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

Nov 10 , 2025

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

Blood in the mud and fire in his eyes. Sgt. Maj. Daniel J. Daly stood his ground with a rifle in one hand and a fight in his gut. Twice a Medal of Honor recipient — not by chance, but by iron will hammered on the anvil of relentless battle.

Blood Runs Deeper Than Fear

Born in 1873, in Glenolden, Pennsylvania, Daniel Daly grew up rough and steady. The streets taught him toughness; the Marine Corps forged it into something holy. He carried a warrior’s code, but it was a quiet faith that grounded him—an old soldier’s reverence for something beyond the gunfire.

He wasn’t just a fighter; he was a man shaped by sacrifice, the scars of war branded deep in his spirit. Daly believed the fight was bigger than glory. It was about standing when others fall, about keeping the line for your brothers.

“You can kill ten of my men for every one I kill of yours, but even at those odds, you will lose and I will win.” — Daniel J. Daly

A declaration of faith in sheer will, grit, and unbreakable courage.

Shanghai, 1900: The Boxer Rebellion’s Crucible

The first Medal of Honor came at the Battle of Tientsin during the Boxer Rebellion. Amid swirling chaos, Daly fought like a force of nature. The Boxers pushed hard, their banners soaked in hatred and sweat.

Daly’s citation tells it plainly: he “carried a wounded Marine from the field under a heavy fire,” risking his life to save others in the hellfire of combat. Later, he single-handedly charged a crowd of enemy fighters, weaponless except for his rifle butt — driving them back with brutal, raw force.

"He was a one-man wrecking crew, a living shield for the men around him."

The Marines called him “Iron Mike,” a name that would later become Marine Corps legend.

The Bloody Fields of World War I

Fast forward 16 years to 1918, France’s fields burned with the horror of war. Daly, now a seasoned leader, was at Belleau Wood. This was no ordinary fight; it was a crucible that would define the Marine Corps traditions still honored today.

Amid machine-gun fire and barbed wire, Daly’s battalion was pinned down. Somewhere in his redemptive grit, the old warrior remembered the fight from China. He walked calmly, deliberately, forward—through the bullet spray and chaos—carrying grenades to his men. Every step forward smashed enemy lines and lit a beacon of hope.

His second Medal of Honor citation bore testament:

“For extraordinary heroism while serving with the First Battalion, Twenty-Third Regiment (Marines), 2d Division, U.S. Army, in action near Vierzy, France, 24 July 1918. Sgt. Daly personally led a patrol, shot two of the enemy, and captured several prisoners.”

This was no reckless bravado. It was leadership forged in fire and tempered by responsibility. A warrior who never asked his men to face peril he wouldn’t meet head-on.

Medals of Honor, Stories of Sacrifice

Two Medals of Honor. Two acts of fearless valor written in the blood of battle. The military world took notice, but Daly remained a quiet soldier, refusing the spotlight. He once said:

“I never wanted the medals for myself; I wanted to inspire the Marines who were still fighting, still standing in the line.”

Words that carry the weight of battlefield truth.

Marine Corps Commandant Thomas Holcomb called him “the fightingest Marine I ever knew.” He wasn’t just a symbol of grit. He was the sword and shield of every Marine who stood behind him.

Beyond War: Legacy Burned in Steel and Spirit

What does it mean to fight with no retreat? To bear the scars so others could walk free? Daniel J. Daly’s story reminds us that courage is not born on a parade ground. It is carved in fire, in chaos, in the choice to keep moving forward while drowning in fear.

He never left the fight. Not just for medals or medals’ sake, but for the man next to him who had nowhere else to turn.

In a world desperate to forget the cost of freedom, Daly’s life bleeds truth: the weight of sacrifice is heavy. Valor isn’t about glory—it’s about enduring beyond the gunfire. Redemption isn’t found in victory, but in the willingness to stand in the breach time and again.

“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

There is a kind of power in those words, the kind that stirred Daniel Daly to become a legend.

When the smoke clears, the names fade. But the courage? That endures.

# Sources

1. U.S. Marine Corps History Division, Medal of Honor Recipients: Boxer Rebellion 2. U.S. Army Center of Military History, Medal of Honor Citations, World War I 3. Smith, Robert W., Faces of War: The Fighting Marines of Belleau Wood, Marine Corps University Press 4. Holcomb, Thomas, “The Fightingest Marine,” Marine Corps Gazette, July 1944