Herbert Sobel

Herbert M. Sobel Sr. (26 January 1912 – 30 September 1987)[1] was an American commissioned officer with Easy Company, 2nd Battalion, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, in the 101st Airborne Division during World War II. Sobel was portrayed in the HBO miniseries Band of Brothers by David Schwimmer.

Herbert Sobel
Born(1912-01-26)26 January 1912
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Died30 September 1987(1987-09-30) (aged 75)
Waukegan, Illinois, U.S.
Allegiance United States of America
Service/branch United States Army
Years of service1941–46, ca. 1950–53
Rank Lieutenant Colonel
Service number0304109
UnitEasy Company, 2nd Battalion, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division
Battles/warsWorld War II Korean War
Awards
Relations
  • Max H. Sobel (father)
  • Dora Friedman (mother)
  • Julian (brother)
  • Maxine (sister)
  • Ruth/Caryl (sister)
  • Reeva (wife)
  • Herbert Jr. (son)
  • Michael (son)
  • Rick (son)
Other workAccountant

Early life and education

Sobel was born in Chicago, Illinois, to a Jewish family.[2] He attended the Culver Military Academy in Indiana.[3] He was a clothing salesman.[4] He graduated from the University of Illinois, majoring in architecture.[4]

Military career

Sobel enlisted in the Army on 7 March 1941 and volunteered for the paratroopers. He was commissioned as a second lieutenant. Promoted to first lieutenant, Sobel commanded Company E for all of their basic training at Camp Toccoa, Georgia. He trained his men intensely, and was eventually promoted to the rank of captain in recognition of his ability as a trainer. However, Sobel was despised by his soldiers for being petty and vindictive.[5]

After a period of training in the United Kingdom before the Normandy invasion, Captain Sobel was reassigned from command of Easy Company to command the jump school at Chilton Foliat. First Lieutenant Thomas Meehan replaced Sobel, and was one of several officers (including Richard Winters) to succeed him in that post before the end of the war.[6]

Sobel jumped into Normandy and earned a Combat Infantryman Badge as part of Regimental Headquarters Company.[6]

Sobel was assigned as the regimental S-4 (logistics) officer on 8 March 1945.[7]

Later life and death

Sobel returned to the United States in 1945,[8] and was honorably discharged from the Army on 18 March 1946. He worked as an accountant before being recalled to active duty during the Korean War.[9] He remained in the Army National Guard, eventually retiring at the rank of lieutenant colonel. He later married and had three children.[10]

In 1970, Sobel shot himself in the head with a small-caliber pistol in an attempted suicide.[11] The bullet entered his left temple, passed behind his eyes, and exited the other side of his head. This severed his optic nerves and left him blind.[11] Soon afterward, he began living at a VA assisted-living facility in Waukegan, Illinois. He died there of malnutrition on 30 September 1987.[11][12] No memorial services were held for him.[11]

Legacy

Sobel was portrayed as a petty and capricious martinet in the television series Band of Brothers, generating much debate.[13] Stephen Ambrose gives numerous examples of this in his book.[14] Since the series, his son Michael Sobel has spoken out on his behalf.[13] In interviews, some Easy Company veterans have acknowledged the part Sobel's training played in the company's later successes. Writing of him in their autobiographies, he is recalled with little fondness by fellow officers, who regarded him as a dilettante in the practical matters of ground combat, particularly due to his pronounced lack of understanding of common infantry field craft such as land navigation and basic infantry combat tactics, as well as a refusal to listen to the advice of fellow officers or NCOs.

Honors and awards

References
  1. "United States Social Security Death Index," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:J21V-LML : 20 May 2014), Herbert M Sobel, 30 Sep 1987; citing U.S. Social Security Administration, Death Master File, database (Alexandria, Virginia: National Technical Information Service, ongoing).
  2. Ambrose 1992, p. 17
  3. The Roll Call. Culver, Indiana: Culver Military Academy. 1929. p. 163. Retrieved 7 March 2017.
  4. Brotherton 2009, p. 241
  5. Ambrose 1992, chap 1–3
  6. Ambrose 1992, p. 53
  7. Ambrose 1992, p. 240
  8. "New York, New York Passenger and Crew Lists, 1909, 1925-1957". Retrieved 8 March 2017.
  9. Brotherton 2009, p. 242
  10. Ambrose 1992, p. 298
  11. Brotherton 2009, p. 244
  12. "Illinois, Cook County Deaths, 1878-1994". Retrieved 8 March 2017.
  13. Brotherton 2009, p. 95
  14. Ambrose 1992

Bibliography
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