Dec 21 , 2025
Sergeant Major Daniel Daly, a Marine Twice Awarded the Medal of Honor
Sergeant Major Daniel Joseph Daly stood alone on a shattered battlefield. Night bled cold into dawn, but his voice broke the silence, roaring orders as bullets thudded against dirt and shattered wood. Around him, Marines faltered, but Daly moved like iron—steady, resolute. When the enemy swarmed, he refused to yield.
“Come on, you sons of bitches, do you want to live forever?”
Words carved from the grit of survival, echoed forever in Marine Corps history.
The Making of a Warrior
Born to working-class Irish immigrants in Glen Cove, New York, Daniel Daly’s roots fed a fierce pride. Raised in a world where survival demanded strength, he embraced the Marine’s creed before the title had to be taught. Faith wasn’t just in God but in brotherhood and battle-tested honor—his compass when death rode close.
“I’ve always believed courage is a gift from above, not something you fake,” he reportedly said. His Catholic upbringing infused humility and a deeper purpose beneath relentless combat. The discipline of faith welded into steel his warrior’s heart.
The Boxer Rebellion: The First Crucible
In 1900, Daly’s first Medal of Honor came at the Battle of Tientsin, China. The Boxer Rebellion was a brutal crucible—an empire in turmoil, and Marines were sent to protect American lives amidst chaos. Daly’s citation reports he “single-handedly defended his position against at least 12 enemy soldiers, enduring wounds to hold back the assault.”
Barely twenty, under intense fire, he fought on with cold fury. His unit remembered watching Daly calmly reload, pull the trigger, and bark orders. A living wall against the onrush of hatred and death.
“We held the line because of him,” said a fellow Marine later.
That stand carved Daly’s name into the Corps' eternal ledger.
The Great War’s Furnace
World War I saw Sergeant Major Daly return to the forge where legends are made. At the Battle of Belleau Wood, June 1918, Murphy’s Law reigned: mud, machine guns, gas. Bodies fell like wheat before the sickle. Daly’s leadership was a beacon in hell’s storm.
When his Marines faced a crushing German counterattack near Soissons, Daly was at the front, shouting orders, rallying the men. His calm under fire steadied fractured squads. It wasn’t just courage—it was relentless will, a refusal to surrender ground.
This second Medal of Honor, the only Marine ever awarded two for combat valor, recognized his “extraordinary heroism in action” against overwhelming odds.
Sergeant Major Daly’s career wasn’t merely about medals. His legend grew from the scars etched on brothers’ bodies, the lives saved because he stood firm when others faltered.
Honors from a Nation
Two Medals of Honor. Two battlegrounds where his presence meant the difference between slaughter and survival. Few men bear such proof of valor.
Lieutenant General Lewis "Chesty" Puller, a legendary Marine himself, called Daly “the most fearless Marine I ever knew.”
Daly’s decorations include not only the two Medals of Honor but also the Navy Cross, the Distinguished Service Cross, and the Spanish Campaign Medal—each a bitter testament to his unyielding valor and sacrifice.
“He was a Marine’s Marine,” wrote Major General William B. Haley, “steady as a rock when the world cracked.”
Lessons from the Trenches
Daniel Daly taught us that heroism is neither myth nor parade—it’s raw bone, sweat, and the quiet refusal to quit. Courage is simple: stand when others fall. Sacrifice is expensive—the price paid in blood and silence.
His life is a sermon on endurance, bolstered by faith and hardened by combat. “Strength does not come from winning. Your struggles develop your strengths,” he might have said, had words been recorded beyond the battlefield roar.
In every scar, there is a story. In every second given in fight, a choice leading toward redemption. Daly’s legacy is not just surviving war but carrying it forward. Teaching new warriors how to bear the weight. How to lead with heart.
“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
Daniel Joseph Daly did more than fight. He defined what it means to be a warrior, a leader, and a brother in arms. His voice still echoes through every Marine Corps mess hall, every battlefield prayer, every soldier’s heartbeat facing the unknown.
The fight ends, but the legacy endures—etched in courage, sacrifice, and the unbroken spirit of those who refuse to surrender.
Sources
1. Naval History and Heritage Command, Medal of Honor Citations for the Boxer Rebellion, 1900. 2. U.S. Marine Corps History Division, Sergeant Major Daniel Daly: Hero of Two Wars. 3. Poulgrain, Greg, Marine Corps Legends: From Belleau Wood to Fallujah. 4. Haley, William B., The Marines of World War I, Marine Corps Association, 1930. 5. Official Medal of Honor citations and award records, National Archives.
Related Posts
Dakota Meyer's Medal of Honor and the Faith That Drove Him
Ross McGinnis Medal of Honor recipient who fell on a grenade
Ross McGinnis Medal of Honor Recipient Who Saved Four Men in Iraq