The Government Buildings Historic Reserve, or more commonly referred to as the Old Government Buildings, is situated on
Lambton Quay
Lambton Quay (once known as The Beach) is the heart of the central business district of Wellington, the capital city of New Zealand.
Originally, as the name implies, it was the high-water line of the foreshore, and sometimes the sea would roll ...
in
Wellington
Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...
. It was completed in 1876, and until 1998 was the second-largest wooden building in the world (after
Tōdai-ji
is a Buddhist temple complex that was once one of the powerful Seven Great Temples, located in the city of Nara, Japan. Though it was originally founded in the year 738 CE, Tōdai-ji was not opened until the year 752 CE. The temple has undergo ...
in
Nara, Japan
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Nara Prefecture has a population of 1,321,805 and has a geographic area of . Nara Prefecture borders Kyoto Prefecture to the north, Osaka Prefecture to the northwest, Wakayama P ...
).
[Historic Government Buildings](_blank)
Department of Conservation
It was built to house New Zealand's
public service
A public service is any service intended to address specific needs pertaining to the aggregate members of a community. Public services are available to people within a government jurisdiction as provided directly through public sector agencies ...
, and now houses the
Victoria University of Wellington
Victoria University of Wellington ( mi, Te Herenga Waka) is a university in Wellington, Wellington, New Zealand. It was established in 1897 by Act of New Zealand Parliament, Parliament, and was a constituent college of the University of New Z ...
's
Law School
A law school (also known as a law centre or college of law) is an institution specializing in legal education, usually involved as part of a process for becoming a lawyer within a given jurisdiction.
Law degrees Argentina
In Argentina, ...
. The building is classified as a "Category I" ("places of 'special or outstanding historical or cultural heritage significance or value'") historic place by
Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga, previously known as the New Zealand Historic Places Trust.
History
Construction and style
The building was commissioned in the early 1870s by the
Fox Ministry, partially in anticipation of the abolition of the
provincial governments. It was originally planned to have the building constructed in
concrete
Concrete is a composite material composed of fine and coarse construction aggregate, aggregate bonded together with a fluid cement (cement paste) that hardens (cures) over time. Concrete is the second-most-used substance in the world after wa ...
and
timber
Lumber is wood that has been processed into dimensional lumber, including beams and planks or boards, a stage in the process of wood production. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, w ...
, but the cost of concrete at the time led to a decision to build in timber alone. The
Italianate
The Italianate style was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture. Like Palladianism and Neoclassicism, the Italianate style drew its inspiration from the models and architectural vocabulary of 16th-century Italia ...
,
Neo-Renaissance
Renaissance Revival architecture (sometimes referred to as "Neo-Renaissance") is a group of 19th century architectural revival styles which were neither Greek Revival nor Gothic Revival but which instead drew inspiration from a wide range o ...
style was usually the domain of stone buildings, thus the building is designed to mimic stone. As an important symbol of nationhood, the building was constructed to resemble an
Italian stone palace to help convey its strength and stability in the expanding empire.
The timber is native
kauri
''Agathis'', commonly known as kauri or dammara, is a genus of 22 species of evergreen tree. The genus is part of the ancient conifer family Araucariaceae, a group once widespread during the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods, but now largely re ...
, which could not be replicated because New Zealand's remaining public kauri forests are permanently protected. If the building had been constructed out of stone as planned, it may not have survived subsequent earthquakes, as it is situated near a major fault line. The architect was
William Clayton and the contractors were
Scoular and Archibald.
The building has 143 rooms, 64 toilets, 126 fireplaces and 22 chimneys.
When it opened in 1876, after 22 months of construction, and at a cost of £39 000,
[Department of Conservation ''Government Buildings Historic Reserve'' 2002] it was easily the largest building in the country
[Wellington City Council](_blank)
and is now considered to be one of New Zealand's most important historic buildings.
The building was built on reclaimed land.
Expansion and restoration
The building was extended in 1897 and again in 1907, with additions to the wings. It was also surrounded by outbuildings, and the original interior obscured by partitions, linings and paint. Following the departure of the Education Department, the building underwent thorough restoration under the management of the
Department of Conservation
An environmental ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for the environment and/or natural resources. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of the Environment, ...
