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The Colony of Queensland was established after the people of Queensland successfully petitioned Queen Victoria for independence from New South Wales. Queen Victoria signed the Letters Patent on the 6th of June 1859.
One of the key reasons cited for the push for an independent Queensland was the economic, trading and social importance of Brisbane.
Independence meant the election of a Governor and Legislative Assembly and the nomination of a Legislative Council, key bodies to enable the colony to develop its own laws and mandates. The Colony of Queensland's parliament opened on 22 May 1860 with Robert George Wyndham Herbert the first elected Premier.
By 1880 the Colony of Queensland passed its own constitution, The Constitution Act 1867, designed and adopted its own flag, established government subsidised grammar schools and produced its own banknotes.
