Charles DeGlopper's Normandy Sacrifice and Medal of Honor

Dec 07 , 2025

Charles DeGlopper's Normandy Sacrifice and Medal of Honor

Charles N. DeGlopper stood alone in a rain of bullets, his rifle barking into the dark that swallowed Normandy’s muddy fields. There were no backup, no easy way out. Just him—holding the line while the world fell back behind him. Men had to live. Men had to fight on. And Charlie… He chose to be that final shield.

A Soldier Born of Grit and Grace

Charles Neil DeGlopper hailed from Glens Falls, New York—a blue-collar city wrapped in hard work and hard truths. Born in 1921, Charlie grew up with a steady faith stitched between hammer blows and factory shifts. His mother raised him to hold honor above convenience, and he carried it like a banner into war.

His faith was quiet but steady—a grounding force amid chaos. "For I am persuaded that neither death nor life...shall be able to separate us from the love of God." (Romans 8:38–39) It wasn't just religion; it was purpose. Something beyond himself.

When the war took him from home, it wasn’t for glory or medals. It was because he believed every man owed a debt to those who stood before him—and to those who looked to him now.

The Battle That Defined Him

June 9, 1944: Three days after D-Day, the 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment fought tooth and nail near the town of Graignes, France. The Americans were pinned down by waves of German fire, trying to hold a critical bridge on the Merderet River. Withdrawal was a spiral toward death for many.

DeGlopper’s squad received orders to pull back and regroup. But the retreat risked total collapse—enemy forces swarming closer every minute.

Charlie didn’t hesitate.

He volunteered to stay behind and cover the retreat.

Armed with only a rifle and a stump of a pistol, he moved into open terrain. Bullets sliced the air around him; artillery slammed soil and screams. Enemy tanks rolled forward. But DeGlopper raised hell with his M1 Garand.

For crucial minutes, he pinned down the enemy’s advance. His fire slowed the German machine gunners. His presence bought lives. His friends escaped toward safety in waves.

Then, the end came—as it must in battle. DeGlopper took the final, fatal hits. His body fell, but his act carved a lifeline for the men who lived to fight another day.

“Without his sacrifice, the withdrawal would have been disastrous.” — After Action Report, 82nd Airborne Division¹

Honor Etched in Blood

For his actions that day, Charles N. DeGlopper was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor in 1945—the nation’s highest recognition for valor.

The citation reads:

“Second Lieutenant DeGlopper’s intrepid courage and heroic sacrifice enabled those of his command to withdraw in a more orderly manner. He remained in an exposed position while firing his rifle and yelling encouragement to his comrades, drawing hostile fire upon himself to protect them.”

Brigadier General James M. Gavin, commander of the 82nd Airborne, called DeGlopper’s courage “a shining beacon.” Fellow paratroopers remembered him as the man who stood tall when there was no place to stand.

True valor isn’t just charging forward; it’s holding the line when the world turns its back.

A Legacy of Sacrifice and Redemption

Charles DeGlopper’s story isn’t a fading echo on some forgotten battlefield. It’s a lesson inked in blood that every veteran carries—sometimes silently—beneath the medals and memories.

Sacrifice is never clean or easy. It scours the soul and leaves scars that don’t always show. But in the darkest moments, it can shine a light through the chaos: reminding us that courage is forged not in comfort but in the willingness to give everything for others.

He died so his brothers in arms might live. So the mission might march on. So liberty might root deeper in the soil of France.

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

DeGlopper asked for no glory. Only that his comrades might return—that freedom’s flame might not be extinguished on his watch.

Today, his name is etched not just on plaques but on the conscience of all who wear the uniform. His fight wasn’t the last, and it’s not yours alone. It is the unbreakable chain linking generation to generation—of men and women who stand tall in a world too often bent low.

Remember the cost. Honor the sacrifice. Carry the legacy.

Sources

1. Department of the Army, Medal of Honor Citation, Charles N. DeGlopper (1945) 2. Steven Ambrose, Citizen Soldiers, Simon & Schuster (1997) 3. 82nd Airborne Division Archives, After Action Reports (June 1944)