternative names for the British include nicknames and terms, including affectionate ones, neutral ones, and derogatory ones to describe the British people and more specifically English, Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish/Irish people.- Ang Moh :"Ang Moh" is a term to describe British and other...
(Englishman) and wog.
The 1% target remained a part of government policy until the Whitlam
Gough Whitlam
Edward Gough Whitlam, AC, QC , known as Gough Whitlam , served as the 21st Prime Minister of Australia. Whitlam led the Australian Labor Party to power at the 1972 election and retained government at the 1974 election, before being dismissed by Governor-General Sir John Kerr at the climax of the...
government of 1972 to 1975, when immigration numbers were substantially cut back, only to be progressively restored during the course of the Fraser government (1975 to 1982).
Some 6.5 million people have migrated to Australia from other countries since 1945. This total comprises 3.35 million males and 3.15 million females. This represents a significant proportion of the overall population increase experienced by Australia in that time, having gone from 7 million in 1945 to the present 22 million+.
White Australia policy
In keeping with policies of the previous governments, both Chifley and Calwell had a preference for promoting immigration to Australia of mainly BritishGreat Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
settlers, and initially they set the ambitious target of nine British out of ten immigrants. It soon became apparent that this would be impossible to achieve given that Britain's shipping capacity was quite diminished from pre war levels. As a consequence, Calwell had to look further afield to maintain overall immigration numbers, and this meant relying on the IRO refugees from Eastern Europe, particularly since the USA was willing to provide the necessary shipping. In the context of the then still extant White Australia Policy
White Australia policy
The White Australia policy comprises various historical policies that intentionally restricted "non-white" immigration to Australia. From origins at Federation in 1901, the polices were progressively dismantled between 1949-1973....
, this decision was acceptable to Calwell and future Prime Ministers.
However, the British component still remained the largest component of the intake until 1953. Between 1953 and late 1956, those from Southern Europe
Southern Europe
The term Southern Europe, at its most general definition, is used to mean "all countries in the south of Europe". However, the concept, at different times, has had different meanings, providing additional political, linguistic and cultural context to the definition in addition to the typical...
outnumbered the British, and this caused some alarm in the Australian government, causing it to place restrictions on Southern Europeans sponsoring newcomers and to commence the "Bring out a Briton" campaign. With the increase in financial assistance to British settlers provided during the 1960s, the British component was able to return to the top position in the overall number of new settlers.
Later policy
In 1972 Whitlam announced a completely non-discriminatory policy, which effectively put an end to the "White Australia Policy". This announcement occurred in the context of a reduced overall intake. During the Fraser government, with the increasing intake of VietnamVietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
ese refugees in the aftermath of the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
, Australia experienced the largest intake of Asian immigrants since the arrival of the Chinese
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
gold miners during the gold rush of the 1850s and 1860s. In 1983, the level of British immigration was below the level of Asian immigration for the first time in Australian history.
International agreements
Financial assistance was an important element of the post war immigration program and as such there were a number of agreements in place between the Australian government and various governments and international organisations.- United Kingdom - free or assisted passages. Immigrants under this scheme became known as Ten Pound PomsTen Pound PomsTen Pound Poms is a colloquial term used in Australia to describe British subjects who migrated to Australia after the Second World War under an assisted passage scheme established and operated by the Government of Australia.The scheme, a follow-on to the unofficial Big Brother Movement,...
. - assisted passages for ex-servicemen of the British EmpireBritish EmpireThe British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...
and the United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. This scheme later covered ex-servicemen or resistance fighters from The Netherlands, NorwayNorwayNorway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
, FranceFranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, BelgiumBelgiumBelgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
and DenmarkDenmarkDenmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
. - an agreement with the International Refugee OrganizationInternational Refugee OrganizationThe International Refugee Organization was founded on April 20, 1946 to deal with the massive refugee problem created by World War II. A Preparatory Commission began operations fourteen months previously. It was a United Nations specialized agency and took over many of the functions of the earlier...
(IRO) to settle at least 12,000 displaced people a year from camps in Europe.- Australia accepted a disproportionate share of the refugees sponsored by the IRO in the late 1940s and early 1950s
- formal migration agreements, often involving the grant of assisted passage, with the United KingdomUnited KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, MaltaMaltaMalta , officially known as the Republic of Malta , is a Southern European country consisting of an archipelago situated in the centre of the Mediterranean, south of Sicily, east of Tunisia and north of Libya, with Gibraltar to the west and Alexandria to the east.Malta covers just over in...
