American Civil War - Death of General Philip Kearny September 1 1862. Philip Kearny, Jr. was a United States Army officer, notable for his leadership in the Mexican-American War and American Civil War. He was with Napoleon III Imperial Guard at the Battle of Solferino, where he charged with the cavalry under general Louis Michel Morris, which penetrated the Austrian center and captured the key point of the battle. For this action, Kearny was awarded the French Legion d'honneur, becoming the first U.S. citizen to be thus honored. He was killed in action in the 1862 Battle of Chantilly.