Vol XIV, No. 1 - Winter 2006
Contents |
In Focus |
Geo News |
Awards |
Serving in Iraq |
The Back Page
On November 6, 2005 the Myanmar (Burma) government ordered government offices to move from the capital city of Yangon (Rangoon) to Pyinmana, a newly constructed city in the interior approximately halfway between Yangon and Mandalay. The fortified site was selected and built for strategic reasons.
This is not the first time that a capital city has moved or a city has been built to become the seat of government. Most are familiar with the relocation of Brazil's capital from Rio de Janeiro to Brasília. Brasília was carved from the interior of Brazil for strategic purposes. As a port, officials were concerned about naval attacks on Rio. Planning began in 1956 and Brasília became the capital in 1970.
Canberra was not the first capital of Australia. Melbourne became the first capital in 1901. In 1908 officials adopted the current site of the Australian Capital Territory as the location for a new capital city. Construction was delayed by World War I and in 1927, Canberra was settled.
There are many examples where the seat of government has been relocated recently: Abuja, Nigeria from Lagos in 1991; Dodoma, Tanzania from Dar es Salaam in 1996; and Astana (Aqmola), Kazakhstan from Alma Ata in 1997. These capital cities were chosen for their central location within their respective countries. For many reasons, some governmental functions may remain in the former capital. Yamoussoukro, Côte d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast) was designated the capital from Abidjan in 1983 because the president was born in what was then a small interior village. Today the city has wide boulevards and modern buildings as well as the largest church in Africa.
Lest we forget, our own capital city, Washington, DC, replaced New York and Philadelphia in 1800. Congress designated a site for the new capital on Federal land central to both the northern and southern states, upon the recommendation of Alexander Hamilton. George Washington, whose estate Mount Vernon was nearby, chose the site and Frenchman Pierre L'Enfant designed the plan. And the rest, as "they" say, is history... or is that geography?
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