Spotting Parliament House in Brisbane is pretty simple! You're looking for a grand, light-colored stone building with striking architectural features. As you come up George Street, keep an eye out to your right. You'll notice a prominent dome-shaped roof topping the central structure, along with elegant archways and columns giving it a very regal appearance. The building is surrounded by a decorative iron fence, with some lovely greenery peeping through.
Parliament House in Brisbane is the meeting place of the Parliament of Queensland, hosting its sole chamber, the Legislative Assembly. Situated at the corner of George Street and Alice Street at Gardens Point in the CBD, it neighbors the Queensland University of Technology and the City Botanic Gardens.
This grand edifice was listed on the Queensland Heritage Register on 21 October 1992. Believe it or not, the Queensland Parliament's first met on 22 May 1860 in a former convict barracks on Queen Street! Not exactly a prime spot for legislative debates.
The urgency for a more suitable place didn’t arise immediately as the government was busy constructing Government House. But, finally, in November 1863, a commission identified the perfect site at the corner of Alice and George Street. To spice things up, they held an Australia-wide competition for the building's design, dangling a 200 guinea prize for the best submission! The initial favorite, designed by Benjamin Backhouse, was shelved due to budget issues, and after a series of other rejections, Charles Tiffin’s design was selected-amid some controversy, of course.
On 14 July 1865, Sir George Bowen laid the foundation stone, and the first section was impressively ready by 1867. This French Renaissance Revival style building, with a touch of Second Empire flair, showcases majestic stained glass windows imported from Birmingham. The construction continued, completing the George Street side in 1868 and the Alice Street wing by 1889.
Fun fact alert: Parliament House was the first in Australia to get electricity in 1886, thanks to an underground cable from the Government Printing Office.
With a history peppered with royal visits, protests, and even a heartbreaking tragedy in 1939 when Speaker George Pollock committed suicide here, Parliament House has seen it all. Fast forward to the twentieth century, the parliamentary complex expanded with the addition of a brutalist-style Annexe in 1979.
Well, that's the scoop on the grand Parliament House! It’s not just a majestic building; it's a treasure trove of history. Now, how’s that for finishing the tour with a bang?
