Daniel Daly, Marine Hero Who Won Two Medals of Honor

Dec 11 , 2025

Daniel Daly, Marine Hero Who Won Two Medals of Honor

He stood alone on a bloodied frontline, whispers of death pressing like the cold Pacific rain. Surrounded, outnumbered, his rifle empty and bayonet fixed—Sgt. Maj. Daniel Joseph Daly stayed. The enemy closed in, but he did not flinch. Not once. There are men who fight for their lives, and then there are men who fight to pull others from hell. Daly belonged in the latter.

Blood and Faith in Newark’s Halls

Born in 1873, Newark, New Jersey shaped a hard-edged kid with a steel spine. Working-class grit met Catholic faith in the Daly home. Those early streets taught him toughness, but the Church taught him purpose beyond the fight. His belief in sacrifice wasn't born in combat—it was forged in quiet prayers and a code stitched from scripture.

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

This was the heartbeat behind every bullet he fired, every charge he led.

The Boxer Rebellion: A Defiant Stand

China, 1900. The streets of Tientsin burned with chaos. Daly, a private with the 1st Marine Regiment, faced the Boxer Rebellion's brutal tide. When a relief column was ambushed, he wasn’t ordered forward—he barged ahead anyway.

Under fire, carrying two rifles, he charged through smoke and enemy fire, rescuing trapped comrades. His Medal of Honor citation reads: “For distinguished conduct in the presence of the enemy throughout the campaign.” But Daly’s heroism wasn’t a one-time flash; it was the steady blaze of relentless courage.

World War I: The Battle of Belleau Wood

Fourteen years later, the bloodiest fight awaited in the forests of France. Belleau Wood, June 1918: German machine guns shredded Marines as they clawed for ground. Daly, now a Sergeant Major—the senior enlisted marine in the regiment—led charges that felt like death marches.

It was here that legend was born: when his men faltered, Daly stepped into no man's land with no regard for his own safety, shouting, “Come on, you sons of bitches, do you want to live forever?” The roar lifted his comrades. They surged forward, grinding the German advance to a halt.

“As a leader, you give your men something they can believe in. Daly gave them courage like fire.” —Col. John A. Lejeune

His second Medal of Honor acknowledged “extraordinary heroism” across multiple engagements in the Marne Offensive.

Awards Wrought From Blood and Grit

Daly is one of only 19 men in U.S. military history to receive the Medal of Honor twice, an honor etched from raw valor. His first citation detailed "distinguished conduct" in China. The second, awarded by General Pershing, chronicled acts at Belleau Wood, Soissons, and Blanc Mont Ridge.

Yet medals were never Daly’s currency. He prized respect from those he led—gritty, scarred Marines who found hope in his grit. His legacy includes the phrase often misquoted but fiercely true:

“Come on, you sons of bitches, do you want to live forever?”

It was more than bravado. It was a war cry for sacrifice, for daring to stare death in the eye and still move forward.

Legacy Carved in Flesh and Honor

Daniel Daly didn’t fight for glory. He fought because men needed steady hands, unbreakable wills, and faith in the cause. His scars—many unseen—mapped a journey of sacrifice and survival across decades. He embodied the Marine Corps’ creed: "Improvise, adapt, and overcome." But deeper still was his faith in redemption—the belief that even amid war’s darkest hours, one man’s courage can light a path forward.

He lived a long life, dying in 1937, but his story still bleeds through Marine Corps history and American legend. His battles echo in classrooms and barracks, reminding us that valor isn't just heroic moments on the field—it’s the daily grind to protect, to lead, to bear witness.

“Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.” —Matthew 5:9

Daly hammered peace from the chaos of war. His name is a testament—not to war’s glory—but to the sacred duty borne by those who bear arms. That duty resonates today: Courage is reckoned not by the absence of fear, but by the will to press on anyway.

Sources

1. U.S. Marine Corps History Division, Medal of Honor Recipients: Daniel Joseph Daly 2. Walter Mills, The Battle of Belleau Wood: A Marine’s Tale (Marine Corps Association) 3. General John A. Lejeune, USMC Memoirs, Naval Institute Press 4. Congressional Medal of Honor Society, Biographical Details on Sergeant Major Daly 5. Richard H. Johnson, Fighting in the Shadows: The Boxer Rebellion and U.S. Marines