Every leader needs a trusted confidant. For Nathan Bedford Forrest, one
of the Civil War's greatest military minds, that man was David Campbell
Kelley. Kelley began adulthood in the clergy, serving for two years as a
missionary in China and returning home just a year before the Civil War.
He then raised a company of cavalry from his family's large congregation
that became part of Forrest's original regiment. Kelley quickly became
Forrest's second in command, assisting in some of his most daring
engagements, offering support in key decisions and serving as his
unofficial chaplain. Following the war, Kelley returned to preaching,
helped establish Vanderbilt University and launched a campaign for
governor of Tennessee. Now, for the first time, author Michael R.
Bradley brings Kelley's dynamic life to the fore.