Daniel Joseph Daly, Marine Awarded Two Medals of Honor

Feb 06 , 2026

Daniel Joseph Daly, Marine Awarded Two Medals of Honor

The stench of death choked the air. Barbed wire shredded flesh. Bullets bit bone. And there stood Daniel Joseph Daly, calm as a storm’s eye, rallying Marines beneath a galaxy of fire.

The Blood Runs Deep — Born for Battle

Daniel Joseph Daly came of Irish-American grit in Glenmore, New York. He wasn’t molded by softness or sympathy but by the hard edge of working-class streets and a stubborn soul that hungered for honor. Faith anchored him. The Good Book wasn't just words—it was his battle hymn: “Be strong and courageous” (Joshua 1:9). Daly carried a code stitched into his blood: protect your brothers, stand firm in hell.

Enlisting in the Marine Corps in 1899, Daly’s character forged itself on the anvil of relentless discipline. Every scar he earned told a story not just of survival, but of selfless act and indomitable will.

Two Medals, One Warrior — Valor at the Edge of Death

If courage had a face, it was Daly’s in the Boxer Rebellion. In June 1900, as the Eight-Nation Alliance’s legations were under siege in Peking, Daly stood his ground during the grueling defense of the Legation Quarter. Surrounded by waves of Boxer and Imperial forces, the Marines faced annihilation. The ground was soaked with the blood of brothers.

Daly’s fearless leadership ignited hope at the brink of despair. One citation reads:

“...for distinguished conduct in the presence of the enemy in the city of Peking... voluntarily exposing himself to the enemy’s fire...” (Awarded Medal of Honor, 1901) [1].

Years later, in the brutal trenches and mud of World War I, Daly again etched his name in the annals of war forever. At the Battle of Belleau Wood, June 1918, the Marines were pinned down by machine gun nests spraying death. Daly approached the emplacements with a handful of men—then single-handedly attacked.

His war diary entries describe the hell:

“The front was a nightmare. Machine guns killed without mercy.”

According to official citations, Daly charged machine gun nests under fire, rallying his fellow Marines by sheer force of will. His courage inspired retaking critical ground at the cost of unimaginable pain.

For that thunderous display of heroism in World War I:

“For extraordinary heroism while serving with the 6th Marine Regiment at the Battle of Belleau Wood, he received a second Medal of Honor.” [2]

Many Marines whispered, “Old Gimlet Eye” was fearless, stubborn, and unbreakable. Sgt. Maj. Daly’s leadership was gritty doctrine: face death so your men won’t have to.

The Voices of Brothers — Medal Citations & Comrades

By the time he retired, Daly’s chest bore the weight of two Medals of Honor—one of only a few in Marine Corps history to earn such distinction twice.

Famed Major General Smedley Butler, another Marine legend, called Daly:

“...the fightingest Marine I ever knew.” [3]

Not mere bravado but honest respect for a man who lived the battlefield—forged in pain and tempered by sacrifice.

His citations speak plainly: heroism wasn’t about glory. It was about brotherhood. “Voluntarily exposing himself to enemy fire,” “showing fearless leadership,” “saving lives that should have been lost.” That was Daly’s language of war.

Endurance Beyond War — Lessons Etched in Flesh and Spirit

Daly’s story refuses to fade into history’s shadows because it is raw truth. Combat does not sculpt saints; it reveals men’s unvarnished souls. His life is a testament that courage is a muscle; it must be wielded—not hidden.

His scars and medals tell of sacrifice, but his faith whispered redemption beyond the rifle smoke.

“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” (2 Timothy 4:7)

Daly’s legacy is not just of a warrior, but a man who carried his brothers through hell. He reminds every soldier that valor is never cheap—it demands everything.

Honor him in memory. Live his courage in moments tested. Find in his sacrifice the call to stand firm, unyielding, even when the world wants you broken. Daniel Joseph Daly isn’t just a name in dusty records. He is the redemptive flame that burns in every Marine’s soul—fire-born, battle-hardened, unbowed.

Sources

1. U.S. Marine Corps History Division – Medal of Honor citation, Boxer Rebellion 2. U.S. Marine Corps History Division – Medal of Honor citation, WWI, Battle of Belleau Wood 3. Alexander, Joseph. Fighting Marine: The Life of Smedley Butler, 1933