Hallowed Ground And Scoundrels

Picking up where I left off yesterday, a look up gives us the ceiling of the Memorial Chamber.

This book of remembrance is for those who died during the Korean War.

And this is for those who have died in service, other than the Korean War, since 1945. On the day I was here, names of Canadian dead from the Afghan conflict were displayed.

Here we have one more look at the heart of the room, containing the names of dead from the First World War.

I stepped back outside, pausing to photograph the other flanking wall of the entrance.

And then from the upper arcade I photographed down into Confederation Hall, still showing Christmas trim.

I came downstairs, where the Usual Suspects are mounted on walls between Confederation Hall and the lobby area outside the House of Commons. The portraits of prime ministers, along with other art in the building, will be removed for the duration of the project. This trio includes John Diefenbaker at far left, Pierre Trudeau at centre, and Joe Clark at the right.

Here we have John Turner at left and Kim Campbell at right.

Across from them is Brian Mulroney.

And Jean Chretien.

And today I finish with the portrait of Paul Martin, the last of the former prime ministers to have his portrait hanging here. The predecessor to the current PM has not yet had his official portrait done, perhaps because Stephen Harper worries that his portrait might capture the terrible secret that he's hidden for decades- that he's a vampire, and not one of the sparkly Edward Cullen variety of vampire.

An Empty House Of Commons

This is the ceiling of the House of Commons lobby, adorned with Canadian symbols like the maple leaf or the fleur-de-lys, and symbols that represented cabinet ministeries at the time of the reconstruction of Centre Block.

Another view looks up at some of the sculptures.

This is the carved inscription past the left doors into the House of Commons area.

There is a lobby area between the foyer outside and the Commons itself. As there's not really enough room in the Commons for a tour group to stand, tours stay out here, but the glass wall is more than adequate to get good views inside. The governing party sits over on the left, the opposition parties here on the right, and the Speaker presides over things at the far end. Public galleries for viewing proceedings are up above. Taking its lead from the British example, the colour scheme in the Commons is green, while over in the Senate it is in red, a nod to the House of Lords at Westminster.

I photographed some of the stonework and glass at the top of this space looking in.

The tour led on, towards the Library of Parliament. Along the way I took the chance to photograph a couple of portraits of prime ministers that are down here. They are done after a prime minister has left office. This one is Lester Pearson, prime minister from 1963-68.

Kim Campbell was our first female prime minister, though spent considerably less time in the role, serving as Conservative PM from late June 1993 to early November. To be fair, she took on the job when her predecessor, Brian Mulroney, no doubt sensing electoral disaster, left the post in the final year of his second term. The fall election she called proved him right, as the Conservative party was nearly wiped out that time.

The path to the Library of Parliament goes down the length of the Hall of Honour. Sculptures can be found adorning the walls, and the arches of the ceiling are quite a sight. We'll pick up inside tomorrow.

In Confederation Hall

Leaving the Memorial Chamber takes one out through this passage, and down a staircase back to the main level in Centre Block. The visitor ends up in the same corridor that leads west to the House of Commons.

Along this corridor are the portraits of recent prime ministers, done after their tenure in office is complete. Here we have two prime ministers, John Turner and Kim Campbell, whose times at the helm of the country were brief. Turner was a Liberal PM after Pierre Trudeau stepped down, losing the next election to Brian Mulroney. When Mulroney's tenure came to an end, Campbell replaced him as Conservative leader and Prime Minister- only to lose the federal election some months later.

The way out goes through Confederation Hall. This grand space is a focal point for the building, with corridors branching off for the Commons, the Senate, and the Library of Parliament from here. It was decorated for Christmas during my visit. I hope you've enjoyed this tour. I will likely do one more tour in here before the building closes up for the scheduled rehabilitation work, which is due to be underway in September.

Portraits Of Character

I've switched out banner images as of yesterday evening, what with fall soon coming. The above was taken last October on the grounds at Rideau Hall.

Today I'm completing this series from Plaza Bridge. Each year the panels for the year's theme are set up soon after Canada Day, and tend to stay up through this month and into October. I remember the first time I walked among these- a woman was doing the same, and I remarked that if last year's election had gone differently, the idea of strong women being celebrated like this wouldn't have happened under a continued Stephen Harper government. To my surprise, she claimed Harper loved strong women. I wondered what could have given her that idea, as Harper always struck me as the kind of guy who thinks women should be in the kitchen. 

Rosemary Brown

Jeanne Sauve The photograph of her is one done by the portrait photographer Yousuf Karsh, rare to see one of his in colour.

Kim Campbell

Sheila Watt- Cloutier

Louise Arbour This photograph is one taken by the rock singer Bryan Adams.

Beverley McLachlin

Buffy Sainte-Marie

Roberta Bondar

The Usual Suspects

The portraits of former Prime Ministers continue down the corridor from the Commons towards Confederation Hall. Two portraits are below, depicting John Diefenbaker and Pierre Trudeau.

This one is Kim Campbell, who was PM for what felt like five minutes in the early nineties. The government at the time this was unveiled could have gone with the other portrait of Kim, but that one might have shocked the Sisters Of Little Or No Mercy.

And Brian Mulroney is across the hall from Kim, as always armed with a smug look. The man used it so often that he could have patented the Mulroney Smirk.

Before moving on, I'll just show some shots from around Confederation Hall. These windows are down towards the main entrance into Centre Block.

While these carvings are on pillars at the edge of Confederation Hall.