Daniel Daly, Two-Time Medal of Honor Marine at Belleau Wood

Jan 17 , 2026

Daniel Daly, Two-Time Medal of Honor Marine at Belleau Wood

He stood alone on the parapet, bullets carving the air like angry bees. The enemy swarmed, three hundred strong. The night was thick with smoke and screams. Sgt. Maj. Daniel Joseph Daly Jr., unflinching, shouted out the orders, rifle pumping rounds, driving back every wave. Fear did not own this man—his presence was iron.

He was a wall. A storm. A legacy carved in blood.

The Battle That Defined Him

Daniel Daly was no stranger to hell. When the Boxer Rebellion ripped through China in 1900, he was there. With the 1st Marine Regiment, Daly fought in the siege of Peking, holding tight against the tide of insurgents. But it was in 1918, in the mud-choked trenches of World War I, that his legend seethed into being unforgettable.

At the Battle of Belleau Wood, in June, the German army launched a massive assault to break the Allied lines outside Château-Thierry, France. The Marines held the line, their backs against death. Enemy soldiers raged forward, overwhelming the front as chaos erupted. Daly, a Gunnery Sergeant then, reportedly leapt onto a parapet and with rifle and grenade tore into the onrush.

The enemy was thick. The Marines were thin. Daly’s defiant roar cut through the cacophony:

“Come on, you sons of bitches, do you want to live forever?”¹

His voice was both challenge and salvation, steel and prayer. Rallying the men, he gunned down enemy infiltrators, buying precious moments for his unit to regroup.

That brutal night etched his name deeper into the Marine Corps' soul.

A Warrior’s Faith and Code

Born in 1873, in Glen Cove, New York, Daly was a blue-collar son of Irish-American stock. Raised in a world where hard work and loyalty were sacred, he joined the Marines at 18. Faith, honor, brotherhood—these formed the backbone of his character.

He believed deeply that service was a calling beyond mere duty. “I’m just doing what’s right for my country and my men,” he once said, showing a quiet reverence beneath his battle-hardened exterior. His faith wasn’t loud or flamboyant—it was practical, forged in the crucible of combat and prayer.

“Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life.” — Revelation 2:10

Daly didn’t ask for glory. He sought only to protect his brothers, to hold the line, to be a shield in the storm.

Recognition Forged in Fire

Daly was awarded the Medal of Honor twice—the first for action during the Boxer Rebellion and the second at Belleau Wood. This dual honor remains a rarity; only nineteen service members have earned two Medals of Honor.

His first Medal of Honor—awarded in 1901—recognized his reckless courage during the Battle of Tientsin, where he manned a Gatling gun under withering fire, holding back Boxer forces to protect his comrades.

The second, presented in 1918, honored his fearless leadership at Belleau Wood. His citation notes:

“For extraordinary heroism while serving with the 6th Regiment (Marines), 2d Division, A.E.F., in action near Bouresches, France, June 6, 1918...”²

General John A. Lejeune proclaimed Daly embodied Marine valor, a “soldier’s soldier” whose fearlessness inspired an entire generation. Fellow Marines called him “The Fighting Marine,” a man who never hesitated to place himself in harm’s way for his men.

Legacy Written in Blood and Sacrifice

His story is etched into every Marine’s creed: No better friend, no worse enemy. Daly did not just survive war; he embodied its brutal, redemptive purpose.

War, Daly understood, was a furnace. It seared away pretense and forced truth. The scars were both painful and sacred—marks of sacrifice for a greater good.

He once said:

“Old soldiers never die; they just fade away.”

But Daly never truly faded. He lives in every Marine’s heart who faces the abyss and chooses valor, every veteran who bears the invisible wounds but carries on.

His life teaches this hard truth: courage is not the absence of fear, but the resolve to act despite it. Redemption lies not in the glory, but in service—sacrificing for those who cannot stand alone.

The world owes a debt to men like Daniel Daly. Not for the medals pinned to their chests, but for the lives they held steady when darkness crashed down.

His story is a call. To remember the cost. To honor the fallen. To walk the hard path of duty with steadfast heart.

“Fight the good fight of the faith.” — 1 Timothy 6:12

Remember Sgt. Maj. Daniel Joseph Daly Jr.—not just as a warrior, but as a beacon through the storm.

Sources

1. U.S. Marine Corps History Division, Marine Corps Battle Honors: Belleau Wood 2. U.S. Army Center of Military History, Medal of Honor Recipients: Boxer Rebellion and World War I