186 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH OF DOM PEDRO II. 



gentine Eepublic in order to iuvade a secoud Brazilian province, Rio 

 Grand de Sud, and, not having obtained permission, did so by force, 

 commencing hostilities by the surprise and seizure of tuo ships of war. 

 Thus a triple alliance was formed against Lopez, consisting of Brazil 

 and the two republics, Argentine and Uruguayan. General Mitre, 

 President of the Argentine Republic, was made chief in command of 

 the allied armies.* 



Although the tyrant had to struggle against all these powers, the war 

 lasted five years, and was the most sanguinary that had ever been known 

 in South America. In the first place, Lopez possessed, as we have said, 

 formidable resources in the materials for wart he had collected. Then 

 Paraguay, the principal theatre of operations, was admirably protected 

 by numerous lagunes, water-Qourses, forests, and mountain chains, while 

 to these natural barriers were added extensive military constructions. 



Brazil, which was the soul of the alliance, and which alone possessed 

 a squadron, blockaded Paraguay from the commencement of the year 

 1865, while the allied armies assembled upon the territory of the Ar- 

 gentine Republic, in order to pass over the 200 leagues which separated 

 them from the enemy's country. 



In the month of June, 1865, the Brazilian squadron destroyed, in the 

 naval contest of Riachuelo, the squadron of Paraguay, consisting of 

 eight war-steamers, protected by floating batteries of earth. | Three 

 months later the Paraguayan commander of a column of 10,000 men 

 (the same which had invaded the i>roviuce of the Rio Grande) capitu- 

 lated in the city of Uruguayana, in the presence of the Emperor, who 

 had undertaken in person to drive the enemy from this part of the em- 

 pire. 



In April, 1866, the allies passed the Parana, the frontier of the enemy. 

 Several battles, among which should be mentioned that of the 21th of 

 May at Tuyuty, (about 70,000 men were present,) distinguished the 

 first period of the campaign in the enemy's country. The assault under- 

 taken on the 23d of September, from the direction of Curupaity, against 

 the terrible Humayta, (the Sebastopol of America, constructed upon a 

 Tery sharp elbow of the river Paraguay,) failed completely, with great 

 loss to the allied forces. The latter then undertook a siege of the fort- 

 ress, which lasted two years. 



The fall of Humayta (August, 1868) was secured only when the iron- 



* The Brazilian army was commanded by General Osorio, and that of Uruguay by 

 the President, General Flores. 



t He commenced with an army of 80,000 men, in all respects perfectly equipped, and 

 well distributed over the entire region of the war. 



t The battle took place upon the waters of the Parana, near the mouth of the small 

 river Riachuelo ; hence the name of the contest. The Brazilian squadron was also 

 composed of eight war-steamers of wood, the iron-clad vessels being still in course of 

 construction. The victory was for a long time undecided, and there were several very 

 excitiug occurrences, among others the capture and recapture of a Brazilian sloop, the 

 Parnahyba. 



