Peace Buildings Around the World

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Peace Buildings Around the World

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1722 - Fredensborg Slot Castle, near Copenhagen (Denmark).While the building was still under construction Denmark and Sweden negotiated a peace treaty, which was signed July 3, 1720 on the site of the unfinished palace. To commemorate the signing, the palace was named Fredens Borg / Palace of Peace.

1897 - Negro Building, Tennessee Centennial Exposition (now Centennial Park), Nashville, Tennessee (USA). No longer exists. "Largest-ever display of African-American life and achievement." From dedication speech: "Here...the world may see the other side of Negro life than 'Sam Johnson, the chicken thief.' Here it may see the healthful buds of Negro handicraft, Negro art, science, literature, invention... Here... the old master who followed Lee's tattered banners... down to Appomattox sacrifices his pro-slavery ideas, and builds a monument to Negro fidelity and industry; and here the Negro brings the product of his brain and hand in grateful testimony to the friendly feelings between us."

1897 - Woman's Building, Tennessee Centennial Exposition (now Centennial Park), Nashville, Tennessee (USA). No longer exists. Site near the fair's full-scale reproduction of the Parthenon is marked by a subsequent monument with a sphere on top. Its plaque contains two quotations by Mrs. Van Leer (Kate) Kirkman, President, Woman's Department: "That that is round can be no rounder" and "Women's Work. Whatever may be necessary to preserve the sanctity of the home and ensure the freedom of the state." Right image by EWL.

August 28, 1913 - Vredespaleis / Peace Palace, Carnegieplein 2, The Hague (Netherlands). Constructed just before World War I by the Carnegie Foundation -- and still owned by the Carnegie Foundation. Now home of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) or World Court, the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA), the Peace Palace Library, and the Hague Academy of International Law.
1919 - Peace Memorial Hall, Heroes Square, George Town (Grand Cayman Islands). Built imediately after World War I in the heart of Old George Town. Click here for other monuments named "peace memorial."
1921 - Peace Memorial School, 85 East 36th Street, Hamilton, Ontario (Canada). Only the portico (in the shape of a triumphal or memorial arch) was preserved when the 84-year old school was demolished in the Summer of 2005. The site is now called Peace Memorial Park and is under development.
1925 - Beit el-Amani / Peace Memorial Museum, Mnazi Moja, Stone Town (Zanzibar). Built in memory of those who died in World War I. " the British extended their ideas of ‘indirect rule’ even to the architecture of the early colonial monumental buildings. The museum was therefore designed [by British architect J.H. Sinclair] as an oriental Islamic structure, reminiscent of the Aya Sophia Mosque in Istanbul, a hexagonal building with a huge central dome and smaller domes at the corners." Now [contains] traditional crafts and household items from residents of Zanzibar, sultans, slave traders, European explorers and missionaries. Displays feature David Livingstone's medical chest, information about the harvesting of cloves, and the story of the German battleship Konigsberg which sunk during World War I.

1936 - Palais des Nations / Palace of Nations, Geneva (Switzerland). Built for the League of Nations. Since the 1950s, it has served as the home of the UN Office at Geneva.

November 23, 1938 - Welsh National Temple of Peace and Health (Temple of Peace), Cardiff (Wales). A non-religious civic building designed by the architect Sir Percy Thomas. Across the street from the National Assembly.

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P October 26, 1945 - Housmans Bookshop, Peace House, 5 Caledonian Road, Kings Cross, London (England). "London's premier radical bookshop." "Founded by the Peace Pledge Union (PPU) in the optimistic aftermath of WW-II to promote peace literature along with related issues of human rights, justice & the environment. Named in honour of pacifist writer & dramatist Laurence Housman [1865-1959] who formally opened its first premises in Shaftesbury Avenue." Has published Housmans Peace Diary (& World Peace Directory) since it was started by general manager Harry Mister [1914-2006] in 1953.

1950 - United Nations Headquarters Building, East River, New York City, New York (USA). Cornerstone laid October 24, 1949. Replaced UN's termporary home (1946-1951) in the Sperry Gyroscope building in Lake Success, Long Island, New York (USA).

1968 - Martin Luther King, Jr., Center for Nonviolent Social Change, Inc., Atlanta, Georgia (USA). Includes King's tomb (in lake in photo), an eternal flame, Rosa Parks room, and Mahatma Gandhi room. Click here for additional information. Entry #242 in the "Peace Movement Directory" by James Richard Bennett (2001). (Martin Luther King, Jr. received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964. He was assassinated in Memphis, Tennessee, on April 4, 1968.)