, The Netherlands, ItalyItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, West GermanyWest GermanyWest Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....
, TurkeyTurkeyTurkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
and YugoslaviaYugoslaviaYugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....
. - there were also informal migration agreements with a number of other countries including AustriaAustriaAustria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, GreeceGreeceGreece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
, SpainSpainSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, and BelgiumBelgiumBelgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
.
Timeline
| Period | Events |
|---|---|
| 1947 | Australia's first migrant reception centre opened at Bonegilla, Victoria Bonegilla, Victoria Bonegilla is a bounded rural locality of the City of Wodonga Local Government Area in northeast Victoria, Australia, located 10 kilometres east of Wodonga, and around 300km north-east of Melbourne. At the 2006 census, Bonegilla and surrounding area had a population of 773.- History :Bonegilla Post... - the first assistant migrants were received there in 1951. |
| 1948 | Australia signed Peace treaties Paris Peace Treaties, 1947 The Paris Peace Conference resulted in the Paris Peace Treaties signed on February 10, 1947. The victorious wartime Allied powers negotiated the details of treaties with Italy, Romania, Hungary, Bulgaria, and Finland .The... with Italy Treaty of peace with Italy (1947) The Treaty of Peace with Italy was a treaty signed in Paris on February 10, 1947, between Italy and the victorious powers of World War II, formally ending the hostilities... , Romania, Bulgaria and Hungary and accepted immigrants from these countries. |
| 1949 | In 1949 assisted arrivals reached more than 118,800, four times the 1948 figure In August Australia welcomed its 50,000th "New Australian" — or rather, the 50,000th displaced person sponsored by the IRO and to be resettled in Australia. The child was from Riga Riga Riga is the capital and largest city of Latvia. With 702,891 inhabitants Riga is the largest city of the Baltic states, one of the largest cities in Northern Europe and home to more than one third of Latvia's population. The city is an important seaport and a major industrial, commercial,... , Latvia Latvia Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden... . Work began on the Snowy Mountains Scheme Snowy Mountains Scheme The Snowy Mountains scheme is a hydroelectricity and irrigation complex in south-east Australia. It consists of sixteen major dams; seven power stations; a pumping station; and 225 kilometres of tunnels, pipelines and aqueducts and was constructed between 1949 and 1974. The Chief engineer was Sir... - a substantial employer of migrants: 100,000 people were employed from at least 30 different nationalities. Seventy percent of all the workers were migrants. |
| 1950 | Net Overseas Migration was 153,685, the third highest figure of the twentieth century. |
| 1951 | The first assisted migrants received at the Bonegilla Migrant Reception and Training Centre Bonegilla Migrant Reception and Training Centre The Bonegilla Migrant Reception and Training Centre was a camp set up for receiving and training migrants to Australia during the post World War II immigration boom. The camp was set on near the small town of Bonegilla in north east Victoria, between the Hume Dam and the city of Wodonga... . By 1951, the government had established three migrant reception centres for non-English speaking displaced persons from Europe, and twenty holding centres, principally to house non-working dependants, when the pressure of arrival numbers on the reception centres was too great to keep families together. |
| 1952 | The IRO was abolished and from then most refugees who resettled in Australia during the 1950s were brought here under the auspices of the Intergovernmental Committee for European Migration International Organization for Migration The International Organization for Migration is an intergovernmental organization. It was initially established in 1951 as the Intergovernmental Committee for European Migration to help resettle people displaced by World War II.... (ICEM). |
| 1954 | The 50,000th Dutch migrant Dutch Australian A Dutch Australian is an inhabitant of Australia with full or partial Dutch ancestry, the majority of these people are part of the Dutch diaspora.-History:... arrived. |
| 1955 | Australia’s millionth post-war immigrant arrived. She was a 21 year old from England and newly married. |
