This page is dedicated to...
The Vietnam Veterans of Australia

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.
Binyon

Welcome Home!..Brothers and Sisters...Welcome Home!




The Australian Vietnam Forces "National Memorial"




Badge of The Vietnam Veterans Association of Australia


No Country could ask more...of
No Country could expect more...of
Every Country should be proud...of
Those who GAVE...
They are freedoms CORE...
Whose standards all should live by...
God Bless
"AUSTRALIA"


Click on the slouch hat to visit...
Tibbo's Australian Memorial Pages...


Click on the slouch hat to visit...
Davo's Vietnam Memorial pages...


You are listening to

~Waltzing Matilda~
Lyrics by:
"Banjo" Paterson
1893

Once a jolly swagman sat beside the billabong,
Under the shade of a coulibah tree,
And he sang as he sat and waited till his billy boiled

Chorus:
Who'll come a waltzing matilda with me
Waltzing matilda, waltzing matilda
Who'll come a waltzing matilda with me
And he sang as he sat and waited by the billabong
Who'll come a waltzing matilda with me

2
Down came a jumbuck to drink beside the billabong
Up jumped the swagman and seized him with glee
And he sang as he tucked the jumbuck in his tuckerbag

Chorus:
You'll come a waltzing matilda with me
Waltzing matilda, waltzing matilda
You'll come a waltzing matilda with me
And he sang as he tucked the jumbuck in his tuckerbag
You'll come a waltzing matilda with me

3
Down came the stockman, riding on his thoroughbred,
Down came the troopers, one, two, three
Where's that jolly jumbuck you've got in your tuckerbag?

Chorus:
You'll come a waltzing matilda with me
Waltzing matilda, waltzing matilda
You'll come a waltzing matilda with me
Where's that jolly jumbuck you've got in your tuckerbag?
You'll come a waltzing matilda with me

4
Up jumped the swagman and plunged into the billabong
"You'll never catch me alive," cried he
And his ghost may be heard as you ride beside the billabong

Chorus:
Who'll come a waltzing matilda with me
Waltzing matilda, waltzing matilda
Who'll come a waltzing matilda with me
And his ghost may be heard as you ride beside the billabong
Who'll come a waltzing matilda with me



Explanation of Australian Slang As Used in the Song Billabong: A waterhole. Billy: A can or small kettle used to boil water for tea. Coolabah tree: A type of native tree in Australia Jumbuck: A sheep. There are 20 times as many sheep as there are people in Australia. Matilda: Although there are several schools of thought, Matilda as originally used means is of Teutonic origins and means Mighty Battle Maiden, referring to the women in camps during the Thirty Year Wars in Europe. Later this more commonly referred to the great army coats or blankets that soldiers rolled into a swag and tossed over their shoulders while marching. Squatter: At one time, squatters claimed (seized) land for themselves in addition to land that they had been granted. Eventually through the continuous occupation of the land, their claims were legitimised in the eyes of the law. Swagman: Someone who lives on the open road. A hobo. The term came from the canvas bag that they would carry their bedroll and/or belongings in. Trooper: In Australia's early days, there was no police force. The colony was protected by and policed by soldiers and even when a police force was eventually formed, they were still referred to as 'troopers'. Tucker bag: A knapsack or bag for storing food in the bush.