Charles DeGlopper’s Normandy Stand and Medal of Honor Legacy

Dec 16 , 2025

Charles DeGlopper’s Normandy Stand and Medal of Honor Legacy

Charles N. DeGlopper stood alone on a ridge, bullets carving through the trees and shells ripping earth apart. His squad was falling back, pinned down by the relentless roar of German fire. He knew what had to be done. Without orders, he rose, rifle blazing, a one-man storm in the killing zone—buying precious seconds for his brothers. Every shot was a prayer. Every step forward, a battle cry for survival. Then he fell. Forever the shield between his men and death.

The Roots of a Soldier

Born in 1921, Charles Neitzel DeGlopper came from a quiet upstate New York town—half farmer’s son, half grounded warrior. Raised with simple, unshakable values, his faith was a constant. He lived by honor, duty, and the belief that every man must protect his neighbor. “Greater love hath no man than this,” echoed in his heart long before he ever faced the guns.

His enlistment wasn’t about glory. It was necessity—the call to defend a world literally burning. For DeGlopper, loyalty wasn’t a word. It was an iron covenant forged in small-town churches and Sunday school prayers. He carried that with him as surely as his rifle.

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

The muddy slopes near the Colleville-sur-Mer sector in Normandy were soaked not just with rain but with blood and grit. The 82nd Airborne Division, including DeGlopper’s Company C, 325th Glider Infantry Regiment, faced a brutal counterattack. German forces advanced with lethal precision, threatening to rip apart the fragile foothold after D-Day.

DeGlopper’s platoon began a slow, grinding withdrawal under withering machine gun, sniper, and artillery fire. The sound was a brutal chorus of death. Communication lines cut, men scrambling for cover—every inch lost meant a slower, more deadly retreat.

Then DeGlopper did something no man was ordered to do. He stayed behind to cover the retreat, drawing enemy fire onto himself. From a shallow depression on the slope, he fired shot after shot, holding off a German force estimated at 100 men. His rifle was his lifeline and his sword, ripping apart the enemy’s advance. He took rounds to the face and chest, staggering but fighting on.

No reinforcements came. No orders to retreat. Just raw determination to protect his unit.

He died that day, August 9, 1944. But his sacrifice meant his comrades survived to fight another day. His final stand was not just about survival—it was about saving.

Medal of Honor: Testament to Ultimate Sacrifice

Posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor, DeGlopper’s citation reads like a scripture of valor:

“When the platoon he was accompanying was forced to withdraw in the face of heavy fire, Private First Class DeGlopper voluntarily remained behind and, facing a numerically superior and well-fortified enemy force, single-handedly covered the withdrawal of the rest of the platoon.”

His commanders called it “selfless,” his comrades whispered “hero,” his country recognized an indelible legacy stamped in courage and blood. Brigadier General Maxwell D. Taylor, himself a revered paratrooper commander, said DeGlopper embodied the highest ideals of the airborne—fearless, relentless, and devoted.

Legacy Etched in Blood and Honor

DeGlopper’s name is carved on the Tablets of the Missing at the Normandy American Cemetery, but his story resonates far beyond marble and memory. His stand is taught to soldiers as a blueprint for sacrifice—the essence of holding the line when everything screams retreat.

His courage echoes through decades, a reminder that freedom is bought with the lives of men who never seek the spotlight. The battlefield strips away pretense; what’s left is raw — faith, grit, and the will to protect those beside you at any cost.

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

Charles N. DeGlopper did just that. In the chaos of war, he became the shield between death and life. For every veteran who has answered the call, for every civilian grappling with the price of freedom, his sacrifice speaks with undeniable clarity: True courage is sacrificial. True redemption flows from laying down your life so others can live.

His story is not a relic of the past. It is a living testament — one we carry forward in every battle, every hardship, every moment when sacrifice becomes the only path to salvation.