Daniel Joseph Daly, Marine Who Earned Two Medals of Honor

Nov 04 , 2025

Daniel Joseph Daly, Marine Who Earned Two Medals of Honor

Sgt. Major Daniel Joseph Daly stood in the smoke and chaos of Peking, his rifle steady, eyes sharp. Bullets tore dirt around him. The fate of his men and mission wavered on his calm resolve. He wasn’t just holding ground. He was holding the line of humanity—no hesitation, no retreat. In the hellfire of war, Daly was iron.

Blood in the Streets of the Boxer Rebellion

Born in Glen Cove, New York, 1873, Daniel Daly came from a rough-and-tumble Irish-American world. From the docks to the trenches, a hard life forged a hard man. The streets taught him survival. The Corps built his honor.

Faith anchored him. Daly’s courage wasn’t reckless bravado. It sprang from something deeper—a code written in the marrow of his soul. “God is watching,” he reportedly said, gripping his sidearm, “and I’m not letting Him down today.”

“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid.” – Joshua 1:9

He carried that strength into the Boxer Rebellion (1899–1901), a brutal clash of East and West. In the streets of Peking, the Marines faced Chinese insurgents bent on crushing foreign legations.

Holding the Line at Peking

The battle raged on June 20, 1900. Daly, a young corporal then, saw enemy forces swarming around his squad. The lines thinned. Ammunition ran low.

With no hesitation, he grabbed a rifle from a fallen comrade and charged into the fray. His words afterward carry the weight of legend:

"Come on, you sons of bitches, do you want to live forever?"

That single phrase galvanized the Marines. The enemy faltered, and the line held. Daly’s guts and grit earned him his first Medal of Honor.

His citation reads:

“In the presence of the enemy during the battle of Peking, China, 20 June 1900, Daly distinguished himself by extraordinary heroism.”[1]

Valor Reborn in the Great War

Decades later, the world plunged into the crucible of World War I. A Sergeant Major now, Daly landed in France commanding Marines who looked up to him like a rock.

At the Battle of Belleau Wood, June 1918, where the Marines reshaped their legend, Daly once again stepped into the inferno. The woods burned with gunfire and artillery. In a moment that cemented his legacy, he picked up a dropped machine gun, shouted those immortal words again, and led an attacking charge through barbed wire and enemy fire.

His leadership wasn’t just tactical brilliance—it was raw courage under fire, spurring exhausted men forward against impossible odds.

The Medal of Honor citation he earned states:

“For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of life above and beyond the call of duty while serving with the 6th Marine Regiment, 4th Marine Brigade, 2d Division, A.E.F., in action near Verdun, France, 27 June 1918.”[2]

Honors That Speak Without Words

Two Medals of Honor. Only 19 men in American history have earned that distinction. Daly’s rugged presence was a beacon. Fellow Marines revered him as “the real Marine,” the embodiment of their creed.

A leader once said of him:

“Daly didn’t just lead us, he died for us, every day we were in combat.”

Yet, Daly wore his medals quietly. No parades, no speeches. Just that steady Irish grit, scars earned in battle, a faith unshaken by death and destruction.

Legacy of True Courage

Daly’s story is a testament—not to the glory of war—but to the black, blood-soaked truth of sacrifice.

He reminds us: courage is not the absence of fear, but the mastery of it. It’s waking up to the stench of death and choosing mission over self. It’s the quiet faith that haunts the heart of every fight.

For those who fight and those who watch from home, Sgt. Major Daniel Joseph Daly’s life is a reckoning, a call to live with honor, and if necessary, to die with purpose.

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

The battlefield doesn’t care about medals. It only remembers the brave, the faithful, the broken who still stand. Daly was all of those.

Sources

1. Medal of Honor citation, Daniel J. Daly, U.S. Marine Corps Archives. 2. Medal of Honor citation, Daniel J. Daly, U.S. Marine Corps Archives. 3. USMC History Division, "Daniel Joseph Daly: A Marine Legendary for Valor," Marine Corps Historical Center, 2017.