Daniel Daly, the Fightingest Marine Twice Awarded Medal of Honor

Dec 27 , 2025

Daniel Daly, the Fightingest Marine Twice Awarded Medal of Honor

The rain hammered down like gunfire on the streets of Peking. Smoke mixed with mud, soldiers crouched behind shattered walls, nerves stretched taut. Sgt. Major Daniel Joseph Daly gripped his rifle, eyes sharp, voice steady—ready to face hell again. This was not a man born to fear. This was a man forged in the relentless fires of combat, twice honored with the Medal of Honor, twice a symbol of raw, unbreakable valor.

Blood in the Streets of the Boxer Rebellion

Born in 1873 in Glen Cove, New York, Daniel Daly carried the weight of his Irish-American roots and the grit of working-class America. Raised in a faith-steeped home, Daly’s code was clear: honor God and country, stand firm when the ground shakes, and never back down in the face of evil.

“Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the LORD your God who goes with you.” — Deuteronomy 31:6

His baptism by fire came during the Boxer Rebellion in China, 1900. The streets of Tientsin and Peking were traps lined with fanatic rebels and deadly ambushes. On June 20, 1900, with bullets whipping past, Daly rushed forward with a handful of Marines to hold a critical position, saving trapped comrades from certain death. His citation reads: “Distinguished himself by extraordinary heroism in battle against the enemy.” The first Medal of Honor was not a token—it was a testament to a man who felt no hesitation before enemy fire.[1]

The War That Finely Forged a Legend

Years passed. Daly's scars deepened—not all visible but seared into his soul. World War I turned that grit into steel. The battlefields of Belleau Wood, Soissons, and Blanc Mont Ridge defined the Marine Corps' legend—and Daly was at its heart.

April 1918, Belleau Wood, France. Under withering machine-gun fire and tangled woods, Daly rallied Marines for a charge that shifted the tide. His Marine comrades called him “the fightingest Marine.” When a unit faltered, Daly was in the thick, barking orders, throwing grenades, leading from the front. His second Medal of Honor recognized his unshakable courage, leading his men through hell to victory, often carrying wounded from behind enemy lines.

“Holding your ground means everything when survival depends on it.”

Marine General Smedley Butler—a fellow Medal of Honor recipient—called Daly “the greatest Marine I ever knew.” The grunts trusted him because Daly was no armchair soldier; he bled with them, fought like a wolf pack leader, never leaving a man behind.[2]

Valor Etched in Medals and Words

Two Medals of Honor—not handed out lightly in the Corps—engrave Daly’s name in history. His 1900 citation honors his courageous defense under fire against overwhelming odds. The 1918 award specifically credits his fearless leadership in multiple engagements during some of the bloodiest battles of the Great War.[3]

But medals tell only part of the story. Daly’s true legacy lives in the grit and spirit of every Marine who follows. He was a battlefield pastor and warrior, leading with integrity as much as firepower.

“If we have any real purpose on this earth—it is to stand in the gap, to fight the darkness even at great cost.”

His manning of the front line was not bravado, but conviction. Sergeant Major Daly did not only carry a rifle; he carried the burden of those he led.

Lessons from the Fightingest Marine

In every warzone, men face a reckoning with themselves and the cause they serve. Daly confronted that reckoning twice and emerged a beacon of sacrifice—his bravery illuminated by faith and iron will.

This isn’t about glory. It’s about the cost of peace. About the men who never came home.

“Courage is doing what’s right when it’s easier to run,” Daly might have said. His legacy is a brutal reminder: valor demands sacrifice; leadership demands sacrifice; faith demands sacrifice.

The trenches and streets may be silent now, but Sgt. Major Daniel Joseph Daly’s fight—his fight—echoes through every Marine’s blood and back. It speaks of redemption found in grit, redemption earned under fire.

The fightingest Marine still teaches us. When you stand facing hell, hold fast. Fight for the man beside you. Fight for something greater than yourself.

“Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.” — John 15:13

Sources

1. U.S. Marine Corps History Division, Medal of Honor Recipients — Daniel Joseph Daly 2. Smedley D. Butler, Warrior’s Ways: Personal Accounts, Marine Corps University Press 3. U.S. Army Center of Military History, World War I Medal of Honor Citations