"A medal belonging to a cargo ship captain who became a national hero for sinking the first German U-boat has emerged for the first time after 98 years. Captain John Bell was transporting coal from Newcastle to Plymouth in a small and completely unarmed cargo steamship when an enemy submarine fired a torpedo at his vessel in the English Channel in 1915. But despite being at a severe disadvantage, he went on the offensive and rammed his vessel at the German U-boat’s periscope, the only part of the submarine which was visible, until he heard a loud crash from beneath them. Minutes later oil from the stricken sub floated to the surface of the sea and the vessel was never seen again. The astonishing feat happened just a few months into the First World War when German U-boats posed a real menace to Royal Navy shipping, with five cruisers being lost to them in the first 10 weeks. After returning to port with the news that Captain Bell’s ship had become the first to sink a German U-boat, the skipper and his crew were each given a reward of £860, the equivalent of £75,000 today. Captain Bell also received the Distinguished Service Order (DSC) by King George V at Buckingham Palace, an 18 carat gold watch and a celebratory dinner was held in his honour at the Mansion House in London. Now nearly 100 years on from the event, his DSC and engraved watch are being sold at auction in London with a pre-sale estimate of £5,000. James Morten, of auctioneers Morten and Eden, said: 'John Bell was a merchant seamen, he wasn’t a military person." http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2345767/Medal-belonging-little-known-WW1-cargo-ship-skipper-single-handedly-sank-German-U-boat-ramming-surfaces-98-years.html