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{{Short description|Large-scale conflict in South America (1864–1870)}}
{{pp|small=yes}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2018}}
{{Infobox military conflict
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| image = Escenas de la Guerra de la Triple Alianza.png
| image_size = 300px
| caption = From top, left to right: the [[Battle of Riachuelo]] (1865), the [[Battle of Tuyutí]] (1866), the [[Battle of Curupayty]] (1866), the [[Battle of Avay]] (1868), the [[Battle of Lomas Valentinas]] (1868), the [[Battle of Acosta Ñu]] (1869), the [[Palacio de los López]] during the [[Sacking of Asunción|occupation of Asunción]] (1869), and Paraguayan war prisoners (
| date = 13 November 1864{{sfn|Whigham|2002|pp=161, 446 n.87}} – 1 March 1870<br />({{age in years, months, weeks and days|1864|11|13|1870|3|1}})
| place = [[South America]]; [[Paraguay]], [[Brazil]], and [[Argentina]]
| territory =
* Brazil definitively gained the disputed territories north of the [[Apa River]], now part of [[Mato Grosso do Sul]] state.
* Argentina definitively gained the disputed [[Misiones Province]] and all the disputed lands south of the [[Pilcomayo River]] now constituting [[Formosa Province]].
| result = Allied victory
* [[Treaty of the Triple Alliance]] ended
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* {{flag|Uruguay}}
}}
| combatant2 = {{flag|Paraguay|1842}}
| commander1 = {{plainlist|
* {{flagdeco|Empire of Brazil}} [[Pedro II of Brazil|Emperor Pedro II]]
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* {{flagdeco|Paraguay|1842}} [[Antonio de la Cruz Estigarribia|A. Estigarribia]]{{POW}}
* {{flagdeco|Paraguay|1842}} [[Pedro Duarte (general)|Pedro Duarte]]{{POW}}
* {{flagdeco|Paraguay|1842}} [[George Thompson (engineer)|George Thompson]]
}}
| strength1 = {{plainlist|
* {{flagdeco|Empire of Brazil}}
* {{flagdeco|Argentina}} ~30,000{{
* {{flagdeco|Uruguay}} 5,583{{
* Total: ~
}}
| strength2 = {{plainlist|
* {{flagdeco|Paraguay|1842}} 300,000<ref name="Dere">{{Cite web|url=http://remilitari.com/guias/victimario5.htm |title=Las mayores guerras y genocidios del siglo XIXs|access-date=15 May 2013|website=Victimario Histórico Militar|publisher=De Re Militari|language=es|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180412081700/http://remilitari.com/guias/victimario5.htm|archive-date=12 April 2018}}</ref>
}}
| casualties1 = {{plainlist|
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* 13,000 civilians
* {{flagdeco|Uruguay}} 10,000
* Total:
}}
| casualties2 = {{flagdeco|Paraguay|1842}} Unknown, likely 175,000–300,000 soldiers and civilians
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| campaignbox = {{Campaignbox Paraguayan War}}
}}
The '''Paraguayan War''', also known as the '''War of the Triple Alliance''',
After Paraguay was defeated in [[conventional warfare]], it conducted a drawn-out [[guerrilla]] resistance, a strategy that resulted in the further destruction of the Paraguayan military and the civilian population. Much of the civilian population died due to battle, hunger, and disease. The guerrilla war lasted for 14 months until
==Background==
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Since [[Decolonization of the Americas|their independence from Portugal and Spain]] in the early 19th century, the Empire of Brazil and the Spanish-American countries of South America were troubled by [[territorial dispute]]s. Each nation in this region had boundary conflicts with multiple neighbors. Most had overlapping claims to the same territories, due to unresolved questions which stemmed from their former [[metropole]]s. Signed by Portugal and Spain in 1494, the [[Treaty of Tordesillas]] proved ineffective in the following centuries, as both colonial powers expanded their frontiers in South America and elsewhere. The outdated boundary lines did not represent the actual occupation of lands by the Portuguese and Spanish.
By the early 1700s, the Treaty of Tordesillas was deemed not useful, and it was clear to both parties that a newer treaty had to be drawn based on feasible boundaries. In 1750, the [[Treaty of Madrid (13 January 1750)|Treaty of Madrid]] separated the Portuguese and Spanish areas of South America in lines that mostly corresponded to present-day boundaries. Neither Portugal nor Spain
The territorial disputes became worse when the [[Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata]] collapsed in the early 1810s, leading to the rise of
===Political situation before the war===
{{main|Platine War|Cisplatine War}}
There are several theories regarding the origins of the war. The traditional view emphasizes that the policies of Paraguayan
A strong military was developed because Paraguay's larger neighbors, Argentina and Brazil, had territorial claims against it and wanted to dominate it politically, much as both had already done in Uruguay. Paraguay had recurring boundary disputes and tariff issues with Argentina and Brazil for many years during the rule of Solano Lopez's predecessor and father, [[Carlos Antonio López]].
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Brazil had carried out three political and military interventions in the politically unstable Uruguay:
* in 1851 against [[Manuel Oribe]] in order to fight Argentine influence in the country and to end the [[Great Siege of Montevideo]];
* in 1855, at the request of the Uruguayan government and [[Venancio Flores]], leader of the [[Colorado Party (Uruguay)|Colorado Party]], which was traditionally supported by the Brazilian
* in 1864, against [[Atanasio Aguirre]]. This last intervention would lead to the Paraguayan War.
On 19 April 1863, Uruguayan
Paraguayan
One year after the beginning of the ''Cruzada Libertadora'', in April 1864, Brazilian minister [[José Antônio Saraiva]] arrived in Uruguayan waters with the Imperial Fleet, to demand payment for damages caused to [[Rio Grande do Sul]] farmers in border conflicts with Uruguayan farmers. Uruguayan
Brazilian soldiers on the northern borders of Uruguay started to provide help to Flores' troops and harassed Uruguayan officers, while the Imperial Fleet pressed hard on Montevideo.{{sfn|Herrera|1943|pp=453–455}} During the months of June–August 1864 a Cooperation Treaty was signed between Brazil and Argentina at [[Buenos Aires]], for mutual assistance in the Plate Basin Crisis.{{sfn|Pomer|2008|pp=96–98}}
Brazilian
{{blockquote|The government of the Republic of Paraguay will consider any occupation of the Oriental territory [i.e. Uruguay] as an attempt against the equilibrium of the states of the Platine Region which interests the Republic of Paraguay as a guarantee for its security, peace, and prosperity; and that it protests in the most solemn manner against the act, freeing itself for the future of every responsibility that may arise from the present declaration.|[[José Berges]], Paraguayan chancellor, to Vianna de Lima, Brazilian minister to the Paraguayan government.
