The ''Kate Sheppard National Memorial'', located in the city of

Christchurch Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon Rive ...

, is New Zealand's first memorial to the

women's suffrage Women's suffrage is the right of women to vote in elections. Beginning in the start of the 18th century, some people sought to change voting laws to allow women to vote. Liberal political parties would go on to grant women the right to vot ...

campaign, and particularly honours the life of one of the country's leading campaigners for women's suffrage,

Kate Sheppard Katherine Wilson Sheppard ( Catherine Wilson Malcolm; 10 March 1848 – 13 July 1934) was the most prominent member of the women's suffrage movement in New Zealand and the country's most famous suffragist. Born in Liverpool, England, she emi ...

. The idea for the memorial was raised in 1989 as part of plans to commemorate the 100th anniversary of women's suffrage in New Zealand in 1993. A committee was formed to select a design for the memorial, and the design of Dutch-born New Zealand artist Margriet Windhausen was chosen. The memorial is a stone aggregate wall, with a life size bronze relief sculpture of Sheppard and five other women's suffrage leaders. Panels on either side of the sculpture depict scenes of everyday women's lives at the end of the nineteenth century, and carry text describing the struggle for women's suffrage. The whole structure is approximately wide and tall. The women featured in the sculpture are (from left to right): * Meri Mangakāhia of

Te Tai Tokerau Te Tai Tokerau () is a New Zealand parliamentary Māori electorate that was created out of the Northern Maori electorate ahead of the first Mixed Member Proportional (MMP) election in 1996. It was held first by Tau Henare representing New Ze ...

, who approached

Te Kotahitanga The Kotahitanga movement was an autonomous Māori parliament convened annually in New Zealand from 1892 until 1902. Though not recognised by the New Zealand Government, the Māori Parliament was an influential body while it lasted. By 1902 its ro ...

(the Māori parliament) for women's suffrage *

Amey Daldy Amey Daldy ( Hamerton, 1829 – 17 August 1920) was an English-born New Zealand feminist and suffragist. She was an important leader in the movement for women's suffrage in New Zealand, but later resigned as superintendent of the Auckland W. ...

of the

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about ...

Woman's Christian Temperance Union The Woman's Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) is an international temperance organization, originating among women in the United States Prohibition movement. It was among the first organizations of women devoted to social reform with a program th ...

. * Kate Sheppard *

Ada Wells Ada Wells (née Pike, 29 April 1863 – 22 March 1933) was a feminist and social worker in New Zealand. Biography Ada Pike was born near Henley-on-Thames, South Oxfordshire, England. Her parents emigrated to New Zealand with their four gir ...

, a campaigner for girls' education *

Harriet Morison Harriet Russell Morison (1862 – 19 August 1925) was a New Zealand tailor, trade unionist, suffragist and public servant. Early life Morison was born in Magherafelt, County Londonderry, Ireland in 1862. She came to New Zealand with her parent ...

, an advocate for working women, also from Dunedin *

Helen Nicol Helen Nicol (later Fox; May 9, 1920 – July 25, 2021) was a Canadian-American baseball pitcher who played from through in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL). Listed at , , Nicol batted and threw right-handed. She was ...

, a women's suffrage campaigner who lived in

Dunedin Dunedin ( ; mi, Ōtepoti) is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand (after Christchurch), and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from , the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. Th ...

The group of women are depicted carrying their petition for women's suffrage to Parliament in a wooden cart. Tribute to the Suffragettes, Christchurch, NZ

Tribute to the Suffragettes, Christchurch, NZ

The memorial was unveiled on 19 September 1993, the 100th anniversary of women's suffrage in New Zealand, by Dame Catherine Tizard, the Governor-General of New Zealand. A time capsule containing news articles and information on women's lives in 1993 was placed inside the monument. The memorial is located in a landscaped area known as the Kate Sheppard National Memorial Reserve, beside the Avon River and adjacent to a heritage building, Our City (the Old Municipal Chambers) near the corner of Worcester Street and Oxford Terrace. This building was damaged in the

2010 Canterbury earthquake The 2010 Canterbury earthquake (also known as the Darfield earthquake) struck the South Island of New Zealand with a moment magnitude of 7.1 at on , and had a maximum perceived intensity of X (''Extreme'') on the Mercalli intensity scale. Som ...

and the memorial was behind barricades while the building was assessed. In a ceremony presided over by the Mayor of Christchurch,

Lianne Dalziel Lianne Audrey Dalziel (; born 7 June 1960) is a New Zealand politician and former Mayor of Christchurch. Prior to this position, she was a member of the New Zealand Parliament for 23 years, serving as Minister of Immigration, Commerce, Minister ...

, in June 2014, the memorial was liberated from the barricades and public access was restored.

References

External links

Photo of ''Kate Sheppard National Memorial'' unveiling ceremony, 1993
{{Suffrage Christchurch Central City Monuments and memorials to women's suffrage Monuments and memorials in New Zealand Outdoor sculptures in Christchurch 1993 sculptures Women's suffrage in New Zealand 1993 in New Zealand Sheppard, Kate Cultural depictions of activists Cultural depictions of Kate Sheppard Bronze sculptures in New Zealand

See also

References

External links