Charles DeGlopper’s Normandy Stand Earned Him the Medal of Honor

Jan 08 , 2026

Charles DeGlopper’s Normandy Stand Earned Him the Medal of Honor

Charles DeGlopper’s final stand was less than a minute, but it echoes through eternity. He faced a well-armed enemy with nothing but a single machine gun and raw grit. Every bullet that tore through the air was a prayer, a defiant roar against the chaos threatening to swallow his squad alive.

The Man Behind the Medal

Born in New York, Charles N. DeGlopper Jr. carried the heart of a soldier forged in small-town America. Raised with a strong sense of duty, honor wasn’t a concept—it was a covenant.

He enlisted with the 82nd Airborne Division, the “All American,” where brotherhood was tested daily. There, faith and grit were equal parts of survival.

He lived by a code older than armies: “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

June 9, 1944. The Allies had stormed Normandy’s beaches just days prior. Charles and his unit were tasked to hold a critical position near the town of Graignes, France. The Germans were brutal. Their bullets were deadly. Retreat wasn’t an option; cover it was.

Enemy forces bore down hard—artillery screams, rifle bursts, the frantic cries of men fighting for every breath.

When his comrades began falling back, DeGlopper did something no man should be asked but every true warrior does: he stayed behind.

Armed with a single BAR (Browning Automatic Rifle), he laid down suppressive fire, every round a lifeline for his retreating buddies.

“He deliberately drew the enemy fire to cover the withdrawal of his comrades. It was a deed of great heroism,” his Medal of Honor citation reads.

His stand bought his squad precious seconds, but it cost him his life. Wounded, surrounded, fire spitting close—he fell there, a sentinel in blood-soaked earth.

Recognition in the Wake of Valor

Charles DeGlopper posthumously received the Medal of Honor on November 1, 1944, the nation’s highest tribute for valor.

His citation paints a stark picture of selflessness, a man who refused to abandon the fight or his brothers.

Lieutenant Colonel Matthew Ridgway, Commander of the 82nd Airborne, later eulogized him as:

“The finest example of courage and sacrifice that our division could offer.”

The 82nd Airborne honors his memory still—his name etched beside other giants in their hallowed halls.

The Scars We Carry, The Legacy We Leave

The battlefield is a brutal teacher; it strips away illusions and leaves truth bare and raw.

Charles DeGlopper’s sacrifice teaches us what it means to stand fast when fear screams to fall back.

His courage saved lives, but more than that—it embodies a warrior’s final prayer: to protect, even at the cost of self.

“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go” (Joshua 1:9).

Through his death, DeGlopper whispered to us all: bravery is not the absence of fear but the conquest of it. Sacrifice isn’t a word, it’s an action that reverberates far beyond the battlefield.

In a world too quick to forget the price of freedom, Charles DeGlopper’s legacy calls us back to reverence—for the fallen, for the fight, and for the enduring bond forged only in the crucible of combat. His story is not just history; it’s a living testament—a blood-stained beacon guiding every warrior who follows.