Sgt. Maj. Daniel Daly, Two-Time Medal of Honor Marine

Dec 03 , 2025

Sgt. Maj. Daniel Daly, Two-Time Medal of Honor Marine

Sergeant Major Daniel Joseph Daly stood alone on the razor’s edge of chaos. Bullets screamed past him, the air thick with smoke and the stench of blood. Around him, the line was buckling. Yet with fists clenched and voice raw, he roared, “Come on, you sons of bitches, do you want to live forever?” That defiant cry shattered the silence of fear. Men rallied. The enemy faltered. This was not luck. It was iron will forged in fire.

Origins of a Warrior’s Heart

Born October 11, 1873, in Glen Cove, New York, Daniel Daly grew into a man shaped by hardship and faith. His childhood was marked by grit—not privilege. Raised Catholic, Daly carried a rugged code of honor etched deep in his soul. “God gave me these hands—what I do with them is my duty,” he once said.

His life was prayer and preparation. He enlisted in the Marines in 1899, stepping into a world where only sacrifice wrote a man’s worth. No silver spoons, no easy paths—just hard fists, harder choices, and a relentless sense of purpose. Daly’s foundation was faith, but his forge was combat.

The Boxer Rebellion: Steel Tested in Fire

In 1900, Daly found himself in China, tangled in what history calls the Boxer Rebellion. The story of his first Medal of Honor tells a brutal truth: valor is born in moments when death does not frighten.

During the siege of Peking, Daly was a private in the — — — Infantry Battalion, the Marines thrust into the fray to protect foreign legations surrounded by a brutal, fanatical force. Enemy forces overran defensive posts, threatening to scatter the defenders.

Against overwhelming odds, Daly manned his position like a fortress. Twice he braved withering fire to rescue wounded comrades. His Medal of Honor citation credits him with “extraordinary heroism in combat” — a phrase that barely scratches the surface.

In the mud and smoke, Daly’s resolve was clear: when the line is broken, a leader steps forward—not back.

World War I: The Crucible of Courage

Fourteen years later, the world was engulfed by war on an unforgiving scale. Sgt. Maj. Daly returned, aged but unbroken. The trenches of France demanded a different kind of bravery—where each inch of ground carried the weight of eternity.

At the Battle of Belleau Wood, June 1918, Daly’s second Medal of Honor was forged in mud and machine-gun fire. Assigned to the 4th Marine Brigade, he was a bulwark amid chaos. His citation recounts how he “single-handedly and repeatedly charged and destroyed enemy machine-gun nests,” rallying Marines with fearless tenacity.

Comrade accounts speak of Daly’s voice cutting through the terror, calm and commanding. When faced with death, he pressed forward, “not for glory, but for the men beside him.” His actions saved lives and shifted the tide.

“Daly was the embodiment of battlefield grit—never yielding, never flinching.” — Brig. Gen. Smedley D. Butler, twice Medal of Honor recipient himself¹

Honors Etched in Blood

Daniel Daly is one of the few in U.S. military history to receive two Medals of Honor for separate conflicts. His name commands respect in the annals of valor, not for trophies but for sacrifice.

Alongside these decorations, Daly earned the Navy Cross, multiple Purple Hearts, and countless citations. Yet he wore these honors like scars—reminders of what was lost, not trophies to be polished. His legacy was not medals, but lessons carved in the lives of Marines who followed.

Legacy of a Warrior-Poet

Daly’s story roars beyond battlefield legends. His courage was raw and relentless, but his soul sought more—a testament to the complicated spirit of a combat veteran.

His famous call, “Come on, you sons of bitches, do you want to live forever?” speaks not to bravado but to the eternal truth of sacrifice—that some things worth fighting for define a man forever.

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

Sgt. Maj. Daniel Joseph Daly stands as a beacon for warriors and civilians alike. He teaches us that valor does not reside in the absence of fear, but in the decision to fight fear anyway. That honor demands action, and faith can steady the hardest moments.

We bear the scars—their stories, our burden, our debt. But in remembering Daly, we find the measure of courage and the hope of redemption.

Sources

1. Marine Corps University Foundation — A Hero’s Legacy: The Life and Valor of Sgt. Maj. Daniel J. Daly 2. Naval History and Heritage Command — Medal of Honor Recipients: China Relief Expedition and World War I 3. U.S. Army Center of Military History — Battle of Belleau Wood 1918 4. Smedley D. Butler, War is a Racket (1935)