The British colonized Australia beginning in 1788. The process started with the arrival of the First Fleet of British ships at Botany Bay on January 24, 1788, followed by the establishment of a British colony at Sydney Cove, New South Wales, on January 26, 1788. This marked the foundation of a penal colony primarily to relieve overcrowded British prisons and to establish Britain's presence in the Southern Hemisphere. The colonization continued through the 19th century, culminating in the federation of the colonies into the Commonwealth of Australia in 1901.