The Brazilian government, probably believing that the Paraguayan threat would be only diplomatic, answered on 1 September, stating that "they will never abandon the duty of protecting the lives and interests of Brazilian subjects." But in its answer, two days later, the Paraguayan government insisted that "if Brazil takes the measures protested against in the note of August 30th, 1864, Paraguay will be under the painful necessity of making its protest effective."{{sfn|Thompson|1869|p=20}}
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On 12 October, despite the Paraguayan notes and ultimatums, Brazilian troops under the command of general {{ILL|João Propício Mena Barreto|pt}} invaded Uruguay.<ref name=Hooker/>{{rp|24}} This was not the start of the Paraguayan war, however, for Paraguay continued to maintain diplomatic relations with Brazil for another month.
On 11 November the [[Capture of the gunboat Marquês de Olinda|Brazilian ship ''Marquês de Olinda'']], on her routine voyage up the [[River Paraguay]] to the Brazilian Mato Grosso, and carrying the new governor of that province, docked at Asunción and took on coal.
The conflict between Brazil and Uruguay was settled in February 1865. News of the war's end was brought by Pereira Pinto and met with joy in Rio de Janeiro. Brazilian
==Opposing forces==
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===Paraguay===
According to some historians,{{who|date=July 2023}} Paraguay began the war with over 60,000 trained men—38,000 of whom were already under arms—400 cannons, a naval squadron of 23 [[steamboat]]s
Communication in the
However, recent studies{{which|date=July 2023}} suggest many problems. Although the Paraguayan army had between 70,000 and 100,000 men at the beginning of the conflict, they were badly equipped. Most infantry armaments consisted of inaccurate smooth-bore [[musket]]s and [[carbine]]s, slow to reload and short-ranged. The artillery was similarly poor. Military officers had no training or experience, and there was no command system, as all decisions were made personally by López. Food, ammunition, and armaments were scarce, with logistics and hospital care deficient or nonexistent.{{sfn|Salles|2003|p=18}} The nation of about 450,000 people could not stand against the Triple Alliance of 11 million people.
The Paraguayan army during peacetime prior to the war
===Brazil and its allies===
[[File:Couple of Brazilian officers in Paraguay.jpg|thumb|left|170px|Brazilian officers]]
{{main|Treaty of the Triple Alliance}}
At the beginning of the war, the military forces of Brazil, Argentina, and Uruguay were far smaller than Paraguay's. Argentina had approximately 8,500 regular troops and a naval squadron of four steamers and one schooner. Uruguay entered the war with fewer than 2,000 men and no navy. Many of Brazil's 16,000 troops were located in its southern garrisons.{{sfn|Scheina|2003|p=318}} The Brazilian advantage, though, was in its navy, comprising 45 ships with 239 cannons and about 4,000 well-trained crew. A great part of the squadron was already in the Rio de la Plata basin, where it had acted under the Marquis of Tamandaré in the intervention against Aguirre's government.
Brazil, however, was unprepared to fight a war. Its army was disorganized. The troops it used in Uruguay were mostly armed contingents of gauchos and the National Guard. While some Brazilian accounts of the war described their infantry as volunteers ([[Voluntários da Pátria]]), other Argentine revisionist and Paraguayan accounts disparaged the Brazilian infantry as mainly recruited from slaves and the landless (largely black) underclass, who were promised free land for enlisting.{{sfn|Wilson|2004|p={{page needed|date=January 2012}}}} The cavalry was formed from the National Guard of
Ultimately, a total of about 146,000 Brazilians fought in the war from 1864 to 1870, consisting of the 10,025 army soldiers stationed in Uruguayan territory in 1864, 2,047 that were in the province of Mato Grosso, 55,985 [[Fatherland Volunteers]], 60,009 National Guardsmen, 8,570 ex-slaves who had been freed to be sent to war, and 9,177 navy personnel. Another 18,000 National Guard troops stayed behind to defend Brazilian territory.{{sfn|Salles|2003|p=38}}
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===Paraguayan offensive===
====In Mato Grosso====
[[File:Expédition brésilienne pour Matto-Grosso. Campement de la division expéditionnaire dans les forèts vierges de Goyaz, à Rio des Bois. - D'après un croquis envoyé par M. Paranhos junior.jpg|thumb|Brazilian expedition to Mato Grosso: Encampment of the Expeditionary Division in the virgin forests of [[Goiás]] (''[[L'Illustration]]'', 1866)]]
Paraguay took the initiative during the first phase of the war, launching the [[Mato Grosso Campaign]] by invading the Brazilian province of Mato Grosso on 14 December 1864,<ref name=Hooker/>{{rp|25}} followed by an invasion of the Rio Grande do Sul province in the south in early 1865 and the Argentine [[Corrientes Province]].
