Parliament House, Adelaide

Development and planning (1855–1883)

Criticism of the overcrowded and poorly ventilated environment of Old Parliament House emerged soon after its completion in 1855. In 1864, a parliamentary select committee recommended inviting designs for a new Parliament House to be constructed on vacant land located between what is now known as the Old Parliament House and King William Street (then known as City Bridge Road).^[1] In 1874, Governor Anthony Musgrave appointed a commission to examine the designs submitted in the architectural competition for the proposed building.^[2][3] Although the winning design prepared by Edmund Wright and Lloyd Tayler was accepted, site difficulties and financial constraints prevented construction from proceeding immediately.^[4]

In 1874, a commission was appointed to consider the site and design for a new Parliament House. Debate over its location divided opinion, with proposals including sites west of Victoria Square, on the Government House grounds west of the Institute Building, east of the Legislative Council, and at the junction of North Terrace and King William Street. Some supported the North Terrace site because it would preserve opportunities for future railway expansion elsewhere. Following continued debate and the appointment of additional commissions, legislation was passed in 1877 that approved the usage of park lands at the junction of North Terrace and King William Street as the site of the new building. In 1879, the government invited competitive designs for the proposed Parliament House, although the selected design was not built. Parliament resolved to proceed with construction in 1881, and, in an effort to reduce costs, responsibility for the project was transferred to the Architect-in-Chief Edmund Woods's office. In early 1883, Woods was instructed to prepare specifications despite opposition from some members of the House of Assembly. Woods subsequently revised the earlier design prepared by Wright and Tayler, and although he is generally credited as the building's architect, the revised plans were based on their original design.^[1][5]

West Wing (1885–1889)

Local materials, including Kapunda marble and West Island granite, were selected to support South Australian industries.^[1] The government awarded a A£102,000 contract to the Kapunda Marble Company to construct the West Wing. The company's work on the foundations and basement was initially described as satisfactory.^[5] However, disputes subsequently arose over the quality of the workmanship, and the contract was terminated in 1885. Construction was temporarily suspended, leaving more than 100 workers unemployed. In February 1886, the contract to complete the building was awarded to James Shaw & Company for £98,000, with approximately 95 workers employed on the construction site and a further 60 at a government-leased marble quarry.^[1][5]

The anticipated expense of the project resulted in further opposition; however, supporters argued that the building would provide a suitable commemoration of Australia's centenary in 1888.^[5] To reduce costs, the towers and dome included in earlier designs were omitted from the final building. The completed West Wing accommodated the House of Assembly chamber and associated offices, while the Legislative Council continued to meet in Old Parliament House.^[1] The total cost of constructing and furnishing the new House of Assembly was £165,404.^[2]

Construction was completed in March 1889, three months after the contractual completion date.^[5] The West Wing was officially opened on 5 June 1889 by Algernon Keith-Falconer, 9th Earl of Kintore during an "at home" reception hosted by Henry Ayers and John Cox Bray, attended by more than 1,000 guests. The House of Assembly first met in the new chamber on 6 June 1889.^[1]

East Wing (1913–1939)

Proposals for the East Wing were not revisited until 1913, when the Architect-in-Chief's Office prepared sketch designs that omitted the originally proposed towers and dome.^[1] The plans were endorsed by a joint parliamentary committee but were suspended following the outbreak of World War I in 1914,^[2] leaving Parliament House incomplete for approximately 50 years.^[6]

The proposals to complete Parliament House were revived in 1934 during preparations for South Australia's centenary celebrations in 1936, with the project promoted both as a commemorative initiative and as a source of employment during the Great Depression.^[1] Construction of the East Wing commenced in March 1936 after a £100,000 donation from John Langdon Bonython. Architect-in-Chief Alfred Edward Simpson prepared a revised design based on the 1913 plans, with A. Slater of Kilkenny appointed as the building contractor.^[1]

The East Wing, including the new Legislative Council chamber, was completed at a cost of £241,887.^[2] Parliament House was officially opened on 5 June 1939, marking the fiftieth anniversary of the opening of the West Wing. The ceremony was conducted by Governor-General Alexander Hore-Ruthven, 1st Earl of Gowrie, who had previously served as the state governor. Around 450 official guests representing governments and legislatures across the British Commonwealth attended, while approximately 6,000 spectators witnessed the ceremonial proceedings. The celebrations concluded with an afternoon tea for approximately 2,500 guests at Government House.^[1]

