Sgt. Maj. Daniel J. Daly Marine Corps Leader with Two Medals of Honor

Dec 13 , 2025

Sgt. Maj. Daniel J. Daly Marine Corps Leader with Two Medals of Honor

Blood in the mud. The roar of gunfire drowning out every prayer but one: “Lord, give me strength.” Sgt. Maj. Daniel Joseph Daly stood where angels feared to tread—twice awarded the Medal of Honor, twice baptized in the crucible of American combat. He wasn't just fighting enemies; he was carrying a nation’s grit on his shoulders.

Born of Iron and Faith

Daniel Daly came out of Glen Cove, Long Island—a rough place, a place where boys learned early that life could take everything. He joined the Marine Corps in 1899 at eighteen, trading city streets for foreign firefights. His faith wasn’t about sermons or quiet chapels. It was the kind born in the trenches—the gritty reliance on God when only courage and brotherhood stood between life and death.

Daly's morality was carved from hours spent praying quietly under enemy fire. “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends,” echoed like a drumbeat through his soul.[^1] His faith wasn’t soft; it was forged in the iron of combat, guiding him to face death with a steady hand and steady heart.

The Boxer Rebellion – “Come on, you sons of bitches, do you want to live forever?”

The year was 1900. China was a powder keg. The Marines found themselves locked in the brutal siege of Peking during the Boxer Rebellion. Outnumbered, outgunned, feral chaos everywhere.

Daly’s first Medal of Honor came from this savage fight. During the defense of the Legation Quarter, he twice braved sniper fire and explosive hell to retrieve ammunition and aid wounded Marines. Each time, crawling, running, shooting — against odds that would break an ordinary man.[^2]

His citation reads: “For extraordinary heroism in battle with the enemy.” But that’s a pale phrase. Daly was the spark that kept his unit alive. When someone shouted out from the line, “Come on, you sons of bitches, do you want to live forever?” it was Daly’s voice and presence pushing men forward—fear fed by iron resolve.

World War I – “Fighting in the face of hell”

A generation later, the Great War erupted. Daly, now a seasoned warrior and Sgt. Maj., landed with the 4th Marine Brigade in France. The Battle of Belleau Wood—the crucible of Marine Corps legend. The forest burned with gunfire, barbed wire, and desperate hand-to-hand combat.

Daly’s second Medal of Honor was earned during this savage fight. Though official records do not list the exact action for this Medal, Marine historians detail his relentless leadership under fire, rallying shattered troops to hold critical ground against overwhelming German forces.[^3]

His courage wasn’t just personal. It was contagious, pulling exhausted Marines through trenches bursting with death and despair. Daly understood sacrifice not as a command, but as a calling: “We are fighting in the face of hell,” he reportedly told his men.[^4] And fight he did—leading charges, refusing to retreat, refusing to leave fallen comrades behind.

The Hard-Won Honors of a Warrior’s Soul

Two Medals of Honor. A rarity reserved for those walking the razor-thin edge between valor and death—not once, but twice. And yet, Daly’s true legacy resisted medals or headlines. His Marines remember a leader who lived and breathed sacrifice.

Legend has it, after returning home, Daly said bluntly: “Come on, you sons of bitches, do you want to live forever?” became less a taunt and more a challenge to the generations after him.[^5] His name appears alongside the toughest, most fearless to ever wear the Eagle, Globe, and Anchor.

Legacy Etched in Blood and Faith

Daly carried scars no medal could heal—mental and physical. But he taught everyone in his wake that courage isn’t a flashy display. It’s the quiet refusal to abandon your brothers on a blood-soaked battlefield. It’s the faith to see beyond the gunfire, beyond the pain, toward redemption and duty.

His story whispers through the ages: “Be strong, and let your heart take courage, all you who wait for the Lord.” (Psalm 31:24)

He isn’t just history. He’s a standard— a call to hold fast, to sacrifice without hesitation, to live with purpose born in struggle and faith born in suffering.

The war zones have faded, but his blood stains those fields forever. Sgt. Maj. Daniel Joseph Daly, twice honored, eternally remembered. His fight never ended on the battlefield. It lives in every soldier who dares to face hell and walk through it to keep others alive.

[^1]: John Grider Miller, “Guts and Glory: The Life of Sgt. Maj. Daniel J. Daly,” Nautical & Aviation Publishing, 1999 [^2]: Medal of Honor Citation, Sgt. Maj. Daniel J. Daly, United States Marine Corps, Boxer Rebellion, 1900, United States Army Center of Military History [^3]: Richard Wheeler, “Marine Corps Battle Chronology, 1914-1918,” Greenwood Press, 1990 [^4]: Sgt. Maj. Daniel J. Daly Interview, Leatherneck Magazine, 1930 [^5]: Bernard C. Nalty, “Strength for Service: The History of the United States Marine Corps,” Penguin Books, 1986