Apart from the various genres of modern music, some
traditional and contemporary
folk songs reflect the futile efforts of war and the attitudes of objectors prior to the major wars of the 20th century. Some of these include: • "
Ain't Gonna Study War No More" also known as "Down by the Riverside", has a similar tune to "Hand Me Down, My Walking Cane," – African-American traditional anti-war song recorded by
The Weavers and many others. • "
Arthur McBride" – While first curated in the 19th century, this song likely came into existence during the 17th century in response to the
War of the Grand Alliance, or especially the
Williamite War in Ireland, after which the Irish
Jacobite army was sent to France as agreed in the
Treaty of Limerick on October 3, 1691. • "The Cruel War" – Made famous in its current form by Pete Seeger and
Peter Paul and Mary, this anti-war song has roots at least as far back as the
American Civil War, and can probably be traced to an older English song. • "Ich bin Soldat, doch bin ich es nicht gerne"
de – German song popular during the
Franco-Prussian War, tells of the futility of being a soldier, and ends with a call for reconciliation between nations and the overthrow of tyrants. • "
Johnny I Hardly Knew Ye" – Irish traditional anti-war and anti-recruiting song that was the basis for the song "
When Johnny Comes Marching Home", and recorded as "Fighting for Strangers" by
Steeleye Span. • "
Join the British Army" – Irish rebel song, recorded by
Ewan MacColl and the Dubliners. • "
Kannoneer Jabůrek" is a popular
Czech song mocking war heroism, referring to the events of the 1866
Austro-Prussian War • "Lincoln's Army" - the
Irish Rovers • "
Lowlands of Holland" —
Martin Carthy • "
Mrs. McGrath" is an Irish song describing a young man named Ted who enters the
British Army and returns seven years later having lost his legs to a cannonball while fighting against
Napoleon presumably at the
Battle of Fuentes de Oñoro (fought between 3 and 5 May 1811). Bruce Springsteen recorded a version of this song on his 2006 album
We Shall Overcome: the Seeger Sessions, and it appears on the subsequent live 2007 album
Bruce Springsteen with the Sessions Band: Live in Dublin == Musicals ==