Architecture

The original design prepared by Wright and Tayler adopted the Victorian Academic Classical style and featured a central portico supported by Corinthian columns, a dome-capped tower, and smaller towers above projecting colonnaded wings.^[1] The completed Parliament House, located immediately east of the Old Parliament House,^[2] retained the Classical character of the earlier design but omitted the proposed central tower and dome.^[4] Constructed of granite with marble,^[7] the two-storey building has a granite basement, a principal façade with four Corinthian columns supporting the entrance portico, and a balustraded parapet surmounted by four urns.^[4] The principal entrance on North Terrace is approached by marble stairs flanked by cast-iron gas lamps manufactured by G. E. Fulton & Co., with marble also used throughout the internal staircases. The West Wing incorporated a mechanical ventilation system, gas lighting with provision for future electrical wiring, and electric call bells and messenger buttons. The East Wing includes a colonnaded south façade facing North Terrace, a complementary east façade facing King William Road, and a simplified north façade designed to harmonise with the West Wing. It accommodates the Legislative Council Chamber, Parliamentary Library, committee rooms, parliamentary offices, and Hansard offices.^[1] Cambrian flagstone from Mintaro was used for the corridor floors.^[8]

Parliamentary chambers and layout

In both chambers of Parliament House, seating and gallery arrangements are based on the Westminster system and organised according to parliamentary roles and access levels. The presiding officer's chair is located at the northern end of the chamber in an elevated position, with a table in front containing seats for the clerk, the chairman of committees, and the deputy clerk and serjeant-at-arms; a mace or black rod is placed on brackets above this table when the presiding officer is seated. Government members sit on the right-hand side of the presiding officer, arranged on the Treasury benches in order of precedence with the Premier closest to the presiding officer, while opposition members sit on the left-hand side, with crossbench members positioned at the southern end of the chamber in a horseshoe arrangement leading to the entrance gangway. Each member is allocated a fixed seat identified by a nameplate on the desk. Behind the presiding officer's chair are galleries for Hansard reporters in the centre and media representatives on either side, while additional galleries include a President or Speaker's Gallery accessible by permission of the presiding officer and a Strangers' Gallery open during sittings for public viewing.^[9]

The House of Assembly Chamber includes fluted columns supporting a panelled ceiling finished with gold leaf and illuminated by porcelain chandeliers. Portraits of former Speakers and Premiers are installed between the columns, and the Speaker's chair, made of American walnut, is positioned on a raised platform. Members' furniture is constructed from walnut with teak panels, which has green upholstery, and the carpeting incorporates South Australian motifs such as grapes, wheat, and wattle.^[1] A 'sword-strip' red carpet border is placed in front of the Treasury and opposition front benches and incorporates the Sturt's Desert Pea motif. Its use reflects a historical convention associated with parliamentary procedure in the House of Commons, where such floor markings were used to indicate a boundary between opposing members.^[9]

The Legislative Council Chamber is finished with Queensland maple panelling and red carpeting^[1] and is the same size as the House of Assembly Chamber. At the northern end is the Vice-Regal Throne, also known as the President's Throne, which has been in use since 1855. It is made of English oak with carved Gothic ornamentation and features red velvet upholstery. It rests on spiral columns, crowned with the Royal Arms in oak. The chamber is used for the opening of parliamentary sessions by the Sovereign's representative, such as the Governor or Lieutenant Governor, in the presence of both houses of Parliament.^[9]

Monuments, plaques, and commemorations

Two commemorative stones were unveiled in the East Wing on 23 December 1936 by Winston Dugan, 1st Baron Dugan of Victoria.^[1] One refers to Edward Gibbon Wakefield and reproduces a statement concerning the grant of self-government to the Province of South Australia once its population reached 50,000.^[10] The second records the completion of Parliament House as a commemoration of self-government and the centenary of the state, referring to approximately eighty years of responsible government.^[11] Following the completion of Parliament House in 1939, a stone lion that was formerly part of the Palace of Westminster was installed after being given as a present from the United Kingdom branch of the Empire Parliamentary Association.^[12][13]

On 22 March 1951, a plaque commemorating the 1897 Australasian Federal Convention was unveiled to the west of the lion statue, recording the convention and the drafting committee comprising John Downer, Edmund Barton, and Richard Edward O'Connor, with Charles Kingston presiding and Richard Chaffey Baker serving as chair.^[14] A bronze memorial plaque honouring Wakefield was unveiled by Willoughby Norrie, 1st Baron Norrie on 18 April 1952,^[15] followed by a commemorative plaque unveiled by Robert George on 26 April 1957 to mark the centenary of responsible government.^[16] A further plaque commemorates women's suffrage in South Australia, recognising the 1894 legislation granting women the right to vote and to stand for Parliament. During the centenary of women's suffrage, a time capsule was placed in a vault within Parliament House for opening during the bicentenary celebrations in 2094.^[17]