Melbourne city centre

In April 1835, John Batman, a prominent grazier and a member of the Geelong and Dutigalla Association (later Port Phillip Association),[7][8] sailed from Launceston on the island of Van Diemen's Land (now the State of Tasmania), aboard the schooner Rebecca, in search of fresh grazing land in the south-east of the Colony of New South Wales (the mainland Australian continent). He sailed across Bass Strait, into the bay of Port Phillip, and arrived at the mouth of the Yarra River in May.[9] After exploring the surrounding area, he met with the elders of the indigenous Aboriginal group, the Wurundjeri of the Kulin nation alliance, and negotiated a transaction for 600,000 acres (940 sq mi; 2,400 km²) which later became known as Batman's Treaty.[10] The transaction, which is believed to have taken place on the bank of Merri Creek (near the modern day suburb of Northcote),[11] consisted of an offering of: blankets, knives, mirrors, sugar, and other such items; to be also tributed annually to the Wurundjeri.[10] The last sentence of Batman's journal entry on this day became famous as the founding charter of the settlement.[7]

So the boat went up the large river. And, I am glad to state about six miles up found the river all good water and very deep. This will be the place for a village.
— Journal of John Batman (8 June 1835).[9]

Upon returning to Van Diemen's Land, Batman's treaty was deemed invalid by the Governor of New South Wales, Sir Richard Bourke, under the Proclamation of Governor Bourke in August 1835.[12] It was the belief of Governor Bourke, as well as the Governor of Van Diemen's Land, Sir George Arthur, that the Aboriginal people did not have any official claims to the lands of the Australian continent. The proclamation formally declared, under the doctrine of terra nullius, that The Crown owned the whole of the Australian continent and that only it alone could sell and distribute land.[12] It therefore voided any contracts or treaties made without the consent of the government, and declared any person attempting to rely on such a treaty to be trespassing.[12] However, at the time the proclamation was being drawn up, a prominent businessman from Van Diemen's Land, John Pascoe Fawkner, had also funded an expedition to the area; which sailed from George Town aboard the schooner Enterprize.[13] At the same time, the Port Phillip Association had also funded a second expedition; which sailed from Launceston aboard the Rebecca.[7]

John Pascoe Fawkner

The settlement party aboard the Enterprize entered the Yarra River, and anchored close to the site chosen by Batman, on 29 August.[14] The party went ashore the following day (near what is today William Street; and is now celebrated as Melbourne Day) and landed their stores, livestock and began to construct the settlement.[13] The Association party aboard the Rebecca arrived in September after spending time at a temporary camp at Indented Head, where they encountered William Buckley – an escaped convict, believed dead, who had been living for 32 years with the indigenous Aboriginal group, the Wathaurong of the Kulin nation alliance.[15] Batman was dismayed to discover the settlers of the Enterprize had established a settlement in the area and informed the settlers that they were trespassing on the Association's land. However, according to the Proclamation of Governor Bourke, both the parties were in fact trespassing on Crown land.[12] When Fawkner (who was noted for his democratic nature)[13] arrived in October, and following tense arguments between the two parties, negotiation were made for land to be shared equally.

As Fawkner had arrived after the two parties, he was aware of the Proclamation of Governor Bourke, which had gained approval from the Colonial Office in October.[12] He knew that cooperation would be vital if the settlement was to continue to exist fait accompli. Land was then divided, and the settlement existed peacefully, but without a formal system of governance.[14] It was referred to by a number of names, including: "Batmania" and "Bearbrass"[9][16] of which the latter was agreed upon by Batman and Fawkner.[16] Fawkner assumed a leading role in the establishment of Bearbrass;[13] which, by early 1836, consisted of 177 European settlers (142 male and 35 female settlers).[14] The Secretary of State for the Colonies, Charles Grant, recognised the settlement's fait accompli that same year, and authorised Governor Bourke to transfer Bearbrass to a Crown settlement.[14] Batman and the Port Phillip Association were compensated £7,000 for the land.[7] And, in March 1837, it was officially renamed "Melbourne" by Governor Bourke in honour of the British Prime Minister of the day, William Lamb (the Lord Melbourne).[14]

Aerial view of the western end of the CBD. The far right of the image is Flinders Street station and the Yarra River.

