Old
Parliament House served as the home of Federal
Parliament until 1988 and opened in 1927. In
Early years of Canberra the House was the communal,
geographic and biased heart of the new Australian
capital. As the time passed, this inspiring
building became identical with few of the country's
most important moments such as Australia's declaration
of war in 1939 and the dismissal of Gough Whitlam's
Labor Government in 1975.
During
the 60's, Old Parliament House served as a working
parliament which was the time of enormous change for
Australia. Politically the country has been grown
from an Imperial Dominion to a homeland in its own
right. At that time, Old Parliament House was the
theatre in which the politics of the day were played
out and vital decisions made.
The connotation
of Old Parliament House today fabricates in its historical
and social value to the people of Australia. The House
is a countrywide noteworthy 'museum of itself' and
of Australia's political legacy-so, being a popular
tourist destination, it is also a precious place which
needs conservation.
The bequest
of Old Parliament House does not just belong to the
events that took place there, or in the names of the
people who walked its lobbies. Its legacy also lies
in the day to day business of government & parliament,
the policies, the speeches, and the laws that affected
all Australians. Every part of this construction tells
a story.
Thousands
of people passed through this edifice over the years,
on their way to administer the country, inscribe
the newspaper stories, cook the meals or direct
the ministers. It is the collision of all of these
people on the nation over the past 75 years that
makes this construction an Australian icon. Over
its 61 years the story of the construction, design,
the opening, and the people who worked at the House
help to explain the sense of history that people
feel when they visit the building.
Old Parliament
House is predicted as a nationally momentous cultural
and heritage site. It is listed on: The Australian
Heritage Commission's Register of the National Estate,
the National Trust of Australia's Register of Classified
Places, the Royal Australian Institute of Architect's
Register of Significant Twentieth Century Architecture
and the ACT Heritage Council's Interim ACT Heritage
Place Register. As the building is important because
of the events which occurred here, it is also significant
in provisions of architectural values. John Smith
Murdoch designed this house, the first Commonwealth
Government architect. He was asked to design a 'temporary'
building that would serve as a parliament for fifty
years. In the 1920s and 1930s, Murdoch worked with
the 'stripped classical' style, common in government
buildings. It is decipherable in Murdoch's other Canberra
buildings, including the Hotel Canberra (now Hyatt
Hotel Canberra), Hotel Kurrajong and the East and
West Blocks, which are the original government office
buildings in Canberra.
The
modest and functional building was Murdoch's provisional
parliament building which was filled with natural
light from windows,
skylights and light wells. By the verandahs and
colonnades, and strong horizontal lines, the building
was not as some people expected a parliamentary
building to be, and it attracted criticism from
some architects at the time.
These
days, thanks to John Smith Murdoch, Creator of Old
Parliament House is one of the most recognizable
buildings in Australia
and is a considerable architectural achievement.
