# The Story of Christchurch, New Zealand/Chapter 21

Roman Catholic Cathedral.
Plate 26.
Chapter XXI.
The Roman Catholic Cathedral—Constitution of diocese—Appointment of Bishop Grimes: his work and death—The New Zealand International Exhibition—Death of Sir John Hall.
The Roman Catholic Cathedral was opened and dedicated by Archbishop Carr, of Melbourne, on February 12, 1905, in the presence of a distinguished gathering, which included His Excelleney Lord Plunket, the Governor of New Zealand; the Right Hon. R. J. Seddon, P.C., Prime Minister of New Zealand; Sir Joseph Ward, and Archbishop Kelly, of Sydney. A letter was read on this occasion from Cardinal Merry del Val, Secretary of State to the Pope, conveying the congratulations of His Holiness.
The site of the building in Barbadoes Street was originally set apart for the purposes of the Roman Catholic Church as long ago as 1860. Canterbury was then within the diocese of Bishop Viard, of Wellington, and in August, 1860, this Bishop sent two Marist Fathers—Father Seon and Father Chataigner—to open a Mission in Christchurch.
About three acres in Barbadoes Street were set aside ​by the Provincial Council of that day for their use, and on it the Marist Fathers built a chapel, with living accommodation attached. Eight years later, the site was formally conveyed to the Church by deed, dated August 11, 1868, signed on behalf of the Provincial Government by William Rolleston, as Superintendent, and vesting the property in Bishop Viard.
The little chapel, built in 1860, soon proved inadequate for the growing requirements of the Church, and on May 30, 1864, Bishop Viard opened a larger church on the same site, which for many years was known as the Pro-Cathedral. The provision of this building was mainly due to the activity of Father Chataigner. Later on came the constitution of a large South Island Diocese, including Canterbury and Westland, with Christchurch as the centre of its Episcopal See. The movement originated at a session of the Plenary Council, held in Sydney, in 1885, when it was unanimously resolved to petition the Apostolic See to create Wellington into a Metropolitan See, and to create a new diocese, with Christchurch as its seat. The prayer of the Plenary Council was granted, and on May 4, 1887, Bishop Grimes was appointed by the Pope as first Bishop of the new diocese. Bishop Grimes, at the time of his appointment, was Rector of St. Mary’s, Paignton, Devonshire. Born in 1842, he was forty-five years of age, when, on July 26, 1887, he was consecrated by Cardinal Vaughan, who at the time was Bishop of Salford. The new Bishop arrived at Lyttelton on February 2, 1888.
Bishop Grimes paid a visit to Europe in 1897, and as a result of an audience with the Pope, he set to work, on his return, to endeavour to arrange for a building more worthy of the Church, to take the place of the old wooden Pro-Cathedral. The Bishop set an example of liberality by personally donating £1,000 to the building fund, and was so well supported by the members of his Church, that a large sum of money was speedily collected. Mr. ​F. W. Petre, of Dunedin, was the architect selected, and the foundation stone was laid by Archbishop Carr, in 1901.
The design of the Cathedral is in the Classic style, and is similar to the well-known Church of St. Vincent de Paul, in Paris. The nave has, on either side, flank colonnades enclosing the side aisles, and carrying the entablature of the Ionic Order, on which are supported the dies and moulded work of the Corinthian Order of the upper colonnade, which in turn carries the entablature of the upper aisle, and forms a gallery completely round the interior of the church.
The main dome is carried on four large arches—each supported by Ionic pilasters, four to each side of the arch, the space enclosed forming the Sanctuary of the Cathedral. A central tower rises through the main room, and carries the principal dome to a height of 130 feet.
Externally the front storey and great colonnade are flanked by supporting towers, each surmounted by a copper dome. Entrance to the interior of the Cathedral is gained by three main doors, under the great colonnade of the front, and four under the two colonnades which form the external aisles to the church. The whole of the building is of Oamaru stone, the roof of the external colonnades being formed of reinforced concrete and asphalt, the principal roof of the nave being finished with French tiles. The entire work was carried out by Messrs. J. and W. Jamieson, under contract, and cost upwards of £50,000.
