Lot 435

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Description:

DRESS UNIFORM AND CAPTURED NAZI FLAG FROM ESTATE OF 101ST AIRBORNE CAPT. WILLIAM W. WEBB
WILLIAM W. WEBB (1914-1984) American Army officer, a captain with the 327th G.I.R., 101st Airborne, a North Carolinian who enlisted on August 27, 1941 and remained with the 101st for the duration of the war, until Jan. 6, 1946. Present is Webb's summer uniform with captain's shoulder insignia, two-piece 101st Airborne insignia sewn to right shoulder, with an Army Service Forces patch applied to the left shoulder. Webb's parachutist's badge is pinned above his Combat Infantryman's Badge, which itself surmounts service ribbons including one for a Bronze Star and European Campaign with three battle stars and a beach landing arrowhead (Utah Beach). The uniform also bears a badge showing award of the Presidential Unit Citation with Oak Leaf, and two lanyards. Webb's matching uniform trousers are also present, as is one of his parachutist's boots (right) and an Army regulation rip cord he kept as a souvenir. Also present is a 44" x 26" N.S.D.A.P. flag, possibly a vehicle or position marker flag with no attachments for hoisting, made of separate white and black sections on a red field. This was displayed with one face up, as a crude repair has been made to a tear on the reverse. This flag was found among Webb's possessions and was likely captured by Webb or his comrades in the 327th G.I.R. A corner of the flag has been cut away, probably by a soldier souvenir hunter. A very few tiny moth nips to the uniform which is otherwise fine. The 327th Glider Infantry Regiment ("Bastogne Bulldogs") entered the theater of war when it landed by sea on Utah Beach on June 7, 1944, because of a shortage of glider tow planes, though some elements did reach shore on D-Day. The 327th suffered heavy casualties while advancing on Carentan, and played a pivotal role in taking the peninsula. Indeed, the 527th was likely the first unit of the Utah Beachhead to link up with the Omaha Beachhead. The regiment played a pivotal role in Operation Market Garden battle near Best, in the Netherlands, encircling a large German force which had been pressured from the west by the tank-supported 502nd of the 101st.though some companies suffered two-thirds casualty rates. At Bastogne, the 327 held half of the perimeter until they were finally relieved.

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March 17, 2016 10:30 AM EDT
Chesapeake City, MD, US

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