Passage of Humaitá 1868
Recorded location from Wikidata; battle sites are often approximate.
Key facts
| Date | 19 February 1868 | Wikidata |
|---|---|---|
| Year | 1868 | Wikidata P585 (point in time) |
| Era | 19th century (1800–1913) | derived from year |
| Location | Paraguay | Natural Earth (modern borders) |
| Continent | South America | Natural Earth |
| War / conflict | Paraguayan War | Wikidata P361 |
| Participants | Empire of Brazil, Paraguay | Wikidata P710 |
| Coordinates | -27.0700, -58.5022 | Wikidata P625 |
About the battle
The Passage of Humaitá (Portuguese: Passagem de Humaitá) was an operation of riverine warfare during the Paraguayan War − the most lethal in South American history − in which a force of six Imperial Brazilian Navy armoured vessels was ordered to dash past under the guns of the Paraguayan fortress of Humaitá. Some competent neutral observers had considered that the feat was very nearly impossible.
The purpose of the exercise was to stop the Paraguayans resupplying the fortress by river, and to provide the Empire of Brazil and its Allies with a much-needed propaganda victory. The attempt took place on 19 February 1868 and was successful – the attackers had hit upon the fortress' weakness. It restored the reputation of the Brazilian navy and the Brazilian Empire's financial credit, and caused the Paraguayans to evacuate their capital Asunción. Some authors have considered that it was the turning point or culminating event of the war. The fortress, by then fully surrounded by Allied forces on land or blockaded by water, was captured on 25 July 1868.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Passage of Humaitá (revision 1375193973), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section; formatting and citations removed. No text added.
Nearby battles
- Siege of Humaitá 1867 · 0 km
- Battle of Curupayty 1866 · 9 km
- Battle of Tuyutí 1866 · 16 km
- Battle of Estero Bellaco 1866 · 63 km
- Battle of Riachuelo 1865 · 64 km
- Battle of Lomas Valentinas 1868 · 191 km
Other battles of the Paraguayan War
- Battle of Riachuelo 1865
- Battle of Yatay 1865
- Siege of Uruguaiana 1865
- Battle of Curupayty 1866
- Battle of Estero Bellaco 1866
- Battle of Tuyutí 1866
- Siege of Humaitá 1867
- Battle of Lomas Valentinas 1868
- Battle of Cerro Corá 1870
All 10 battles of the Paraguayan War →
Browse more: battles in Paraguay · South America · 19th century battles