The Goth­ic revival cathe­dral was con­se­crat­ed in 1881 as the seat of the Christchurch Angli­can dio­cese. Dam­aged in the 2011 Christchurch earth­quakes, the cathe­dral has sat untouched since the earth­quakes due to con­stant debate and threats of legal action over what should be done with it.