Tate's Possession Arc

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Lore & Background

The war's origins are disputed. The traditional view emphasizes that the policies of Paraguayan president Francisco Solano López used the Uruguayan War as a pretext to gain control of the Platine basin. That caused a response from the regional hegemons, Brazil and Argentina, both of which exercised influence over the much smaller republics of Uruguay and Paraguay. The war has also been attributed to the aftermath of colonialism in South America with border conflicts between the new states, the struggle for power among neighboring nations over the strategic Río de la Plata region, Brazilian and Argentine meddling in internal Uruguayan politics (which had already caused the Platine War), Solano López's efforts to help his allies in Uruguay (which had been defeated by the Brazilians), and his presumed expansionist ambitions. 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 López's predecessor and father, Carlos Antonio López. Since 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 disputes. 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 metropoles.

In Their Own Story

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, which was traditionally supported by the Brazilian Empire; in 1864, against Atanasio Aguirre. This last intervention would lead to the Paraguayan War. On 19 April 1863, Uruguayan general Venancio Flores invaded Uruguay, starting the Cruzada Libertadora with the covert support of Argentina, which supplied the rebels with arms, ammunition and 2,000 men. Flores wanted to overthrow the Blanco Party government of president Bernardo Berro, which was allied with Paraguay. Paraguayan president López sent a note to the Argentine government on 6 September 1863, asking for an explanation, but Buenos Aires denied any involvement in Uruguay. From that moment, mandatory military service was introduced in Paraguay; in February 1864, an additional 64,000 men were drafted into the army. 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 president Atanasio Aguirre rejected the Brazilian demands, presented his own demands, and asked Paraguay for help. To settle the growing crisis, Solano López offered himself as a mediator, but the offer was turned down by Brazil. Brazilian minister Saraiva sent an ultimatum to the Uruguayan government on 4 August 1864: either comply with the Brazilian demands, or the Brazilian army would retaliate. The Paraguayan government sent to Brazil a message stating that Paraguay would consider any occupation of Uruguay as an attempt against the equilibrium of the states of the Platine Region. On 12 October, despite the Paraguayan notes and ultimatums, Brazilian troops under the command of general João Propício Mena Barreto invaded Uruguay. On 11 November the 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. Completing the formalities, she continued on her journey. According to one source, López hesitated whether to break the peace for a whole.

Reader's Guide

The war began in late 1864, as a result of a conflict between Paraguay and Brazil caused by the Uruguayan War. Argentina and Uruguay entered the war against Paraguay in 1865, and it then became known as the "War of the Triple Alliance". After Paraguay was defeated in conventional warfare, it conducted a drawn-out guerrilla resistance that lasted for 14 months until president Francisco Solano López was killed in action by Brazilian forces in the Battle of Cerro Corá on 1 March 1870. Argentine and Brazilian troops occupied Paraguay until 1876. Paraguay was forced to cede disputed territory to Argentina and Brazil. Much of the civilian population died due to battle, hunger, and disease. The territorial disputes became worse when the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata collapsed in the early 1810s, leading to the rise of Argentina, Paraguay, Bolivia, and Uruguay. In the case of Paraguay and Brazil, the problem was to define whether the Apa or Branco rivers should represent their actual boundary, a persistent issue that had confused Spain and Portugal in the late 18th century. A few indigenous tribes populated the region between the two rivers, and these tribes would attack Brazilian and Paraguayan settlements that were local to them.

Did You Know?

• The war lasted from 1864 to 1870, making it the deadliest inter-state war in Latin American history.
• Paraguay conducted a drawn-out guerrilla resistance for 14 months after being defeated in conventional warfare.
• President Francisco Solano López was killed in action by Brazilian forces at the Battle of Cerro Corá on 1 March 1870.
• Argentine and Brazilian troops occupied Paraguay until 1876.
• In February 1864, an additional 64,000 men were drafted into the Paraguayan army after mandatory military service was introduced.