Pillboxes were built in the 1930s to strengthen Singapore’s coastal defence as part of British preparation for a war in Singapore. The pillboxes were equipped with machine guns and positioned at strategic intervals to allow their fields of fires to overlap and reinforce each other. Pasir Panjang Machine-Gun Pillbox lay within the area guarded by the 1st Battalion of the Malay Regiment which later battled invading Japanese troops at Pasir Pajang Ridge. It served to protect the Southern area which had key installations including ammunition depots and Alexandra Military Hospital.
