Green, EU

Captain Edward Unsworth Green

Born on August 27th 1880, Edward was the second son of a wine merchant, also called Edward Green, and his wife, Annie. He joined the College at the start of 1895, alongside his younger brother, Vivian, and was a pupil for the next two years. After leaving he was an active and committed member of the OAs, going on to captain the ‘A’ XV for the two seasons between 1903 and 1905. By this point he was already a member of the Honourable Artillery Company, which he had joined in 1900 and where would go on to become Company Sergeant-Major. In 1905 he also took over the running of the Dulwich College Mission, a charitable boys’ home in Camberwell, something with which he had been heavily involved for several years. He would remain in charge of the Mission, often with the assistance of his brother, Vivian, for nearly a decade, a position which brought them close to Arthur Gilkes, then Master of the College, who later spoke very admirably of both brothers.
Having previously been placed on the Veterans’ List, the declaration of War in August 1914 saw Edward report once more for duty with the H.A.C., when he was once again made a Company Sergeant-Major. As early as September 1914 he had been sent across to France as a member of the 1st Battalion and was to spend just over a year with them, most of it spent in the trenches around Ypres. In December 1915 he was granted a commission with the Loyal North Lancashires, being assigned to the 9th Battalion. Whilst leading his men at the Somme, on July 7th 1916, he was wounded, first in the knee, and later in the head, but refused to leave his men; his wounds meant that he would eventually be invalided home, but he was awarded the M.C. for his actions on that day. After a recovery period, which was extended by a bout of flu in early 1917, he was sent to rejoin his regiment that spring. On August 10th 1917 he was leading an attack on the Westhoek Ridge, near Ypres, when he was shot through the head, dying instantly. His brother, Vivian, had been killed earlier that year, whilst serving in Palestine.