A public underground toilet on Queen Street

The Hoddle Grid is the rectangular grid of the streets in the centre of the city laid out in 1837 by government surveyor Robert Hoddle. All major streets are one and half chains (99 ft or 30 m) in width, while all blocks are exactly 10 chains square (10 acres, 201 m × 201 m). It is one mile (1.6 km) long by half a mile wide (0.80 km), bounded by It is bounded by Flinders Street, Spencer Street LaTrobe Street and Spring Street. The grid's longest axis is oriented 70 degrees clockwise from true north, to align better with the course of the Yarra River. Most of the arterial streets outside the Hoddle Grid were aligned almost north–south, Melbourne, at 8 degrees clockwise from true north–noting that magnetic north was 8° 3' E in 1900, increasing to 11° 42' E in 2009.[20]

Hoddle's survey did not include any public squares or piazzas, reputedly to avoid any facilitation of protests or public loitering,[21] though colonial government practice did not generally include public squares other than land set aside for government buildings or markets.[22]

The whole town was at first accommodated within the Hoddle Grid, but the huge surge in immigration brought about by the Gold Rush in the 1850s quickly outgrew the grid spreading into the first suburbs in Fitzroy and South Melbourne (Emerald Hill), and beyond.

The Hoddle Grid and its fringes remained the centre and most active part of the city into the mid 20th century, with retail in the centre, banking and prime office space on Collins Street, medical professionals on the Collins Street hill, legal professions around William Street, and warehousing along Flinders Lane and in the western end. Government buildings like GPO, State Library, Supreme Court, and Customs House occupied various blocks with Parliament House and the railway stations on the edges.

Residential uses, most notably the slums of Little Lonsdale Street, were largely replaced by commercial uses by the 1950s, with residential not making a return until the 1990s with the conversion of older buildings. Since the 2000s this has accelerated with numerous high rise apartment buildings and student housing projects.

With the loss of residents, restricted retail and pub hours, the central city became dominated by 9-5 business uses, with one commentator remarking that in the 70s, the city was "as deserted as war-torn Berlin".[23]

Melbourne 1880, Samuel Calvert, depicting an organised grid layout of the city streets.

Almost all the major theatres in Melbourne are located in the CBD or its fringes. Historic theatres including the Princess Theatre, Regent Theatre, Forum Theatre, Comedy Theatre, Athenaeum Theatre, Her Majesty's Theatre, and the Capitol Theatre are all located within the Hoddle Grid. The Arts Centre Melbourne (which includes the State Theatre, Hamer Hall, the Playhouse and the Fairfax Studio), and the Melbourne Recital Centre are located just to the south of the CBD, with the Sidney Myer Music Bowl in parklands to the east.

A laneway in Melbourne featuring the city's characteristic street art.

The Federation Square arts complex occupies a prime site on the corner of Flinders and Swanston Streets, and includes the Australian Centre for the Moving Image, the Australian art galleries of the National Gallery of Victoria, the Koorie Heritage Trust, and the Deakin Edge auditorium.

It is also the literary centre of Australia, and has more bookshops and publishing companies per capita than any other city in Australia. The headquarters of the World's largest travel guidebook publisher Lonely Planet is located just outside the CBD in Carlton. In 2008, Melbourne was designated a "City of Literature" by UNESCO in its Creative Cities Network.[6] The State Library Victoria is the most visited library in the city, and hosts the Wheeler Centre. Melbourne has been placed alongside New York and Berlin as one of the world's great street art meccas,[26] and its extensive street art-laden laneways, alleys and arcades were voted by Lonely Planet readers as Australia's top cultural attraction.[27]

Olderfleet buildings, Collins Street

The CBD is home to many small independent galleries, often in the upper floors of older buildings or down laneways, and some of the most commercial galleries in Victoria are also in 'the city'.

Melbourne Cricket Ground

There are no sporting grounds within the CBD, but the 'shrine of sport' in Melbourne is the MCG (Melbourne Cricket Ground) located in the adjacent parkland known as Jolimont. Both the Melbourne Cricket Club and Melbourne Football Club are based there. The Melbourne Cricket Club has a fairly exclusive membership, whilst the Melbourne Football Club, although bearing the name Melbourne, is associated by the supporters of other suburban clubs as representing the central area and perceive its supporters to represent the locality and not the entire city.[28] The Melbourne Football Club has recently made efforts to shed its suburban tag and be embraced by the whole metropolitan area.[29]

The City Centre has hosted a number of events of significance, which include: the 1901 inauguration of the Government of Australia, 1956 Summer Olympic Games, 1981 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, 1995 World Police and Fire Games, 2000 World Economic Forum, 2006 Commonwealth Games, 2015 Cricket World Cup, G20 Ministerial Meeting – among others, and the 2020 T20 World Cup. It is also recognised for the substantial number of cultural and sports events and festivals it holds annually – many being the largest in Australia and the World.