William Green ( British Army soldier ) William Green ( 7 June 1784 – 27 January 1881 ) was an English rifleman of the 95th Regiment who served in the Napoleonic Wars . He was the author of a memoir entitled " " A brief outline of the Travels and Adventures of William Green ( late Rifle Brigade ) during a period of ten years in the British Service " " , one of the few accounts by an enlisted man of life in Wellington ' s Army . As such it has served as a primary source for many historians . Early life . Green was the second child of John and Elizabeth Green , of Welford , Northamptonshire , who settled in Lutterworth just before his birth . In June 1803 Green , aged 19 , and having , in his own words ; " " a disposition to ramble " " , enlisted in the Leicestershire Militia . However , " " not being content in my station " " , on 18 April 1805 he enlisted into the 1st Battalion of the 95th Regiment of Foot at Canterbury . Military career . Having completed his training as a Rifleman , Green left England on 5 November 1805 , as part of a contingent of 20 , 000 British troops sent to northern Germany under the command of General Donn . They landed at Cuxhaven on 19 November . This became known as the " Coffee Expedition " , because there was no fighting . The Rifles returned to England in early 1806 . Green then took part in another abortive expedition , this time to Sweden under the command of Sir John Moore . After being anchored for six weeks in Gothenburg harbour the Rifles returned to England without firing a shot . In July 1807 , Green and the Rifles left England for the third time to take part in the expedition against Copenhagen under the command of Lord Cathcart . They arrived on the outskirts of Copenhagen on 16 August 1807 and took part in the capture of the city . There Green had the good fortune to be billeted at the King of Denmark ' s country palace , which impressed him greatly . On his return from Copenhagen , Green then took part in the expedition to Portugal . The regiment sailed from Spithead on 24 May 1808 and after suffering severe weather landed at Vimeiro on 28 August , missing the battle by seven days . After the conclusion of the armistice Lieutenant - General Sir John Moore led his forces into Spain where they were quartered in villages around Salamanca . Retreat to Coruña . However the prompt entry of Napoleon into Madrid , at the head of large army , led to the retreat to Coruña , a distance of 250 miles over mountainous country in the depths of winter . There were no tents , little food , and the British were constantly harried by pursuing French troops . Eventually the Rifles ' commanding officer gave orders to discard knapsacks and keep either a greatcoat or blanket . Green remarks ; " " We did not mind parting with our kits , orders must be obeyed , so we left them by the roadside , but we then still had to carry 50 rounds of ball cartridge , 30 loose balls in our waist belts , a priming flask and horn of powder , and a rifle and sword [ bayonet ] , the two weighing 14 pounds . " " The Rifle regiment formed part of the rearguard . During the retreat , Green fell into a well and only avoided capture by the pursuing French by lying low till they had passed . The Rifles eventually arrived at Coruña on 12 January 1809 . Though most of his troops were successfully evacuated by the Royal Navy , General Moore was mortally wounded during the battle of Coruña on 16 January 1809 . The next day the Rifles sailed for England . They arrived at Spithead on 3 February 1809 and were marched to Hilsea Barracks , three miles from Portsmouth . Green recounts that their uniforms were so ragged and verminous that they were burnt in Barrack Square . Spain under Wellington . After a brief respite at Hythe Barracks , on 24 May 1809 the Rifles , with a new intake from the militia , sailed from Dover to Lisbon , where General Arthur Wellesley was now in command . From there they famously marched 250 miles in six days , but arrived one day too late to take part in the battle of Talavera . The British were then obliged to retreat to Portugal before Marshal Soult . In September 1810 a French army led by Marshall Massena advanced against the British , leading to the battle of Busaco . Green by this time had learned to play , and been made a company bugler . Green and the Rifles spent the next year behind the Lines of Torres Vedras . In late 1811 the British left the Lines and advanced once more into Spain . On 20 January 1812 the citadel of Ciudad Rodrigo was stormed . Then it was on to the fortified town of Badajoz . On 6 April 1812 , during the storming of the city , Green was badly wounded by a musket ball in the groin and another through his left wrist . Even so , hearing the Bugle - Major sound the advance and the double - quick , Green lay on his back and repeated the signal - the last time he blew a bugle . Return to England . After four days , he along with the other wounded were taken to the Convent of Elvas . On 17 April he set sail from Lisbon , arriving at Portsmouth on 3 August 1812 . There at Haslar Hospital , he was treated by Dr . James Moore ( the brother of the General ) who removed twenty - nine bone splinters from his arm ( though he carried part of the musket ball there for the rest of his life ) . In September , Green and the other walking wounded were marched to Chelsea Hospital in London . There on 9 December 1812 Green was awarded a pension of 9 d a day . As his share of the prize money for the capture of Copenhagen he received £3 16s 2d . Later life . Green returned to Lutterworth , and married Elizabeth Laughton in September 1813 . They had five children . In 1816 Green was examined by the Nottingham Medical Board and found unfit to serve . Green was examined again in 1819 by the Newark Medical Board , and once more found unfit . He then applied for , and was awarded , £15 from the Royal Patriotic Fund for his wounds , which were considered equal to the loss of a limb . In 1849 Green was awarded the Military General Service Medal with four clasps representing Coruña , Busaco , Ciudad Rodrigo and Badajoz . When the Duke of Wellington died in September 1852 , Colonel Shirley , formerly of the 7th Hussars , who lived at Lutterworth , paid Green ' s expenses to travel to London to attend the funeral . Whilst there Green visited Chelsea Hospital . In January 1853 his pension was increased to 1 shilling a day for life . In June 1853 he married for the second time ( his first wife having died in 1848 ) . He and Alice Pebody , a widow , were married at the Baptist Church , Rugby , and settled in her cottage in South Kilworth , where he wrote his memoir . In 1857 , the Rector of South Kilworth wrote on Green ' s behalf to Albert , Prince Consort , enclosing a copy . The Prince responded with a letter and £5 to be given to " " this evidently deserving old soldier " " . A copy was also sent to the Prince of Wales through the Mayor of Leicester . The Prince ' s secretary responded and sent a cheque for £3 . A copy was also sent to the Duke of Cambridge who sent £1 . By 1871 Green and his wife had moved to Leicester to live nearer to her daughter . In 1877 Green was a special guest at a banquet to honour local veterans . It was held at Leicester Corn Exchange on Inkerman Day , 5 November . The banquet was funded by subscriptions from the Prince of Wales , the Duke of Cambridge and the Duke of Rutland , as well as many local dignitaries . The veterans assembled at the Magazine Barracks at 4 pm . Then , to the strains of the Drum and Fife Band of the Grenadiers , they marched to the Corn Exchange for a feast of venison , game , and plum pudding . Mr . Crofts of Cosby , the oldest naval veteran , aged 80 , and William Green , now 93 , were carried shoulder high to respond to the toast for their respective branches of the service . Green died of old age in Leicester on 27 January 1881 , aged 96 . He was buried with full Military Honours in Welford Road Cemetery .