Why was Parliament House built in Canberra?
Hi Chayse. Great question!
Parliament House was built in Canberra because it became Australia's new national capital after Federation in 1901. The Australian Constitution required it to be in New South Wales but at least 100 miles (160 km) from Sydney. Soon after Federation, the search began for a s suitable location for the national capital to be built. The site was chosen in 1908 and named Canberra in 1913.
Australia's first Parliament House - now known as Old Parliament House - was built as a temporary place for Parliament to meet while the new capital was growing. When it opened on 9 May 1927, there were 101 members of parliament and 300 staff. As Australia’s population grew so too did the number of people working at Old Parliament House. By 1988, there were 224 parliamentarians and around 1,800 staff meaning more than 2000 people were squeezed into a space originally designed for several hundred.
The current and permanent Australian Parliament House was opened on 9 May 1988. It is a much larger building and was designed to last 200 years. Despite its size (300 metres long x 300 metres wide) and having 4,500 rooms, there are already some days when Parliament House is filled to capacity. On busy sitting – meeting – days there are usually 4,000 to 5,000 people at work in the building.
Australian Parliament House and Provisional (Old) Parliament House
John Gollings
Australian Parliament House and Provisional (Old) Parliament House
John Gollings
Description
Provisional Parliament House – also known as Old Parliament House – is where Parliament met in Canberra between 1927 and 1988. It is the smaller, white building visible at the bottom of this image. Parliament moved into a new building, Australian Parliament House, in 1988. The new building is roughly 300 metres away from the old building. In the centre of this image, the much larger Australian Parliament House is visible, with its distinctive flag mast and the Australian flag.