February 1942 to the Japanese at the Ford Motor Factory in present-day Hillview subzone was described by Winston Churchill as the "largest capitulation" in British military history. Singapore consequently underwent four years of Japanese occupation, which eventually ended following Operation Tiderace in early-September 1945. Consequently, the British’s plans to industrialize Bukit Timah was short-lived and put to an abrupt halt during World War II. The factories that were built before 1942 were swiftly taken over by the Japanese during their occupation of Singapore. Ford Factory, which sits at the bottom of the Bukit Batok Hill, was occupied by Nissan, the Japanese Multination Corporation, to supply military vehicles for the Imperial Japanese Army Force. Both Bukit Batok hill (current day Bukit Batok Nature Park) and Bukit Timah hill were considered as strategic hill grounds (Figure 6) during the Japanese Occupation. These locations were key to controlling the surrounding areas and thus were the site of the fiercest battles of the war. In addition, Bukit Timah Hill was also the British Commonwealth’s last line of defence against the Imperial Japanese Army Force. The Syonan Chureito Shrine Following the successful conquest of Singapore, General Yamashita ordered 500 Australian Prisoners of War to construct the Japanese war memorial, Syonan Chureito shrine, at the top of Bukit Batok Hill. Throughout the Japanese Occupation, the Japanese officials and military personnel would frequently worship their emperor in the Syonan Chureito shrine. In addition, footages of these ceremonies would be broadcast as propaganda in Japan to ensure the citizens’ continuous support for the war. However, the shrine was ultimately destroyed by the Japanese themselves at the end of the World War II as they feared that the honour of the memorial would be tarnished by the returning British troops. Post-War: After World War II, the British returned to Singapore. The areas around Ford Factory became known as the British’s ‘colonial estate factories’ as the British resumed their plans to industrialize Bukit Timah. In addition to the development of factories, Bukit Timah began to be extensively quarried for granite. The Poh Kim Quarry, which lies in the heart of Bukit Batok Nature Park today, was one of the quarry sites in the vicinity. It was quarried for granite between the 1950s to the 1970s but was later abandoned due to the damage that the activities was causing to the earth’s core. 1965-1975: After Singapore gained independence in 1965, the