Daniel Joseph Daly Marine Who Earned Two Medals of Honor

Nov 12 , 2025

Daniel Joseph Daly Marine Who Earned Two Medals of Honor

Blood and steel beneath scorching skies. The air thick with smoke, screams, and the steady click of firing pins—this was the crucible that forged Sgt. Maj. Daniel Joseph Daly. Not once, but twice, he carried the weight of valor where others faltered. The kind of warrior who steps forward when hope feels thin and fear claws at the throat.

The Roots of a Warrior’s Soul

Born in Glen Cove, New York, in 1873, Daly came from humble beginnings—steelworkers and dockhands etched into his bloodline. The streets around him echoed with grit and the promise of hard work. He joined the Marine Corps in 1899, a young man seeking purpose beyond the city grime.

Faith wasn’t flamboyant or loud with him. It was quiet steel, a simple set of morals forged in the Christian gospel. “Blessed are the peacemakers,” he’d likely reflect, but understood that peace sometimes demanded battle. Redemption wasn’t just a word—it was the marrow of his code. Honor. Courage. Sacrifice.

The Battle That Defined Him: Boxer Rebellion, Tientsin 1900

China burned in rebellion. The Legation Quarter in Peking under siege. But Tientsin was hell on earth—a maelstrom of bullets and blood.

Daly’s first Medal of Honor came from a single night, July 13, 1900. With only a small force, the Marines faced a savage enemy tunnel charge by the Boxers. The defenders nearly broke.

Daly didn’t hesitate.

He leapt into the breach, wielding a rifle and grim determination. Single-handed, he held back the enemy. When his weapon jammed, he threw down his rifle, grappled the intruders with a trench knife, driving them off—then took a position and held fast under fire.

“For distinguished conduct in the presence of the enemy in battle at Tientsin, China, 13 July 1900,” his Medal of Honor citation reads[i].

His actions stopped the enemy. The line held. Lives were saved.

He emerged bloodied but unbowed—a symbol of relentless defiance.

War to End All Wars: Belleau Wood, 1918

World War I surged like a tidal wave over Europe’s broken fields. The Marine Corps was a lean, battered instrument of war. At Belleau Wood, June 1918, the enemy dug in deep. The French called it the “Wood of Death.”

Daly was now a Sergeant Major, the oldest man in the ranks—45 years old, when most would have hung up their boots. But he strode into the inferno with the fury of a lion.

During the savage fight, Marines suffered heavy losses. Soldiers slipped under fire; morale flagged. Daly rallied the men, standing exposed to enemy machine guns, shouting, “Come on, you sons of bitches, do you want to live forever?” The words seared into Marine Corps legend[ii].

His fearless leadership kindled flame in the darkest hours. No man ordered him, no law required it—it was the purest grit born of love for his brothers.

His second Medal of Honor citation honored “extraordinary heroism in connection with military operations against an armed enemy near Soissons, France, on June 6, 1918,” where he repeatedly exposed himself to enemy fire to lead his men[iii].

The fighting continued for days. His scars—both seen and unseen—became silent testimony to sacrifice.

Honors Worn Like Badges of the Line

Two Medals of Honor is a distinction held by only nineteen Americans. Daly stands alone with two earned for separate conflicts.

He also received the Navy Cross and the Distinguished Service Cross, milestones that recognized valor few could match.

Eugene Sledge, a fellow Marine historian, said of Daly:

“He represented every virtue we claim—the iron will, the spirit to fight against impossible odds. His actions weren’t just bravery—they were salvation for his comrades.”[iv]

His battlefield journal wasn’t written with ink but with blood and grit.

Legacy Written in Sacrifice and Redemption

Daly’s story is not just one of combat. It’s a testament that true courage doesn’t ask for glory—it demands sacrifice. It’s about the man willing to stand in the breach when everyone else falls back.

His faith, quiet but firm, reminds us that even amid the chaos of war, there is a greater purpose.

Like the psalmist declared:

“Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil.” —Psalm 23:4

His life is a chapter in the story of redemption—that scars heal but memory endures. His message speaks directly to veterans today: fight hard, love harder, and never forget the brother beside you.

The battlefield leaves its mark. For Daniel Joseph Daly, it forged a legend. Not for the medals or the words memorialized in stone—but for the promise kept: to stand unflinching, where hope dared to flicker, and blood was the price of freedom.

He bore his wounds like a prayer.

He fought… so we might live.

Sources

[i] Naval History and Heritage Command, Medal of Honor Recipients – China Relief Expedition (Boxer Rebellion) [ii] Marine Corps History Division, The Battle of Belleau Wood [iii] U.S. Army Center of Military History, WWI Medal of Honor Citations [iv] Sledge, Eugene B., With the Old Breed: At Peleliu and Okinawa (Marine Corps University Press)