Southern Defenders Series: John C. Breckinridge

Considering the Southern theme that develops from time to time, I have come to realize that the best way to view the South is to possess and better understanding of her defenders.  Hence a new feature of summaries about the Southland's finest has come to fruition:

Born into a prominent Kentucky family, John C. Breckinridge graduated from Centre College in 1839 and attended Princeton soon thereafter, earning admission to the bar in 1840.

Upon serving with the 3rd Kentucky Volunteers during the Mexican-American War, Breckinridge made his way to Capital Hill in 1851 and undertook two terms as representative of Kentucky's 8th congressional district.  Having declined an ambassadorship to Spain, he eventually served as Vice President alongside President Franklin Pierce.  At age 36, John Cabell Breckinridge was, and remains, the youngest Vice President in American history.

He took a seat in the Senate at the outset of Abraham Lincoln's first term, but his nine-month stint abruptly ended when he was expelled for vocally supporting the South's secession, as had 10 other Senators before him.  Subsequently landing a commission in the Confederate Army, Breckinridge broke with his State when the Kentucky Legislature initially voted to remain with the Union.

As commander of the 1st Kentucky Brigade -- nicknamed the Orphan Brigade because of the men who felt abandoned by the government of their home State -- Major General Breckinridge led his troops valiantly throughout the Western Theater, beginning with the Battle of Shiloh (near Savannah, about an hour from Memphis) where he was wounded in action.

After the War, Major General Breckinridge personally oversaw the preservation of both the government and military archives of the Confederate States.  And by doing so, he ensured that a full account of the Southern war endeavor would be preserved for future generations.  In fact, all that I've just written was made possible by the efforts of John C. Breckinridge: American Representative, Senator, Vice President, and Confederate General.