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On the morning of January 18, the sun had just risen in the sky, the fog had just cleared over the La Platte, and four light cruisers and six destroyers had sailed to the central channel of the La Platte River. In the La Platte River between Santa Fe and Paraná, the river is more than ten kilometers wide. Originally, there was a bridge connecting the river. But after Chile rejected Brazil's good intentions, the Brazilian army had already blown up the bridge.

When ten warships of the Chilean Navy appeared in the middle of the river, it immediately caused tension among the Brazilian troops on the opposite bank. The Chilean army will attack, and this blow is the consensus of the Brazilian army. Especially after learning about the arrival of the warships of the Chilean Navy, the Brazilian army strengthened its defenses! However, even so, many Brazilian army officers are worried. Although they have an advantage in troops, in terms of equipment, compared with the Chilean army, the gap is still too large. Among other things, the more than 200,000 Brazilian troops defending the perimeter of Paraná had less than 800 artillery pieces, and very few artillery pieces with a caliber of more than 105 mm, less than 200. And their opponents have twice as many cannons. Moreover, now Chile even has a navy, although the caliber of the guns of light cruisers and destroyers is not large, but the naval guns used by the navy are always much more powerful than those used by the army!

"Artillery ready! As soon as the Chilean warship opened fire, the artillery immediately returned fire! "The commander of the Brazilian army, Lieutenant General Aimondo, ordered. He was the supreme commander of the Line of the Río de la Platte. It's just that now he is also feeling a lot of pressure!

"Boom!" The light cruiser 'San Antonio' of the Chilean Navy fired the first shot at the Brazilian army. The Tianshui-class light cruiser had a displacement of 4,500 tons and two twin 155mm guns, six 105 mm rapid-fire guns and eight 88 mm rapid-fire guns. Among light warships, such firepower is already very strong!

After the light cruiser 'San Antonio' opened fire, three other light cruisers and six destroyers also opened fire. The firepower of these four battleships alone. It completely enveloped the defense line of the Brazilian army. Dense shells fell, and clouds of fire and smoke splashed on the positions of the Brazilian army. The fortifications built by the Brazilian army were destroyed one by one under heavy artillery fire!

"Fight back! Counterattack! "Lieutenant General Aimondo of the Brazilian army hurriedly gave the order to counterattack. If this continues, the positions they have painstakingly built will have to be destroyed by the warships of the Chilean Navy.

"Boom! Rumble! Rumble! "Rows of shells fell on the surface of the river, splashing columns of water. But. For the time being, no shells hit the Chilean warship on the river. But the Chilean warships scattered like frightened birds.

However, then the Chilean warship turned its guns and began to suppress the artillery of the Brazilian army! The rapid cruising of the warships on the surface of the river made it possible for the artillery of the Brazilian army to hit the warships of the Chilean Navy. It's very difficult. Even if some shells hit the battleship, the armor on the battleship was enough to withstand the bombardment of small-caliber shells. As long as you don't get hit by the vital point, you can resist it completely. However, the artillery of the Brazilian army, suppressed by the battleships of the Chilean Navy, suffered heavy losses. Less than half an hour after the start of the battle, the artillery of the Brazilian army was completely suppressed by the Chilean navy! The tide of the war is becoming more and more unfavorable for the Brazilian army!

At this time, the town of Urquisa, sixteen kilometers north of Paraná, and Diamante, thirty-seven kilometers south of Paraná, were also under heavy attack. The direction of the main attack of the Chilean army. It was not Paraná, the use of naval warships to storm Paraná was just the place where the main force of the Brazilian army was pinned down and the La Platte River was really forced. It is the town of Urquisa and Diamante.

In both places, the Chilean army amassed thousands of large-caliber artillery pieces and launched a heavy artillery bombardment of the positions of the Brazilian army on the opposite bank. In both places, the Brazilian army deployed only a small number of troops. Under the heavy bombardment of Chilean artillery, the defenders in both places suffered heavy losses!

Nine a.m. Chilean troops began to cross the river. Merchant ships brought by the Tongguò Navy and passenger ships and fishing boats raised by the Chilean Army themselves launched an attack on the other side of the river.

The Brazilian army, which survived the heavy shelling, turned to Paraná for help on the one hand, and desperately fended off the Chilean army on the other. However, in the absence of artillery superiority, their resistance was very weak. The positions on the river bank were almost blown into ruins by heavy artillery fire, and the Brazilian soldiers who held on to them suffered heavy casualties.

At 9:20, a passenger boat was the first to dock, and the hundreds of Chilean soldiers on it jumped off the boat, dripping knee-deep and rushing towards the riverbank.

