Since 1914 Norfolk Island has been an external territory under the authority of the Commonwealth of Australia and today it is administered under the Norfolk Island 1979 (Commonwealth) which provides the basis of the Territory's legislative, administrative and judicial systems.
No-one is absolutely sure who the first people to inhabit Norfolk Island were because details are lost in the mists of time. However, it was most probably East Polynesian seafarers. It seems they arrived in the 14th or 15th century - stayed for a few generations - and then departed again. In recent years, hard-working archaeologists have unearthed remains of their main village at Emily Bay. And what a place for a village. The bay wraps around an idyllic swimming beach, where you can unwind in the crystalline waters.
Norfolk Island is certainly rich in History and Culture from Captain Cook's discovery in 1774 to todays modern times. Historic attractions include museums, the penal settlement and the culture arising from the Bounty mutineers and their Tahitian wives, who first settled on Pitcairn Island after the mutiny on the HMAS Bounty, and from their descendants who moved to Norfolk Island in 1856.
But most of all, Norfolk Island is a spiritual mecca.
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