A funeral service has been held for James 'Jim' Wren, a World War Two veteran and the UK's oldest Royal Marine, who passed away aged 105. More than 100 mourners gathered at St Thomas' Church in Salisbury, Wiltshire, to honor the veteran. James 'Jim' Wren, born in 1920, joined the Royal Marines in 1939 at the age of 19.
In December 1941, HMS Repulse sailed from Singapore as part of Force Z alongside HMS Prince of Wales. Japanese aircraft attacked on 10 December 1941 and within hours, both HMS Repulse and HMS Prince of Wales were sunk. A total of 513 crew members were lost onboard HMS Repulse, including 30 of the 55 Royal Marines.
James 'Jim' Wren was blown into the sea, drenched in oil, and survived by clinging to a life raft during the sinking of HMS Repulse. Two months after the sinking, he was captured by the Japanese in Singapore. While attempting to rescue fellow marines in Singapore, James 'Jim' Wren was captured and taken to Sumatra.
He endured brutal conditions as a prisoner of war for three and a half years, including starvation, disease, and forced labour, though the exact locations and details of the forced labour camps where he was held are not specified. He escaped in 1945 after Japan surrendered and returned home weighing just six stone (38kg). James 'Jim' Wren attributed his survival to the bond between his comrades.
He hid rice sacks to create shrouds for men who died in the prison camp, and when guards removed the sacks, he gathered jungle leaves to continue the practice. After the war, James 'Jim' Wren continued to serve for another six years, including time aboard HMS Vanguard. He settled in Salisbury after his military service.
He had met his wife Margaret just before deployment and she waited for him throughout the war without knowing if he was alive or dead. They married a year after the war and were together for 74 years, until her death in 2020. In his later years, when it emerged that the wrecks of HMS Repulse and HMS Prince of Wales had been desecrated by illegal salvaging in early 2023, James 'Jim' Wren began campaigning for protection of the war graves, though the specific actions he took in this campaign are not detailed.
Major general Patrick Cordingley, from the Force Z Survivors Association, said James 'Jim' Wren's unwavering loyalty to his fallen comrades was what shone through most. He added that James 'Jim' Wren was an extraordinarily modest chap, when you look at what he went through. Cordingley also stated it's just amazing what James 'Jim' Wren was clearly capable of doing.
Reflecting on the veteran's experiences, Cordingley said the hardship is almost unimaginable and it would have been incredibly difficult, but James 'Jim' Wren reflected on it with humility. He emphasized for those of us serving today, to look back at what those people did is an incredibly important thing - to consider the courage, resilience, and sacrifices they made. James 'Jim' Wren passed away on 1 February aged 105, though the cause of his death has not been disclosed.
His funeral was attended by more than 100 mourners, honoring a life marked by extraordinary survival and service.