HUNDREDS of mourners lined the streets of Salisbury to pay their final respects to one of the last surviving Royal Marines veterans of the Second World War.

Jim Wren, who died earlier this year aged 105, was laid to rest at St Thomas’s Church on Wednesday, (March 4), in a moving ceremony attended by family, friends and members of the Royal Marines.

His coffin, draped in the Royal Marine Corps flag, was carried into the church by servicemen in complete silence.

The service ended with the sound of bugles as people gathered to say their final farewells.

Mr Wren, the country’s oldest Royal Marine veteran, lived a remarkable life defined by courage and resilience.

He is thought to be the oldest surviving witness to the sinking of HMS Repulse, part of the ill-fated Force Z task group destroyed by Japanese aircraft in December 1941 in the early days of the Pacific War.

Mr Wren tried to enlist at the age of 19 but was rejected by both the RAF and the Army. Encouraged by his uncle, he applied to the Royal Marines and was accepted.

Jim Wren in uniform at HMS Flowerdown near Winchester.

After completing his training, he was assigned to HMS Repulse, a First World War-era battlecruiser later deployed to the Far East alongside the battleship HMS Prince of Wales.

On December 10, 1941, the ships were attacked by Japanese bombers in the South China Sea.

Mr Wren recalled the moment the alarm sounded.

“I dropped my tea and headed to my action station,” he said.

“The noise was terrific; it was one big noisy battle. There was no panic though, we’d been through the routines so regularly that we just got on it.

“Everyone knew their role and we had such a good crew. We all had faith in each other.”

Repulse sank after around 80 minutes of fierce fighting, leaving Mr Wren and hundreds of others in the oil-covered sea before they were rescued.

He later survived three and a half years as a prisoner of war after being captured when Singapore fell in 1942.

Jim Wren on his wedding day with his bride Margaret.

Following the war, Mr Wren remained in the military until 1953 before settling in Salisbury with his wife Margaret, where he worked as a gardener and groundskeeper.

In later life he was honoured by royalty, including receiving a portrait commissioned by the King and attending commemorations of the 80th anniversary of victory over Japan last year.