Two separate Paraguayan forces invaded Mato Grosso simultaneously. An expedition of 3,248 troops, commanded by [[Vicente Barrios]], was transported by a naval squadron under the command of frigate captain [[Pedro Ignacio Meza]] up the Paraguay River to the town of [[Concepción, Paraguay|Concepción]].<ref name=Hooker/>{{rp|25}} There they attacked the Nova Coimbra fort on 27 December 1864.<ref name=Hooker/>{{rp|26}} The Brazilian garrison of 154 men resisted for three days, under the command of [[Hermenegildo Portocarrero, Baron of Forte de Coimbra|Hermenegildo Portocarrero]] (later Baron of Fort Coimbra). When their munitions were exhausted, the defenders abandoned the fort and withdrew up the river towards [[Corumbá]] on board the gunship ''Anhambaí''.<ref name=Hooker/>{{rp|26}} After occupying the fort, the Paraguayans advanced further north, taking the cities of Albuquerque, Tage and [[Corumbá]] in January 1865.<ref name=Hooker/>{{rp|26}}
Solano López then sent a detachment to attack the military frontier post of [[Antônio João|Dourados]]. On 29 December 1864, this detachment, led by Martín Urbieta, encountered tough resistance from [[Antônio João Ribeiro]] and his 16 men, who were all eventually killed. The Paraguayans continued to [[Nioaque]] and [[Miranda, Mato Grosso do Sul|Miranda]], defeating the troops of José Dias da Silva. The city of [[Coxim]] was taken in April 1865. The second Paraguayan column, formed from some of the 4,650 men led by [[Francisco Isidoro Resquín]] at Concepción, penetrated into Mato Grosso with 1,500 troops.<ref name=Hooker/>{{rp|26}}
Despite these victories, the Paraguayan forces did not continue to
Brazil sent an expedition to fight the invaders in
Despite the efforts of Camisão's troops and the resistance in the region, which succeeded in liberating Corumbá in June 1867, a large portion of
====Paraguayan invasion of Corrientes and Rio Grande do Sul====
[[File:Paraguayan march along the Rivers Paraná and Uruguay and Allied counterattack 1865.png|thumb|left|Paraguayan invasion of Corrientes and Allied counterattack in 1865]]
The invasion of Corrientes and Rio Grande do Sul was the second phase of the Paraguayan offensive. In order to support the Uruguayan Blancos, the Paraguayans had to travel across Argentine territory. In January 1865, Solano López asked Argentina's permission for an army of 20,000 men (led by general [[Wenceslao Robles]]) to travel through the province of Corrientes.<ref name=Hooker/>{{rp|29–30}} Argentine president [[Bartolomé Mitre]] refused Paraguay's request and a similar one from Brazil.<ref name=Hooker/>{{rp|29}}
After this refusal, the [[Congress of Paraguay|Paraguayan Congress]] gathered at an emergency meeting on 5 March 1865. After several days of discussions, on 23 March Congress decided to declare war on Argentina for its policies, hostile to Paraguay and favourable to Brazil, and then they conferred to Francisco Solano López the rank of Field Marshal of the Republic of Paraguay. The declaration of war was sent on 29 March 1865 to Buenos Aires.{{sfn|Thompson|1869|pp=40–45}}
On 13 April 1865, a Paraguayan squadron sailed down the [[Paraná River]] and attacked two Argentine ships in the port of [[Corrientes]]. Immediately general Robles' troops took the city with 3,000 men, and a cavalry force of 800 arrived the same day. Leaving a force of 1,500 men in the city, Robles advanced southwards along the eastern bank.<ref name=Hooker/>{{rp|30}}
Along with Robles' troops, a force of 12,000 soldiers under colonel [[Antonio de la Cruz Estigarribia]] crossed the Argentine border south of Encarnación in May 1865, driving for Rio Grande do Sul. They traveled down the [[Uruguay River]] and took the town of [[São Borja]] on 12 June. [[Uruguaiana]], to the south, was taken on 6 August with little resistance.
By invading Corrientes, Solano López had hoped to gain the support of the powerful Argentine ''[[caudillo]]'' [[Justo José de Urquiza]], governor of the provinces of Corrientes and Entre Ríos, who was known to be the chief federalist hostile to Mitre and the central government in Buenos Aires.{{sfn|Scheina|2003|p=319}} However, Urquiza gave his full support to an Argentine offensive.<ref name=Hooker/>{{rp|31}} The forces advanced approximately {{convert|200|km}} south before ultimately ending the offensive in failure.
Following the invasion of the Corrientes Province by Paraguay on 13 April 1865, a great uproar stirred in Buenos Aires as the public learned of Paraguay's declaration of war. President Bartolomé Mitre made a famous speech to the crowds on 4 May 1865:
{{blockquote|...My fellow countrymen, I promise you: in three days we shall be at the barracks. In three weeks, at the frontiers. And in three months in Asunción!{{sfn|Rosa|2008|p=198}}}}
The same day, Argentina declared war on Paraguay;<ref name=Hooker/>{{rp|30–31}} however, on 1 May 1865, Brazil, Argentina, and Uruguay had signed the secret [[Treaty of the Triple Alliance]] in Buenos Aires. They named
[[File:Batalha Naval do Riachuelo Pintura.jpg|thumb|Brazilian steamers ramming Paraguayan ships in the Battle of Riachuelo]]
On 11 June 1865, at the naval [[Battle of Riachuelo]], the Brazilian fleet commanded by admiral [[Francisco Manoel Barroso da Silva]] destroyed the Paraguayan navy and prevented the Paraguayans from permanently occupying Argentine territory. For all practical purposes, this battle decided the outcome of the war in favor of the Triple Alliance; from that point onward, it controlled the waters of the Río de la Plata basin up to the entrance to Paraguay.{{sfn|Scheina|2003|p=320}}
A separate Paraguayan division of 3,200 men that continued towards Uruguay under the command of [[Pedro Duarte (general)|Pedro Duarte]], who was then defeated by Allied troops under Venancio Flores in the bloody [[Battle of Yatay]], on the banks of the Uruguay River, near [[Paso de los Libres]].
{{main|Siege of Uruguaiana}}
While Solano López ordered the retreat of the forces that had occupied Corrientes, the Paraguayan troops that invaded São Borja advanced, taking [[Itaqui]] and Uruguaiana. The situation in Rio Grande do Sul was chaotic, and the local Brazilian military commanders were incapable of mounting effective resistance to the Paraguayans.{{sfn|Doratioto|2003|pp=175–179}}
The [[Manuel Marques de Sousa, Count of Porto Alegre|baron of Porto Alegre]] set out for
===Allied counterattack===
In subsequent months, the Paraguayans were driven out of the cities of Corrientes and [[San Cosme, Corrientes|San Cosme]], the only Argentine territory still in Paraguayan possession.
