Законодательное здание Манитобы: История и Архитектура

The Manitoba Legislative Building , originally named the Manitoba Parliament Building, is the meeting place of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba, located in central Winnipeg, as well as being the twelfth provincial heritage site of Manitoba. Along with the Legislative Assembly, the building also accommodates the offices for Manitoba's Lieutenant Governor and the Executive Council. The neoclassical, Beaux Arts style building was completed in 1920 along with its famed Golden Boy, a gold covered bronze statue based on the style of the Roman god Mercury (Greek: Hermes) that sits at the top of the building's cupola. Standing at tall, and Henry Boddington III, along with other masons and many skilled craftsmen. With the abolition of the Legislative Council in 1876, the third building has a single chamber.

The current building is the third facility used by Manitoba's legislative assembly. On the site of this building was also a statue of Queen Victoria which was commissioned after her death in 1904 for C$15,000. (This statue would be moved to the front of the current building's grounds.) However, the cost of reconstruction today would be prohibitive, due to such factors as a shortage of skilled masons. In 2016, work began on the building’s first gender neutral washroom (2nd floor, west side). In response, the Chamber was made wheelchair accessible in that very summer. The Chamber floor was raised , front row desks were moved forward to allow wheelchair access between the first two rows, and a ramp was installed on the opposition side of the house. The renovation received a Heritage Winnipeg Conservation Award in 2018.

On the north side of the Legislative Building, above the 6 Ionic columns, is the main pediment, the figures of which were designed by Scottish sculptor Albert Hemstock Hodge and carved by the Piccirilli Brothers of New York. Above the main pediment, flanking both sides are two Egyptian sphinxes facing both east and west. On the south grounds, including the fountain, the Manitoba Plaza was officially opened in commemoration of the 125th anniversary of the province. Also in this area, facing the Assiniboine River, sits the sculpture of Louis Riel, leader of Métis, created by Miguel Joyal. The statue was put in place on 12 May 1996, on the 126th anniversary of the passing of Manitoba Act, and it replaced an earlier statue that had stood for 24 years (which is now located at St. Boniface College). There are 6 greenhouses on the grounds, which grow 75,000 bedding plants annually with 40,000 planted on the grounds itself, and the rest distributed to other government buildings. The steps are made from Botticino marble Each bison weighs 2,268 kilograms (2½ tons). Four pairs of Corinthian columns rise from the floor to the cornice surrounding the base of the rotunda, itself measuring 20 meters (64 ft) in diameter and 26 meters (84 ft) high. which is used by the province's lieutenant governor to receive visiting royalty and foreign dignitaries; the public is barred from entry, Originally, in 1870, there were 24 Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs), but as the province grew in population and size, more electoral divisions were added. Winnipeg was once the third largest city in Canada, and often called 'Chicago of the North'. Electric light fixtures flanking the entrance to the chamber have sea creatures on the base, and male and female heads just under the shade. On the Chamber doors are bison escutcheons, designed by Frank Worthington Simon. Although the bison were meant to face each other, only the bison facing to the left were cast, so all the bison face the same way. Above the Chamber entrance is a mural by the British artist Frank Brangwyn, who described it as an allegory of the Canadian effort in World War I. It was installed in March 1921 and underwent restoration in 2014. Murals inside the Chamber are by New York's Augustus Vincent Tack. Among the figures represented are Justice, Knowledge, and Wisdom; Tolerance & Magnanimity; Fortitude, Prudence, & Temperance; and Faith, Hope, & Charity; as well as Mercy & Understanding, Courage & Vigilance, and Sacrifice & Loyalty. The Speaker of the Legislative Assembly's chair is located on the south wall below the press gallery of 13 seats. To the right of the speaker is a statue of Moses holding the Ten Commandments, to the left is Solon, a famous lawmaker of ancient Athens. Each statue is made of bronze and sculpted by Georges Gardet. Manitoba's Legislative Chamber is unique among provincial legislatures in that the Members' benches are grouped in a horseshoe shape. The original desks and chairs of the Chamber are fashioned of walnut with inlaid ebony. They are arranged in three tiers rising from a sunken floor in the centre of the Chamber. Each desk is equipped with a microphone connected to a public address system and a recording machine used in the publication of Hansard, a verbatim report of debates and proceedings in the Legislature. During question period, translators provide simultaneous translation from French to English. The Chamber is also equipped for video and internet broadcasts of question period and special events such as throne and budget speeches. Even as such changes have brought the assembly into modernity, the original inkwells employed by an earlier generation of Manitoban politicians are still visible.

Rooms on the east side of the building have odd numbers, while rooms on the west side have even numbers; this regularly confuses new visitors to the building.

Basement: Two large vaults are located in the basement. An original copy of the Magna Carta, while not on display at the building, was stored there in 2010. The Hall of Honour (first floor, east side) features the Books of Remembrance, which list the names of Canadians who died during the Boer War to the Korean War. Plaques commemorating Manitoban regiments and divisions are also found in the hall. The Keystone Gallery (lower level, west side) hosts rotating exhibits that showcase and promote Manitoba art and heritage. In July 2020, a time capsule containing contributions from Members and staff of the building was added to the gallery, and it is to be opened in 2120, on the 200th anniversary of the building.

Found on the second floor on the southwest side of the building are portraits of former Speakers (of the Legislative Assembly and of the Legislative Council), who customarily commissioned them upon retirement. On the northeast wing's second floor are photographs of the Manitoba's Premiers, while painted portraits of the Premiers are houses in the committee rooms on the south side of the building. The names of recipients of the Order of Manitoba can be found on the second floor on the east side hallway. The original mace of Manitoba, which saw service for the first 13 years of the Assembly’s history, and its replacement, are the symbols of the Legislature’s authority. In September 2019, the two maces went on permanent display in a cabinet on the second floor. The Manitoba Room (Room 200; aka the Chandelier Room) is used for special functions. Painted portraits of King George V and Queen Mary, by V. A. Long (1915), hang on either end of the room. On the adjacent walls hang portraits of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip by Dennis Fildes (1962). The Reading Room of the Manitoba Legislative Library (Room 260) contains three tiers of book stacks and has space for 25,000 volumes, with additional space under the Chamber. Access to the upper tiers is by two spiral staircases, or by the Room’s original elevator. The Trailblazers Gallery (2nd floor, west side) was unveiled on 21 August 2018 to honour 18 women who were/are in positions traditionally held by men or who have worked to forge new pathways for women in Manitoba.