War song A war song is a musical composition that relates to war , or a society ' s attitudes towards war . They may be pro - war , anti - war , or simply a description of everyday life during war times . It is possible to classify these songs by historical , conflict : " First World War songs " , " Second World War songs " , " Vietnam War songs " , and so on . There is also a miscellaneous category of recruiting songs , anti - pacifist songs , complaints about mess rations , excessive drilling and so on . Many national anthems are either a call to arms , or a celebration of military victories and past glories . There were a handful of anti - war songs before 1939 , but this category has grown enormously since the start of the Vietnam War . On the other hand , new songs that are pro - war are becoming less common . Some national anthems have been adapted to be purely instrumental , or less bellicose in sentiment . Haka . Nobody knows when the Maori first saw fit to compose the combination song and dance known as the Haka . The haka is generally composed by a chief , or high - ranking warrior to build up the spirits of warriors and their tribe , whilst striking fear into the enemy . The most famous Haka was composed by Te Rauparaha , the chief of Ngati Toa , a tribe based in the lower North Island . Te Rauparaha was known to Maori and early Europeans as " The Maori Napoleon , and his Haka , Ka Mate , was a dance and ode to both the living and the dead . It is still in use today , and is regularly performed by international sports teams from New Zealand , including the All Blacks rugby union team . The All Blacks perform " Ka Mate " . Anti - war song . An anti - war song is a musical composition that either states anti - war sentiments directly , or one which is perceived ( by the public and / or critics ) as having an anti - war theme . Some show the negative aspects of war , while others satirize war . Most promote peace , in some form or another , while others speak out against certain specific armed conflict s . Many of these songs are considered protest song s , and some have been embraced by various peace movement s . Early military campaigns . In England songs about military and naval subjects were a major part of the output of ballad writers from the 16th century onwards . Most of these fell into two groups , those that lamented the cost of war for the participants , and which can therefore be seen as early protest songs and those that were generally patriotic in nature an often veered into propaganda . Narrative descriptions , which had an important function in distributing news before the development of modern newspapers , fell into both camps , occasionally at the same time . One of the earliest British ballads is ‘ The Ballad of Chevy Chase ’ , which exists in several versions and deals , somewhat inaccurately , with the events of the Scottish victory of the Battle of Otterburn in 1388 and may have been written in the early 14th century , but the earliest surviving version is from the mid - 16th century . Stress is put on bravery , honour , revenge and the costs of war . This last factor is even more evident in an early 17th - century version that notes that ‘ the next day did many widows come / Their husbands to bewail . ’ The conflicts between England and Spain in the later 16th and early 17th centuries produced a number of ballads describing events , particularly naval conflicts like those of the Spanish Armada . The English Civil War ( 1642 – 1653 ) produced a sub - genre of ‘ Cavalier ballads ’ , including ‘ When the King Home in Peace Again ’ , while their godly parliamentarian opponents were generally happier singing metrical psalms . Many of these were adapted and reused by Jacobites in England and Scotland after the ‘ Glorious Revolution ’ of 1688 , a tradition built on by Robert Burns and Sir Walter Scott . The Anglo - French Wars of the 17th and 18th centuries saw more descriptive works , usually couched in patriotic terms , but some , like ‘ Captain Death ’ ( 1757 ) dealt with loss and defeat . As regimental identities emerged songs were adopted for marching , like ‘ The British Grenadiers ’ , based on a dance tune and with enthusiastic lyrics from at least the mid - 18th century . Both sides make extensive use of ballads as propaganda in the American Revolutionary War ( 1775 – 83 ) , but they became a flood during the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars ( 1797 – 1815 ) . The same period saw numerous patriotic war songs , like ‘ Heart of Oak ’ and the emergence of a stereotype of the English seaman as ‘ Jolly Jack Tar ’ , who appeared in many ballads . The American Civil War saw huge numbers of ballads produced as recruitment propaganda and morale boosting songs on both sides , including ‘ We are coming father Abraham ’ , rapidly written in response to Abraham Lincoln ’ s call to arms in 1862 . Most successful on the Union side was ‘ The Battle Hymn of the Republic ’ , written by Julia Ward Howe in 1862 , using the existing tune that had already been used a hymn and soldier ’ s song , with its rousing chorus of ‘ Glory , glory hallelujah ’ . Some songs like ‘ Weeping Sad and Lonely , or When This Cruel War is Over ’ ( 1863 ) , were sung on both sides , much to the consternation of the commanders . The name had probably been around in the 18th century , but it would not be until the late 19th century that British land forces received an equivalent to Jack Tar in ‘ Tommy Atkins ’ , in Rudyard Kipling ’ s poems and in many music hall songs . The Boer War saw a large number of songs , often aimed at praising the bravery of particular groups ( such as Irish troops ) or soldiers in general . From this period we know that some songs were widely sung by the troops themselves , including particularly " leave taking songs " , of which probably the most famous is ‘ Goodbye , Dolly Grey ’ . World War I songs . Leading up to 1914 , and throughout the war there were many patriotic or jingoistic songs , but it is notable that soldiers themselves tended to prefer songs that were resigned in tone , like ‘ Pack Up Your Troubles in Your Old Kit - Bag ’ ( 1915 ) , or that reminded them of home , rather than how to fight . ' Goodbye , Dolly Grey ' was still popular along with songs that were adopted by soldiers like ‘ It ' s a Long Way to Tipperary ' . " The Conscientious Objector ' s Lament " ( 1917 ) was intended to ridicule pacifists , but it ended up being sung by soldiers longing to go home ( See " When This Bloody War is Over " by Max Arthur , page 42 ) . " Good - Bye - ee " ( 1917 ) pokes fun at the well educated soldiers who cannot stop themselves from using public school language such as " chin - chin ! " . " Oh It ' s a Lovely War " ( 1917 ) was the inspiration for the film " Oh ! What a Lovely War " . The singer is overly enthusiastic about mud and soldiers ' food rations . It is an anti - war song disguised as a recruiting song . " Hanging on the Old Barbed Wire " concerns the search for a Sergeant ( lying on the floor ) , a quartermaster ( behind the line ) and the privates ( hanging on the old barbed wire ) . Officers tried to prevent privates from singing the last verse , but were usually unsuccessful . Other examples are : World War II songs . Irving Berlin wrote " This is the Army , Mr . Jones " ( 1942 ) for the revue " This is the Army " . It mocks the attitudes of middle class soldiers , forced to undergo the rigors of life in the barracks . " Kiss Me Goodnight , Sergeant Major " is a British soldier ' s song , mocking their officers . Miscellaneous war songs . The category " Protest song " occasionally relates to war , but often relates to civil rights or particular miscarriages of justice . Civil war s often have their own songs , as do revolutions ( see " Revolutionary song " ) . Further reading . Tunebooks Textbooks