Benjamin Hardin Helm

Benjamin Hardin Helm was born on June 2, 1831, in Bardstown, Kentucky. He was the son of John L. Helm, a lawyer and politician, and Lucinda Barbour Hardin. Helm attended the Kentucky Military Institute in the winter of 1846 for three months, then was appointed to the United States Military Academy at West Point, from which he graduated in 1851, ranking ninth in a class of 42 cadets. He initially served as a brevet second lieutenant in the 2nd U.S. Dragoons, serving at Carlisle, Pennsylvania, and Fort Lincoln, Texas, before resigning his commission after approximately one year due to inflammatory rheumatism.

Following his military service, Helm studied law at the University of Louisville and Harvard University, graduating in 1853. He then practiced law alongside his father. In 1855, he was elected to the Kentucky House of Representatives representing Hardin County, and from 1856 to 1858, he served as the state's attorney for Kentucky's 3rd district.

On March 26, 1856, Helm married Emilie Pariet Todd, the daughter of Robert Todd of Lexington and half-sister of Mary Todd Lincoln. During the 1860 presidential election and subsequent tensions leading to the Civil War, Helm was appointed assistant inspector-general of the Kentucky State Guard, participating in efforts to organize the state's defenses.

Kentucky maintained official neutrality at the beginning of the Civil War, but Helm declined an offer from his brother-in-law, President Abraham Lincoln, to serve as a paymaster in the Union Army. Instead, Helm aligned with the Confederacy and raised the 1st Kentucky Cavalry Regiment for the Confederate States Army.

He was commissioned as a colonel on October 19, 1861, serving under Brigadier General Simon B. Buckner in Bowling Green, Kentucky. Helm and his regiment were later sent southward. He received a promotion to brigadier general on March 14, 1862, and was tasked with raising the 3rd Kentucky Brigade, which was part of the division of Major General John C. Breckinridge. Helm and his brigade participated in the Battle of Shiloh, where they guarded the Confederate flanks. In 1862, Helm was also involved in protecting the ironclad warship Arkansas under construction in Yazoo City, Mississippi.

In January 1863, Helm was assigned command of the First Kentucky Brigade, widely known as the "Orphan Brigade," which was part of the Army of Tennessee. The brigade participated in the campaigns of Tullahoma and Chickamauga. Breckinridge later ordered Helm to Vicksburg, Mississippi, to assist in General Joseph E. Johnston's unsuccessful attempt to lift the siege—a campaign Helm described as "the most unpleasant and trying of his career."

During the Battle of Chickamauga on September 20, 1863, Helm's brigade was engaged in offensive operations against Union forces in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Early in the battle, Helm's brigade helped push against the Union left flank, suffering heavy casualties—about one-third of the brigade was lost within less than an hour of the initial attack. Helm was shot in the chest by a Union sharpshooter from the 15th Kentucky Infantry. He was carried from the battlefield with severe wounds; surgeons determined that his injuries would be fatal. Helm remained conscious for several hours, asking about the battle's outcome. He was informed that the Confederates had won, to which he replied, "Victory!, Victory!, Victory!" He died on September 21, 1863, from his wounds.

Following Helm's death, President Abraham Lincoln and his wife mourned privately at the White House. The widow, Emilie Todd Helm, was granted safe passage to the White House in December 1863. In official reports, Confederate generals such as Daniel Harvey Hill and John C. Breckinridge acknowledged Helm's gallantry, character, and leadership.