Celebrating Canberra: A nation’s cultural and democratic landscape Exploring Canberra’s national heritage The Australian Heritage Council June 2012 The views and opinions expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the Australian Government or the Minister for Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities. © Commonwealth of Australia 2012 This work is copyright. You may download, display, print and reproduce this material in unaltered form only (retaining this notice) for your personal, non-commercial use or use within your organisation. Apart from any use as permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, all other rights are reserved. Requests and enquiries concerning reproduction and rights should be addressed to Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities, Public Affairs, GPO Box 787 Canberra ACT 2601 or email public.affairs@ environment.gov.au FOREWORD The Australian Heritage Council is excited to be considering the national heritage significance of Canberra in the national capital’s centenary year. Canberra is vital to all Australians as the heart of our democracy and pinnacle of our justice system. Born of the utopian ideals of the founders of Australian Federation and grounded in the Griffins’ visionary town plan, Canberra has grown to be one of the world’s great twentieth century cities. Australia’s national heritage comprises exceptional natural and cultural places that contribute to Australia’s national identity, from the Great Barrier Reef and the West Kimberley to Bondi Beach and Sydney Opera House. The National Heritage List identifies the critical moments in our development as a nation, it includes: places that speak to us of exploration and settlement like the Batavia Wreck Site, Port Arthur and Bonegilla Migrant Camp, mark iconic events such as the Eureka Stockade site and the Wave Hill Walk Off Route, showcase creative achievements like the Adelaide Parklands and City Layout, or reflect joys and sorrows in the lives of Australians. It also encompasses those places that reveal the richness of Australia’s extraordinarily diverse natural heritage, from remote ancient landscapes like Uluru/Kata Tjuta, resonant with meaning over thousands of generations of Indigenous habitation, to Riversleigh’s fossil site or the natural beauty of the Australian Alps and the Tasmanian Wilderness. Several places within Canberra are already included on the National Heritage List: Old Parliament House, the Australian War Memorial and Memorial Parade, the High Court-National Gallery Precinct and the Australian Academy of Science Building. Many other places of local or territory significance are included on the Commonwealth Heritage List or the ACT Heritage Register. The Council is taking a broad and overarching approach in assessing the significance of Canberra as the planned national capital. The proposed listing will capture those outstanding elements of Canberra that contribute to the key themes of: • Canberra’s historical and symbolic significance as a new capital city established by the Australian Constitution • the city’s role in facilitating public engagement in the political process and as the site of landmark decisions and national remembrance • Canberra as a showcase of cutting-edge twentieth century town planning ideas. The Australian Heritage Council invites all Australians to engage with the national heritage assessment of your national capital. Dr Carmen Lawrence Chair, Australian Heritage Council May 2012 CONTENTS foreword i CANBERRA: 100 years at the heart of the nation 1 CANBERRA: One People, ONE NATION, ONE DESTINY 2 CANBERRA: A NATIONAL HERITAGE ASSESSMENT 6 Canberra as a whole 6 Canberra as a planned city 8 The natural landscape within and around Canberra 8 What is the ‘place’ that is being assessed? 9 THE HISTORY OF CANBERRA 10 Born out of Federation 10 Planning the new capital – the competition 12 After the Griffins – planning for a capital city 13 Expansion – moving beyond inner Canberra 13 The Y-Plan 15 WHAT A NATIONAL HERITAGE LISTING OF CANBERRA WOULD MEAN 16 Exclusion of private land and structures 16 What is included in the proposed National Heritage place? 16 Proposed management arrangements 17 PUBLIC CONSULTATION 18 BIBLIOGRAPHY 19 Photo Credits 21 CANBERRA: 100 YEARS AT THE HEART OF THE NATION In 2013 Australians will be celebrating the centenary of Canberra as the nation’s capital. The city of Canberra, its inception and planning, embodies the development and evolution of Australia’s unique cultural and democratic landscape. As one of the world’s great twentieth century Mahony Griffin has also contributed to planned cities, the city of Canberra has the creation of a city of great beauty. All represented and reflected the political Australians can be proud of their national and cultural mood of the nation since capital. Federation. Each Australian has their own To celebrate Canberra’s centenary the view and perception of Canberra, whether Australian Heritage Council is undertaking a it is Canberra as the seat of government, national heritage assessment to determine if the home of parliament, a place for decision Canberra’s unique place in our nation’s history making, protest or national commemoration, and heritage should be given Australia’s highest reflection and healing. Canberra’s natural heritage honour, a national heritage listing. landscape setting and the outstanding city design by Walter Burley Griffin and Marion 1 CANBERRA: ONE PEOPLE, ONE NATION, ONE DESTINY ‘The seat of Government of the Commonwealth shall be determined by the Parliament, and shall be within territory which shall have been granted to or acquired by the Commonwealth, and shall be vested in and belong to the Commonwealth, and shall be in the State of New South Wales, and be distant not less than one hundred miles from Sydney.’ Section 125 Constitution of the Commonwealth of Australia (1901) The concept for the city of Canberra emerged ultimately embodied in the new nation’s during the movement towards Federation Constitution. in 1901. Canberra was conceived as an A congress on the planning of the new ideal city, a nation’s capital worthy of the federal capital held in Melbourne in May ideas, passion, values and patriotism of the 1901 decided that the capital ‘should be laid Federation movement. Today, Canberra is out in the most perfect manner possible’ and internationally recognised as an outstanding suggested the capital should be decided by a example of twentieth century town planning design competition. and one of a few capital cities in the world designed through an international town Selection of the site for Canberra was planning competition. finalised in 1909. The site chosen was within a pastoral valley and a natural amphitheatre The selection of the place for the nation’s of hills, sheltered by the northernmost ranges new national capital was debated vigorously of the Australian Alps. It provided a striking and at length as the nation moved towards setting for the new capital city. Federation. Many assumed that either Melbourne or Sydney, as the largest cities After 137 entries, the inspirational designs in the new nation, would become the of American architects, Walter Burley Griffin capital. However, there were concerns and Marion Mahony Griffin, were chosen that consolidating economic and political as the foundation for the new capital. The power in one of the soon to be states Griffins’ designs drew on the ‘city beautiful’ could create unbalance and bias within the and ‘garden city’ town planning movements new Federation. The decision about what current at the time. and where the new capital should be was 2 | Celebrating Canberra: A nation’s cultural and democratic landscape City Beautiful The City Beautiful was a reform philosophy current in North American architecture and urban planning circles during the 1890s and 1900s. The intent of the philosophy was to import European-style beautification and monumental grandeur into cities. The movement involved the promotion of beauty not only for its own sake but as an uplifting moral and civic force for the community. Advocates of the philosophy believed that such beautification could thus promote a harmonious social order that would increase the quality of life. Lake Burley Griffin viewed along the water axis Garden City The Garden City movement was a style of urban planning that was initiated in 1898 by Sir Ebenezer Howard in the United Kingdom. Garden cities were intended to be planned, self-contained communities surrounded by “greenbelts” or parks containing proportionate areas of residences, industry and agriculture. The concept of garden cities is to produce relatively economically independent cities with short commute times and the preservation of the countryside. Garden suburb landscape with inner hill backdrop 3 The Griffins’ design also responded sensitively to the topography of the site, realising the potential to place national monuments in a natural landscape to create symbols of democracy and evoke the sense of a connection between a young city and the great civilisations of the past. Utilising a geometry of circles, straight lines between axial points and a central triangle, the Griffins laid out grand boulevards demarcating significant national spaces, a symmetrical central lake and grand vistas. Griffin Plan 1911 The Griffins’ outstanding design influenced the city plans for New Delhi and Brasilia. The design of the 1988 Parliament House Australian Architect Paul Reid considered pays homage to the Griffins’ design by the Griffins’ design as ‘one of the finest city locating the building within rather than on top plans ever made’1, while John Reps, eminent of Capital Hill and reflecting the profile of the American urban historian, stated that Griffins’ proposed people’s Capitol building in the Parliament’s stepped retaining walls and Griffin’s vision ... remains an iconic flagpole. extraordinary achievement deserving recognition and protection as one of the The expansion of Canberra reflects changes treasures, not only of Australia, but of the and developments in Australia’s political and entire urban world.2 cultural landscape.