, which at the time included the
Historic Places Trust. Although some early work was done in the 1980s, the bulk of the restoration took place from 1994 to 1996. Many original features were replicated, including fireplaces although these are now purely decorative. The original
totara
''Podocarpus totara'' (; from the Maori-language ; the spelling "totara" is also common in English) is a species of podocarp tree endemic to New Zealand. It grows throughout the North Island and northeastern South Island in lowland, montane an ...
piles were replaced with concrete. Over 500 cubic metres of recycled
kauri
''Agathis'', commonly known as kauri or dammara, is a genus of 22 species of evergreen tree. The genus is part of the ancient conifer family Araucariaceae, a group once widespread during the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods, but now largely re ...
was used during the restoration project, to supplement the original timber. Verandahs, late Victorian and Edwardian water radiators, the original clock and coat of arms, a water-powered hydraulic lift, and the impressive staircases were all restored or preserved.
The piles, originally totara, are now concrete. All structural framing is
Tasmania
)
, nickname =
, image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdi ...
n
hardwood
Hardwood is wood from dicot trees. These are usually found in broad-leaved temperate and tropical forests. In temperate and boreal latitudes they are mostly deciduous, but in tropics and subtropics mostly evergreen. Hardwood (which comes ...
(now augmented with
pinus radiata
''Pinus radiata'' ( syn. ''Pinus insignis''), the Monterey pine, insignis pine or radiata pine, is a species of pine native to the Central Coast of California and Mexico (Guadalupe Island and Cedros island). It is an evergreen conifer in the ...
), while weatherboards, flooring and finishing timbers are kauri.
A two year programme of restoration of the 804 sash windows in the building was completed in 2021.
Smokefree policy
Over concerns about the threat of fire, workers were not allowed to smoke inside, making it the first building in the world to have a
smoke-free policy.
Changing uses
The Old Government Building was an important symbol of nationhood, as it was completed in the same month that provincial government in New Zealand ended and central government 'finally asserted its authority'.
The building initially housed the entire Wellington-based civil service as well as the entire
New Zealand Cabinet
The Cabinet of New Zealand ( mi, Te Rūnanga o te Kāwanatanga o AotearoaTranslated as: "The Rūnanga (literally 'Council') of the Government of New Zealand") is the New Zealand Government's body of senior ministers, accountable to the New Ze ...
. In addition, the
Executive Council met there until 1948. The civil service rapidly expanded beyond the capacity of the building, with the first department leaving shortly after it was opened. By 1975 only the
Education Department remained, and by 1990 the building was empty.
After housing government departments for 114 years, Government funding was made available and restoration began in 1994 under the management of the
Department of Conservation
An environmental ministry is a national or subnational government agency politically responsible for the environment and/or natural resources. Various other names are commonly used to identify such agencies, such as Ministry of the Environment, ...
, which became the building's owners. Wherever possible the building was to be restored to its 1907 appearance, when the north and south wing extensions were completed. The project spanned two years and cost $25 million.
The government buildings were formally reopened in January 1996 after the
Law Faculty of
Victoria University signed a 50-year tenancy that year and became its new occupants. Its restoration is considered a landmark government-initiated heritage conservation project.
Public admission
The building was reopened in January 1996. The grounds are open to the public, and contain examples of rare native
New Zealand flora.
The public may view the displays on the ground floor and the Cabinet room on the first floor, but the rest of the building is leased to the Victoria University School of Law.
Suspected arson attack
In March 2015, the buildings suffered minimal damage in a suspected arson attack.
See also
*
Ostankino Palace, third-largest wooden building in the world
References
External links
Department of Conservation's ''Meet the Locals'' (TVNZ) segmentGoogle 3D Warehouse Model
{{Victoria University of Wellington
Buildings and structures in Wellington City
Government buildings completed in 1876
NZHPT Category I listings in the Wellington Region
1870s architecture in New Zealand
Wooden buildings and structures in New Zealand
Restored and conserved buildings
William Clayton (architect) buildings
Wellington Central, Wellington