Kent Ridge is the name of a ridge and a neighbourhood located in

Pasir Panjang Pasir Panjang is an area located at the southern part of Queenstown, Singapore, Queenstown in Singapore. Kent Ridge Park is a topographical feature which runs adjacent to Pasir Panjang. History Pasir Panjang Road, which once hugged the coa ...

, in the Queenstown Planning Area of Singapore. The area is notable for housing two parks within the

Southern Ridges The Southern Ridges comprise of trails connecting three parks along the southern ridge of Singapore. Some of the attractions along these trails include its greenery and the connecting bridges. This project linked up the parks between the Kent ...

Kent Ridge Park Kent Ridge Park is a 47-hectare public park located in Kent Ridge, Singapore, between the National University of Singapore and the Singapore Science Park. Due to its undisturbed habitat and abundant plant life, it is a popular venue for bird ...

and HortPark. The main campus of the

National University of Singapore The National University of Singapore (NUS) is a national university, national Public university, public research university in Singapore. It was officially established in 1980 by the merging of the University of Singapore and Nanyang University ...

is located adjacent to it, straddling along the southern boundary of Kent Ridge. It is served by the

Kent Ridge MRT station Kent Ridge MRT station is an underground Mass Rapid Transit (Singapore), Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) station on the Circle MRT line, Circle Line (CCL). Located in the eponymous Kent Ridge of Queenstown, Singapore, Queenstown, Singapore, the station ...

. The area occupied by Kent Ridge was formerly known as Pasir Panjang Ridge, and was originally a lowland evergreen

rainforest Rainforests are forests characterized by a closed and continuous tree Canopy (biology), canopy, moisture-dependent vegetation, the presence of epiphytes and lianas and the absence of wildfire. Rainforests can be generally classified as tropi ...

. The natural vegetation of the area mainly consists of groves of

Tembusu The tembusu (, or ), is a large evergreen tree in the family Gentianaceae, native to Southeast Asia (from Indo-China to New Guinea). It is the Malay name for ''Cyrtophyllum fragrans'' (synonym ''Fagraea fragrans''). It is also known as ironwoo ...

Acacia ''Acacia'', commonly known as wattles or acacias, is a genus of about of shrubs and trees in the subfamily Mimosoideae of the pea family Fabaceae. Initially, it comprised a group of plant species native to Africa, South America, and Austral ...

s and

Dillenia ''Dillenia'' is a genus of evergreen or semi-evergreen trees and shrubs in the flowering plant family Dilleniaceae, native to tropical and subtropical regions of southern Asia, Australasia, and the Indian Ocean islands. The genus is named after ...

s. When the first settlers arrived in Singapore in the early 19th century, they grew crops such as rubber, pepper, gambier and pineapple on the ridge. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, it was used as a fortress by the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

in the defence of Singapore. Many of the plantations were destroyed or abandoned during the Japanese Occupation (1942–1945), allowing the crops to grow wild. On 23 February 1954, the Governor of Singapore, Sir John Fearns Nicoll unveiled a plaque which declared the area had been renamed Kent Ridge to commemorate the visit by the

Duchess of Kent Duchess of Kent is the principal Courtesy titles in the United Kingdom, courtesy title used by the wife of the Duke of Kent. There have been four titles referring to Kent since the 18th century. The current duchess is Katharine, Duchess of Kent ...

and her son, the

Duke of Kent Duke of Kent is a title that has been created several times in the peerages of Great Britain and the United Kingdom, most recently as a royal dukedom for the fourth son of King George V. Since 1942, the title has been held by Prince Edwa ...

, on 3 October 1952. The plaque was erected at the junction of what is now Kent Ridge Road and South Buona Vista Road. The ridge contains

Bukit Chandu Bukit Chandu ( Malay for Opium Hill) is a hill located in Kent Ridge in Singapore where the Battle of Bukit Chandu took place on 14 February 1942 during the Battle of Singapore in World War II. Notable attractions * Reflections at Bukit Chandu ...

, alternatively known as ''Opium Hill'' (in Malay), after the opium processing factory owned by the

British East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company that was founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to Indian Ocean trade, trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (South A ...

that was at the foot of the hill until 1910.Information obtained from on-site information board at the Reflections at Bukit Chandu war museum. During 12–14 February 1942, it was the site of the

Battle of Bukit Chandu The Battle of Pasir Panjang, which took place between 13 and 15 February 1942, was part of the final stage of the Empire of Japan's invasion of Singapore during World War II. The battle was initiated upon the advancement of elite Imperial Japa ...

, fought by the 159 survivors of the

Malay Regiment The Royal Malay Regiment (; Jawi: ) is the premier unit of the Malaysian Army's two infantry regiments. At its largest, the Malay Regiment comprised 27 battalions. At present, three battalions are parachute trained and form part of the Malaysia ...

led by Lieutenant

Adnan Bin Saidi Adnan bin Saidi ( Jawi: ; 14 August 1915 – 14 February 1942) was a Malayan military officer of the 1st Infantry Brigade under the Malaya Command in British-ruled Malaya. In 1942, Adnan, then a lieutenant, led his platoon to put up fierce ...

against the 13,000 men of

Lieutenant-General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was normall ...

Mutaguchi Renya Lieutenant-General was an Imperial Japanese Army officer who served in World War II. He was the field commander of Japanese forces during the Battle of Imphal. Biography Mutaguchi was a native of Saga Prefecture. He graduated from the 22nd clas ...

's 18th Division. The Malay Regiment's position on the hill was overrun by the Japanese and the battle ended in hand-to-hand combat after the last few defenders ran out of ammunition. All the officers except one, Lieutenant Abbas Abdul-Manan, and most of the men, were massacred in the aftermath.

References

Places in Singapore {{Singapore-geo-stub