General Assembly House

General Assembly House
The General Assembly House in Auckland in 1861, known as the "Shedifice"
General information
Architectural style	none
Town or city	Auckland
Country	New Zealand
Coordinates	36°50′57″S 174°46′24″E / 36.849204°S 174.773425°E / -36.849204; 174.773425
Construction started	March 1854
Completed	May 1854
Opened	24 May 1854
Demolished	December 1917
Design and construction
Architect	Reader Wood

The General Assembly House, colloquially called Shedifice by the members of parliament, was the first house of the New Zealand Parliament in Auckland. It was in use by Parliament from 1854 until 1864 during the time that Auckland was the capital of New Zealand. It was also used by the Auckland Provincial Council, with Auckland Province owning the building from 1858. After the abolition of the provincial government system, the building was used by government's survey department and was then used by Auckland University College. The General Assembly House was demolished in 1917 to make way for Anzac Avenue. Today, a reserve adjacent to Parliament Street commemorates the location where New Zealand Parliament met initially.

Auckland was New Zealand's second capital from 1841 until 1865, when Parliament was permanently moved to Wellington after an argument that was had for one decade. The initial form of government was an executive council formed of public servant appointed by and responsible to the governor. This changed when the New Zealand Constitution Act 1852, an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that granted self-government to the Colony of New Zealand, was received. This allowed for a bicameral General Assembly (or Parliament), consisting of the Governor, an appointed Legislative Council and an elected House of Representatives, with an Executive Council nominally appointed by the Governor. It also allowed for provincial governments, and six provinces were initially established. The first general election was held in 1853.