By the end of 1865, the Triple Alliance was on the offensive. Its armies numbered 42,000 infantry and 15,000 cavalry as they invaded Paraguay in April.<ref name=Hooker/>{{rp|51–52}} The Paraguayans scored small victories against major forces in the [[Battle of Pehuajó|Battle of Corrales]] (also known as battle of Pehuajó or Itati) in the Corrientes Province, but
==== Invasion of Paraguay ====
[[File:Tuyuti1.jpg|thumb|left|Allied troops entrenched in Tuyutí]]On 16 April 1866, the Allied
Solano López, believing that he could deal a fatal blow to the Allies, launched a major offensive with 25,000 men against 35,000 Allied soldiers at the [[Battle of Tuyutí]] on 24 May 1866, one of the bloodiest battles in Latin-American history.{{sfn|Doratioto|2003|p=201}} Despite being very close to victory at Tuyutí, López's plan was shattered by the Allied army's fierce resistance and the decisive action of the Brazilian artillery.{{sfn|Leuchars|2002|pp=120–134}} Both sides sustained heavy losses: more than 12,000 casualties for Paraguay versus 6,000 for the Allies.{{sfn|Cancogni and Boris|1972|pp=138–139}}{{sfn|Leuchars|2002|p=135}}
By 18 July, the Paraguayans had recovered, defeating forces commanded by Mitre and Flores in the [[Battle of Boquerón (1866)|Battle of Sauce and Boquerón]], losing more than 2,000 men against the Allied 6,000 casualties.{{sfn|O'Leary|2011|p=234}} However, Brazilian general Porto Alegre{{sfn|Doratioto|2003|pp=234–235}} won the [[Battle of Curuzú]], putting the Paraguayans in a desperate situation.{{sfn|Cancogni and Boris|1972|pp=149–150}}
On 12 September 1866, after the defeat in the Battle of Curuzú, Solano López invited Mitre and Flores to a [[Conference of Yataytí Corá|conference in Yataytí Corá]], which resulted in a "heated argument" among both leaders.<ref name=Hooker/>{{rp|62}} López had realized that the war was lost and was ready to sign a peace treaty with the Allies.{{sfn|Vasconsellos|1970|p=108}} However, no agreement was reached, since Mitre's conditions for signing the treaty were that every article of the [[Treaty of the Triple Alliance]] was to be carried out, a condition that Solano López refused.{{sfn|Vasconsellos|1970|p=108}} Article 6 of the treaty made truce or peace with López nearly impossible, as it stipulated that the war was to continue until the then government ceased to be, which meant the removal of Solano López.
====Allied setback at Curupayty: their advance comes to a halt====
[[File:Trincheracuruzu.jpg|right|thumb|Paraguayan artillery redoubts at the battle of Curuzú, by [[Cándido López]]]]
After the conference, the Allies marched into Paraguayan territory, reaching the defensive line of Curupayty. Trusting their numerical superiority and the possibility of attacking the flank of the defensive line through the Paraguay River by using the Brazilian ships, the Allies made a frontal assault on the defensive line, supported by the flank fire of the battleships.{{sfn|Leuchars|2002|p=150}} However, the Paraguayans, commanded by general [[José E. Díaz]], stood strong in their positions and set up for a defensive battle, inflicting tremendous damage on the attacking Allied troops, resulting in over 8,000 casualties on the Brazil-Argentine army against no more than 250 losses of the Paraguayans.{{sfn|Kolinski|1965|p=97}} The [[Battle of Curupayty]] resulted in an almost catastrophic defeat for the Allied forces, ending their offensive for ten months, until July 1867.<ref name=Hooker/>{{rp|65}}
The Allied leaders blamed each other for the disastrous failure at Curupayty. General Flores left for Uruguay in September 1866 shortly after the battle and was later murdered there in 1867. Porto Alegre and Tamandaré found common ground in their distaste for the Brazilian commander of the 1st Corps, field marshal [[Polidoro Jordão, Viscount of Santa Teresa|Polidoro Jordão]]. General Jordão was ostracized for supporting Mitre and for being a member of the [[Conservative Party (Brazil)|Conservative Party]], while Porto Alegre and Tamandaré were Progressives.{{sfn|Doratioto|2003|p=247}}
General Porto Alegre also blamed Mitre for the tremendous defeat, saying:
{{blockquote|
Mitre had a harsh opinion of the Brazilians and said that『Porto Alegre and Tamandaré, who are cousins, and cousins even in lack of judgement have made a family pact to monopolize, in practice, the command of war.』He further criticized Porto Alegre: "It is impossible to imagine a greater military nullity than this general, to which it can be added Tamandaré's dominating bad influence over him and the negative spirit of both in relation to the allies, owning to passions and petty interests."{{sfn|Doratioto|2003|p=247}}
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{{Main|Fortress of Humaitá}}
[[File:Luís Alves de Lima e Silva.jpg|thumb|[[Luís Alves de Lima e Silva]], the Duke of Caxias, Marshal and Supreme Commander of the [[Imperial Brazilian Army]].]]