| 1971 | Migrant camp at Bonegilla, Victoria Bonegilla, Victoria Bonegilla is a bounded rural locality of the City of Wodonga Local Government Area in northeast Victoria, Australia, located 10 kilometres east of Wodonga, and around 300km north-east of Melbourne. At the 2006 census, Bonegilla and surrounding area had a population of 773.- History :Bonegilla Post... closed - some 300,000 migrants had spent time there. |
Settler arrivals by top 10 countries of birth
| Birthplace | No. of arrivals July 1949 - June 2000 | July 1949 - June 1959 | July 1959 - June 1970 | July 1970 - June 1980 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 United Kingdom & Ireland | 1,780,989 (31.6%) | 419,946 (33.5%) | 654,640 (45.3%) | 342,373 (35.8%) |
| 2 Italy | 390,810 (6.9%) | 201,428 (16.1%) | 150,669 (10.4%) | 28,800 (3.0%) |
| 3 New Zealand | 371,683 (6.6%) | 29,649 (2.4%) | 30,341 (2.1%) | 58,163 (6.1%) |
| 4 Germany | 255,930 (4.5%) | 162,756 (13.0%) | 50,452 (3.5%) | not in top 10 |
| 5 Greece | 220,603 (3.9%) | 55,326 (4.4%) | 124,324 (8.6%) | 30,907 (3.2%) |
| 6 Yugoslavia (Yugoslavia recorded until 1994 –95 inclusive) | 206,554 (3.7%) | not in top 10 | 94,555 (6.5%) | 61,283 (6.4%) |
| 7 Vietnam | 170,990 (3.0%) | not in top 10 | not in top 10 | 30,633 (3.2%) |
| 8 Netherlands | 161,298 (2.9%) | 100,970 (8.1%) | 36,533 (2.5%) | not in top 10 |
| 9 Hong Kong | 108,181 (1.9%) | not in top 10 | not in top 10 | not in top 10 |
| 10 Philippines | 103,310 (1.8%) | not in top 10 | not in top 10 | not in top 10 |
| Malta | not in top 10 | 38,113 (3.0%) | 28,916 (2.0%) | not in top 10 |
| Austria | not in top 10 | 33,730 (2.7%) | not in top 10 | not in top 10 |
| USA | not in top 10 | 16,982 (1.4%) | 20,467 (1.4%) | 27,769 (2.9%) |
| Egypt | not in top 10 | 13,430 (1.1%) | not in top 10 | not in top 10 |
| Spain | not in top 10 | not in top 10 | 17,611 (1.2%) | not in top 10 |
| Lebanon | not in top 10 | not in top 10 | not in top 10 | 32,207 (3.4%) |
| Turkey | not in top 10 | not in top 10 | not in top 10 | 18,444 (1.9%) |
| India | not in top 10 | not in top 10 | not in top 10 | 17,910 (1.9%) |
| Top Ten Total | 3,770,348 (66.8%) | 1,072,330 (85.6%) | 1,208,508 (83.6%) | 648,489 (67.8%) |
| Other | 1,870,290 (33.2%) | 180,753 (14.4%) | 236,848 (16.4%) | 308,280 (32.2%) |
| Total Settler Arrivals | 5,640,638 (100.0%) | 1,253,083 | 1,445,356 | 956,769 |
Migrant reception centres
Bonegilla, Victoria
Bonegilla is a bounded rural locality of the City of Wodonga Local Government Area in northeast Victoria, Australia, located 10 kilometres east of Wodonga, and around 300km north-east of Melbourne. At the 2006 census, Bonegilla and surrounding area had a population of 773.- History :Bonegilla Post...
near Wodonga
Wodonga, Victoria
Wodonga is a small city on the Victorian side of the border with New South Wales, north-east of Melbourne, Australia. Adjacent to Wodonga across the border is the New South Wales city of Albury. Wodonga is located wholly within the boundaries of the City of Wodonga LGA...
in December 1947- the first assistant migrants were received there in 1951. The camp at Bonegilla closed in 1971 by which time some 300,000 migrants had spent time there.
By 1951, the government had established three migrant reception centres for non-English speaking displaced persons from Europe, and twenty holding centres, principally to house non-working dependants, when the pressure of arrival numbers on the reception centres was too great to keep families together. The purpose of reception and training centres was to
provide for general medical examination and x-ray of migrants, issue of necessary clothing, payment of social service benefits, interview to determine employment potential, instruction in English and the Australian way of life generally.
The reception centre were officially known as Commonwealth Immigration Camps and were located at - (dates are those of post office opening and closing )
- Bonegilla, VictoriaBonegilla, VictoriaBonegilla is a bounded rural locality of the City of Wodonga Local Government Area in northeast Victoria, Australia, located 10 kilometres east of Wodonga, and around 300km north-east of Melbourne. At the 2006 census, Bonegilla and surrounding area had a population of 773.- History :Bonegilla Post...
December 1947 to 17 March 1971 - Benalla, VictoriaBenalla, VictoriaBenalla is a city of just over 9,000 people located just off the Hume Freeway in north-eastern Victoria, Australia, about southwest of Wangaratta. Its Local Government Area is the Rural City of Benalla.- Overview :...
