Decolonisation of Oceania
The decolonization of Oceania occurred after World War II when nations in Oceania achieved independence by transitioning from European colonial rule to full independence.
While most of the countries of Oceania have a specific independence day, the independence of Australia and the independence of New Zealand were a gradual process and cannot be associated clearly to a specific date. Most of the British colonies in Australia gained responsible government in the 1850s, as did New Zealand in 1856. This was formalised into Dominion status in the 1900s, but with the United Kingdom retaining certain powers de jure. Sovereign states de facto by the 1920s, Australia and New Zealand refused the formal recognition of their own full sovereignty when offered through the Statute of Westminster in 1931, before accepting it respectively in 1942 and 1947.Timeline