The Brazilian government decided to create a unified command over Brazilian forces operating in Paraguay
The Marquess of Caxias assumed command on 19 November.{{sfn|Doratioto|2003|p=276}} He aimed to end the never-ending squabbling among the allied commanders and to increase his autonomy from the Brazilian government.{{sfn|Doratioto|2003|p=278}} With the departure of
====The advance resumes: fall of Humaitá====
{{main|Siege of Humaitá}}
As the Brazilian army was ready for combat, Caxias sought to encircle Humaitá and force its capitulation by siege. To aid the war effort, Caxias used [[observation balloon]]s to gather information of the enemy lines.{{sfn|Doratioto|2003|p=295}} With the 3rd Corps ready for combat, the Allied army started its flanking march around Humaitá on 22 July.{{sfn|Doratioto|2003|p=295}} The march to outflank the left-wing of the Paraguayan fortifications constituted the basis of Caxias' tactics. He wanted to bypass the Paraguayan strongholds, cut the connections between Asunción and Humaitá and finally encircle the Paraguayans. The 2nd Corps was stationed in Tuyutí, while the 1st corps and the newly created 3rd Corps were used by Caxias to encircle Humaitá.{{sfn|Doratioto|2003|p=297}} President Mitre returned from Argentina and re-assumed overall command on 1 August.{{sfn|Doratioto|2003|p=298}} With the capture on 2 November by Brazilians troops of the Paraguayan position of Tahí, at the shores of the river, Humaitá would become isolated from the rest of the country by land.<ref>Baron of Jaceguay, "A Guerra do Paraguay", op. cit., p.134. Emilio Jourdan, cied by Augusto Tasso Fragoso, op. cit., vol. III, pp. 253, 257–258.</ref>{{efn|Mitre systematized the exchange of correspondence with Caxias, in the previous month, about the Allied advance, in a document entitled ''Memoria Militar'', in which included his military plans and the planning of attack of Humaitá.<ref>Enrique I. Rottjer, op. cit., p. 199.</ref>}}[[File:Marketplace in Lambare.jpg|thumb|Marketplace in [[Lambaré]] after its captured by the allies]]
[[File:Passagem de Humaitá.jpg|thumb|Brazilian naval [[passage of Humaitá]]]]
The combined Brazilian–Argentine–Uruguayan army continued advancing north through hostile territory to surround Humaitá. The Allied force advanced to San Solano on the 29th and Tayi on 2 November, isolating Humaitá from Asunción.<ref>Baron of Jaceguay, "A Guerra do Paraguay", op. cit., in baron of Jaceguay and Carlos Vidal de Oliveira, ''Quatro séculos de atividade marítima: Portugal e Brasil'', Rio de Janeiro, Imprensa Nacional, 1900, pp. 166, 188; Romeu Beltrão, ''O vanguardeiro de Itororó'', Santa Maria, ''RS'', Câmara Municipal de Vereadores, pp. 121–122.</ref> Before dawn on 3 November, Solano López reacted by ordering the attack on the rearguard of the allies in the [[Second Battle of Tuyutí]].<ref name=Hooker/>{{rp|73}}
The Paraguayans, commanded by
By 1867, Paraguay had lost 60,000 men to battle casualties, injuries, or disease. Due to the growing manpower shortage, López conscripted another 60,000 soldiers from slaves and children. Women were entrusted with all support functions alongside the soldiers. Many Paraguayan soldiers went into battle without shoes or uniforms. López enforced the strictest discipline, executing even his two brothers and two brothers-in-law for alleged defeatism.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://countrystudies.us/paraguay/11.htm|title=Paraguay – The War of the Triple Alliance|website=countrystudies.us}}</ref>
By December 1867, there were 45,791 Brazilians, 6,000 Argentines and 500 Uruguayans at the front. After the death of Argentine
On 19 February, Brazilian ironclads successfully made a passage up the Paraguay River under heavy fire, gaining full control of the river and isolating Humaitá from resupply by water.{{sfn|Doratioto|2003|pp=321–322}} Humaitá fell on 25 July 1868, after a long [[Siege of Humaitá|siege]].<ref name=Hooker/>{{rp|86}}
López with the bulk of his army escaped from the siege of Humaitá. Before doing so he tried a daring manouevre: to capture on or more allied ironclads by [[human wave]] boarding tactics.
{{Main|Assault on the battleships Cabral and Lima Barros}}The assault on the warships ''[[Brazilian ironclad Lima Barros|Lima Barros]]'' and ''[[Brazilian ironclad Cabral|Cabral]]'' was a naval action that took place in the early hours of 2 March 1868, when Paraguayan canoes, joined two by two, disguised with branches and manned by 50 soldiers each, approached the ironclads ''Lima Barros'' and ''Cabral''. The Imperial Fleet, which had already achieved the [[Passage of Humaitá]], was anchored in the Paraguay river, before the Taji stronghold near Humaitá.
Taking advantage of the dense darkness of the night and the hyacinths that descended on the current, a squadron of canoes covered by branches and foliage and tied two by two, crewed by 1,500 Paraguayans armed with machetes, hatchets and approaching swords, went to approach ''Cabral'' and ''Lima Barros''. The fighting continued until dawn when the warships ''Brasil'', ''[[Brazilian ironclad Herval|Herval]]'', ''Mariz e Barros'' and ''Silvado'' approached and shot the Paraguayans, who gave up the attack, losing 400 men and 14 canoes.<ref>Donato, H. (1996). ''Dicionário das batalhas brasileiras''. São Paulo: Instituição Brasileira de Difusão Cultural.</ref>
====Fall of Asunción====
''En route'' to Asunción, the Allied army went {{convert|200|km}} north to Palmas, stopping at the [[Piquissiri]] River. There Solano López had concentrated 12,000 Paraguayans in a fortified line that exploited the terrain and supported the forts of Angostura and Itá-Ibaté.
Resigned to frontal combat, Caxias ordered the so-called [[Piquissiri maneuver]]. While a squadron attacked Angostura, Caxias made the army cross to the west side of the river. He ordered the construction of a road in the swamps of the [[Gran Chaco]] along which the troops advanced to the northeast. At [[Villeta]] the army crossed the river again, between Asunción and
Asunción was occupied on 1 January 1869, by Brazilian general João de Souza da Fonseca Costa, father of the future marshal [[Hermes da Fonseca]]. On 5 January, Caxias entered the city with the rest of the army.<ref name="Hooker" />{{rp|99}} Most of Caxias army settled in Asunción, where also 4,000 Argentine and 200 Uruguayan troops soon arrived together with about 800 soldiers and officers of the [[Paraguayan Legion]]. By this time, Caxias was ill and tired. On 17 January, he fainted during a mass; he relinquished his command the next day, and the day after that left for Montevideo.<ref name="books.google.lv">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Fa50BQAAQBAJ&q=paraguayan+legion&pg=PT67|title=Paraguay and the Triple Alliance: The Postwar Decade, 1869–1878|first=Harris Gaylord|last=Warren|year=2014|publisher=University of Texas Press|via=Google Books|isbn=9781477306994}}</ref>
Very soon the city hosted about 30,000 Allied soldiers; for the next few months these looted almost every building, including diplomatic missions of European nations.<ref name="books.google.lv"/>
====Provisional government====
[[File:Conde d Eu visconde do rio branco 1870.png|thumb|250px|The [[Gaston, Count of Eu|Count of Eu]] with the [[Viscount of Rio Branco]] among Brazilian officers. The Viscount of Rio Branco represented the Triple Alliance in forming the provisional government of Paraguay.]]
