And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda

"And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda" is a song written by Scottish-born Australian singer-songwriter Eric Bogle in 1971. The song describes war as futile and gruesome, and criticises its glorification. This is exemplified in the song by the account of a young Australian who is maimed during the Gallipoli Campaign of the First World War. The protagonist, who had traveled across rural Australia before the war, is devastated by the loss of his legs in battle. As the years pass he notes the death of other veterans, while the younger generation becomes apathetic to them and their cause.

The chorus begins with the phrase "And the band played Waltzing Matilda". The song "Waltzing Matilda", by Australian poet Banjo Paterson, is the almost national anthem to which the young Australian volunteers of Bogle's song march to war and return from war and which is played when the war is remembered. At the conclusion of Bogle's song, its melody and a few of its lyrics, with modifications, are incorporated.

Many cover versions of the song have been performed and recorded, as well as many versions in foreign languages.