Grand Parade (Halifax)
The Grand Parade is an historic military parade square dating from the founding of Halifax in 1749. At the north end of the Grand Parade is the Halifax City Hall, the seat of municipal government in Nova Scotia's Halifax Regional Municipality. At the south end is St. Paul's Church. In the middle of Grand Parade is the cenotaph built originally to commemorate the soldiers who served in for World War I.
Halifax City Hall
The Halifax City Hall is located on the original site of Dalhousie University, built 1821. The university building was demolished to make way for the new structure and timbers from the old academic building were reportedly incorporated into the municipal building, the Halifax City Hall.
It was designed by Edward Elliot and constructed for the City of Halifax between 1887 and 1890; it is one of the oldest and largest public buildings in Nova Scotia and is a designated National Historic Site of Canada. The building is of cream and red sandstone, designed in an eclectic, monumental style. It features granite construction on the ground floor and in the tower. The seven-storey tower has clock faces on the north and south sides. The northern face is fixed at four minutes past nine to commemorate the Halifax Explosion of 1917.
The Cenotaph
The Cenotaph in the middle of Grand Parade was dedicated on Dominion Day (July 1) 1929 by Former Prime Minister Robert Borden to commemorate those who died in World War I. The Bronze work on the cenotaph was modelled after Edwin Lutyens' famous Cenotaph in Whitehall, England, with a statue of Britannia by noted Scottish sculpture John Massey Rhind. The Cenotaph is constructed of local Tangier granite.
The sculpture depicts victorious but grieving Britannia representing Nova Scotian motherhood. There are also three ceremonial wreaths, the names of First and Second World War Battles honours, a dedication, the coat of arms of both Nova Scotia and Canada as well as a Victory Cross.
St. Paul’s Church
St. Paul's Church is the first Protestant Church built in Canada and the oldest building in Halifax. Founded in 1749, the first service held on 2 September 1750. It is the oldest still-standing Anglican church in Canada. It is based on the ground plan of the Gibbs church of St. Peter's, Vere Street in London, with later additions such as a larger tower. For many decades it was one of the only places of worship in Halifax, and other denominations would thus hold services in the building.
During the Halifax Explosion of 1917, a piece of wooden window frame from another building was lodged into the wall of St. Paul's Church, where it remains today.
See also
- History of the Halifax Regional Municipality
- History of Nova Scotia