"Da Da Da!" A platoon of heavy machine gun bullets swept in, knocking down a large number of Chilean soldiers and falling into the river, blood seeping out of their bodies and almost staining the river red. But more Chilean soldiers, rushed to the riverbank!

"Heavy machine gun cover! Mortars, knock out the enemy's heavy machine guns! ”

"Boom!" A shell fell, blowing the heavy machine gun that was killing Chilean soldiers into parts. More and more ships docked, and a large number of Chilean soldiers disembarked from the ships and launched a fierce assault on the positions of the Brazilian army.

At 10 a.m., Diamante's Brazilian positions were the first to be breached, and the two divisions defending it retreated towards Paraná with more than half of the casualties. The Chilean army, on the other hand, seized the dock to provide protection for the troops that landed later.

At half past ten, the Brazilian defenders of the town of Urquisa were also defeated, and a large number of Chilean troops landed successfully and threatened Paraná from the north!

The commander of the Brazilian army, Lieutenant General Aimondo, sent reinforcements as soon as possible, and the rest drove the Chilean army, which had just crossed the river, down the river. However, as they hurried along the coast, they were heavily shelled by the warships of the Chilean Navy, which was almost a massacre for the defenseless infantry. With heavy losses, the Brazilian army had to retract to Paraná and watch as the Chilean army crossed the river in the towns of Diamante and Urquiza!

By the time of the Emperor's reign, the Chilean army of fifteen divisions had all crossed the La Platte River, and the heavy equipment of the divisions had also crossed the river overnight. Although the Brazilian army had the advantage in numbers, by this time the balance of victory had begun to tilt in Chile's favor.

The commander of the Brazilian army, Lieutenant General Aimondo, ordered to defend Paraná while asking for help from home. After receiving the battle report from Lieutenant General Aimondo, Patrick, the Brazilian Minister of War, immediately ordered the other twenty divisions to shrink towards Paraná. It's just that it will take some time, and whether they will be able to arrive before the Chilean army captures Paraná is still a big question!

And Lieutenant General Aimondo, who gave the order to stick to Paraná, also completely buried the lives of more than 200,000 Brazilian troops defending the La Platte River!

On 19 January, the Chilean army launched a fierce assault on Paraná from both north and south, with ten divisions on the northern front and only five divisions on the southern front. The town of Urquiza was only sixteen kilometers from Paraná, and in the afternoon the Chilean army broke through the Brazilian defenses and advanced the front to the periphery of Paraná. Ten divisions of the Chilean army with thousands of large-caliber guns. From the afternoon of 19 January, these guns launched a heavy artillery bombardment of Paraná in conjunction with naval warships on the river.

On 20 January, five divisions moving south also broke through the Brazilian defenses and reached Paraná, flanking from the north and south. Under heavy shelling by the Chilean army, the Brazilian troops holding Paraná suffered heavy losses. At the same time, in order to prevent the escape of the Brazilian army and the rescue of the Brazilian reinforcements, the Chilean army dispatched six divisions to intercept the Brazilian reinforcements from three aspects. The other nine divisions launched a fierce attack on Paraná!

The Brazilian army had only a slight numerical advantage in numbers, but in terms of equipment and firepower, it was at a disadvantage. In particular, the powerful artillery fire of Chile cost the Brazilian defenders dearly!

On 21 January, Chilean troops entered the city and engaged in street fighting with Brazilian troops. As casualties mounted, so did the will of the Brazilian army to resist.

By 24 January, most of Paraná was under the control of the Chilean army, and the Brazilian army had suffered nearly 100,000 casualties during the three days of fierce fighting. With the addition of the troops previously lost, the Brazilian army has lost nearly 150,000 men, and the remaining 100,000 or so are surrounded in a narrow area three kilometers long and less than two kilometers wide. Not only did they have to face the attack of the Chilean army, but they also had to endure heavy shelling all the time, which can be described as dangerous!

By this time, the will of many Brazilians had collapsed, and a large number of deserters appeared in the various units. In order to survive, there were even entire platoons and companies of Brazilian troops who surrendered to the Chilean army.

On the night of 24 January, after the Chilean side promised to guarantee the lives and property of the surrendered officers and soldiers, Lieutenant General Aimondo led the remnants of nearly 100,000 Brazilian troops to surrender. This was the end of the great war between Chile and Brazil in Paraná. In this battle, Brazil lost 20 divisions and 250,000 men. The Chilean side's losses were only between 20,000 and 30,000 people, which can be described as a big victory!

On 25 January, the Chilean army set out from Paraná and began its offensive to the east. Nearly thirty divisions of Brazilian troops are coming from everywhere. However, after learning that the defenders of Paraná had surrendered, these Brazilian troops suddenly stopped their westward advance and retreated backwards!