War is a calypso form that has existed since at least the turn of the twentieth century. Originally it was sung in patois

Patois

Patois is any language that is considered nonstandard, although the term is not formally defined in linguistics. It can refer to pidgins, creoles, dialects, and other forms of native or local speech, but not commonly to jargon or slang, which are vocabulary-based forms of cant...

. The classic War form is an eight-line stanza, the first four lines in a minor key, then modulating into the major, and returning to the minor with the refrain "santimanite" ("sans humanité" in patois, in English "without humanity").

The object of War is to promote the calypsonian and defeat his competitors.

A War verse by Growling Tiger

Growling Tiger

Neville Marcano , known as the Growling Tiger, is a Trinidadian calypsonian.Born in Siparia, Tiger was originally a boxer who won the Trinidad bantamweight championship in 1929. He was active in calypso from his teens. He was a member of the Old Brigade of calypso singers, which included Lord...

:

When I was a child at the age of five
And my dear old grandfather was alive
He would sit me upon his knee
And say "boy listen to me"
He said "boy I will tell you your birth" [i.e. fortune]
"and it is to rule over men on this earth".
So I'm sorry for the molesters who mess with this Tiger
Santimantay

A War verse by Mighty Terror

Mighty Terror

Fitzgerald Henry , better known as the Mighty Terror, was a Trinidadian calypsonian.-Early career in Trinidad:His career started in 1947 and he first debuted at the Calypso Palace Tent in 1948...

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If you want to see what I say is true
Just call a Jamaican singer to you
And ask him to sing extemporaneously
You will see he hasn't this ability
But if you call me or Lord Kitchener
We will sing from January to December
Why? For we are born Trinidadians and true calypsonians
Here in Great Britain