Canberra was purpose-built as Australia’s capital as a compromise between rival cities Sydney and Melbourne.
When Australia’s colonies federated in 1901, Sydney and Melbourne both wanted to be the national capital. The Constitution therefore required a federal capital in New South Wales, but at least 100 miles from Sydney. A site in the Canberra region was selected, allowing neither major city to win outright. Canberra was formally named in 1913.
The city was planned rather than growing organically around an old port or trading centre. American architects Walter Burley Griffin and Marion Mahony Griffin won an international design competition in 1912. Their plan used geometric avenues, garden-city ideas, and views toward landmarks including Mount Ainslie and Black Mountain. Lake Burley Griffin is a later central feature of that planned landscape.
A common mix-up is assuming Sydney is Australia’s capital because it is the country’s largest and most internationally famous city. Melbourne served as the temporary federal capital from 1901 until Parliament moved to Canberra in 1927. Canberra is inland, in the Australian Capital Territory, between Sydney and Melbourne.