List of tallest buildings in the British Empire and the Commonwealth

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Kuala Lumpur has been home to the tallest buildings in the Commonwealth since 1998. Kuala Lumpur Skyline at dusk.jpg
Kuala Lumpur has been home to the tallest buildings in the Commonwealth since 1998.

The title of tallest building in the British Empire (later in the Commonwealth) has been contested since the late nineteenth century. In this era the nations of the British Empire possessed a large measure of cultural unity and naturally looked to each other for comparison and competition. This was evident in the displays at Queen Victoria's silver and diamond jubilees and in the creation of the British Empire Games in 1930 (later the Commonwealth Games). A similar phenomenon occurred in the world of architecture and civics. Local boosters in cities and regions across the Empire covered the title of "greatest", "biggest", "largest" or "best" in the Empire.

Contents

This boosterism was concentrated in Canada where desire to claim the title spawned a race between cities and builders between 1905 and 1931. [1]

In general the boosters focused on commercial buildings, as claiming the title was part of marketing the building to potential renters (and the city to the wider world). They conveniently ignored much taller non-commercial buildings such as St Paul's Cathedral which stands 111 metres (364 ft) and was consecrated in 1708, or Victoria Tower in the Palace of Westminster which was built in 1855 and measures 98.5 metres (323 ft), and the Blackpool Tower, built in 1894, and standing at 158 meters (518 feet) tall. The Commonwealth of Nations slowly evolved out of the British Empire over decades, but the 1931 Statute of Westminster is often used as a dividing point. During the twentieth century the title was held primarily by Canadian buildings. Since the 1990s, however, Asian buildings have held the title.

Height restrictions have much to do with this list. Until the 1960s, London, the capital of the Empire, had especially strict height maxima to preserve the views of historic structures. Until the late 1920s, Montreal limited all buildings to a maximum of 10 stories, [2] and it still limits buildings to less than the sea-level elevation of Mont Royal. Since 1989 Vancouver restricted buildings from blocking the North Shore Mountains, creating a practical upper limit of around 137 meters, until 1997 when seven sites were pre-selected for taller buildings as exceptions to the rule. [3] Singapore limits all buildings to below 280 meters because of the proximity of Singapore Changi Airport.

The International Commerce Centre in Hong Kong is not included because it was built after Hong Kong left the Commonwealth.

The list also excludes Toronto's CN Tower as there is debate as to whether it is technically a building, or merely a structure.

Tallest buildings in the Commonwealth

YearsBuilding (original name)CityRegionCountryHeightFloorsImage
2021–present Merdeka 118 Kuala Lumpur Kuala Lumpur Federal Territory Flag of Malaysia.svg  Malaysia 679 m118
Merdeka 118 20211204 (1).jpg
2018-2021 The Exchange 106 Kuala Lumpur Kuala Lumpur Federal Territory Flag of Malaysia.svg  Malaysia 492 m (1,614 ft) at completion
(450 m at present)
106 Exchange 106 (5-6-2018).jpg
1998–2018 Petronas Twin Towers Kuala Lumpur Kuala Lumpur Federal Territory Flag of Malaysia.svg  Malaysia 379 m (1,243 ft)(452 m with spires)88 KLCC twin towers1.JPG
1997-1998 First Canadian Place Toronto Ontario Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada 298 m (978 ft)(355 m with antenna)72
First Canadian Place Toronto - ON - First Canadian Place.jpg
First Canadian Place
1992-1997 [nb 1] Central Plaza CentralFlag of Hong Kong 1959.svg  Hong Kong 309 m (1,014 ft)(374 m with spire)78 Zhong Huan Guang Chang .JPG
1990-1992 Bank of China Tower CentralFlag of Hong Kong 1959.svg  Hong Kong 305 m (1,001 ft)(367 m with spire)72 HK Bank of China Tower View.jpg
1975-1990 First Canadian Place TorontoOntarioFlag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada 298 m (978 ft)(355 m with antenna)72
First Canadian Place Toronto - ON - First Canadian Place.jpg
First Canadian Place
1972-1975 Commerce Court WestTorontoOntarioFlag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada 239 m (784 ft)57
Commerce Court West Commerce Court.jpg
Commerce Court West
1967-1972 Toronto-Dominion Centre TorontoOntarioFlag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada 223 m (732 ft)56
Toronto-Dominion Centre TD Centre View from Yonge and King.JPG
Toronto-Dominion Centre
1964-1967 Tour de la Bourse Montreal Quebec Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada 190 m (620 ft)47
Bourse-de-montreal.jpg
1962-1964 Royal Bank Tower MontrealQuebecCanadian Red Ensign (1957-1965).svg  Canada 188 m (617 ft)47 (originally 44)
Place Ville-Marie Placevillemarie.jpg
Place Ville-Marie
1962 CIBC Building MontrealQuebecCanadian Red Ensign (1957-1965).svg  Canada 187 m (614 ft)45
Tour CIBC Montral-tour CIBC.JPG
Tour CIBC
1931-1962 Canadian Bank of Commerce Tower TorontoOntarioCanadian Red Ensign (1921-1957).svg  Canada 145 m (476 ft)34
Commerce Court North Commerce Court North.JPG
Commerce Court North

Tallest buildings in the Empire

YearsBuilding (original name)CityRegionCountryHeightFloorsImage
1930-1931 Canadian Bank of Commerce Tower TorontoOntarioCanadian Red Ensign (1921-1957).svg  Canada 145 m (476 ft)34
Commerce Court North Commerce Court North.JPG
Commerce Court North
1929-1930 Royal York Hotel TorontoOntarioCanadian Red Ensign (1921-1957).svg  Canada 124 m (407 ft)28
Royal York Hotel Fairmont Royal York Toronto.jpg
Royal York Hotel
1928-1929 Royal Bank Building MontrealQuebecCanadian Red Ensign (1921-1957).svg  Canada 119 m (390 ft)22
Royal Bank Building Tour de la Banque Royale.jpg
Royal Bank Building
1911-1928 Royal Liver Building LiverpoolUnited KingdomFlag of the United Kingdom.svg  UK 98 m (322 ft)13
The Royal Liver Building The Royal Liver Buildings - geograph.org.uk - 526323.jpg
The Royal Liver Building
1905-1910 Trader's Bank Building TorontoOntarioCanadian Red Ensign (1868-1921).svg  Canada 54 m (177 ft)15
Trader's Bank Building Trader's Bank Building Toronto.jpg
Trader's Bank Building

See also

Notes

  1. Hong Kong's link to the Commonwealth was severed after the transfer of sovereignty on 1 July 1997.

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References

  1. Skyscrapers at The Canadian Encyclopedia, accessdate August 23, 2019
  2. "Emporis". Emporis. Retrieved 2022-05-02.[ dead link ]
  3. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-10-01. Retrieved 2010-01-04.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)