Raised on a farm near Richmond, Missouri, Sprinkel was a member of the 41st Armored Division, which led the attack that penetrated and defeated the German offensive near Celles, Belgium, in the Battle of the Bulge during World War II.
The Castle of Vêves occupies a rocky platform just outside the village of Celles, in the province of Namur, Belgium.
Through and beyond the later medieval period, the history of the villages in the valley dominated by Celles-sur-Plaine was effectively the history of Salm-Salm.