Bernard Porter – Mercantile Marine - S.S. Bamse

Fireman Bernard Porter – Mercantile Marine, S.S. Bamse

Early Life and Background

Birth and Family

Bernard Porter was born in 1868 in London, the son of William and Mary Porter. Very little documentation survives regarding his early life, but the Commonwealth War Graves Commission records confirm that he later settled in Swansea. He married Sarah Davies, and the couple lived at 13 Lewis Street, St. Thomas, Swansea, at the heart of the town’s busy dockland community.

Service at Sea – S.S. Bamse

Bernard served as a Fireman aboard the S.S. Bamse, one of two vessels of the same name lost during the First World War. Firemen worked deep in a ship’s stokehold, feeding coal into the boilers under extreme heat and harsh conditions, with very little chance of escape in the event of an attack. The Bamse on which Bernard served was a British merchant steamer engaged in coastal and short-sea trade, carrying essential cargoes during the final year of the war, when German U-boats still posed a grave threat in British waters. On 2^nd October 1918, while on passage in the North Sea, the Bamse was torpedoed and sunk by the German submarine UB-112, resulting in the loss of members of her crew, including Fireman Bernard Porter, who has no known grave but the sea.

The S.S. Bamse

Two merchant steamers bearing the name S.S. Bamse were lost during the First World War—one on 18^th April 1918, and the second on 2^nd October 1918. While details about Bernard’s day-to-day duties are scarce, his service aboard the latter vessel places him among the many merchant seafarers who continued to sail despite the well-known dangers posed by submarines and mines in the war’s final months.

The ship operated in the North Sea and coastal British waters, areas heavily patrolled by U-boats throughout 1918. The sinking of the Bamse demonstrated that, even late in the war, German submarine activity remained a deadly threat to Allied merchant shipping.

German Submarine UB-112

The UB-112 was a Type UB III submarine of the Imperial German Navy, commissioned in 1918. Submarines of this class were larger and more advanced than earlier coastal types, capable of longer patrols and carrying more powerful torpedoes. UB-112 displaced around 520 tons surfaced and 650 tons submerged, carried ten torpedoes, and was armed with a deck gun, giving her considerable offensive capability.

Although UB-112 entered service late in the war, she carried out aggressive patrols in the North Sea and the approaches to the English coast. It was during one of these patrols, on 2^nd October 1918, that she torpedoed and sank the S.S. Bamse. Germany’s U-boat arm capitulated only weeks later in November 1918, and UB-112 was surrendered and subsequently broken up postwar.

The submarine’s attack on the Bamse stands as one of the many final losses of the Mercantile Marine before the Armistice.

Commemoration

S.S. Bamse
Tower Hill Memorial, London
credit - Benjidog Historical Research Resources:
The Merchant Navy Memorial 

S.S. Bamse
Tower Hill Memorial, London
credit - Benjidog Historical Research Resources:
The Merchant Navy Memorial 

As Bernard Porter has no known grave but the sea, his name is recorded on the Tower Hill Memorial in London. This memorial honours the men and women of the Mercantile Marine who died during both World Wars without a known resting place. Bernard’s name stands alongside those of thousands of merchant sailors lost to torpedo attacks, mines, and wartime hazards, ensuring that his sacrifice will not be forgotten.

Legacy

Bernard Porter’s life represents the dedication of merchant seafarers who kept Britain supplied during one of the most dangerous periods in maritime history. His service as a Fireman aboard the Bamse—a role demanding strength, endurance, and courage—demonstrates the critical work undertaken by those below deck, who faced the highest risks when disaster struck.

His presence in Swansea’s maritime community, despite being London-born, reflects the diverse origins of the men who made their home in the city’s docklands and contributed to its seafaring identity. Though records of his early life are limited, Bernard’s sacrifice in the service of the Mercantile Marine stands as part of Swansea’s broader wartime story and the courage of its seafaring families.