Princess Royal lays wreath in solemn moment with veterans in Singapore

The Princess Royal has laid a wreath at a memorial for Commonwealth casualties in a sombre moment during her visit to Singapore.

Anne stood solemnly as she joined Singaporean and British veterans in a minute’s silence at the Kranji War Cemetery in the Asian city-state on Wednesday before it began to pour with rain.

The princess, who is the president of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC), which manages the cemetery, has begun a two-day visit to the island country to mark 60 years of diplomatic relations between the UK and Singapore.

Peter Hudson, vice chairman of the CWGC, greeted Anne when she arrived at the cemetery before she walked up the hill towards the memorial surrounded with wreaths from recent VJ Day service.

Bagpipes were being played as the princess, who wore a beige jacket, trousers and a blue shirt with a poppy brooch pinned to her lapel, spoke to staff from the CWGC.

At the start of a short service, Colonel Eddie Maskell-Pedersen, UK defence advisor to Singapore, said: “Ladies and gentlemen, we are honoured to have the Princess Royal join us today.”

He added that it had been a “wonderful year” for the relationship between the UK and Singapore.

An extract from For the Fallen was read aloud by Commander Tim Curnock from the British Royal Navy, before the veterans said in union: “We will remember them.”

Anne stood for a minute’s silence while clutching a beige bag to her side.

The princess then took a poppy wreath in both of her hands and placed it in front of the Kranji War Memorial before she took two steps back and nodded.

The president of the Singapore Armed Veteran’s League and the president of the veterans’ charity Sandbag were also invited to place wreaths on the ground.

The piper, who stood at the top of the cemetery overlooking the rows of headstones, saluted after the princess briefly spoke to him.

The cemetery is the final resting place of 4,461 Commonwealth casualties of the Second World War.

Anne’s husband Sir Timothy Laurence, who is accompanying her on the trip, laid a wreath on the grave of his relative Midshipman James Bremridge, who died aged 18.

During the Second World War, Mr Bremridge served aboard HMS Repulse, which was sunk by Japanese aircraft in the South China Sea in December 1941.

In 2012, the Prince and Princess of Wales also visited the Kranji War Cemetery where they laid a wreath during a tour of Southeast Asia and the South Pacific in celebration of the late Queen’s Diamond Jubilee.

After the short service, Anne visited HMS Spey which has been deployed to the Indo-Pacific since 2021 and is the fifth of the second-generation river class offshore patrol vessels built for the Royal Navy.

The princess was welcomed aboard the ship, which has recently been undergoing maintenance work, with a red carpet and greeted by Royal Navy officers.

She visited the wardroom and bridge before she presented awards to Warrant Officer James Burton and Warrant Officer Jason Proctor.

She also watched a 1.8-metre wide drone made by Skyports Drone Services drop a care package onto HMS Spey.

At the end of her visit to the ship, Anne told the crew: “Thank you very much for your hospitality today, I hope it isn’t interrupting too much in what is a pretty busy period for you getting back onboard and a system which seems to work well for this ship and for this ship’s company.

“I hope you all find that this is a really interesting role to have. In a way you never quite know what’s coming from day to day.

“You have to make the ship work and you do so thank you very much for that.”

She added: “It’s very nice to be able to have a chance to catch up with a ship that is fundamentally all over the place. Maybe that’s what attracts you and gives you satisfaction.

“Many congratulations to you on this ship, its turn out and what you achieve with her.”