With Solano López on the run, the country lacked a government. Pedro II sent his Foreign minister [[José Paranhos]] to Asunción where he arrived on 20 February 1869 and began consultations with the local politicians. Paranhos had to create a provisional government that could sign a peace accord and recognize the border claimed by Brazil between the two nations.{{sfn|Doratioto|2003|p=420}} According to historian Francisco Doratioto, Paranhos, "the then-greatest Brazilian specialist on Platine affairs", had a "decisive" role in the installation of the Paraguayan provisional government.{{sfn|Doratioto|2003|p=426}}
With Paraguay devastated, the power vacuum resulting from Solano López's overthrow was quickly filled by emerging domestic factions which Paranhos had to accommodate. On 31 March, a petition was signed by 335 leading citizens asking Allies for a Provisional government. This was followed by negotiations between the Allied countries, which put aside some of the more controversial points of the [[Treaty of the Triple Alliance]]; on 11 June, agreement was reached with Paraguayan opposition figures that a three-man Provisional government would be established. On 22 July, a National Assembly met in the National Theatre and elected ''Junta Nacional'' of 21 men which then selected a five-man committee to select three men for the Provisional government. They selected [[Carlos Loizaga]], [[Juan Francisco Decoud]], and [[José Díaz de Bedoya]]. Decoud, being pro-Argentine, was unacceptable to Paranhos, who had him replaced with [[Cirilo Antonio Rivarola]]. The government was finally installed on 15 August
The Provisional Government did not last. In May 1870, José Díaz de Bedoya resigned; on 31 August 1870, so did Carlos Loizaga. The remaining member, Antonio Rivarola, was then immediately relieved of his duties by the National Assembly, which established a provisional Presidency, to which it elected [[Facundo Machaín]], who assumed his post that same day. However, the next day, 1 September, he was overthrown in a ''coup'' that restored Rivarola to power.
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===Allied losses===
As was common before [[antibiotics]] were developed, disease caused more deaths than war wounds. Bad food and poor sanitation contributed to disease among troops and civilians. Among the Brazilians, two-thirds of the dead died either in a hospital or on the march. At the beginning of the conflict, most Brazilian soldiers came from the north and northeast regions;{{citation needed|date=October 2021}} the change from a hot to a colder climate, combined with restricted food rations, may have weakened their resistance. Entire battalions of Brazilians were recorded as dying after drinking water from rivers. Therefore, some historians believe [[cholera]], transmitted in the water, was a leading cause of death during the war.{{citation needed|date=July 2013}}
==Gender and ethnic aspects==
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===Afro-Brazilians===
[[File:Racist cartoon in Paraguayan military newspaper. Allied commanders do not know where to attack.png|thumb|left|Racist cartoon in Paraguayan military newspaper.]]
The Brazilian government allowed the creation of black-only units or "''zuavos''" in the military at the outset of the war, following the proposal of Afro-Brazilian Quirino Antônio do Espírito Santo, a veteran of the [[War of Independence of Brazil|Brazilian War of Independence]].{{Sfn|Kraay|2004|p=66}} Over the course of the war, the ''zuavos'' became an increasingly attractive option for many enslaved Afro-Brazilian men, especially given the z''uavos''’ negative opinion toward slavery.{{Sfn|Kraay|2004|p=72}} Once the ''zuavos'' had enlisted or forcibly recruited them, it became difficult for their masters to regain possession of them, since the government was desperate for soldiers.{{Sfn|Kraay|2004|p=72}} By 1867, black-only units were no longer permitted, with the entire military being integrated just as it had been prior to the war. The overarching rationale behind this was that the "country needed recruits for its existing battalions, not more independently organized companies."{{Sfn|Kraay|2004|p=75}} This did not mean the end of black soldiers in the Brazilian military. On the contrary, "impoverished ''gente de cor'' constituted the greater part of the
Afro-Brazilian women played a key role in sustaining the Brazilian military as "''vivandeiras''." ''Vivandeiras'' were poor women who traveled with the soldiers to
==Territorial changes and treaties==
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====Gran Chaco====
The [[Gran Chaco]] is an area lying to the west of the River Paraguay. Before the war it was "an enormous plain covered by [[swamp]]s, [[chaparral]] and [[thorns, spines and prickles|thorn]] forests ... home to many groups of feared Indians, including the [[Guaycuru peoples|Guaicurú]], [[Toba people|Toba]] and [[Mocoví]]."{{sfn|Whigham|2002|p=109}} There had long been overlapping claims to all or parts of this area by the Argentine Confederation, Bolivia and Paraguay. With some exceptions, these were paper claims, because none of those countries was in effective occupation of the area: essentially, they were claims to be the true successor to the Spanish Empire, in an area never effectively occupied by Spain itself, and wherein Spain had no particular motive for prescribing internal boundaries.
The exceptions were as follows. First, to defend itself against Indian incursions, both in colonial times and after, the authorities in Asunción had established some border fortlets on the west bank of the river Paraguay—a coastal strip within the Chaco. By the same treaty of 19 July 1852, between Paraguay and the Argentine Confederation, an undefined area in the Chaco north of the [[Bermejo River]] was implicitly conceded to belong to Paraguay. As already stated, the Argentine Congress refused to ratify this treaty; and it was protested by the government of Bolivia as inimical to its own claims. The second exception was that in 1854, the government of [[Carlos Antonio López]] established a colony of French immigrants on the right bank of the River Paraguay at Nueva Burdeos; when it failed, it was renamed [[Villa Occidental]].{{sfn|Whigham|2002|pp=109–113}}
After 1852, and more especially after the [[State of Buenos Aires]] rejoined the Argentine Confederation, Argentina's claim to the Chaco hardened; it claimed territory all the way up to the border with Bolivia. By Article XVI of the Treaty of the Triple Alliance Argentina was to receive this territory in full. However, the Brazilian government disliked what its representative in Buenos Aires had negotiated in this respect
The post-war border between Paraguay and Argentina was resolved through long negotiations, completed 3 February 1876, by signing the [[Machaín-Irigoyen Treaty]]. This treaty granted Argentina roughly one third of the area it had originally desired. Argentina became the strongest of the [[Río de la Plata|River Plate]] countries. When the two parties could not reach consensus on the fate of the ''Chaco Boreal'' area between the [[Río Verde (Paraguay)|Río Verde]] and the main branch of [[Río Pilcomayo]], the President of the United States, [[Rutherford B. Hayes]], was asked to arbitrate. His award was in Paraguay's favor. The Paraguayan [[Presidente Hayes Department]] is named in his honor.
