When early European settlement was taking place in New Zealand, a company called the Canterbury Association was created in London in 1848. The two key individuals in this company were Edward Gibbon Wakefield and John Robert Godley. They planned a new settlement to be sponsored by the Church of England, and called the settlement Canterbury, after the Archbishop of Canterbury. The seat of the settlement was called Christchurch after the Oxford College where Godley had studied. The city grew with the central area being laid out in a grid pattern. Over 150 years later, in 2010 and 2011, two major earthquakes caused major damage to the city, with the 185 people losing their lives. As a result of the extensive damage, the city has been undergoing a major redevelopment with many areas demolished and both restoration of older areas and development of new areas taking place.

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