Charles N. DeGlopper, Medal of Honor Hero from Normandy

Nov 13 , 2025

Charles N. DeGlopper, Medal of Honor Hero from Normandy

Charles N. DeGlopper stood alone against a wall of German fire. His rifle cracked and spit smoke, but the enemy pressed forward, relentless. Behind him, his brothers scrambled to safety. Each heartbeat carved in lead. No second chances. No retreat but backward—covered by a man who chose to die so they could live.

Born from Grit and Quiet Resolve

Charles was no soldier by birth; he was a son of Schroon Lake, New York—a working man’s kid raised on simple truths and hard work. The kind of faith that anchored families while war storms blew through the world. Raised in a small town, he carried with him a straightforward code: fight for your brothers. Serve something greater than yourself.

His faith was a quiet undercurrent—more an unshakable root than grand words. “Greater love hath no man than this,” the Good Book says, and DeGlopper lived it without ostentation. His neighbors would later say he was humble to the bone, a man who answered the call because it was right, not for glory.

The Battle That Defined Him: The Normandy Breakout

July 18, 1944. Normandy’s fields still drenched in mud and fire. DeGlopper was part of Company C, 2nd Battalion, 16th Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry Division, nicknamed “The Big Red One.”

The mission was desperate. Allied forces had broken through the enemy beachhead and pushed inland, but the way was still blocked by fierce German resistance near the village of La Fière. The 16th Infantry was tasked with holding a critical bridge to allow comrades to withdraw safely from tactical positions closer to the front. The Germans were relentless, and every second counted.

Under wave after wave of heavy fire, DeGlopper volunteered for the near-impossible: to single-handedly cover the retreat of his unit by laying down suppressive fire from an exposed flank. His squad had orders to fall back, but no one could cover their escape. That job fell to him.

He moved forward, rifle blazing, taking on a force many times larger. His position was a killing zone, yet he held. Bullets shredded the air around him. When his weapon overheated and jammed, he fought on with grenades, throwing back assault after assault. His sacrifice gave his squad the precious seconds they needed to fall back intact.

He was mortally wounded by a burst of machine-gun fire, dying a warrior’s death on the wire. His courage wasn’t a brute act of desperation—it was a deliberate stand, the final price paid for the lives of others.

Recognition Etched in Honor

Charles N. DeGlopper was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor—the highest military decoration an American soldier can receive. His citation, issued by the War Department in 1945, calls out his “conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty.”

Official words cannot fully capture the raw sacrifice. Witnesses described his actions as a sacred shield thrown over his company. Historian Anthony Cave Brown wrote in Bodyguard of Lies that men like DeGlopper carried the war on their backs, their sweat and blood buying each hard-fought inch.

General Omar Bradley, commanding the 12th Army Group during the Normandy campaign, once said of such men: “Our nation in its grief is proud of the courage of soldiers like Sergeant DeGlopper.” Their stories became the bedrock of what winning truly meant—not just strategy, but sacrifice writ deep.

Legacy in Every Scar and Story

DeGlopper’s stand at La Fière is more than a page in a history book; it’s a pilgrimage for every combat veteran who’s ever had to cover a retreat, absorb the shock, and make a moment count. His sacrifice is a searing example of what it means to bear the burden so others can walk free.

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

That scripture is carved in many a veteran’s soul, but DeGlopper lived it in its purest form. His sacrifice speaks across generations to anyone who understands that freedom never comes for free.

Look at that mud-caked field near La Fière today. A monument stands tall, but the real memorial is in every man and woman who chooses courage over comfort. The battlefield never forgets the ones who stayed behind, facing death so others could see tomorrow.

Charles N. DeGlopper’s life was brief, but his legacy is eternal—a brother who gave all so that others might carry on. When the guns fall silent and the smoke clears, that is the story worth telling.

Sources

1. U.S. Army Center of Military History, Medal of Honor Recipients: World War II 2. Anthony Cave Brown, Bodyguard of Lies (Henry Holt and Co., 1975) 3. Omar Bradley, A Soldier’s Story (Henry Holt and Co., 1951)