Albany is a port city located in the Great Southern Region of Western Australia, some 390 kilometres south-east of Perth, the state capital. As of 2009, Albany's population is estimated at approximate 33,600 making it the sixth-largest city in the state.
The city centre is located at the northern edge of Princess Royal Harbour, which is a part of King George Sound. The Central Business District is bounded by Mount Clarence to the east and Mount Melville to the west. The city is situated in the Local Government Area of the City of Albany.

The city was founded in January 1827 as a military outpost of New South Wales as part of a plan to forestall French ambition in the region. The area was initially named Frederickstown in honour of Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany. In 1831 the settlement was transferred to the control of the Swan River Colony and renamed Albany by Governor James Stirling.

During the late nineteenth and early twentieth century's the town served as a gateway to the Eastern Goldfields and for many years was the colony's only deep water port, having a place of eminence on shipping services between Britain and its Australian colonies. The construction of Fremantle Harbour in 1893, however, saw its importance as a port decline after which the towns industries turned primarily to agriculture and timber and, later, whaling. Unlike Perth and Fremantle, Albany was a strong supporter of Federation in 1901.

Today the town has a place of significance as a tourist destination and base from which to explore the south west of the state and is well regarded for its natural beauty and preservation of heritage. The town has an important though somewhat controversial role in the Anzac legend, being the last port of call for troopships departing Australia in the First World War.
Albany is the oldest permanently settled town in Western Australia, predating Perth and Fremantle by some two years.

The Albany region was first home to the Menang Noongar people, who made use of the area during the summer months for fishing and other activities. They called the area Kinjarling which means "the place of rain". Many town names in South Western Australia end in "up" or "ing", which means "place of" in the Noongar language. Early European explorers discovered evidence of fish traps located on the Emu Point and on the French, now Kalgan, River and a small "village" of bark dwellings that were, at the time, deserted.

Albany is also the oldest continuous European settlement in Western Australia, and was founded in 1826, three years before the state capital of Perth. The King George Sound settlement was a hastily-dispatched British military outpost, intended to forestall any plans by France for settlements in Western Australia.

The first European explorers to visit the area around Albany were on the Dutch ship Gulden Zeepaert (Golden Seahorse) skippered by François Thijssen in 1626. They sailed along the south coast towards South Australia.

Many years later in 1791, English explorer George Vancouver explored the south coast including entering and naming King George Sound. Albany was the site at which on 26 September 1791, Vancouver took possession of New Holland for the British Crown. Vancouver went out of his way to establish good relations with the local Aboriginal people.

In 1792, Frenchman Bruni d'Entrecasteaux in charge of the Recherche and L'Esperance reached Cape Leeuwin on 5 December and explored eastward along the southern coast. The expedition did not enter King George Sound due to bad weather.

In 1801, Matthew Flinders entered King George Sound and stayed about a month before charting the rest of the southern Australian coastline. By 1806 he had completed the first circumnavigation of Australia.
Australian-born explorer Phillip Parker King visited King George Sound in 1822 on the Bathurst.
On 26 October 1826 Frenchman Dumont d'Urville in the L'Astrolabe visited King George Sound before sailing along the south coast to Port Jackson.

Later in 1826, on Christmas Day, a British Army expedition, led by Major Edmund Lockyer arrived on the Amity, from Sydney, and founded a military base. Lockyer rescued Aboriginal women from offshore islands, who had been kidnapped by sealers operating in the Great Australian Bight as sexual slaves, and apprehended the culprits sending them east to stand trial. As a result the local Minang Noongar organised a corroboree in his honour, cementing the good relations established earlier between local Aboriginal groups of the area and European explorers.

Albany was officially named by Governor Stirling at the beginning of 1832, at the time that political authority passed to the Swan River colony. It is named after Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany, and son of King George III.

Albany was also the final destination in 1841 of explorer Edward John Eyre, after being the first person to reach Western Australia by land from the east (Adelaide).
Until the opening of the Port of Fremantle in 1900, Albany was also home to the only deepwater port in Western Australia, Princess Royal Harbour, which is the largest natural harbour in Western Australia and also on the entire south coast of the Australian mainland, outside of Melbourne. This facility meant that for many years, the first port of call for the mail from England was Albany. This put Albany in a privileged position over Perth and it remained that way until C. Y. O'Connor used dynamite on the reef blocking the entrance into the Swan River in Fremantle.

Since that time, Albany has become popular with retirees, with inhabitants enjoying the fresh air, clean beaches, and fine views over the Southern Ocean, while still proving a thriving regional centre.
The city centre of Albany is located between the hills of Mount Melville and Mount Clarence which look down into Princess Royal Harbour. There are many beaches surrounding Albany, with Middleton Beach being the closest to the town centre. Popular beaches include Middleton Beach, Frenchman Bay and Muttonbird Island.
It is 408 kilometres (254 mi) south-southeast of the state capital, Perth, to which it is linked by the Albany Highway and the Highway 1 (a less direct but more scenic route).

Albany has a Mediterranean climate with generally warm summers and cool, wet winters. The city is situated on what is promoted as the "Rainbow Coast" which is an appropriate title given the significant frequency of days with both sun and drizzle or showers.

July is the wettest month, with a long-term average of over 140 mm, whilst rain occurs on two days out of every three during an average winter. The driest month is February with a mean of about 23 mm and in summer it rains on average about one day in every four.

Albany received a record amount of rain on November 20, 2008 when violent storms swept across the Great Southern. The town was flooded after 113.8 millimetres (4 in) of rain fell in a 24 hour period, the highest amount recorded since records began in 1877.