The Pikysyry maneuver was a tactic used by Brazilian marshal

Luís Alves de Lima e Silva, Duke of Caxias Luís Alves de Lima e Silva, Duke of Caxias (25 August 1803 – 7 May 1880), nicknamed "the Peacemaker" and "Iron Duke", was an army officer, politician and monarchist of the Empire of Brazil. Like his father and uncles, Caxias pursued a ...

, during the Paraguayan War to outflank the Paraguayan southern defense line along the stream of Pikysyry consisting of 142 gun platforms along a line 9.1 km long, built by the British engineer Lt. Col. George Thompson. Just to the north were the batteries of Angostura, protecting the

River Paraguay The Paraguay River (Río Paraguay in Spanish, Rio Paraguai in Portuguese, Ysyry Paraguái in Guarani) is a major river in south-central South America, running through Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay and Argentina. It flows about from its headwaters in ...

. Marshal Caxias decided to attack from the Paraguayan rear by constructing a 10.7 km road on the Chaco side of the river starting at Santa Theresa.

Background

On 11 Oct. 1868, 1,122 men under the command of Lt. Col.

Antonio Tiburcio Antonio is a masculine given name of Etruscan origin deriving from the root name Antonius. It is a common name among Romance language-speaking populations as well as the Balkans and Lusophone Africa. It has been among the top 400 most popular male ...

landed near Santa Theresa on the west side of the Paraguay River. An additional 2,925 infantry, 327 pontoniers, 198 artillerymen and 94 cavalry were landed and overall command for building the road was the responsibility of Lt. Col. Rufino Galvao of the Engineers. The road was constructed of palm tree trunks. On 27 Nov. Marshal Caxias moved his headquarters to the Chaco side of the river. By early December, the road had been completed to Santa Helena and 19,000 Allied troops were ready to cross over to San Antonio.

Battle of Pikysyry

After the successful battles of Ytororó and Avay, the allied army was ready to capture the Paraguayan defenses at Pikysyry. A column of 2,700 men under general

João Manuel Mena Barreto João Manuel Mena Barreto was a Brazilian Brigadier throughout the Uruguayan War and Paraguayan War. He was known for his service at the Battle of São Borja, rescuing the civilian populace from the Paraguayan forces before getting killed at the ...

mounted a flanking movement while troops under general

Juan Andrés Gelly y Obes Juan Andrés Gelly y Obes was an Argentine general and politician. He was an advocate for the reform of the Constitution of Argentina in 1860, chief of staff of the Argentine Army during the Paraguayan War as well as a personal friend of Bartol ...

made a simultaneous feint to the front. The December 21 attack was a complete surprise to the Paraguayans.

Aftermath

Some 500 Paraguayans escaped to Angostura and another 200 to Lomas Valentinas.

References

External links

* https://web.archive.org/web/20091027012012/http://br.geocities.com/guerrapara/dezembrada.htm * https://web.archive.org/web/20091027111502/http://www.geocities.com/Pentagon/Camp/2523 * https://web.archive.org/web/20091027043104/http://geocities.com/ulysses_costa/Guerradoparaguai {{coord missing, Paraguay Battles of the Paraguayan War December 1868 events 1868 in Argentina History of Formosa Province