Whitfield Barracks were

barracks Barracks are usually a group of long buildings built to house military personnel or laborers. The English word originates from the 17th century via French and Italian from an old Spanish word "barraca" ("soldier's tent"), but today barracks are u ...

Tsim Sha Tsui Tsim Sha Tsui, often abbreviated as TST, is an urban area in southern Kowloon, Hong Kong. The area is administratively part of the Yau Tsim Mong District. Tsim Sha Tsui East is a piece of land reclaimed from the Hung Hom Bay now east of Tsi ...

Kowloon Kowloon () is an urban area in Hong Kong comprising the Kowloon Peninsula and New Kowloon. With a population of 2,019,533 and a population density of in 2006, it is the most populous area in Hong Kong, compared with Hong Kong Island and ...

, Hong Kong. It was named after

Henry Wase Whitfield Lieutenant General Henry Wase Whitfield ( Chinese: 威非路) was the Lieutenant Governor of Hong Kong and Commander of British Troops in China, Hong Kong and the Straits Settlements. Military career Whitfield was commissioned into the 2nd We ...

, who was appointed commander of the British Army in Hong Kong in 1869.Brief Information on proposed Grade I Items
Items No. 43 and No. 44 The area is now the site of

Kowloon Park Kowloon Park is a large public park in Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon, Hong Kong. It has an area of and is managed by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department.Leisure and Cultural Services DepartmentKowloon Park: Historical Background History ...

, where four reconverted barrack blocks and parts of the former Kowloon West II Battery remain.

History

The site was designated a military area in 1864. In the 1890s, the Barracks were first built for the British Indian

garrison A garrison (from the French ''garnison'', itself from the verb ''garnir'', "to equip") is any body of troops stationed in a particular location, originally to guard it. The term now often applies to certain facilities that constitute a mili ...

s. Twenty five barrack blocks were built by 1906;The Geographical Information System on Hong Kong Heritage
Former Whitfield Barracks, Block S61
/ref> the Barracks were developed in subsequent years. By 1910, there had been 85 barrack buildings constructed. A mosque was also built at the southeastern corner of the site for worship by the garrison. It belonged to the British Military Force when Hong Kong was under

British rule The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent; * * it is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or Direct rule in India, * Quote: "Mill, who was hims ...

. The premises was later returned to the

Government of Hong Kong The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, commonly known as the Hong Kong Government or HKSAR Government, refers to the executive authorities of Hong Kong SAR. It was formed on 1 July 1997 in accordance with the Sino- ...

in 1967. In 1970, the

Urban Council The Urban Council (UrbCo) was a municipal council in Hong Kong responsible for municipal services on Hong Kong Island and in Kowloon (including New Kowloon). These services were provided by the council's executive arm, the Urban Servic ...

redeveloped the site into the

. The Government was criticised when the Executive Council approved plans in 1982 for a strip of retail premises fronting

Nathan Road Nathan Road is the main thoroughfare in Kowloon, Hong Kong, aligned south–north from Tsim Sha Tsui to Sham Shui Po. It is lined with shops and restaurants and throngs with visitors, and was known in the post– World War II years as the Gol ...

to be carved into the hill of Kowloon Park. The move was first proposed when the Barracks were converted into public open space in 1970, and ignited some controversy. It was opposed by the

, as well as the Muslim community, whose

mosque A mosque (; from ar, مَسْجِد, masjid, ; literally "place of ritual prostration"), also called masjid, is a place of prayer for Muslims. Mosques are usually covered buildings, but can be any place where prayers ( sujud) are performed, ...

was close by. The rights for the development of the 5,410 sq metre strip were sold in February 1983 to a subsidiary of

New World Development New World Development Company Limited (NWD), is a Hong Kong-based company focused on property, hotels, infrastructure and services and department stores. It was established on 29 May 1970 by Cheng Yu-tung. The company is publicly listed on the ...

for $218 million.

