Bridge Of Remembrance
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The Bridge of Remembrance is one of two main
war memorial A war memorial is a building, monument, statue, or other edifice to celebrate a war or victory, or (predominating in modern times) to commemorate those who died or were injured in a war. Symbolism Historical usage It has ...
s in
Christchurch Christchurch (; ) is the largest city in the South Island and the List of cities in New Zealand, second-largest city by urban area population in New Zealand. Christchurch has an urban population of , and a metropolitan population of over hal ...
, New Zealand. It is dedicated to those who died in
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
, and serves as a memorial for those who participated in two World Wars as well as subsequent conflicts in Borneo, Korea, Malaya, and Vietnam. Owned by Christchurch City Council, it is located on the Cashel Street Bridge at the head of City Mall. The Bridge of Remembrance was repaired and strengthened following the
2011 Christchurch earthquake A major earthquake occurred in Christchurch on Tuesday 22 February 2011 at 12:51 p.m. New Zealand Daylight Time, local time (23:51 Coordinated Universal Time, UTC, 21 February). The () earthquake struck the Canterbury Region ...
and was reopened with a rededication ceremony held on
Anzac Day Anzac Day is a national day of remembrance in Australia, New Zealand and Tonga that broadly commemorates all Australians and New Zealanders "who served and died in all wars, conflicts, and peacekeeping operations" and "the contribution and ...
in 2016.


Geography

The archway was built over the east end of the Cashel Street bridge that links Oxford and Cambridge Terraces over the
Avon River / Ōtākaro The Avon River / Ōtākaro ( ; ), sometimes rendered as the River Avon, flows through the centre of the city of Christchurch, New Zealand, and into the Pacific Ocean via the Avon Heathcote Estuary / Ihutai, which it shares with the Ōpāwaho / H ...
. It became a pedestrian precinct on
Anzac Day Anzac Day is a national day of remembrance in Australia, New Zealand and Tonga that broadly commemorates all Australians and New Zealanders "who served and died in all wars, conflicts, and peacekeeping operations" and "the contribution and ...
(25 April) in 1977. East of it is the business district and the main pedestrian mall. In the area between the bridge and Victoria Square are the Floral Clock, Law Courts, Canterbury Provincial Council Buildings, Our City and the Scott Statue.


History

Edward George Wright Edward George Wright (14 June 1831 – 12 August 1902) was an independent conservative Member of Parliament in New Zealand. Biography Wright was born in Woolwich, Kent, England, in 1831. After an education in private schools, he worked ...
, a civil engineer and contractor, won the contract of building a bridge over the Avon River at Cashel Street and completed the work in May 1873. Wright was paid £509 for his work, but there was in addition a separate tender for work on the approaches. The idea of building a memorial arch on top of the existing bridge, a "Bridge of Remembrance", was first raised in a letter to ''
The Press ''The Press'' () is a daily newspaper published in Christchurch, New Zealand, owned by media business Stuff (company), Stuff Ltd. First published in 1861, the newspaper is the largest circulating daily in the South Island and publishes Monday t ...
'' on 24 July 1919, written by Mrs Wyn Irwin. The suggestion found support from the public. Construction began on 23 January 1923. The cornerstone was laid by Lord Jellicoe, Governor-General and Admiral of the Fleet on
Anzac Day Anzac Day is a national day of remembrance in Australia, New Zealand and Tonga that broadly commemorates all Australians and New Zealanders "who served and died in all wars, conflicts, and peacekeeping operations" and "the contribution and ...
, 25 April 1923, when the religious blessing was invoked by Archbishop
Churchill Julius Churchill Julius (15 October 1847 – 1 September 1938) was an Anglican cleric in England, then in Australia and New Zealand, becoming the first Archbishop of New Zealand. Biography Julius was born at Richmond, London in 1847. He was educated ...
. The memorial was unveiled on 11 November 1924,
Armistice Day Armistice Day, later known as Remembrance Day in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth and Veterans Day in the United States, is commemorated every year on 11 November to mark Armistice of 11 November 1918, the armistice signed between th ...
, by Lord Jellicoe. From King Edward Barracks further west on Cashel Street, soldiers crossed the Avon River at this location, marching off to the
railway station Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...
in Moorhouse Avenue to fight in three wars. Stage 1 of the bridge's refurbishment occurred in 1989, Stage 2 began two years later, being completed in 1992 with a commemorative plaque dedication ceremony held on 21 June. The bridge was closed to motorised traffic in 1976, several years prior to the adjacent Cashel Street's closure to vehicular traffic (on 11 January 1982). In February 2011, it was targeted by vandals who sprayed it with graffiti. Only a fortnight later, the February
2011 Christchurch earthquake A major earthquake occurred in Christchurch on Tuesday 22 February 2011 at 12:51 p.m. New Zealand Daylight Time, local time (23:51 Coordinated Universal Time, UTC, 21 February). The () earthquake struck the Canterbury Region ...
struck, damaging the arch. Permanent repair and earthquake strengthening were estimated to cost over NZ$2m.
Christchurch City Council The Christchurch City Council (CCC) is the local government authority for Christchurch in New Zealand. It is a territorial authority elected to represent the people of Christchurch. Since October 2022, the Mayor of Christchurch is Phil Ma ...
initially considered placing a temporary steel structure around the arch, but, at $430,000, have since dismissed this idea as being too expensive. The
Returned Services' Association The Royal New Zealand Returned and Services' Association, best known simply as the RSA, is one of the largest voluntary welfare organisations in New Zealand and one of the oldest ex-service organisations in the world. Wounded soldiers returnin ...
expressed dismay at the decision to not go ahead with the temporary work, citing fears of losing the heritage structure altogether in another strong aftershock, in just the same way as happened to the Lyttelton Timeball Station in the June aftershock. The Bridge of Remembrance repairs earthquake strengthening started in May 2013, with hopes of repairs being partially completed to commemorate the 100th anniversary of World War I in August 2014 and being fully completed in time to commemorate
Anzac Day Anzac Day is a national day of remembrance in Australia, New Zealand and Tonga that broadly commemorates all Australians and New Zealanders "who served and died in all wars, conflicts, and peacekeeping operations" and "the contribution and ...
2015. Those timelines were not met and whilst structural repairs were completed by December 2015 for $6.7m, the Bridge of Remembrance re-opened to the public and rededicated on Anzac Day, Monday 25 April 2016.


