Christ Church Cathedral Timeline

Timeline of Events, 2010 – Present.

Stephanie Ingham

4 September 2010:

A 7.1 magnitude earthquake struck 40 km west of the city of Christchurch. Though this was a high magnitude quake, it ultimately caused only minor damage to Christchurch City. The quake caused superficial damage to the exterior of the cathedral, which was subsequently closed until engineering inspections could deem the building safe for use.

22 September 2010:

After extensive inspections, the cathedral was considered safe. It was reopened for service and public entry.

22 February 2011: 

A 6.3 magnitude earthquake caused unprecedented damage to Christchurch City, displacing communities and widely damaging many houses.

This quake severely damaged the cathedral, as well as several other historical building in Cathedral Square. In this quake, the spire was completely destroyed, and much of the tower collapsed. Although the walls and roof were relatively undamaged, the section of roof nearest the tower was partially collapsed as a result of falling tower debris. Subsequent inspections showed that the pillars supporting the building were severely damaged in this quake, and sustained further damage in aftershocks.

13 June 2011:

A series of aftershocks caused increasing damage to the cathedral. In this period, the iconic Rose Window collapsed. This damage represented a fatal blow to the structural integrity of the cathedral, raising the question of whether the cathedral could or should be reconstructed, or whether it would be safer and more efficient to deconsecrate and demolish.

28 October 2011:

In a statement from Cathedral Officials, it was announced that the structure would be deconsecrated and at least partially demolished, to significant public disappointment.

9 November 2011:

The Christ Church Cathedral was deconsecrated in preparation of demolition.

23 December 2011:

A series of earthquakes (5.8 and 6.0 magnitude) result in further damage.

2 March 2012:

Bishop Victoria Mathews announced that the cathedral would be fully deconstructed, and proposed an entirely new build as opposed to a rebuild. This was based on the estimated cost of a full reconstruction. Demolition began, involving the removal of stained-glass windows for preservation, and the demolition of the remaining section of the tower.

April 2012:

Engineers from the New Zealand Society for Earthquake Engineering petitioned against the demolition of the cathedral, seeking 100 signatures. At this time, they claimed that legal action was possible. At the same time, the Restore Christchurch Cathedral Group was formed and similarly sought signatures for a petition to save the cathedral.

12 July 2012: 

Construction of the Transitional Cathedral - also known as the Cardboard Cathedral - began.

15 November 2012:

The High Court issued an interim judgment, granting an application made by the Great Christchurch Buildings Trust which challenged the church's decision to demolish. This placed an immediate halt on the demolition proceedings. The demolition debate moved to the Supreme Court.

15 August 2013:

The Transitional / Cardboard Cathedral was completed and consecrated. Regular service began.

December 2013:

The Supreme Court rejected bids to preserve the cathedral. The decision of demolition versus rebuild was returned to the church.

December 2015: 

Bishop Matthews announced that the church had agreed with independent government-appointed negotiator Miriam Dean's report, which stated that "the building could be either reconstructed to be 'indistinguishable' from the pre-quake cathedral or replaced".

With this concession, the three year stalemate between parties concluded, as all groups involved agreed with the report. The church now agreed that reinstatement (reconstruction) was possible, an option they had previously dismissed. At this stage, it was hoped that immediate action could be taken to begin reconstructing the church. Unfortunately, very little progress was made.

8 December 2016:

Bob Parker, who was the standing Mayor of Christchurch during the 22 February 2011 quake, publicly denounced the lack of action taken to repair the cathedral, calling it a "monument of procrastination," and called the stalemate a representation of "the dysfunction that's a result of a massive event that happened in our city." However, supporters of the cathedral restoration project remained hopeful.

May 2017:

In May 2017, Bishop Matthews released a statement that she had transferred the legal decision-making rights from the Church Property Trustees to the diocesan synod. This meant that it was now the decision of the synod whether the Church would be reinstated, reconstructed, or demolished and rebuilt.

9 September 2017:

Following a vote from the synod, Bishop Matthews announced a 55% majority that Christ Church Cathedral would be reinstated. At the time, she estimated that the project would be completed within 10 years, but very little was done in the following year, delaying this timeframe.

22 August 2018:

Christ Church Cathedral Reinstatement Limited was formed, a company dedicated to developing the cathedral project. Their objective was to reinstate the cathedral, managing the physical development of restoration, such as seismic strengthening, repair and restoration. This process included removing the cathedrals internal walls so that the previous fill could be removed and replaced with a combination of concrete and structural steel.

25 May 2022:

Ground was broken in the reinstatement of the Christ Church Cathedral: with the use of a world-first distance-operated digger, teams began the lengthy process of clearing rubble from inside the cathedral. This work was completed at a distance to ensure the safety of workers, as the cathedral still presented a significant hazard.

March 2023:

In a significant milestone for the Cathedral Reinstatement project, the stabilization stage of the project was completed. Project leaders and community figures gathered in the cathedral for the first time since 2011.

26 August 2024:

Following the government decision to cease their funding of the reinstatement project, the Christchurch Cathedral Reinstatement Project released a statement that all work on the cathedral would be paused while funding options were considered. Christ Church Cathedral Reinstatement Limited emphasized at the time that 'all is not lost,' and that they are still dedicated to the cause, but would halt construction until further funding was secured.