Circle of Willis
Well-known member
19th-century Paraguay was a strange place. Ultimately their record of erratic leadership caught up with them and their mid-century dictator Francisco Solano López charged into a war with Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay over his ally in the latter Guay losing a civil war to the Brazilian-backed faction. Astonishingly this decision ended poorly with Paraguay being totally overrun, losing a good deal of land and being saved from losing even more only by the arbitration of US President Rutherford Hayes (for which they've named a department after him), and also losing up to 69% of its population, including 90% of its men. López himself died in one of the war's final battles, having fought literally to the last man (and woman, and child). Reportedly their losses were so severe that the Catholic Church temporarily allowed polygamy to repopulate the place.
However, on the outset the war didn't seem as suicidal as it turned out to be for Paraguay. Apparently they started with a bigger army than the Triple Alliance had combined, although it was hobbled by poor logistics & equipment as well as over-centralization of command around the figure of Solano López. As well Uruguay had just gotten out of a civil war (the one where the side López backed lost) and Argentina had been in a state of intermittent civil conflict since 1814. So, what if Paraguay had managed to beat the odds (the earlier the better it would seem, before their big standing army got worn down by attrition while the Triple Alliance mobilized their far greater numbers) and emerged victorious over its enemies?
However, on the outset the war didn't seem as suicidal as it turned out to be for Paraguay. Apparently they started with a bigger army than the Triple Alliance had combined, although it was hobbled by poor logistics & equipment as well as over-centralization of command around the figure of Solano López. As well Uruguay had just gotten out of a civil war (the one where the side López backed lost) and Argentina had been in a state of intermittent civil conflict since 1814. So, what if Paraguay had managed to beat the odds (the earlier the better it would seem, before their big standing army got worn down by attrition while the Triple Alliance mobilized their far greater numbers) and emerged victorious over its enemies?