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During the wartime sacking of Asunción, Brazilian soldiers carried off war trophies. Among the spoils taken was a large caliber gun called ''Cristiano'', named because it was cast from church bells of [[Asunción]] melted down for the war.
In Brazil the war exposed the fragility of the Empire
As in other countries, "wartime recruitment of slaves in the Americas rarely implied a complete rejection of slavery and usually acknowledged masters' rights over their property."<ref name="kraay"/> Brazil compensated owners who freed slaves for the purpose of fighting in the war, on the condition that the freedmen immediately enlist. It also impressed slaves from owners when needing manpower, and paid compensation. In areas near the conflict, slaves took advantage of wartime conditions to escape, and some fugitive slaves volunteered for the army. Together these effects undermined the institution of slavery. But, the military also upheld owners' property rights, as it returned at least 36 fugitive slaves to owners who could satisfy its requirement for legal proof. Significantly, slavery was not officially ended until the 1880s.<ref name="kraay">{{cite journal |last=Kraay |first=Hendrik |title='The Shelter of the Uniform': The Brazilian Army and Runaway Slaves, 1800–1888 |journal=[[Journal of Social History]] |volume=29 |issue=3 |year=1996 |pages=637–657 |jstor=3788949 |doi=10.1353/jsh/29.3.637}}</ref>
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Following the war, Argentina faced many federalist revolts against the national government. Economically it benefited from having sold supplies to the Brazilian army, but the war overall decreased the national treasure. The national action contributed to the consolidation of the centralized government after revolutions were put down, and the growth in influence of Army leadership.
It has been argued the conflict played a key role in the consolidation of Argentina as a [[nation-state]].<ref>
By the account of historian [[Mateo Martinic]] the war put a temporary hold on Argentine plans to challenge the [[Chilean colonization of the Strait of Magellan|Chilean occupation of the Strait of Magellan]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Martinic |first1=Mateo |author-link=Mateo Martinic |date=1977 |title=Historia del Estrecho de Magallanes |language=es |url=http://www.memoriachilena.cl/602/w3-article-10441.html |location=Santiago |publisher=Andrés Bello |pages=143–145 }}</ref>
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==Modern interpretations of the war==
{{main|Historiography of the Paraguayan War}}
Interpretation of the causes of the war and its aftermath has been a controversial topic in the histories of participating countries, especially in Paraguay. There it has been considered either a fearless struggle for the rights of a smaller nation against the aggression of more powerful neighbors, or a foolish attempt to fight an unwinnable war that almost destroyed the nation.
Several [[Historical revisionism|revisionist]] historians consider the mass extermination of the Paraguayan people during the war to be a case of [[genocide]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.com/mundo/noticias-america-latina-51678880|language=es|accessdate=13 January 2024|title=150 años de la Guerra de la Triple Alianza: cómo fue el conflicto bélico que más víctimas causó en la historia de América Latina|first=Veronica|last=Smink|publisher=[[BBC Mundo]]|date=1 March 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|url=https://intersticios.es/article/view/8678/6256|language=es|accessdate=13 January 2024|title=Deconstruyendo el pasado: de la guerra al genocidio en Paraguay|first=Carolina|last=Amieva|year=2011|volume=5|issue=2|journal=Intersticios: Revista sociológica de pensamiento crítico|issn=1887-3898|publisher=[[Universidad Católica de Valencia San Vicente Mártir]]|location=Valencia}}</ref> In 2022, the [[Mercosur Parliament]] formed the Sub-Commission for Truth and Justice on the War of the Triple Alliance, within its Human Rights Commission, to investigate the potential crimes (including genocide) committed during the war and then arrive at a "consensual truth" on the matter within the parliament.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.parlamentomercosur.org/innovaportal/v/20393/1/secretaria/subcomision-de-verdad-y-justicia-analiza-en-audiencia-publica-la-guerra-de-la-triple-alianza.html|title=Subcomisión de Verdad y Justicia analiza en Audiencia Pública la Guerra de la Triple Alianza|date=3 June 2022|accessdate=13 January 2024|language=es|publisher=[[Mercosur Parliament]]}}</ref>
In December 1975, after presidents [[Ernesto Geisel]] and [[Alfredo Stroessner]] signed a treaty of friendship and co-operation<ref name="treaty">{{cite web|url=http://treaties.un.org/doc/Publication/UNTS/Volume%201242/volume-1242-I-20193-English.pdf|title=Treaty of friendship and co-operation 4 December 1975|access-date=10 May 2013}}</ref> in Asunción, the Brazilian government returned some of its spoils of war to Paraguay, but has kept others. In April 2013 Paraguay renewed demands for the return of the "Christian" cannon. Brazil has had this on display at the former military garrison, now used as the National History Museum, and says that it is part of its history as well.<ref name="cristao">
===Theories about British influence on the outbreak of war===
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A popular belief among Paraguayans and Argentine [[Historical revisionism|revisionists]] since the 1960s contends that the outbreak of war was due to the machinations of the [[British government]], a theory which historians have noted has little to no basis in historical evidence. In Brazil, some have claimed that the [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland|United Kingdom]] was the primary source of financing for the Triple Alliance during the war, with British aid being given in order to advance Britain's economic interests in the region; something which historians have noted that has little evidence to support it as well; noting that from 1863 to 1865 Brazil and Great Britain were engaged in a [[Christie Question|diplomatic incident]], and five months after the outbreak of the Paraguayan war the two countries temporarily broke off relations. They have also noted that in 1864, a British diplomat wrote a letter to Solano López asking him to avoid initiating hostilities in the region, and there remains no evidence that Britain "forced" the allies to attack Paraguay.