Siege of Curupaiti

Significance

The passage of Curupaití on 15 August 1867 was a Brazilian naval operation aimed at forcing a fleet of battleships past Paraguayan defensive fortifications at the Curupaití fort on the Paraguay River. The operation formed part of the broader Allied effort to reduce Paraguayan river defenses and open the river to sustained naval pressure. A second crossing followed on 13 February 1868, when armored monitors transited to join the vessels that had passed in 1867, collectively forming the squadron tasked with forcing the Passage of Humaitá. The operation thus served as a preparatory step in the Allied campaign to neutralize Paraguay's principal river stronghold at Humaitá, linking the two crossings into a sequential naval strategy aimed at breaking Paraguayan control of the Paraguay River.

Commanders (2)