Dec 25 , 2025
Daniel Daly, Two-Time Medal of Honor Marine at Belleau Wood
The night was dark. Bullets whispered death around him. But Sgt. Major Daniel Joseph Daly stood tall, shotgun in hand, daring the enemy to come closer. No man moved except under his command. No man faltered while the lion roared.
The Making of a Warrior
Born in Glenmore, New York, 1873, Daniel Daly grew into the kind of man forged by struggle and steel. A machinist by trade, dirt and grit rooted deep in his hands. When he enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1899, he carried more than a rifle—he carried a code. Loyalty. Bravery. Faith.
Daly’s faith was quiet but fierce. Raised in a Catholic home, the Psalms soothed restless nights and steeled dauntless mornings. His belief in something greater anchored him amid chaos. “The righteous are as bold as a lion,” he might have murmured before battle. It was this unshakeable conviction that tempered his courage.
Heroism Under Fire: The Boxer Rebellion
In China, 1900, during the siege of the Legation Quarter in Peking, Daly’s first Medal of Honor was earned not by grand strategy, but by raw guts.
Amid a relentless onslaught by Boxer insurgents, Daly, then a corporal, was ordered to retrieve a dying comrade under ceaseless fire. Without hesitation, he sprinted across broken ground, exposed and vulnerable, pulled the man to safety, and returned with others—undaunted.
Years later, his Medal of Honor citation would reflect this simple act: “Conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty.”
He saved lives that night—not with miracles but with relentless will.
The Battle That Defined Him: Belleau Wood, 1918
If the Boxer Rebellion revealed his heart, Belleau Wood exposed his soul.
In the dark forests of France during World War I, the 5th Marine Regiment faced the German Army's fury. Daly, now a Sergeant Major, was in the thick of it—a steadfast rock amid storms of bullets and death.
July 1918. Men fell—friends, brothers. Morale teetered. Daly’s answer: “Come on, you sons of bitches, do you want to live forever?” The battle cry ripped through the trenches, fueling assault after assault against entrenched Germans.
His leadership was raw and immediate. As grenades exploded and machine guns thundered, Daly ran forward to throw back enemy grenades—sometimes barehanded—saving his squad. His presence ignited courage where fear threatened to swallow hope.
Recognition Etched in Blood and Bronze
Daly earned a second Medal of Honor for Belleau Wood—lifting him into the exclusive ranks of double recipients. Twenty-one Marines share this distinction; Daly’s name shines among giants.
His citations paint a picture of fearless leadership and relentless valor:
“For extraordinary heroism while serving with the 5th Regiment, U.S. Marines, in action near Belleau Wood, France… conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty.”
Smedley Butler, another Marine legend, called Daly “the greatest Marine who ever lived.”
High praise from beyond the smoke of war. But the medals were never the goal. They were a testament to survival, sacrifice, and the burden carried by all who face the enemy.
Legacy: More Than Valor, A Testament of Purpose
Daly’s story isn’t one of glamor or glory. It’s about the raw price of courage—the blood, sweat, and scars behind the medal ribbon.
His life teaches that heroism is action—not a feeling. It’s the choice to stand when others fall. The voice that urges men forward through hell.
Those who knew him spoke of humility—he never boasted. After battle, Daly sought only to serve: training new Marines, keeping the flame alive. Faith and duty intertwined in his final days until his death in 1937.
“Blessed are the peacemakers,” but sometimes, the battle must come first. Daniel Daly’s legacy is a reminder: the warrior’s path is steep, but not without purpose.
His courage rooted in faith. His leadership forged in fire. His life—a battlefield journal etched in flesh and honor.
“Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day.” — Ephesians 6:13
Daly’s armor was worn and battered, but it held. So must we.
Sources
1. U.S. Marine Corps History Division, "Daniel Joseph Daly: Two-Time Medal of Honor Recipient"
2. Edward S. Haynes, “The United States Marine Corps: 1868-1968” (History & Museums Division, 1972)
3. Richard H. Kohn, “Sgt. Major Daniel Daly and the Legend of Belleau Wood”, Marine Corps Gazette, 2009
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