The Wellington Cenotaph, also known as the Wellington Citizens' War Memorial, is a

war memorial A war memorial is a building, monument, statue, or other edifice to celebrate a war or victory, or (predominating in modern times) to commemorate those who died or were injured in a war. Symbolism Historical usage It has ...

located on the intersection of

Lambton Quay Lambton Quay (once known as The Beach) is the heart of the central business district of Wellington, the capital city of New Zealand. Originally, as the name implies, it was the high-water line of the foreshore, and sometimes the sea would roll ...

and Bowen Street in

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

, New Zealand. It commemorates the war dead of the two world wars. The cenotaph is listed by

Heritage New Zealand Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga (initially the National Historic Places Trust and then, from 1963 to 2014, the New Zealand Historic Places Trust) ( mi, Pouhere Taonga) is a Crown entity with a membership of around 20,000 people that advocate ...

and it is the city's focus for the annual

Anzac Day , image = Dawn service gnangarra 03.jpg , caption = Anzac Day Dawn Service at Kings Park, Western Australia, 25 April 2009, 94th anniversary. , observedby = Australia Christmas Island Cocos (Keeling) Islands Cook Islands New ...

commemorations.

History

It was unveiled on Anzac Day (25 April) 1931 to commemorate the New Zealand dead of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. It features two wings decorated with

relief Relief is a sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces are bonded to a solid background of the same material. The term ''relief'' is from the Latin verb ''relevo'', to raise. To create a sculpture in relief is to give the impression that the ...

sculptures, and the central

cenotaph A cenotaph is an empty tomb or a monument erected in honour of a person or group of people whose remains are elsewhere. It can also be the initial tomb for a person who has since been reinterred elsewhere. Although the vast majority of cenot ...

is topped with a bronze figure on horseback, all carried out by Richard Gross. Two bronze lions and a series of bronze

frieze In architecture, the frieze is the wide central section part of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic or Doric order, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Paterae are also usually used to decorate friezes. Even when neither columns nor ...

s were later added in commemoration of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. On 18 March 1982, it was registered as a Category I historic place with registration number 215. It is a focus of Anzac Day commemorations in the city. The souvenir programme for the dedication says the mounted figure was entitled 'The Will to Peace', and is described thus:

Pegasus spurning underfoot the victor's spoils of war and rising into the heavens, enabl nghis rider to emerge from the deluge of blood and tears, and to receive the great spiritual assurance of peace.

On 2 September 2013, new plans for the cenotaph were presented including a new staircase and water feature up to the Parliament Buildings. The works also include repairs to the cenotaph surface materials and creation of a square to create a ceremonial space. The

Wellington Sculpture Trust The Wellington Sculpture Trust is an independent charitable trust which funds and advocates for public sculptures in Wellington, New Zealand. It is funded by private and corporate donations and works with the Wellington City Council. It has commi ...

commissioned

Joe Sheehan Joseph S. Sheehan was born in New York City on February 26, 1971, and attended Regis High School. He graduated from the University of Southern California in 1994 with a degree in journalism. Sheehan lives in the New York City area. He is one of ...

to install ''Walk the Line'', a line of

nephrite Nephrite is a variety of the calcium, magnesium, and iron-rich amphibole minerals tremolite or actinolite (Aggregate (geology), aggregates of which also make up one form of asbestos). The chemical formula for nephrite is calcium, Ca2(magnesium, ...

discs tracing the line of the Waipiro Stream, which flowed from Bowen St to the foreshore. In 2015 the Wellington Anzac Day citizen's

wreath A wreath () is an assortment of flowers, leaves, fruits, twigs, or various materials that is constructed to form a circle . In English-speaking countries, wreaths are used typically as household ornaments, most commonly as an Advent and Chri ...

-laying ceremony was held at the upgraded cenotaph.

Image gallery

File:Wellington, Cenotaph, May 2015.jpg, Detail of the mounted figure, described above File:WGNT Cenotaph 07 ANZAC.jpg, The cenotaph just before dawn on Anzac Day 2007 File:Michael Joseph Savage's funeral procession, Lambton Quay, Wellington, ca April 1940.jpg,

Michael Joseph Savage Michael Joseph Savage (23 March 1872 – 27 March 1940) was a New Zealand politician who served as the 23rd prime minister of New Zealand, heading the First Labour Government from 1935 until his death in 1940. Savage was born in the Colony ...

's funeral procession next to the cenotaph in 1940 File:Crowd at the dedication ceremony of the Cenotaph, Wellington, 1932.jpg, Crowd surrounding the Cenotaph, Wellington, at the dedication ceremony in 1932 File:Memorial Statues.JPG, Full view of the Wellington Cenotaph {with

Bowen House Bowen House is a 22-storey office building on the corner of Lambton Quay and Bowen Street, Wellington, New Zealand, that is leased by the New Zealand Parliament to house some members of Parliament and government staff. The building was designed b ...

in the background)

References

External links

{{Commons category-inline, Cenotaph, Wellington
Cenotaph (Wellington, N.Z.)
– Te Puna Mātauranga o Aotearoa / The National Library of New Zealand World War I memorials in New Zealand

Cenotaph A cenotaph is an empty tomb or a monument erected in honour of a person or group of people whose remains are elsewhere. It can also be the initial tomb for a person who has since been reinterred elsewhere. Although the vast majority of cenot ...

Heritage New Zealand Category 1 historic places in the Wellington Region Cenotaphs in New Zealand Tourist attractions in Wellington City 1930s architecture in New Zealand Outdoor sculptures in New Zealand Wellington Central, Wellington