1978 - Peace Pentagon (Muste Building), A.J. Muste Memorial Institute, 339 Lafayette Street, New York City, New York (USA). Organized in 1974 to carry forward the commitment of A. J. Muste [1885-1967] to nonviolent radical change, the institute bought the "Peace Pentagon" office building in 1978 to provide a stable and affordable base for itself and other activist groups in New York City. Now in need of major repairs and in danger of being sold. Click here for "Save the Peace Pentagon."

Mothers Day 1988 - Peace Abbey, 2 North Main Street, Sherborn, Massachusetts (USA). Three-acre "Multi-faith retreat center." See peace museums for longer description. Entry #472 in the "Peace Movement Directory" by James Richard Bennett (2001).

1994 - Centre Mondial de la Paix, des libertés et des droits de l'Homme, Palais Épiscopal, Verdun, Lorraine (France). Implanté dans le superbe palais épiscopal dessiné en 1723 par Robert de Cotte, premier architecte du roi, et classé monument historique, il délivre une note d'espérance à Verdun, aujourd'hui 'Capitale Mondiale de la Paix.'"

June 1995 - World Peace Pavilion, Ferry Terminal Park, Dartmouth, Nova Scotia (Canada). Symbol of unity and solidarity amongst the people of the world. Site of G7 Summit in June 1995, and officially opened by the seven visiting foreign ministers. The triangular shaped structure displays an international collection of rocks and artifacts contributed by 80 countries in every corner of the globe.

1996 – Visitors Center, Martin Luther King, Jr., National Historic Site (NPS), Atlanta, Georgia (USA). Museum about Martin Luther King, Jr., and the civil rights movement. Opened in time for the Olympic Games in the Summer of 1996.

January 17, 2000 - National Peace Sculpture , Capitol Children's Museum, Washington, DC (USA). Child-sized house designed by six students from the Massachusetts College of Art. Caption on door reads, "Violent Toys Teach Violent Play. Peace Begins With Peaceful Play." Dedicated on Martin Luther King, Jr., Day. Entry #1150 in the "Peace Movement Directory" by James Richard Bennett (2001).

December 5, 2001 - Joan B. Kroc Institute for Peace & Justice (IPJ), University of San Diego, San Diego, California (USA). Entry #119 in the "Peace Movement Directory" by James Richard Bennett (2001).

June 2006 - Palace of Peace & Reconciliation, Astana (Kazakhstan). Also known as Palace of Peace & Accord. First used for Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions. Click here for info about a nearby statue of President Nursultan Nazarbayev dedicated on October 20, 2009.

October 27 or 28, 2008 - Peres Peace House, Jaffa (Israel). "A magnificent building of huge green blocks, which cost $15 million, three times the original estimate. The building is windowless & air-conditioned throughout & blocked off from its surroundings, which are home to a poor Arab population. Its faces the sea, as though its builders were hinting that the chance for peace lies in the West, beyond the sea, & not in the East, where neighbor enemies dwell." Named for Shimon Peres and dedicated on the tenth anniversary of the Peres Center for Peace.

Future - Maharishi Peace Palaces, c/o Maharishi Vedic City, Fairfield, Iowa (USA). To be constructed in many large cities by the Maharishi Vedic Education Development Corp. (MVED). "Will offer... the knowledge and practical programs for peace and enlightenment, for a healthy, happy, more creative, more fulfilling and successful life through the Transcendental Meditation program."
Please email your comments & questions to geovisual at comcast.net. Thank you.
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	August 28, 1913 - Vredespaleis / Peace Palace, Carnegieplein 2, The Hague (Netherlands). Constructed just before World War I by the Carnegie Foundation -- and still owned by the Carnegie Foundation. Now home of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) or World Court, the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA), the Peace Palace Library, and the Hague Academy of International Law.
	1919 - Peace Memorial Hall, Heroes Square, George Town (Grand Cayman Islands). Built imediately after World War I in the heart of Old George Town. Click here for other monuments named "peace memorial."
	1921 - Peace Memorial School, 85 East 36th Street, Hamilton, Ontario (Canada). Only the portico (in the shape of a triumphal or memorial arch) was preserved when the 84-year old school was demolished in the Summer of 2005. The site is now called Peace Memorial Park and is under development.
	1925 - Beit el-Amani / Peace Memorial Museum, Mnazi Moja, Stone Town (Zanzibar). Built in memory of those who died in World War I. " the British extended their ideas of ‘indirect rule’ even to the architecture of the early colonial monumental buildings. The museum was therefore designed [by British architect J.H. Sinclair] as an oriental Islamic structure, reminiscent of the Aya Sophia Mosque in Istanbul, a hexagonal building with a huge central dome and smaller domes at the corners." Now [contains] traditional crafts and household items from residents of Zanzibar, sultans, slave traders, European explorers and missionaries. Displays feature David Livingstone's medical chest, information about the harvesting of cloves, and the story of the German battleship Konigsberg which sunk during World War I.