Mount Victoria (Wellington suburb)

Suburb in Wellington City, New Zealand

Mount Victoria
Suburb
View of the suburb of Mount Victoria, with Armour Avenue just left of centre and Te Aro in the background
Coordinates: 41°17′46″S 174°47′06″E / 41.296°S 174.785°E / -41.296; 174.785
Country	New Zealand
City	Wellington City
Local authority	Wellington City Council
Electoral ward	Pukehīnau/Lambton Ward Te Whanganui-a-Tara Māori Ward
Area [1]
• Land	108 ha (267 acres)
Population  (June 2024)[2]
• Total	4,860

	Oriental Bay's Oriental Parade	Oriental Bay and Roseneath
Te Aro	Mount Victoria	Hataitai
Mount Cook	Newtown

Mount Victoria is a suburb of central Wellington, New Zealand, named after the 196 metres (643 ft) hill Mount Victoria to the east. Mount Victoria's residential area is on its north-western slopes.

It was settled as, at its foot, Wellington's Te Aro filled with commercial activities. Residents needed to be close to the city but wanted more comfortable surroundings. For a long time, it was one of Wellington's sources of fresh milk from its dairy farms.

Mount Victoria covers 1.08 km² (0.42 sq mi).^[1] It had an estimated population of 4,860 as of June 2024, with a population density of 4,500 people per km².

Mount Victoria had a population of 4,527 at the 2018 New Zealand census, an increase of 129 people (2.9%) since the 2013 census, and an increase of 189 people (4.4%) since the 2006 census. There were 1,785 households, comprising 2,199 males and 2,328 females, giving a sex ratio of 0.94 males per female. The median age was 30.9 years (compared with 37.4 years nationally), with 351 people (7.8%) aged under 15 years, 1,800 (39.8%) aged 15 to 29, 2,007 (44.3%) aged 30 to 64, and 366 (8.1%) aged 65 or older.

Ethnicities were 82.0% European/Pākehā, 7.2% Māori, 2.4% Pasifika, 13.4% Asian, and 4.9% other ethnicities. People may identify with more than one ethnicity.

The percentage of people born overseas was 34.9, compared with 27.1% nationally.

Although some people chose not to answer the census's question about religious affiliation, 63.5% had no religion, 23.2% were Christian, 0.3% had Māori religious beliefs, 2.1% were Hindu, 0.5% were Muslim, 1.4% were Buddhist and 3.8% had other religions.

Of those at least 15 years old, 2,286 (54.7%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, and 156 (3.7%) people had no formal qualifications. The median income was $46,700, compared with $31,800 nationally. 1,200 people (28.7%) earned over $70,000 compared to 17.2% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 2,754 (65.9%) people were employed full-time, 588 (14.1%) were part-time, and 174 (4.2%) were unemployed.^[3]

The Byrd Memorial erected in 1962 to polar explorer Richard E. Byrd is by the peak of Mount Victoria. The Hataitai Bus Tunnel and the Mount Victoria Tunnel (State Highway 1) run beneath the ridge of Mount Victoria, connecting the central city with Wellington International Airport, Evans Bay and the Miramar Peninsula. Mount Victoria's churches include the notable Greek Orthodox Cathedral of The Annunciation of the Virgin Mary on Hania Street, St Mark's in Dufferin Street with its school and the Catholic St Gerard's Church and its former monastery in Hawker Street and the Catholic parish church, St Joseph's, in Ellice Street.

Much of Mount Victoria is part of the Wellington Town Belt, a series of park land originally granted to the city in 1873 for public recreation.[4] The vegetation in the area is dominated by pines and macrocarpa planted in the “plantation years” from the late 1800s to early 1900s,[5] though efforts have been made in recent years to plant more native vegetation, which has attracted the New Zealand kākā back to the area.[6] The area features many tracks used for walking and mountain biking. The Mount Victoria Lookout is situated within the Town Belt, and offers panoramic views of the greater Wellington area.[7] Not far to its east is the Mount Victoria Radio Tower, which was Wellington's main radio and television mast from 1927 until 1965, when the larger and more powerful Mount Kaukau transmitter opened.

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A strong link was forged between Cretans and New Zealanders during World War II. New Zealanders left behind in the retreat from Crete were hidden from the occupying army by Cretans at great personal danger and they were able to harass occupying forces. A commemoration of the Battle of Crete is held each year in May. Lloyd Street which is the site of the Greek community centre and the Greek Orthodox Cathedral was renamed Hania Street after Crete's old capital. Wellington's Olympic Football Club was established by Father Ilias Economou for his parishioners.

About 65 per cent of Greek New Zealanders live in Wellington and in the decades following World War II they were concentrated in Mount Victoria. The greatest concentration is now in Miramar and around half of Greek weddings are now with other New Zealanders.

The suburb is almost entirely residential with commercial activity along Kent Terrace on its north-western boundary. The houses are on the north-western flank of the ridge above the southern end of the Wellington CBD, Te Aro. Adjoining suburbs are Oriental Bay with Roseneath, Newtown to the south, Te Aro to the west beyond Kent Terrace and Hataitai on the far side of the ridge beyond the town belt.

Waterfront

What would seem to be residential Mount Victoria's frontage to the harbour is now technically a one-building-wide strip of Oriental Bay. The houses in Roxburgh, McFarlane, Hawker and Moeller Streets are all in Mount Victoria. The houses below those streets front onto Oriental Parade which is defined as Oriental Bay. The old monastery is in Mount Victoria. Palliser Road is in Roseneath.^[8]

Wellington College and Government House, official residence of New Zealand's Governor-General, are beyond the southern boundary to the south-east of cricket's Basin Reserve. Beyond Government House is Newtown's Wellington Hospital.

Houses

Mount Victoria was used twice as a location in Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings film trilogy. The very first footage on the project was shot off Alexandra Road on 11 October 1999, called the "Get off the road" scene, followed by the "Escape from the Nazgûl" scenes a few hundred metres to the North. Later an old quarry at the top end of Ellice Street was used as the Rohirrim camp at Dunharrow.^[9]

Clyde Quay School is a co-educational state primary school for Year 1 to 8 students,^[10][11] with a roll of 229 as of August 2024.^[12]

St Mark's Church School is a co-educational Anglican private primary school for Year 1 to 8 students,^[13][14] with a roll of 243.^[15]

Wellington College is a boys' state secondary school for Year 9 to 13 students,^[16] founded in 1867.^[17] It has a roll of 1869 as of August 2024.^[18]

Wellington East Girls' College is a girls' state secondary school for Year 9 to 13 students,^[19] founded in 1925.^[20] It has a roll of 1058.^[21]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mount Victoria (suburb).

• Full Moon Silhouettes The Mount Victoria Lookout during moonrise
• Mt Victoria Community Groups Websites
• Mt Victoria Historical Society