29 June 1949 to 30 May 1952 - Mildura, VictoriaMildura, VictoriaMildura is a regional city in northwestern Victoria, Australia and seat of the Rural City of Mildura local government area. It is located in the Sunraysia region, and is on the banks of the Murray River. The current population is estimated at just over 30,000.Mildura is a major agricultural centre...
1950 to 17 July 1953 - Rushworth, VictoriaRushworth, VictoriaRushworth is a township in Victoria, Australia. It is located north of Melbourne and, at the 2006 census, had a population of 2066.-History:...
1 June 1949 to 15 June 1953 - Sale West, Victoria 1950 to 30 November 1953
- Somers, VictoriaSomers, VictoriaSomers is a small town approximately 72 km south east of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, located in the south eastern corner of the Mornington Peninsula on Western Port. Its Local Government Area is the Shire of Mornington Peninsula.-History:...
18 August 1949 to 14 February 1957 - Greta, New South WalesGreta, New South WalesGreta is a small town in the Hunter Valley region of New South Wales, Australia in Cessnock City Council. It has a population of around 1000 people. It is largely a commuter town located midway between Cessnock, Singleton and Maitland...
near Newcastle 1 June 1949 to 15 January 1960 - the ChulloraChullora, New South WalesChullora, a suburb of local government areas City of Bankstown and the Municipality of Strathfield, is located 15 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district, in the state of New South Wales, Australia, and forms a part of the Greater Western Sydney region.-History:The suburb of...
Railway and Migrant Camp in Sydney 1 August 1949 to 31 October 1967 - Uranquinty Camp in New South Wales 1 December 1948 to 31 March 1959
- NorthamNortham, Western AustraliaNortham is a town in Western Australia, situated at the confluence of the Avon and Mortlock Rivers, about north-east of Perth in the Avon Valley. At the 2006 census, Northam had a population of 6,009. Northam is the largest town in the Avon region...
or Holden Camp in Western Australia 15 August 1949 to 30 June 1957
Breakdown of arrivals by decade
Since 1950 Australia has experienced average arrivals of around one million per decade, with the totals in the earlier decades being slightly above the totals in the more recent decades. Current statistics suggest that one million will be reached again in the current decade. The breakdown by decade is as follows:- 1.6 million between October 1945 and 30 June 1960;
- about 1.3 million in the 1960s;
- about 960.000 in the 1970s;
- about 1.1 million in the 1980s; and
- over 900,000 in the 1990s.
The highest number of arrivals in any one year since World War II was 185,099 in 1969-70 and the lowest was 52,752 in 1975-76.
Demography as at 2006 for non-English speaking ethnic groups
In the 2006 census, birthplace was enumerated as was date of arrival in Australia for those not born in Australia. For the major immigrant groups enlarged by the arrival of immigrants to Australia after World War II, they are still major demographic groups in Australia:| Ethnic group | Persons born overseas | Arrived 1979 or earlier | Aged 60 years and over This compares with 18% of Australian residentswho were aged 60 or over at the time of the census |
Australian citizens |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Italian Australian | 199,124 | 176,536 or 89% | 63% | 157,209 or 79% |
| Greek Australian Greek Australian Greeks are the seventh-largest ethnic group in Australia, after those declaring their ancestry simply as "Australian". In the 2006 census, 365,147 persons declared having Greek ancestry, either alone or in conjunction with another ethnicity.... |
109,990 | 94,766 or 86% | 60% | 104,950 or 95% |
| German Australian German Australian German religious refugees represented the first major wave of German settlement in Australia, arriving in South Australia in 1838. Some were active as missionaries and explorers in Australia from early in the 19th century, and German prospectors were well-represented in the 1850s gold rushes... |
106,524 | 74,128 or 79% | 46% | 75,623 or 71% |
| Dutch Australian Dutch Australian A Dutch Australian is an inhabitant of Australia with full or partial Dutch ancestry, the majority of these people are part of the Dutch diaspora.-History:... |
78,924 | 62,495 or 79% | 52% | 59,502 or 75% |
| Croatian Australian Croatian Australian Croatia has been a source of migrants to Australia, particularly in the 1960s and 1970s. In 2006, 128,051 persons resident in Australia identified themselves as having Croatian ancestry.- History :... |
50,996 | 35,598 or 70% | 43% | 48,271 or 95% |
Not all of those enumerated would have arrived as post-war migrants, specific statistics as at 2006 are not available.
External links
- NSW Migration Heritage Centre
- fifthfleet.net - list of ships which brought Displaced Persons to Australia between 1947 and 1951. Accessed 19 October 2010
- Ten Pound Pom Social Museum