<ref name="UKrole">Kraay, Hendrik; Whigham, Thomas L. (2004). ''"I die with my country:" Perspectives on the Paraguayan War, 1864–1870''. Dexter, Michigan: Thomson-Shore. {{ISBN|978-0-8032-2762-0}}, p. 16 Quote: "During the 1960s, revisionists influenced by both left-wing dependency theory and, paradoxically, an older, right-wing nationalism (especially in Argentina) focused on Britain's role in the region. They saw the war as a plot hatched in London to open up a supposedly wealthy Paraguay to the international economy. With more enthusiasm than evidence revisionists presented the loans contracted in London by Argentina, Uruguay, and Brazil as proof of the insidious role of foreign capital. Little evidence for these allegations about Britain's role has emerged, and the one serious study to analyze this question has found nothing in the documentary base to confirm the revisionist claim."</ref>
Some left-wing historians of the 1960s and 1970s (most notably [[Eric Hobsbawm]] in his work "[[The Age of Capital: 1848–1875]]") claimed that the Paraguayan War broke out as a result of British influence on the continent,<ref>Galeano, Eduardo. "Open Veins of Latin America: Five Centuries of the Pillage of a Continent," ''Monthly Review Press'', 1997</ref><ref>Chiavenatto,Julio José. ''Genocídio Americano: A Guerra do Paraguai,'' Editora Brasiliense, SP. Brasil, 1979</ref> claiming that as Britain needed a new source of cotton during the [[American Civil War]] (as the [[Union blockade|blockaded]] [[American South]] had been their main cotton supplier before the war).<ref>
A document which has been used to support this claim is a letter from [[Edward Thornton, 2nd Count of Cacilhas|Edward Thornton]] (Minister of Great Britain in the Plate Basin) to [[British Prime Minister]] [[Lord John Russell]], which contained the following statement:
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{{blockquote|... Worst than [[Abyssinia]], and López (is) worst than King [[Tewodros II]]. The extinction [of Paraguay] as a nation will be benefit, to all the world.{{sfn|Washburn|1871|p=544}}{{sfn|Pomer|2008|p=56}}|author=|title=|source=}}
However, historian E.N. Tate noted that:
{{blockquote|Whatever his dislike of Paraguay, Thornton appears to have had no wish that its quarrels with Argentina and Brazil, rapidly worsening at the time of his visit to Asunción, should develop into war. His influence in Buenos Aires seems to have been used consistently during the next few months in the interests of peace.{{sfn|Tate|1979|p=59}}}}
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| jstor = 2503485
| s2cid = 157519561
| doi-access = free
}}
* {{cite book
| last1 = Amerlan
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* {{cite journal|last1=Davis|first1=William H.|year=1977|title=Question 1/77|journal=Warship International|volume=XIV|issue=2|pages=161–172|issn=0043-0374}}
* {{cite book|last=Doratioto|first=Francisco|title=Maldita guerra: nova história da Guerra do Paraguai|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OfQca2PPOgMC|access-date=19 June 2015|date=2003|publisher=Companhia das Letras|isbn=978-85-359-0224-2}}
*{{cite book
|last=Doratioto
|first=Francisco
|year=2022
|title=Maldita Guerra: Nova história da Guerra do Paraguai
|publisher=Companhia das Letras
|location=São Paulo
|isbn=978-65-5921-286-6
|language=pt
|edition=3
}}
*{{cite journal|last1=Ehlers|first1=Hartmut|year=2004 |title=The Paraguayan Navy: Past and Present|journal=Warship International|volume=XLI|issue=1|pages=79–97 |issn=0043-0374}}
*{{cite journal |last1=Ehlers |first1=Hartmut |title=The Paraguayan Navy: Past and Present, Part II |journal=Warship International|date=2004|volume=XLI|issue=2|pages=173–206 |issn=0043-0374}}
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| doi = 10.2307/207840
| jstor = 207840
| bibcode = 1919GeoRv...8..259H
}}
* {{cite book
| last1 = Herrera
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| title = Independence or Death! The story of the Paraguayan War
| publisher = University of Florida Press
| location = Gainesville
* {{cite book
| last1 = Kraay
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* {{cite book
| last1 = Mellid
|
| year = 1959
| language = es
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* {{cite book
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| author-link = Joaquim Nabuco
| year = 1901
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* {{cite book
| last1 = O'Leary
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| year = 2011
| language = es
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* {{cite book
| last1 = Pomer
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| year = 2008
| language = es
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* {{cite book
| last1 = Rosa
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| year = 2008
| language = es
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* {{cite book
| last1 = Salles
|
| year = 2003
| language = pt
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| title = The War in Paraguay: With a historical sketch of the country and its people and notes upon the military engineering of the war.
| publisher = Longmans and Green Co.
| location = London
}}
* {{cite book
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| title = The history of Paraguay : with notes of personal observations, and reminiscences of diplomacy under difficulties (2 vols).
| publisher = University of Nebraska Press
| location = Lincoln
}}
*{{cite book |last=Weisiger |first=Alex |date=2013 |title=Logics of War: Explanations for Limited and Unlimited Conflicts |url=https://archive.org/details/logicsofwarexpla00weis |url-access=registration |page=[https://archive.org/details/logicsofwarexpla00weis/page/97 97] |quote=Paraguay Brazil ultimatum. |location=Ithaca, New York |publisher= Cornell University Press |isbn=
*{{cite journal
|last=Whigham
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| volume = 1
| publisher = University of Nebraska Press
| location = Lincoln
| isbn = 978-0-8032-4786-4
}}
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[[Category:Paraguayan War| ]]
[[Category:Military history of South America]]
[[Category:
[[Category:Conflicts in 1870]]
[[Category:Military history of Latin America]]
[[Category:Wars involving Argentina]]
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