Nov 22 , 2025
Charles DeGlopper's Normandy Stand That Earned the Medal of Honor
Charles N. DeGlopper stood alone amid a choke point in the French countryside, his rifle barking a desperate rhythm against an unrelenting enemy. His squad was already falling back. The German advance thundered forward. He became the human shield for his brothers — a single man holding back death’s tide so others could live. The roar of machine guns filled the air. Smoke choked the fields. And Charles kept firing, a steady heartbeat in the chaos, until the final bullet left his rifle and he lay lifeless on the wet earth.
Boy From the Hudson Valley
Born June 2, 1921, in North Creek, New York, Charles DeGlopper carried the simple grit of his mountain town. The son of a modest family, Charles learned hard work long before the Army called him up. But it wasn’t just muscle that defined him. His faith was anchor and compass. Raised in a church that molded character and courage, he carried Psalm 23 deep in his heart:
"Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil."
This was a man who knew sacrifice was no abstraction. He knew a warrior’s burden wouldn’t just be his own — but those riding his six. Faith wasn’t just a Sunday thing. It was a lifeline through hell.
Task Force Ripcord: The Devil’s Crooked Road
By June 9, 1944, Private First Class DeGlopper was part of the 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division. The Allies had smashed into Normandy three days earlier. The race was brutal, killing fields littered with shattered bodies and broken dreams. The village of Graignes had become a bloody trap. Enemy forces swarmed the Americans, threatening to encircle them. Withdrawal was commanded.
DeGlopper’s platoon began a fighting withdrawal. The German guns zeroed in. His squad, pinned and scattered, began falling back down a muddy slope toward safer ground.
Then Charles made his stand.
He dropped prone in an open field, firing rifle bursts into the advancing enemy. His single figure painted a bloody target. His bullets were brakes on the German machine. The platoon scrambled away, lives snatched from claws of death.
The Last Fight and Final Sacrifice
One account from his company commander, Captain Richard R. Morgan, describes DeGlopper’s deadly stand as "an act of valor in the highest order." Despite withering fire, Charles refused to retreat.
“Private DeGlopper’s gallantry and intrepidity in action are in keeping with the highest traditions of military service,” the Medal of Honor citation reads.
His weapon finally fell silent. A final burst tore through his body. He died where he stood—a sacrifice etched in blood and honor.
His actions on that day saved the lives of many, forming a critical delay that allowed the rest of the unit to regroup and fight another day.
Honoring a Warrior’s Heart
The Medal of Honor was presented posthumously in 1945. President Harry S. Truman pinned the nation’s highest military decoration onto Charles DeGlopper’s family—a symbol of courage beyond the call.
Fellow soldiers remembered him as the "quiet hero" who never sought attention but gave everything. Sergeant Anthony Gallo said, “Charlie’s stand was the difference between annihilation and survival.”
The 82nd Airborne Division recalls DeGlopper’s name at battle ceremonies. His story is stitched into their legacy—a testament to fierce loyalty and selfless duty.
Legacy Written in Blood and Faith
Charles DeGlopper’s story is not just of death but spiritual victory. The warrior who gave all shines light on what it means to lay down life for your brothers. He lived the words of John 15:13:
"Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends."
Every vet who has drawn down bullets knows that weight—the choice between retreat and sacrifice.
His memory endures in the mud of Normandy, in the hearts of all who fight under the banner of duty and faith.
In the silent aftermath of war, when the dust settles and scars throb, DeGlopper’s sacrifice speaks still—a call to remember what true courage costs and why every life given is a sacred debt. His story demands more than admiration. It demands acknowledgment of a price paid in full.
The battlefield does not forget. Neither should we.
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