Sgt. Major Daniel Daly's Valor at Belleau Wood and Two Medals of Honor

Dec 03 , 2025

Sgt. Major Daniel Daly's Valor at Belleau Wood and Two Medals of Honor

Sgt. Major Daniel Joseph Daly stood beneath the scorching sun of Tientsin, China, his rifle steady, eyes burning with defiance. Between trenches and chaos, his voice shattered the cries of the enemy and doubt alike. He wasn’t just fighting for ground—he was fighting for the soul of the Corps.

“Come on, you sons of bitches, do you want to live forever?” That challenge wasn’t just bravado thrown into the wind. It was a battle cry rooted in decades of sacrifice and survival—a command etched into the blood and mud of America’s most storied conflicts.

The Early Fires: Faith and Formative Years

Born in 1873 in Glen Cove, New York, Daniel J. Daly carried the quiet strength of a working-class Irish-American into his youth. Raised in a household carved by struggle and faith, he grew up with nothing handed to him. The Catholic Church and its teachings seeded a ruthless humility—a disciplined heart molded by conviction.

His early enlistment into the Marine Corps in 1899 wasn’t an escape from hardship. It was a call to service, an answer to a higher summons. Daly’s life became a testament: “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” (John 15:13)

Every scar and medal would be earned in battlefields littered with brothers who never came home. He carried not just a weapon, but a heavy, unspoken burden—the weight of leadership.

Blood on the Streets of Tientsin

The year was 1900. The Boxer Rebellion’s chaos had erupted in China, a nationalist uprising targets foreigners and Christians alike. Daly’s 1st Battalion, 1st Marines was surrounded. Enemy forces flanked them relentlessly, a tide threatening to wash through American lines.

Daly’s actions that summer were legendary. Under hellfire, he led a group of Marines through razor-wire defenses and enemy gunfire to rescue trapped forces. When his men faltered, Daly’s voice ripped through the smoke, rallying them to steady resolve. His calm under pressure forged order from chaos.

Two separate acts of bravery earned him not one, but two Medals of Honor: the first during the Boxer Rebellion for daring defense and rescue; the second decades later in 1918, in the hellscape of World War I.

Valor in the Crucible of The Great War

World War I rewrote combat in blood and metal. By 1918, Sgt. Major Daly had become a hardened leader guiding younger Marines through the mire of Flanders fields and French trenches.

At the Battle of Belleau Wood, his company faced withering machine-gun fire. The enemy’s steel storm threatened to break the American line. Daly, without hesitation, exposed himself to enemy bullets. He corrected fire, rallied his men, and inspired a counter-attack that turned the tide—holding ground that would become vital in the war’s final chapter.

His second Medal of Honor citation reads:

“For extraordinary heroism while serving with the 6th Marine Regiment at the Battle of Belleau Wood, France... Corporal Daly, on his own initiative and under heavy fire, led a group of men against a German machine-gun nest, inspiring his men by his personal example.”[^1]

He walked the line between life and death with the grace of a man who carried the prayers of comrades on his breath.

Brotherhood Honored: Medals and Words from Warriors

Marine Corps Commandant John A. Lejeune said of Daly:

“He was a man whose very presence inspired confidence.”

Fellow Marines remembered Daly as a teacher of courage—a man whose battlefield lessons were etched in grit rather than paper. Generals and privates alike bore witness to his grit and merciless resolve.

Two Medals of Honor. Four Frederick the Great Medals. And countless stories whispered in barracks and battlefield graves.

But medals did not define the man—his legacy rested in the souls he saved, the men he lifted out of despair, and the standard he set for all Marines who followed.

Enduring Legacy: Courage Beyond Combat

Sgt. Major Daniel Daly’s story is not one of flawless heroism. It’s the story of a warrior carved by fire, scarred but unbroken. The lessons he leaves behind are brutal and sacred:

True courage is stubborn. It’s getting up when the world wants you down. It’s speaking truth in the silence of fear. It’s bearing the weight of others’ lives like a cross, every damn day.

In a world eager to sanitize sacrifice, Daly reminds us that heroism is raw, bloody, and redemptive.

“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” — Joshua 1:9

His voice echoes still—through thunder and ash, reminding us that true valor marches beyond fear, beyond pain, beyond time. Sgt. Major Daniel Joseph Daly wore his scars like badges of faith. His legacy is a clarion call: to serve, to protect, and above all, to live with honor until the last breath.

[^1]: U.S. Marine Corps History Division, Medal of Honor Recipients: World War I