The Battle of Itapirú took place on April 17, 1866 in the vicinity of the during the

Paraguayan War The Paraguayan War, also known as the War of the Triple Alliance, was a South American war that lasted from 1864 to 1870. It was fought between Paraguay and the Triple Alliance of Argentina, the Empire of Brazil, and Uruguay. It was the deadlies ...

. The battle marked the beginning of the Allied invasion of Paraguay.

The Battle

On April 16, Itapirú was heavily bombed by the Imperial Navy while 10,000 troops from the Imperial Army crossed the

Paraná River The Paraná River ( es, Río Paraná, links=no , pt, Rio Paraná, gn, Ysyry Parana) is a river in south-central South America, running through Brazil, Paraguay, and Argentina for some ."Parana River". Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Br ...

, and the next day, the confrontation with 4,000 Paraguayans took place under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Benítez, resulting in their withdrawal to Itapirú. The battle resulted in about 500 casualties on the Paraguayan side and 337 on the Brazilian side. Faced with the concentration of Brazilian troops that began the invasion of Paraguayan territory,

Francisco Solano López Francisco Solano López Carrillo (24 July 1827 – 1 March 1870) was President of Paraguay from 1862 until his death in 1870. He was the eldest son of Juana Pabla Carrillo and of President Carlos Antonio López, Francisco's predecessor. ...

ordered the fortification abandoned, allowing Brazilian troops to occupy it on April 18.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Itapiru Battles involving Paraguay Battles of the Paraguayan War Battles involving Brazil April 1866 events Conflicts in 1866 History of Ñeembucú Department