h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I know that Adelaide is nowhere near the UK (it is on the diametrically opposite side of the globe) but given that the site is global and why should this project be limited to such a small proportion of it?

Anyway...

The Colony of South Australia was founded specifically to allow free Christian worship without any persecution or intolerance. For many, a life under a civil government controlled by the British Crown which was in a new land without the pressure (often violent) to conform to any religious view was very attractive. Large numbers of German (Silesian), English (Cornish) and Scots came here. Some small country towns have an old (disused) 1850s chapel for every five or six households.

The first Church of England bishop appointed to the colony, Augustus Short, arrived expecting the all of the trappings of a Bishop of the Established Church. When he arrived, he barely had a house, no church, no schools and a very antagonistic community. The nearest next diocese was over 800 km away in Melbourne (where the Church of England was very Established!).

When Bishop Short looked at the plans for the city (which were largely just that - plans), he realised that the initial town surveyor, who was an ex-army man, had centred the town around a site marked with a cross. It was clearly where his cathedral should go.

When Short tried to acquire the land and start building, the government, city and most of the population started a court case to prevent the back-door establishment of the Church of England. Short lost the court case and was forced to build his new church (and home) in the small village of North Adelaide on the other side of the mud patch called the River Torrens.

The last laugh is now with Augustus Short. The site in North Adelaide is now home to one of the most prestigious addresses in the city. It gives the name to the Cathedral End of the Adelaide Oval; part of international cricket lore and it is seen towering over the scoreboard by people all over the world during Ashes and other Test television coverage.

The building inside is quite nice. Oddly enough, the families who furnished it were mostly those who objected to the Established church. They may have objected to it being in the city, but they have made sure that that is where their memorials lie.



PS: The cathedral also has the second heaviest ring of bells in the world which makes it a very popular destination for bell ringing tourists - especially during test matches when the continual ringing peal attempts drive the spectators at the oval insane.

This is great and you're right, there's no reason for the chapters to be UK/Ireland only - we were only using our geographical perspective to get things started. Excellent stuff.