Melbourne was founded in 1835, with 30 August 1835 commonly recognised as its official founding date.

Key founding date

  • European settlers established the first permanent settlement on the north bank of the Yarra River on 30 August 1835, arriving aboard the schooner Enterprize from Van Diemen’s Land (Tasmania).
  • Many historical summaries therefore state simply that Melbourne was founded in 1835 , reflecting this settlement as the city’s beginning.

Extra historical context

  • Melbourne was later incorporated as a Crown settlement and formally named “Melbourne” in 1837, after British Prime Minister William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne.
  • Queen Victoria declared Melbourne a city in 1847, and it became the capital of the new Colony of Victoria when that colony separated from New South Wales in 1851.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.