Bishop Grimes held his office for twenty-seven years, during which period he made frequent visitations throughout his enormous diocese, which included some of the roughest country in New Zealand. He was indefatigable as an organiser, and was primarily responsible for the great number of Roman Catholic institutions which were established under efficient management during his ​long term as Bishop. He gained, and held to the end, the love and respect of his people, and has left, in the Cathedral, a lasting memorial of a singularly active life. He died on March 15, 1916.
The New Zealand International Exhibition, November 1, 1906–April 15, 1907. The great exhibition, held in Christchurch in 1906–1907, was the largest undertaking of the kind ever attempted in New Zealand. It was promoted by the Seddon Government, and the foundation stone was laid by the Hon. R. J. Seddon on December 18, 1905, almost his last public appearance in Christchurch before his lamented death at sea, on June 10, 1906. Hagley Park was the site selected, and an area of about one hundred acres enclosed and laid out in attractive grounds. The river formed the boundary on two sides, and additional bridges were thrown over it, and a weir built to keep a depth of water suitable for boating. The Victoria Lake afforded space for a water shute, and for the evolutions of a many-paddled Maori war canoe. On the bank of the lake was a Maori encampment—a typical stockaded village of the old time, with its picturesque carved gate posts, and a background of well-grown timber. Certainly no better site could have been selected in New Zealand. The grounds were within ten minutes’ walk of Cathedral Square, and were accessible by electric tram, on the one side, and by a railway siding for goods traffic on the other.
The contract price for buildings and appurtenances was £87,732, apart from the cost incurred in the preparation of the grounds.
The veteran Canterbury statesman, Sir John Hall, was induced to come out of his retirement and accept the Mayoralty for the Exhibition year. Sir John had been chairman of the first Christchurch Town Board in 1862, and came forward at a ripe old age to receive and entertain the many distinguished visitors who were attracted to Christchurch.
Sir John Hall, K.C.M.G.
First Chairman Chirstchurch Town Board, 1862.
Mayor of Christchurch, 1906.
Plate 29.
​The Exhibition was opened by His Excellency Lord Plunket, Governor, on November 1, 1906, when an ode, written by Mr. Johannes C. Andersen, was sung, the main theme being the welcome given by “the isles of the uttermost sea,” to the visitors from the older nations. One of these visitors was the late Sir John E. Gorst, P.C., who returned to New Zealand after an absence of forty-three years. He came as envoy and special commissioner of the British Government.
A detailed description of the Exhibition would be wearisome; there is a strong family resemblance between all such undertakings, but the music provided, and the art exhibition, were both of a very high order.
The collection of pictures, many of them lent by the British Government, was housed in a brick building, which cost £5,000. After the close of the Exhibition, a suggestion was made that the picture gallery should be left standing and used for some public purpose, but popular sentiment would stand no interference with Hagley Park, and the only memento of the Exhibition left standing was the foundation stone, laid by the Hon. R. J. Seddon—a solitary monolith of a great undertaking.
The Exhibition cost the Government about £80,000, some of which was no doubt recovered by increased Customs duties, and by additional tourist traffic, but the value of such an undertaking cannot be measured by the debit and credit accounts of a ledger. The Exhibition was a great advertisement of the products of this country: it encouraged trade with distant lands; and, above all, came the educational value to our own people in the arts and industries.
Perhaps the memory of the Exhibition, which will linger longest, is that of the thronging multitudes which crowded the grounds, which sixty years before lad lain a tussock plain.
Sir John Hall did not long survive the term of his Mayoralty. He died in Christchurch on June 24, 1907, ​in his eighty-third year. Not quite one of the pioneers, he arrived in Canterbury early enough to secure election to the first Provincial Council, in 1853, in which he represented Christchurch country districts. In the following year, he succeeded Mr. H. J. Tancred as head of the Provincial Executive. He was afterwards appointed Resident Magistrate for Christchurch, and elected Chairman of the first Christchurch Municipal Council. He held at different times, seats in both branches of the Legislative, and was Prime Minister of New Zealand from October, 1879, to April, 1882, and retired from public life in 1894.