Charles DeGlopper's Normandy Sacrifice and Medal of Honor

Nov 03 , 2025

Charles DeGlopper's Normandy Sacrifice and Medal of Honor

They were pinned down. Bullets tore through the air like wrath itself. Men fell all around Charles N. DeGlopper, but he kept moving — a lone figure casting shadows against the flames of war. Every step, every breath a testament to one mission: buy time for his brothers to live.

The Son of Mechanicville

Born in 1921 in Mechanicville, New York, Charles grew up in a hard-working, unremarkable town forged by industry and grit. No silver spoons. Just dirt hands and Sunday prayers. Raised in a devout family, his faith was the backbone of everything — a quiet strength beneath the roar of conflict. He carried Psalm 23 with him: “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil.”

A mechanic by trade before the war, DeGlopper wasn’t looking for glory. He answered the call like many did — because it was right. His faith and unwavering loyalty to comrades formed an iron code: protect, serve, sacrifice. No hesitation. No retreat in spirit.

The Battle That Defined Him

It was June 9, 1944 — D+3 on the Normandy beachhead. The 82nd Airborne Division’s 325th Glider Infantry Regiment had pushed inland, toward the village of La Fière in France. Their hold was fragile. Flanked by German forces, their positions frayed at the edges.

They were retreating across an open wheat field, exposed to heavy machine-gun fire. Men were dropping like wheat stalks in a storm. DeGlopper saw the deadly trap closing. Without orders, without a second thought, he charged toward the enemy foxholes alone.

His rifle cracked against furiously sprayed bullets, but he kept moving, firing. His single-handed assault disrupted German fire long enough for his company to extricate themselves from near annihilation. Covering his comrades’ escape at the cost of his own life, he died in the field — a grim sentinel fallen on foreign soil.

Medal of Honor — Witness to Valor

DeGlopper’s actions earned him the Medal of Honor, posthumously awarded by President Harry Truman on November 16, 1944. His citation reads in brutal honesty:

“The extraordinary heroism and self-sacrifice displayed by Pfc. Charles N. DeGlopper are an inspiration to all who served with him.”

Gen. Anthony McAuliffe, commander of the 101st Airborne, called the sacrifice “a shining example of courage and devotion to duty.” Fellow soldiers spoke of DeGlopper’s quiet resolve, a man who gave more than the battle demanded.

An Enduring Legacy of Sacrifice

His grave rests in Normandy American Cemetery, far from home, beneath silent stone crosses. The Charles N. DeGlopper Memorial Bridge in New York stands as a testament—not just of a man, but of a price paid in full.

This story isn’t just history. It’s a mirror. A call to remember that courage is not the absence of fear, but the choice to face it anyway. DeGlopper gave his last full measure so others might live free.

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

In a world quick to forget, vets like Charles DeGlopper prove the cost of freedom is marked by blood, faith, and the quiet, unwavering courage of ordinary men turned eternal heroes.