 His father, Søren Bagger Helms (1788–1872), was the local rector and his mother, Nicoline Marie Zeuthen (1789–1870), was her husband's second wife.Four of the couples sons were present in Schleswig-Holstein during the battles in 1864 and subsequently published their experiences.He graduated from Frederiksborg Gymnasium in 1847 and continued onto Philology at the University of Copenhagen that same year.