The mouth of the Singapore River contained the old harbour for the Port of Singapore, so naturally, the city grew around it. As a fledgling colony, the area which is now known as the Downtown Core was the financial, administrative and commercial centre of the colony. In 1823, Singapore was reorganised according to the Raffles Plan of Singapore by Sir Stamford Raffles, which specified elements like the Commercial Square (now Raffles Place) and the European Town as well as various other commercial and administrative entities located between them. This area later became the Downtown Core.
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The Downtown Core is one of the urban planning areas making up Singapore's Central Area, which is highlighted red.
The southern part of the Downtown Core, dominated by commercial buildings in Raffles Place and Shenton Way.
The northern part of the Downtown Core includes the Civic and Bugis areas. The City Hall and the Padang can be seen in the foreground.
The skyscrapers surrounding the centre of Raffles Place.
