Darwin has the largest proportional population of Indigenous Australians of any Australian capital city, and a significant percentage of its residents are recent immigrants from South and East Asia. As such, Darwin is often called the "multicultural capital of Australia" due to its proximity to Asia and has a Southern European community, mostly Greek and Italian. Darwin is an important port, particularly for the live export of sheep and cattle, and of minerals. It is also the site of a large Australian Army base and a naval facility supporting patrol boat activity off Australia's northern coastline.

Darwin's harbour was first sighted in 1839 by John Lort Stokes of HMS Beagle. The ship's captain, John Clements Wickham, named the port after Charles Darwin, the British naturalist, who had sailed with him on an earlier expedition of Beagle.

The Northern Territory was initially settled and administered by South Australia, until its transfer to the Commonwealth in 1911. On 5 February 1869, George Goyder, the Surveyor-General of South Australia, established a small settlement of 135 men and women at Port Darwin. Goyder named the settlement Palmerston, after the British Prime Minister Lord Palmerston. In 1870, the first poles for the Overland Telegraph were erected in Darwin connecting Australia to the rest of the World. The discovery of gold at Pine Creek in the 1880s further boosted the young colony's development. Upon Commonwealth administration in 1911, Darwin became the city's official name.

On 19 February 1942, during the Pacific War, 242 Japanese warplanes attacked Darwin in two waves. It was the same fleet that had bombed Pearl Harbor, though a considerably larger number of bombs were dropped on Darwin, than on Pearl Harbor. This aspect of Darwin's history is often overlooked when discussing World War II. The attack killed at least 243 people and caused immense damage to the town. These were by far the most serious attacks on Australia in time of war, in terms of fatalities and damage. They were the first of many raids on Darwin.

On Australia Day , 26 January 1959, Darwin was granted city status.[1]

Darwin was largely destroyed on 25 December 1974 by Cyclone Tracy, which killed 50 people and destroyed over 70% of the town's buildings, including many old stone buildings such as the Palmerston Town Hall, which could not withstand the lateral forces generated by the strong winds. After the disaster, an airlift evacuated 30,000 people. The town was subsequently rebuilt with newer materials and techniques during the late 1970s by the Darwin Reconstruction Commission. A satellite city of Palmerston was built 20 km south of Darwin in the early 1980s.

On 17 September 2003, the Adelaide-Darwin Railway was completed.

Darwin is known as the "Gateway to Asia", and the city's population is very multicultural. Seventy-five nationalities are represented in Darwin, and nearly a quarter of the population self-identifies as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander. Darwin's Mitchell Street is lined with nightclubs, takeaways, and restaurants, many with al fresco-style dining.

The Darwin Festival[2] held annually includes comedy, dance, theatre, music, film and visual art and the NT Indigenous Music Awards.

The Beer Can Regatta[3], held in August, celebrates Darwin's love affair with beer and contestants race boats made exclusively of beer cans. Also in Darwin during the month of August, are the Darwin Cup horse race, and the Rodeo and Mud Crab Tying Competition.

In the past Darwin enjoyed a reputation as an unsophisticated hard-drinking town, backed-up by some of the highest per-capita alcohol consumption rates in Australia. These days with a less transient population, Darwin is better known for its asian influenced cuisine and as an adventure tourism destination.

Darwin is also home to Indo-Pacific Marine & Australian Pearling Exhibition which houses an aquarium complete with living coral, and its complementary sea life.

The Museum of the Northern Territory in Darwin gives an excellent overview of the history of the area, including exhibits on Cyclone Tracy and the boats of the Pacific Islands.

The Darwin Free Beach has nude sunbathing.

Source: Wikipedia