Introduction
Visionary Planning
The City of Adelaide today

Introduction

At the time of European settlement in 1836, the area that is now Adelaide, the Capital City of South Australia, was occupied by Aborigines known as the Kaurna (pronounced 'Garna') people. Aborigines have lived in Australia for at least 50,000 years or more but it's not known for how long the Kaurna lived in the Adelaide area prior to European colonization.

The Kaurna had an intimate relationship with the land. They were peaceful people. Introduced diseases, the loss of hunting and food-gathering lands and the disruption to their way of life had devastating effects on the Kaurna.

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Visionary Planning

Adelaide was named after Queen Adelaide, wife of William IV, the King of England who reigned from 1830 until his death in 1837. The site for the City was proposed by Colonel William Light, an adventurer and a visionary planner who was commissioned to survey the City. Light realised the advantages in laying the foundations of growth and development through good planning. While there is no doubt that Light was influenced by his travels, there is little evidence that he modelled the City on any one existing example from his time, and he seems to have drawn inspiration from a variety of sources.

Light's vision for Adelaide was a fully planned place with wide roads, squares and gardens. He designed a grid layout of wide streets and surrounding parklands, which gives the City an easy to understand and relaxed feel. Colonel Light was not put off by the vast emptiness of uninhabited streets and isolated squares of early Adelaide. Although he was criticised at the time, it is a testimony to his imagination and foresight that today, the City and the surrounding districts are so well regarded for the quality of their planning and design.

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The City of Adelaide today

The City has a Mediterranean climate with mild winters and warm summers. Adelaide's City Centre is surrounded by the Park Lands and its metropolitan area extends west to the Southern Ocean, east to the Mt Lofty Ranges, northwards along the Adelaide plains in the direction of the famous Barossa Valley and south to the side of the Willunga basin.

Adelaide is generally regarded as one of the most compact, elegant and attractive of Australian cities with a population of 1.2 million people including the surrounding metropolitan area, Adelaide is a blend of modern development and distinguishing nineteenth century architecture.
This is a city of tolerance and reform, being the capital of one of the first places in the world to grant women voting rights, in 1894. In the nineteen sixties and seventies, a period of reform and innovation, the first women's adviser to a Premier was appointed, Aboriginal land rights were granted and the first equal opportunity and sex discrimination legislation was passed.

Adelaide is also a city of food and wine. The City has many cafes and restaurants that mirror a wide range of ethnic influences. The cosmopolitan central markets, an array of retail stores specialising in food and many wine and food festivals are a hallmark of the City.

The City is a centre of cultural happenings and arts events including the biennial Adelaide Festival of Arts. Galleries, museums and theatres abound and cultural gatherings including outstanding world class arts and youth arts festivals are held here, as well as many film, music, literature and other arts events.

The education and health industries are known for their innovation and are world class. Adelaide has a vibrant, competitive, efficient and highly respected health industry which includes many private businesses, public services and health oriented research, education and training facilities. There are excellent education institutions including two universities in the City centre, and with its high quality of life and affordability, the City is acquiring a reputation as a City of learning.

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