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Who came to Australia before James cook and why weren't they interested in Australia?

User Csmaster
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Final answer:

The Dutch arrived in Australia before the British, but they were not interested in Australia at the time. The British used Australia as a penal colony to address prison overcrowding.

Step-by-step explanation:

The Dutch were the first Europeans to arrive in Australia in 1606, followed by the British in the late 18th century. The Dutch were not particularly interested in Australia at the time because they were primarily focused on establishing trading routes to Asia. The British, on the other hand, initially used Australia as a penal colony to relieve overcrowding in their prisons. It was not until later that Australia became of interest for settlement and resource extraction.

User Solvemon
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