Gillman Barracks : Military Barracks turned Contemporary Arts Paradise
Gillman Barracks History Gillman Barracks was constructed in 1936 and its location was chosen due to its proximity to the sea. Gillman Barracks was named after the late General Sir Webb Gillman, who was a highly respected officer of the British army and who came to Singapore for 3 months in 1927 to assess the defence capability of the British Naval Base. The 1st Battalion, Middlesex Regiment and the 2nd Battalion, Loyal Regiment of the British army were based in Gillman Barracks as part of a plan to facilitate the expansion of the British army in Singapore. Structures at Gillman include officers' married quarters, sports facilities, officers' messes, barrack buildings and regimental institutes. During the Second World War, the British regiments fought the Japanese for three days prior to the fall of Singapore in February 1942. Gillman Barracks was one of the last British military base to fall to the Japanese. After the Japanese surrender on 14 August 1945, Gillman Barracks wa