Battle of Riachuelo

Battle of Riachuelo
	Part of the War of the Triple Alliance
	; The Battle of Riachuelo
Date	June 11 1865
Location	Riachuelo, on the Paraná River
Result	Decisive Brazilian/allied victory
Belligerents
Paraguay	Empire of Brazil
Commanders and leaders
Pedro Inácio Meza	Francisco Manoel Barroso
Strength
9 ships, 7 barges, 67 cannons, 2 congreve batteries	9 ships, 58 cannons
Casualties and losses
three steamers, 7 barges, Unknown personnel	One steamer, 247 personnel

The naval Battle of Riachuelo was a key point in the War of the Triple Alliance. By late 1864, Paraguay had scored a series of victories in the war; on June 11, 1865, however, its naval defeat by Brazil began to turn the tide in favor of the allies.

The Paraguayan fleet was a fraction of the size of Brazil's, even before the battle. It arrived in Humaitá on the morning of June 9. Paraguayan president Francisco Solano López prepared to attack at Riachuelo the ships supporting allied land troops. Nine ships and seven cannon-carrying barges, totaling 45 guns, plus 22 guns and two Congreve rocket batteries from shore troops, attacked the Brazilian squadron, totaling 58 guns. Paraguay planned to attack in the early morning so that the element of surprise would make up for the differential in firepower. An engine problem caused a delay, however, and the fleet reached Riachuelo in daylight.

The Paraguayan commanders drew the Brazilian ships towards the edge of the river, where they could only poorly maneuver, leading the ships onto sandbars. But the initial Paraguayan success mirrored their early success on land; by 1 p.m. the superior Brazilian firepower and armor had won the battle. Three of the eight Paraguayan ships were sunk before the retreat.

The Paraguayan losses are not known. There were 247 Brazilian casualties (though some sources say the number may have reached 750). The Paraguayan attempt to control the Paraná River failed; the loss in Riachuelo was followed by losses on land, and by 1870 Paraguay had suffered a devastating total defeat.

Description of battle

The Paraguayans came down the river with nine steamers and seven "chatas" (barges or "flatties" in the original), while the Brazilians had only nine steamers. However, the Rangel was being towed and was unarmed, so the Paraguayans are normally credited with having only eight ships.

The Paraguayans passed in a line parallel to the Brazilian fleet and continued down the stream. One of the Paraguayan steamers was hit in the boiler and one of the "chatas" was damaged as well. Once out of range, they turned upstream and anchored the chatas, forming a line in a very narrow part of the river. This was intended to trap the Brazilian fleet.

Admiral Barroso noticed the Paraguayan tactic and turned down the stream to go after the Paraguayans. However, the Paraguayans started to fire from the shore into the lead ship, Belmonte. The second ship in the line, Jequitinhonha, inadvertently turned upstream and was followed by the whole fleet, thus leaving Belmonte alone to receive the full firepower of the Paraguayan fleet—it was soon put out of action. Jequitinhonha ran aground after the turn, becaming an easy prey for the Paraguayans.

Admiral Barroso, on board of the steamer Amazonas, trying to avoid chaos and reorganize the Brazilian fleet, decided to lead the fleet down the stream again and fight the Paraguayans in order to prevent their escape, rather than save Amazonas.

Four steamers (Beberibe, Iguatemi, Mearim and Araguari) followed Amazonas. The Paraguayan admiral (Meza) left his position and attacked the Brazilian line, sending three ships after Araguari. Parnaíba remained near Jequitinhonha and was also attacked by three ships that were trying to board it. The Brazilian line was effectively cut in two. Inside Parnaíba a ferocious battle was taking place when the Marquez de Olinda joined the attackers.

Barroso, at this time was heading upstream decided to turn the tide of the battle with a desperate measure. The first ship that faced Amazonas was the Jejuy which was rammed and put out of action. Then he rammed Marquez de Olinda and Salto, and sank a "chata". At this point Paraguari was already out of action. Therefore, the Paraguayans tried to disengage. Beberibe and Araguari pursued the Paraguayans heavily damaging Tacuary and the Pirabebé, but the nightfall prevented the sinking of these ships.

Jequitinhonha had to be put afire by Paraguari and Marquez de Olinda. In the end, the Paraguayans lost four steamers and all of the "chatas", while the Brazilians only lost the Jequitinhonha, coincidentally the ship responsible for the confusion. Later, the Paraguayans recovered one of their ships. Barroso had turned the tables by creatively ramming the enemy ships. The Brazilian navy won a decisive battle. General Robles was effectively stopped in Rio Santa Lúcia. The threat to Argentina was neutralized.

Forces involved

Brazil

Template:Standard table ! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Unit ! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Tonnage ! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Horsepower ! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Firepower ! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Notes |----- | Amazonas | 1050 | 300 | 1 70lb and 5 68lb | Flagship - paddle steamer | |----- | Belmonte | 602 | 120 | 1 70lb, 3 68lb and 4 32lb | | |----- | Jequitinhonha | 647 | 130 | 2 68 lb and 5 32lb | | |----- | Beberibe | 637 | 130 | 1 68 lb and 6 32lb | | |----- | Parnaíba | 602 | 120 | 1 70 Lb, 2 68 lb and 4 32lb | | |----- | Ipiranga | 325 | 70 | 7 30 lb | | |----- | Araguari | 415 | 80 | 2 68 lb and 2 32lb | | |----- | Iguatemi | 406 | 80 | 3 68 lb and 2 32lb | | |----- | Mearim | 415 | 100 | 3 68 lb and 4 32lb | | |}

Paraguay

Template:Standard table ! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Unit ! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Tonnage ! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Horsepower ! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Firepower ! style="text-align: left; background: #aacccc;"|Notes |----- | Tacuary | 620 | 120 | 2 68 lb and 6 32lb | | |----- | Igurey | 650 | 130 | 3 68 lb and 4 32lb | | |----- | Marquez de Olinda | 300 | 80 | 4 18 lb | Captured from Brazil earlier in the war | |----- | Salto Oriental | 300 | 70 | 4 18 lb | | |----- | Paraguary | 730 | 130 | 2 68 lb and 6 32lb | | |----- | Iporá | 300 | 80 | 4 guns | Gun rates unavailable | |----- | Jejuy | 200 | 60 | 2 18 lb | | |----- | Pirabebé | 150 | 60 | 1 18 lb | | |----- | Rangel | | | Unarmed | Towed | |----- | 2 Chatas | 40 | | 1 80 lb each | Barges - Towed | |----- | 5 Chatas | 35 | | 1 68 lb each | Barges - Towed | |----- | Shore troops | | | 22 32lb and two congreve batteries | Shore troops | |}

References

"Riachuelo". The South American Military History Webpage. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |accessmonthday= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help) - by Ulysses Narciso
Fragoso, Augusto Tasso. História da Guerra entre a Tríplice Aliança e o Paraguai, Vol II. Rio de Janeiro: Imprensa do Estado Maior do Exército, 1934.
Schneider, L. A guerra da tríplice Aliança, Tomo I. São Paulo: Edições Cultura, 1945.