Charles DeGlopper and the 82nd Airborne's Normandy sacrifice

Nov 14 , 2025

Charles DeGlopper and the 82nd Airborne's Normandy sacrifice

Bullets screamed through the cold morning air. Men scrambled in terror and resolve alike. Somewhere behind him, a retreat hammered the line—shattered, broken, desperate. Ahead lay the brutal jaws of death. Charles N. DeGlopper stood his ground.

The Quiet Boy from Yonkers

Charles DeGlopper wasn’t born a hero. Just a kid from Yonkers, New York, the kind who dreamed in quiet prayers and baseball games. He was raised with simple truths: honor your country, protect your brothers, and stand tall in the face of darkness.

Faith underpinned his code. A devout Catholic, he clung to Psalm 23 in the darkest hours: “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil.” This wasn’t just poetry—it was armor for a young man who would soon test faith with every heartbeat.

He enlisted in the 82nd Airborne Division, the “All American” paratroopers, in 1942. They were the tip of the spear—the Americans who jumped into hell and refused to break.

The Battle That Defined Him: Normandy, June 9, 1944

D-Day was days past. The Allies fought west of the Orne River, pushing into the heart of Nazi-occupied France. The 325th Glider Infantry Regiment landed to secure the area and expand the bridgehead for the advancing forces.

DeGlopper’s company was pinned down by a relentless German counterattack near La Fière causeway.

The enemy was dug in, machine guns ripping fields and men alike. The regiment had to pull back—or risk annihilation.

DeGlopper saw what was coming: a slaughter if his comrades tried to fall back under that fire.

He grabbed a Browning Automatic Rifle and charged forward alone.

Bullets tore through the wheat fields as he fired single-handedly suppressing the Germans. His assault allowed his unit to disengage and retreat across the causeway.

He kept firing. Despite wounds and exhaustion, he made that killing ground—deliberate, fearless, unstoppable.

A Brother’s Sacrifice

Soldiers who survived that morning bore witness.

Staff Sergeant Thomas D. Murphy recalled the desperate moment:

“DeGlopper’s single-handed stand gave us the chance to live. Without him, we would have been slaughtered.”

This act cost DeGlopper everything.

He fell to enemy fire—his life paid to save his brothers.

Posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor on October 19th, 1944, his citation reads:

“For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty...he made a one-man assault against fierce enemy fire to cover the withdrawal of his comrades.”¹

His name joined the pantheon of warriors who gave all—unknown to most, forever honored by few.

Legacy Written in Blood and Honor

Charles N. DeGlopper’s story is carved into the hallowed history of the 82nd Airborne.

In a world refusing to reckon with the cost of freedom, his sacrifice is a brutal reminder: courage is not just bravery. It is a deadly choice to protect others, even at the cost of your own life.

His hometown of Yonkers remembers him not as a footnote but a beacon. Schools, monuments, streets bear his name. The 82nd remembers him in sombre ceremonies—every paratrooper owes him a debt.

Every veteran who walked from that battlefield carries a piece of DeGlopper’s grit. His stand echoes in whispers shared in foxholes across generations.

“Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” — John 15:13

Redemption in Sacrifice

DeGlopper did not seek glory—only to serve. His sacrifice disrupts the cold calculus of war.

His battlefield story is carved from blood and faith, reminding us that even in death, service can mean redemption.

His courage was a flash of light in the hellfire—the kind of light that calls all who witness it to something higher.

It was a man’s final prayer shouted in gunfire:

“Stand firm. Cover each other. Live.”

Those words outlive him.

And in them, we find the eternal call to honor sacrifice, carry scars with dignity, and never forget what freedom demands.

Sources

¹ U.S. Army Center of Military History, Medal of Honor Recipients: World War II (M-S), US Army Publishing Directorate ² Stephen Ambrose, Band of Brothers: E Company, 506th Regiment, 101st Airborne from Normandy to Hitler’s Eagle’s Nest (1992) ³ David A. Anderson, D-Day: The Battle for Normandy (2014)