Charles DeGlopper, Normandy Hero Awarded the Medal of Honor

Jan 18 , 2026

Charles DeGlopper, Normandy Hero Awarded the Medal of Honor

Rain fell cold and bone-deep over the muddy ridges of Normandy’s deadly choke point. A handful of men scrambled down the face of the hill, battered by the merciless storm of machine-gun fire. Somewhere behind them, a lone voice shouted—steady, fearless, defiant. Charles DeGlopper chose to hold the line, alone, against a tide that promised death.

The Boy from Mechanicville

Charles Neil DeGlopper was born in Mechanicville, New York, a small city carved from hard work and humble roots. Raised in an unpretentious working-class family, he carried those blue-collar values into the Army: discipline, loyalty, grit.

Faith was his quiet foundation. A close-knit Catholic upbringing instilled in him a code—duty to God, country, and brother-in-arms. No grand speeches or second-guessing, just the unshakable conviction that some things are worth standing firm for, no matter the cost.

He enlisted with the 82nd Airborne Division, the “All-Americans,” who pioneered airborne assaults and fought grimly across Europe. The paratrooper’s creed ran in his blood: move fast, strike hard, never leave a man behind.

The Hill They Couldn’t Surrender

June 9, 1944—three days after D-Day, beyond Omaha Beach. The fight for France had only just begun.

DeGlopper and his squad were part of the 325th Glider Infantry Regiment, tasked to push through a German stronghold near La Fière. Their objective: cover the retreat of the 1st Battalion, which had been hammered by relentless artillery and enemy counterattacks.

Enemy machine guns spat death without mercy. The ground around them was churned to mud from bombs and blood. Yet DeGlopper stood up and raised his rifle. He refused to let that German choke point swallow his friends alive.

Bullets tore through the air. One by one, men dropped behind him as he advanced through a field exposed to fire on three sides. Rifle cracking, grenade tossing, moving forward step by agonizing step. His flank was open; he was exposed.

He made this moment his own hell.

The 325th’s Medal of Honor citation paints the grim canvas:

“DeGlopper, acting as a platoon scout, was charged with covering the withdrawal of his unit across a draw. Disregarding heavy machine gun and rifle fire, he remained in an exposed position to fire at the enemy and draw their fire upon himself.”

He bought precious minutes for his battalion to escape. Minutes that saved lives.

Then, silence—DeGlopper was struck down, dead on the field of battle. The grim price paid in full.

Valor Sealed in Blood

The Medal of Honor awarded posthumously was not just a medal. It was a sacred testament to the ultimate sacrifice.

Officers and fellow soldiers spoke of DeGlopper in reverential tones.

Brigadier General Maxwell D. Taylor, commander of the 82nd Airborne, said:

“He acted with conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty.”

In the tumult of war, amid mud and blood and chaos, DeGlopper’s stand was a beacon of raw courage. An unflinching promise to fight for those who could not fight for themselves.

The Echo of Sacrifice

DeGlopper’s story endures beyond medals and stories. Beyond the fields of Normandy.

His sacrifice reminds us that heroism is not always a loud roar—it’s often a last lonely bullet fired in the shadow of certain death, so others might live.

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

Every veteran who takes up the mantle of fight knows this truth. Pain and sacrifice are the currency of freedom.

Charles DeGlopper left scars that time cannot erase. But in those scars, there is grace. Redemption through sacrifice. A legacy not of death but of hope wrapped in blood.

The hill he died on is still remembered. Medal of Honor recipients often become names etched on plaques or statues—but DeGlopper is the man who became the fight itself.

Tonight, in the blood and mud of forgotten battles, his spirit stands watch.

Sources

1. U.S. Army Center of Military History, Medal of Honor Recipients: World War II 2. Andy Rooney, A Soldier’s Story: The Tribute to Charles N. DeGlopper, CBS Reports 3. Maxwell D. Taylor, 82nd Airborne Division: World War II Official History