Remaining buildings

Four reconverted military barrack blocks remain: Blocks 58, S4, S61 and S62. Blocks S61 and S62 were constructed in circa 1910. They are a pair of identical two storied colonial military barrack blocks, and were originally part of six barrack blocks built parallel to one another. The roofs are pitched with Chinese tiles with tar finish. They housed the former Hong Kong Museum of History from 1983 to 1998 before the completion of the present Museum at

Chatham Road South Chatham Road South and Chatham Road North are two continuous roads spanning from Tsim Sha Tsui to Hung Hom in Kowloon, Hong Kong. The road originally ran from Signal Hill to Hung Hom under No. 12 Hill by the side of Hung Hom Bay. It was later e ...

. An extension block linking the two historical barracks was constructed in the 1980s to provide more space for the museum facilities. The blocks now house the

Hong Kong Heritage Discovery Centre The Hong Kong Heritage Discovery Centre is located in the Kowloon Park, Haiphong Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon, Hong Kong. The Centre occupies the historic Blocks S61 and S62 of the former Whitfield Barracks at the Kowloon Park. History ...

UNESCO Asia Pacific Heritage Awards UNESCO Asia Pacific Heritage Awards (since 2000) are given with as the strategic purpose of UNESCO with in the region Asia Pacific. The objective is to motivate the protection of Cultural Heritage sites, which are initiated by any individual organi ...

Whitfield Barracks
/ref> Block S4 (formerly Block G) is situated at the southeast corner of Kowloon Park, along Haiphong Road, and is accessed through its entrance on

. It is a two-storied colonial military barrack building which is similar in type to Blocks S61 and S62. It now houses

Health Education Exhibition and Resource Centre The Health Education Exhibition and Resources Centre opened on 17May 1997 in Kowloon Park, Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong. It is under the management of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department of the Government of Hong Kong. History The Hea ...

. Block 58 (formerly Block A) is situated at the southwest corner of Kowloon Park, along Haiphong Road. It is used as a

godown A warehouse is a building for storing goods. Warehouses are used by manufacturers, importers, exporters, wholesalers, transport businesses, customs, etc. They are usually large plain buildings in industrial parks on the outskirts of cities, tow ...

of the Hong Kong Museum of History.

Kowloon West II Battery

Kowloon West II Battery was situated in the northwestern part of today's Kowloon Park. It was built between 1878 and 1880, and was probably decommissioned by 1916. It commanded the entrance to

Victoria Harbour Victoria Harbour is a natural landform harbor, harbour in Hong Kong separating Hong Kong Island in the south from the Kowloon Peninsula to the north. The harbour's deep, sheltered waters and strategic location on South China Sea were instrume ...

between

Stonecutters Island Stonecutters Island or Ngong Shuen Chau is a former island in Victoria Harbour, Hong Kong. Following land reclamation, it is now attached to the Kowloon Peninsula. Fauna The island once boasted at least three mating pairs of sulphur-crested co ...

and Green Island.The Geographical Information System on Hong Kong Heritage
Former Whitfield Barracks, KLN West II Battery
/ref> When Whitfield Barracks was converted into Kowloon Park, the battery was converted into a children's adventure playground; it is still recognisable for what it was, however. The gun emplacements have been renovated. Naval guns have been mounted in each emplacement after they were discovered at a construction site at

Chatham Road Chatham Road South and Chatham Road North are two continuous roads spanning from Tsim Sha Tsui to Hung Hom in Kowloon, Hong Kong. The road originally ran from Signal Hill to Hung Hom under No. 12 Hill by the side of Hung Hom Bay. It was later ...

in Tsim Sha Tsui in 1980.

Conservation

The remaining Blocks 58, S4, S61 and S62 of the former barracks were listed as Grade III historic buildings from 1997 to 2009. They have been listed as Grade I historic buildings since 2009. The Kowloon West II Battery has been listed as a Grade I historic building since 1997.List of the 1,444 Historic Buildings in Building Assessment (as of 10 September 2013)
/ref> The conversion of Blocks S61 and S62 into the

won the 2007

Jury Commendation for Innovation.

References

External links

List of barracks in Hong Kong

Maps showing the location of the historic buildings within Kowloon ParkGwulo.com entry
{{Coord, 22.299321, 114.16977, display=title Tsim Sha Tsui Military of Hong Kong under British rule Barracks in Hong Kong Former buildings and structures in Hong Kong