Bridge of Remembrance, Christchurch

Bridge of Remembrance, Christchurch

Edward George Wright, civil engineer, was commissioned to build a bridge over the river Avon at Cashel Street in Christchurch in 1873. The bridge became pedestrianized in 1977 and it links Oxford and Cambridge Terraces over the Avon. In 1919, as World War I ended, Mrs Wyn Irwin, secretary of the Bridge of Remembrance Committee, wrote to The Press suggesting a memorial arch on the bridge.

The Memorial Arch was unveiled by Lord Jellicoe, hero of the Battle of Jutland, in November 1924. Soldiers crossed over the Avon this way in the Great War, on their way to the railway station and then by ship to the front.

The design was by William Gummer. Gummer had designed other memorials including the Dunedin Cenotaph war memorial. The central frame of the Remembrance Bridge memorial has the inscription "Quid non-pro Patria" ("What will a man not do for his country"). The arch is adorned with a cross, torches, coat of arms, laurel wreaths and stone lions.

On April 2, 1985 the Bridge of Remembrance was listed as a Category I with the New Zealand Historic Places Trust.

Want to visit this sight? Check out these Self-Guided Walking Tours in Christchurch. Alternatively, you can download the mobile app "GPSmyCity: Walks in 1K+ Cities" from Apple App Store or Google Play Store. The app turns your mobile device to a personal tour guide and it works offline, so no data plan is needed when traveling abroad.

Download The GPSmyCity App

Bridge of Remembrance on Map

Sight Name: Bridge of Remembrance
Sight Location: Christchurch, New Zealand (See walking tours in Christchurch)
Sight Type: Attraction/Landmark
Guide(s) Containing This Sight:

Walking Tours in Christchurch, New Zealand

Create Your Own Walk in Christchurch

Create Your Own Walk in Christchurch

Creating your own self-guided walk in Christchurch is easy and fun. Choose the city attractions that you want to see and a walk route map will be created just for you. You can even set your hotel as the start point of the walk.
Christchurch Introduction Walking Tour

Christchurch Introduction Walking Tour

Captain James Cook was not the first person to discover New Zealand. There is evidence that the Christchurch area was visited by groups of moa-hunting people as early as 1250 AD.

They were followed by the Waitaha from the east coast of the North Island in the 16th century. In a series of wars Waitaha were displaced by the Ngati Mamoe, who in turn were conquered by the Ngai Tahu. The Europeans...  view more

Tour Duration: 2 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 3.9 Km or 2.4 Miles
Statues and Memorials Tour

Statues and Memorials Tour

Although Christchurch is not very large, it has a wealth of public art heritage. Although ravaged by a powerful earthquake in 2011, which caused severe damage to many local attractions, Christchurch nonetheless has retained much of its charm and has a lot to offer visitors in terms of sightseeing. Indeed, there is no shortage of beautiful buildings, parks, gardens and other places of interest...  view more

Tour Duration: 1 Hour(s)
Travel Distance: 1.4 Km or 0.9 Miles