The Old British Military Hospital

Above you on your right you will catch glimpses of the former British Military Hospital through the trees. It was constructed under the supervision of Major Brookes and officially opened in 1907. It had its own specially built small ambulance because the road up to it was only 3 metres wide. The hospital came under direct attack in the last war, when the Japanese shelled it while trying to destroy the gun emplacements directly behind it. It is said to have sustained 111 hits during the siege (Desperate Siege, Ted Ferguson). During the Japanese invasion it was described as a 'a pulsing madhouse', many of the staff working thirty-six hours at a stretch without sleep. The wards were packed and every corridor filled with mattresses occupied by wounded men.

The former hospital has recently been home to a number of schools while they were waiting for their own buildings to be finished, including Island School, the French International School, and South Island School. It has been saved from the developers mainly because of the instability of its site. No new building in its position would be safe from landslides. If you want to take a closer look at the building's colonial style of architecture, turn up the first set of steps on the right, marked by a stone post with WAD NO. 1 engraved on it. The steps and steep path will bring you out to the right-hand front corner of the building.