Design

The architectural design competition was won by the firm Prouse and Gummer, with
William Gummer William Henry Gummer (7 December 1884 – 13 December 1966) was a New Zealand architect. Gummer was born in Auckland, New Zealand, in 1884. He studied architecture at the Royal Academy of Arts from 1909 to 1912 and during that time worked ...
undertaking the design work. Gummer also designed several other notable New Zealand memorials, notably the
Dunedin Cenotaph The Cenotaph in the southern New Zealand city of Dunedin stands in the centre of Queens Gardens, close to the city centre. It is the city's main war memorial. Location and dedication The cenotaph stands in Queens Gardens, an open park lying be ...
. The arch's central frame includes the inscription ''Quid non-pro patria'' ("What ill a mannot ofor iscountry ). There are several unit memorials, and a plaque to
Charles Upham Charles Hazlitt Upham (21 September 1908 – 22 November 1994) was a New Zealand soldier decorated for actions during World War II. Born in Christchurch, New Zealand, he attended Christ's College, Christchurch, Christ's College and later the ...
. The arch style bridge is ornamented. Symbolic features of the memorial include a cross, torches, coat of arms, laurel wreaths, Latin inscription,
fascine A fascine (pronounced ) is a rough bundle of wikt:brushwood, brushwood or other material used for strengthening an earthen structure, or making a path across uneven or wet terrain. Typical uses are protecting the banks of streams from erosion (a ...
s and rosemary decoration. There are also decorative lions that were carved by
Frederick Gurnsey Frederick George Gurnsey (18 January 1868 – 23 October 1953) was a New Zealand carver and art teacher. He was born in Newport, Monmouthshire, Wales on 18 January 1868. He did the carvings for the Bridge of Remembrance in Christchurch ...
(1868–1953).


Heritage listing

On 2 April 1985, the Bridge of Remembrance was registered as a Category I heritage structure with the
New Zealand Historic Places Trust Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga (initially the National Historic Places Trust and then, from 1963 to 2014, the New Zealand Historic Places Trust; in ) is a Crown entity that advocates for the protection of ancestral sites and heritage bui ...
, with registration number 289.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bridge of Remembrance Heritage New Zealand Category 1 historic places in the Canterbury Region Christchurch Central City Buildings and structures completed in 1924 Buildings and structures in Christchurch New Zealand military memorials and cemeteries Tourist attractions in Christchurch Monuments and memorials in New Zealand 2011 Christchurch earthquake Bridges completed in 1873 Bridges in the Canterbury Region 1920s architecture in New Zealand World War I memorials in New Zealand