Sydney is Australia's largest city with an area of 12,144.6 km² [3], with an estimated population of approximately 4.50 million in 2009. Sydney is the capital of New South Wales. The city was founded in 1788 by Arthur Phillip, who arrived here at the head of the First Fleet, and was the site of the first colonial European settlement in Australia. The city was named by the colonists in honor of Lord Sydney, who at that time was the Minister of Colonies of Great Britain. Sydney is located on the southeast coast of Australia. The settlement was built on the shore of a beautiful round small bay - Sydney (English Sydney cove), located in the middle of the unique long bay of Sydney Harbor - the southern branch of Port Jackson Bay (harbor), separated by a narrow strait (~ 1km) from the Tasman Sea. Subsequently, the city was built south of Sydney Harbor Bay (it is up to 20 km long with a width of 1 to 3 km and a depth of 50 m), and then around it. This was the reason that Sydney is often called "The City Near the Bay" (Eng. The Harbor City).