The Victoria Tower was the prominent main bell tower of the original

Centre Block The Centre Block (french: Édifice du Centre) is the main building of the Canadian parliamentary complex on Parliament Hill, in Ottawa, Ontario, containing the House of Commons and Senate chambers, as well as the offices of a number of members ...

parliament building in Ottawa,

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...

, Canada. The tower was the centre piece of

Parliament Hill Parliament Hill (french: Colline du Parlement, colloquially known as The Hill, is an area of Crown land on the southern banks of the Ottawa River in downtown Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Its Gothic revival suite of buildings, and their archit ...

that was constructed from 1859 to 1866 by

Thomas Fuller Thomas Fuller (baptised 19 June 1608 – 16 August 1661) was an English churchman and historian. He is now remembered for his writings, particularly his ''Worthies of England'', published in 1662, after his death. He was a prolific author, and ...

. It was destroyed during the great fire of the Centre Block on 3 February 1916. Its replacement, the

Peace Tower The Peace Tower (french: link=no, Tour de la Paix) is a focal bell and clock tower sitting on the central axis of the Centre Block of the Canadian parliament buildings in Ottawa, Ontario. The present incarnation replaced the Victoria Towe ...

, was built on the same location but the design (larger clock face, ornamental Victoria High Gothic vs. simpler Modern Gothic) and height were radically changed. The original tower bore some similarities to the tower at the

Parliament Building (Quebec) The Parliament Building of Quebec (french: Hôtel du Parlement du Québec, links=no) is an eight-floor structure and is home to the National Assembly of Quebec (french: Assemblée Nationale du Québec, links=no), located in Quebec City, Quebec, Ca ...

(still standing).

Interior

Inside the walls of the tower was a vacant space with a series of staircases leading to the bell tower. The upper section of the bell tower had a spiral staircase that lead to the spire outside and inside the support and actual bells. Access to the tower was from the second floor of the Centre Block as the ground floor was empty space that formed the opening and entrance to the Centre Block.

Victoria Tower Bell

The Victoria Tower Bell is the only relic remaining from the Victoria Tower. It was cast in

1875 Events January–March * January 1 – The Midland Railway of England abolishes the Second Class passenger category, leaving First Class and Third Class. Other British railway companies follow Midland's lead during the rest of the ...

and installed in the tower in 1877. The bell fell from the tower during the Centre Block fire of 1916. The actual tower structure (outer walls) survived the fire, but the upper bell tower had collapsed on February 3 and torn down during the reconstruction of the Centre Block. The bell was restored in the year

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from S ...

, and placed on the grounds of Parliament Hill as a monument to the 1916 fire and to Canada's first Centre Block parliamentary building. It is showcased on a circular

granite Granite () is a coarse-grained ( phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies under ...

base, etched as the face of a clock, that represents its role in the keeping of time. The bell's inclined position recalls the angle at which it came to rest after falling during the fire of 1916.

Sources

* Public Works and Government Services Canada {{coord, 45.4249, N, 75.6999, W, region:CA-ON_type:landmark, display=title Towers completed in 1866 1916 disestablishments Parliament of Canada buildings Demolished buildings and structures in Ottawa Burned buildings and structures in Canada 1916 fires in North America Gothic Revival architecture in Ottawa Buildings and structures demolished in 1916 Bell towers in Canada Towers in Ontario 1866 establishments in Canada