Temasek (淡马锡)/Ban Zu It is believed that the Fort Canning Hill area was once the centre of
ancient Singapura that thrived in the 15th century, and was occupied by a palace with various buildings of political, religious and commercial significance. In around 1330, the Chinese traveller
Wang Dayuan visited the island of Singapore he named as
Danmaxi (
Temasek). Wang described in his work
Daoyi Zhilüe the two distinct settlements of Temasek:
Long Ya Men and
Ban Zu.
Ban Zu, located on a hill behind
Long Ya Men, is thought to be today's Fort Canning Hill. In contrast to the inhabitants of
Long Ya Men who were described as being prone to acts of piracy, the people of
Ban Zu were described as honest. The people were said to "wear their hair short, with a turban of gold-brocaded satin", and they also wore red-coloured clothes and had a leader. Evidence of the significance of Fort Canning Hill had been found; in 1928, a cache of gold ornaments dating to the mid-14th century was discovered while workers were excavating for the
Fort Canning Reservoir. A series of archaeological digs that began in 1984 have uncovered evidence of workshops for glass and gold that dated to the 15th century, and a ceremonial or religious area near the summit. Historical sources also indicate that around the end of the 15th century, Singapura was attacked by either the
Majapahit or the
Siamese, forcing its ruler
Parameswara to move on to
Melaka where he founded the
Sultanate of Malacca. Archaeological evidence suggests that the settlement on Fort Canning was abandoned around this time, although a small trading settlement continued in Singapore for some time afterwards. Ruins of the settlement on Fort Canning Hill were still visible in the early 19th century and described by the Resident
John Crawfurd who also found indication of ruins of an ancient orchard, shards of pottery and Chinese coins, the earliest of which dating to 10th century
Song dynasty. Crawfurd described the ruins of a square terrace of square that may have been a temple near the top of the hill, with another terrace almost as big on the northern slope of the hill said to the tombs of a Malay king,
Iskandar Shah, although there is no evidence of a burial there.
Ban Zu is likely a transcription of the Malay word
pancur meaning a spring or stream. Spring used to exist on the west side of the hill, called
pancur larangan or "forbidden spring", where the women of the ruler's household were said to bathe in ancient times. In the early period of 19th century Singapore, the stream was used to provide clean drinking water for all ships stopping at the port until the demand exceeded the capacity, and the spring dried up as wells were dug around the hill.
Early colonial period On 6 February 1819,
Temenggong Abdul Rahman and Sultan
Hussein Shah signed
The Singapore Treaty with
Stamford Raffles. Major
William Farquhar, accompanied by a few Malaccan Malays, climbed up the Bukit Larangan. Farquhar drew up the first gun and set up the post to hoist the
Union Jack on top of the hill, marking the birth of
Singapore as a British settlement. Raffles appointed Farquhar as the first
Resident and Commandant of Singapore on the same day. Before leaving on the next day, Raffles left Farquhar with a set of instructions on the administration of the new British settlement. The hill was later known as the Singapore Hill. , but not the original built by Raffles, which was a wood and
atap structure. While Raffles was still in
Bencoolen,
Sumatra at the time,
George Drumgold Coleman, having waited for him to return for four months, in the meantime designed for Raffles the
Residency House for his residence use. Upon his return in October 1822 and impressed with Coleman's design, Raffles approved the house, construction of which was soon begun on Singapore Hill in November 1822 and completed by January 1823. at the end of the 19th century Raffles' former residence was extended and redesigned by Coleman with bricks and tiles in June 1824, as funded by the 2nd Resident
John Crawfurd to be used by other
Residents and
Governors of Singapore as the
Government House, thus the location gained the name Government Hill. On 2 August 1824, Temenggong Abdul Rahman, Sultan Hussein, and John Crawfurd signed the
Treaty of Friendship and Alliance at the hill. The hill was also known by the Malays as Bukit Bendera after the Union Jack flag hoisted on the hill by William Farquhar, and later, also as Bukit Tuan Bonham after Sir
Samuel George Bonham, who was governor from 1836 to 1848. A Christian cemetery used to exist on the hill, serving as the burial ground for early Europeans in Singapore. The first Christian cemetery was used until 1822 and had 3 burials, was located close to Raffles house. The second cemetery was located on the slopes of Fort Canning Hill, and was expanded and consecrated in 1834. A brick wall and a Gothic gateway were constructed in 1846 to enclose it, built by Captain Charles Edward Faber. Two classical monuments, and some headstones placed along brick walls remained at the site. The cemetery continued to be used until 1865 when it was declared full and closed. By this time, around one third of the burials there were of Chinese Christians. A report recommended extensive fortifications, which alarmed the business community who felt a large fortress would be detrimental to trade. Eventually officer's quarters and a series of platforms carrying seven 68-pounders were built facing the sea. In 1867 eight 8-inch shell guns and two 13-inch shell guns were added. On 15 February 1942
Lieutenant-General Arthur Ernest Percival surrendered Singapore to the Japanese here. The Japanese also used the buildings above and below the ground for its military until the end of the
occupation in 1945, when the British army resumed control. The underground bunker however was abandoned, but it was re-opened on 31 January 1992 as a tourist attraction and is now known as
The Battle Box. As the island moved towards self-determination, the British handed over control of the fort to the Singaporean military in 1963, and was home to the headquarters of the 4th Malaysian Infantry Brigade until December 1966 when it was in turn handed over to the
Singapore Armed Forces. The SAF proceeded to build the
Singapore Command and Staff College on the fort, which officially opened on 13 February 1970.
Fort Canning Reservoir Construction of the Fort Canning Service Reservoir started in 1927 and finished in 1929. It was built on top the hill on the site of a former barrack and parade ground of the demolished fort. Excavation for the reservoir in 1928 found a cache of Javanese-style gold jewellery dating to the mid-14th century. The reservoir is covered and access is restricted.
Van Kleef Aquarium The Van Kleef Aquarium was first constructed in 1955 at the foot of Fort Canning Hill known as King George V Jubilee Park facing River Valley Road. The aquarium was the first of its kind in South-East Asia, and attracted over 150,000 visitors within three months of its opening, and had around 400,000 visitors annually by the 1970s. However, due to competition from newer attractions which led to declining visitors in the 1980s, it closed on 31 May 1991. A number of attempts were made to renew operation at the site but all were unsuccessful. It finally closed in 1996, and the building demolished in 1998.
National Theatre Known as the People's Theatre, the National Theatre was later built near the Van Kleef Aquarium on the western slope of the hill and closer to the Clemenceau Avenue road. The theatre was officially opened on 8 August 1963 and was once the venue for various international performances, universities' convocations and the
National Day rallies, it was demolished in August 1986 to make way for the nearby construction part of
Central Expressway along Clemenceau Avenue. ==Fort Canning Park==