Introduction: A Hill of Different Names

Fort Canning Hill was previously known as Bukit Larangan (Forbidden Hill) by the native Malays for a few possible reasons:

1. The hill contains the tomb of Sultan Iskandar Shah, the Malay ruler of the Kingdom of Singapura, who was said to have forbidden ordinary people to come to the hill because his concubines and wives used to bathe at a spring there.

2. The Malays were fearful of climbing the hill as the palace of their ancestor kings were once situated there.


Tomb previously present on Fort Canning.

Subsequently, Sir Stamford Raffles claimed the hill for his residence, naming it Government Hill in 1822. It was a place where Singapore's governors resided until mid-19th century.


Portrait of the Government Hill before the 1860s.

The hill was then converted into a fort in 1860 and renamed to Fort Canning in the honor of Viscount Charles John Canning, the first Viceroy of India. Around 1920s-1930s, the hill was transformed into well-prepared fort to stop any invasions from the South. Key historical events also took place on the hill, the most notable being Lieutenant-General Percival's decision to surrender to the Japanese in the battle box at located at the hill.


Old map of Fort Canning.