Charles DeGlopper, Medal of Honor Hero from Normandy

Nov 20 , 2025

Charles DeGlopper, Medal of Honor Hero from Normandy

The roar of enemy fire tore through the morning fog like a beast unleashed. Men fell around him in ruined earth and shattered dreams. But there stood Charles N. DeGlopper—alone, advancing into hell’s mouth, a living shield to buy his brothers time. That last breath he drew carried the weight of every soldier who faced death and refused to break.

Roots of Resolve

Born in Mechanicville, New York, Charles was the kind of man forged in quiet resilience. Small-town grit, solid faith. Raised in a Navy family, he learned early that duty was more than a word—it was a life plan. His neighbors say he was humble but fierce, a man who cared more for others than himself.

In every step of life, he wore his belief like armor. His faith was real, grounding him in the chaos to come. Psalms whispered in the dark, promises carried across the ocean. His personal code: serve with honor, sacrifice without question.

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

The Battle That Defined Him

In June 1944, the 325th Glider Infantry Regiment, part of the 82nd Airborne Division, landed in Normandy’s hellscape. The Allies were pushing inland, but German forces struck hard on the hedgerows. DeGlopper’s squad found themselves pinned down, forced into a desperate retreat across an open wheat field near La Fière on June 9.

The enemy had machine-gun nests zeroed on every foot of that field—an open grave. Withdrawal was the only option… if cover could be bought.

Charles DeGlopper stepped forward alone.

Armed with just his M1 rifle, he charged across 200 yards of farmland under constant fire. Every bullet a prayer missed. Every step a lifetime.

His purpose was clear: suppress the enemy guns and give his comrades a fighting chance. His fire drew attention; Germans shifted their sights away from the retreating men. Time, precious seconds stretched thin.

One by one, he was hit—wounded, but still fighting. His left arm shattered, his right hand nearly torn away, yet he kept firing, crawling, moving. His sacrifice was absolute.

Charles DeGlopper died on that field, but saved his unit from annihilation.

Valor Honored

DeGlopper’s Medal of Honor citation tells what must never be forgotten:

“By his intrepid courage and heroic self-sacrifice, Pvt. DeGlopper effectively covered the withdrawal of his comrades, thus contributing materially to the successful completion of the mission.” [1]

His commander, Major General Matthew Ridgway, later called him “one of the finest warriors of the 82nd Airborne.” Fellow paratroopers remembered the modest man who never sought glory, only did what had to be done.

The Medal of Honor was presented posthumously; his name etched forever in the annals of American valor. A small town lost a son; a nation gained a legend.

Blood and Blessing: The Legacy of Charles DeGlopper

The battlefield demands clarity—courage or death. DeGlopper chose courage in its rawest form: sacrifice for others above self. In a world quick to claim victory as personal glory, his story reminds us where true heroism lives—in the silent acts that save lives and carry a wounded brother away from death's door.

His sacrifice echoes the scripture he lived by, a testament to redemption through service:

“But whoever would be great among you must be your servant.” — Matthew 20:26

For veterans, DeGlopper’s fight is a mirror. The scars, the memories—they mark us, but they do not define the end. They tell of purpose given, a cause worth every drop spilled.

For civilians, his story tears through comfort and calls up something harder—gratitude, reverence, and the raw truth that freedom exacts a price.

Charles N. DeGlopper gave the ultimate gift—a heartbeat of courage that still pulses in America’s soul. He stands not just as a hero of the past, but a standard for all who carry the burden of battle. In the mud and screams, he found salvation in sacrifice—and teaches us that redemption waits on the far side of the fight.

Sources

1. U.S. Army Center of Military History, Medal of Honor Recipients: World War II 2. Rhodes, Richard, Masters of Death: The SS-Einsatzgruppen and the Invention of the Holocaust (for general 82nd Airborne and Normandy context) 3. The Story of the 82nd Airborne Division in World War II, U.S. Army Infantry School Archives