| Eugen Ritter von Schobert | |
|---|---|
| Born | 13 March 1883 Würzburg, Bavaria, Germany |
| Died | 12 September 1941 (aged 58) Ukrainian SSR (airplane crash) |
| Allegiance | Germany |
| Service/branch | Bavarian Army, Reichswehr, Wehrmacht |
| Years of service | 1902-1941 |
| Rank | Colonel General (Generaloberst) |
| Commands held | VII Army Corps (1938-1940) Eleventh Army (1940-1941) |
| Battles/wars | World War I Battle of Verdun, Spring Offensive of 1918 World War II: Polish campaign, Battle of France, Operation Barbarossa |
| Awards | Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (1940) Military Order of Max Joseph, Knight's Cross House Order of Hohenzollern, Knight's Cross with Swords Bavarian Military Merit Order, 4th Class with Crown and Swords (1918) Romanian Order of Michael the Brave (1941) |
Eugen Siegfried Erich Ritter von Schobert[1] (March 13, 1883 – September 12, 1941) was a German general who served in World War I and World War II. He died in the Soviet Union when his observation plane crashed in a Soviet minefield.[2]
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Schobert was born as Eugen Schobert in Würzburg in the Kingdom of Bavaria, a member state of the German Empire.[3] He was the son of Major Karl Schobert and Anna née Michaely.[3] Schobert entered the Royal Bavarian Army in July 1902. He served primarily in the 1st Bavarian Infantry Regiment "König" and underwent pilot training in 1911.[3]
During World War I, Schobert remained a Bavarian infantry officer, serving the entire war on the Western Front. During the German Spring Offensive of 1918, he led the 3rd Battalion of the 1st Bavarian Infantry Regiment. For his actions on March 23, 1918, when he personally and successfully led his battalion in the crossing of a canal near Jussy against stiff British resistance, he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Military Order of Max Joseph.[4] This was Bavaria's highest military honor, comparable to the Prussian Pour le Mérite, and conferred a patent of nobility on a recipient who was a commoner. Hence Eugen Schobert became Eugen Ritter von Schobert.[5]
After World War I, Schobert remained in the Reichswehr and then the Wehrmacht, steadily rising up the ranks. He was Inspector of Infantry from December 1933 to September 1934 and then commanded the 17th Infantry Division and the 33rd Infantry Division.[6] He took command of the VII Army Corps (VII. Armeekorps) on February 4, 1938.[7]
In September 1939, Schobert led his VII Army Corps in the invasion of Poland as part of the reserve of Army Group South. In May–June 1940, his corps, part of General Ernst Busch's Sixteenth Army of Army Group A, participated in the invasion of Belgium and Luxembourg and the Battle of France. He received the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross for his leadership of the VII Corps in the breakthrough of the Maginot Line and the capture of Nancy and Toul.[3] He remained in command of the corps during preparations for the invasion of Great Britain.
In September 1940, Schobert was given command of the Eleventh Army. The army was assigned to Army Group South for Operation Barbarossa, the invasion of the Soviet Union. During combat operations in the southern Soviet Union, Schobert and his pilot were killed when their Fieseler Storch observation aircraft crashed in a Soviet minefield.
Schobert married Alice Rieder-Gollwitzer in 1921. They had three children: two sons and one daughter. His younger son was killed in combat in 1944 while serving as a fighter pilot for the Luftwaffe.[8]
| Military offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by none |
Commander of 11. Armee October 5, 1940 - September 21, 1941 |
Succeeded by Generalfeldmarschall Erich von Manstein |