A History of Australia

For centuries the mystery of the “Terra Australis Incognita” had attracted people of many lands and cultures. The first inhabitants, driven there by hunger and more powerful enemies, had found their way to its southernmost parts, to be left there undisturbed to develop their way of life. Then, in the search for gold and spices, for souls to convert, for new lands to conquer, others were led nearer and nearer to its shores. The long quest for a Terra Australis ended in the coming of European civilization to Austral-Asia.

Manning Clark was a senior lecturer at the University of Melbourne, and later, professor of history in the School of General Studies, Australian National University. In 1972 he became the first professor of Australian history. In June 1975 Clark was made a Companion of the Order of Australia, in recognition of his writing of the monumental A History of Australia. He was named Australian of the Year for 1980. Professor Clark died in May 1991.