Daniel J. Daly, Marine Who Earned Two Medals of Honor

Dec 03 , 2025

Daniel J. Daly, Marine Who Earned Two Medals of Honor

Sgt. Maj. Daniel J. Daly stood ankle-deep in the muck of enemy fire, his heart pounding like a war drum. Bullets sliced the air; grenades exploded nearby. Around him, chaos reigned. But Daly didn’t flinch. His voice cut through the noise—a growl of defiance that rallied his Marines and turned the tide. This man was the embodiment of fearless grit.

The Making of a Warrior

Born in 1873 in Glenmore, New York, Daniel Joseph Daly was a working-class kid who found his calling in the leatherneck brotherhood of the U.S. Marine Corps. He wasn’t a man of many words, but his actions roared louder than any speech. His faith—simple, steadfast—was a quiet engine powering his unshakable resolve. He lived by honor, by a code that meant never leaving a man behind.

“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” — Joshua 1:9

Daly’s service record is a testament to relentless devotion. From the bloody streets of China in the Boxer Rebellion to the mud and blood of the Western Front in World War I, his boots never faltered.

The Fight That Earned Immortality

The summer of 1900 in Tientsin, China, was hell.

Boxers and Imperial troops swarmed the city. Daly’s unit was pinned down, exposed. One Marine fell. Then another. The enemy pressed harder. It was here, amid that hellscape, that Daly seized a rifle and charged alone. Reports say he killed several enemy combatants with the rifle’s butt as much as with bullets, blocking an assault that would have overrun their position.[^1]

His Medal of Honor citation from the Boxer Rebellion reads: “For distinguished conduct in the presence of the enemy while serving with the relief expedition of the Allied Forces in China, on 13 July 1900.”

Fast-forward to October 1918, the Meuse-Argonne Offensive in World War I—a maelstrom of artillery and machine guns. The German army launched a ferocious counterattack.

Daly, now a gunnery sergeant, noticed a unit faltering under fire. Guns had jammed. The enemy advanced. Without hesitation, he grabbed a rifle, singlehandedly charged the enemy, and effectively repelled their attack. A reporter later wrote, “Sergeant Major Daniel Daly, without any hesitation, advanced on the foe opposite a machine gun emplacement, firing from the hip as he ran.”[^2]

His second Medal of Honor citation—one of only 19 double recipients in American history—simply states: “For extraordinary heroism in action near Béllicourt, France, 9 October 1918.”

Blood and Brass

Earning two Medals of Honor was not fortune; it was relentless courage hammered from decades in the crucible of combat. Daly rose to Sergeant Major, embodying leadership that was equal parts warrior and shepherd.

Marine Commandant General Smedley Butler called Daly “the fightin’est Marine I ever knew.”[^3] That’s not just praise—it’s legend.

Daly’s decorations included the Medal of Honor twice, plus the Navy Cross and the Distinguished Service Cross. His accolades tell a story of a man who never paused when duty called—even at the steepest cost.

Lessons Etched in Scar Tissue

Daniel J. Daly teaches this: heroism is not the absence of fear but the fury to act anyway. It’s the refusal to yield when the world demands surrender.

His story isn’t glossed with glory. It’s dirt, blood, and sacrifice. It reminds veterans and civilians alike that courage isn’t a flash—it’s a lifetime grind. A chain of small decisions under fire that bind men together beyond death.

In an age where valor can seem abstract, Daly’s legacy is raw and real.

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

Daly’s footsteps echo in every fight for freedom since his time. His grit carved a path through smoke and bullets. His faith quelled the darkness in his soul. He fought not for medals but for the brothers beside him—the eternal fraternity of those who stand face to face with death.

We carry his story as a solemn reminder: courage demands sacrifice, scars mark survival, and every warrior’s legacy is a testament to the hope that beyond war’s endless night lies redemption.

[^1]: U.S. Marine Corps History Division, Medal of Honor Recipients: Boxer Rebellion [^2]: United States Army Center of Military History, Medal of Honor Citations: World War I [^3]: Biography of Smedley Butler, The Fighting Marine, J. F. MacDonald, 1935