Editing Chaco War (section)

== Armies ==
[[File:GAZ-AA in Technical museum Togliatti.JPG|thumb|[[GAZ-AA|Gaz-AA]] trucks, a Soviet version of the [[Ford Model AA]] used by both armies to resupply their troops]]

Bolivian infantry forces were armed with the latest in foreign weapons, including DWM [[MG 11|Maxim M1904 and M1911]] machine guns, Czechoslovak [[ZB vz. 26]] and [[Vickers-Berthier]] light machine guns, Mauser-type Czechoslovak [[Vz. 24]] 7.65&nbsp;mm rifles (''mosquetones'') and [[MP 18|Schmeisser MP-28 II]] 9&nbsp;mm submachine guns.<ref name="SEV"/> At the outset, the Paraguayan troops used a motley collection of small arms, including the German Maxim, the British [[Vickers machine gun|Vickers]], the Browning [[M1917 Browning machine gun|MG38]] water-cooled machine guns, and the Danish [[Madsen machine gun|Madsen]] light machine gun.<ref name="SEV"/> The primary service rifle was the [[Mauser Model 1904#Mauser/Oviedo Model 1927|M1927]] 7.65&nbsp;mm Paraguayan Long Rifle, a Mauser design based on the M1909 Argentine Long Rifle and manufactured by the [[Oviedo]] arsenal in Spain.<ref name="SEV"/><ref name="MOW">Mowbray, Stuart C. and Puleo, Joe, ''Bolt Action Military Rifles of the World'', Andrew Mowbray Publishers, Inc. 1st Ed. {{ISBN|978-1931464390}} (2009), p. 285: After the war, an enterprising arms dealer purchased the remaining M1927 rifles and re-exported them back to Spain, where they were hastily refurbished and reissued to Republican forces during the Spanish Civil War.</ref> The M1927 rifle, which tended to overheat in rapid fire, proved highly unpopular with the Paraguayan soldiers.<ref name="SEV"/><ref name="MOW"/> Some M1927 rifles experienced catastrophic receiver failures, a fault that was later traced to faulty ammunition.<ref name="SEV"/><ref name="MOW"/> After the commencement of hostilities, Paraguay captured sufficient numbers of Bolivian [[Vz. 24 rifle|VZ-24 rifles]] and [[MP.28|MP 28 submachine guns]] (nicknamed ''piripipi'')<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://aquellasarmasdeguerra.wordpress.com/2013/09/20/algunas-armas-utilizadas-en-la-guerra-del-chaco-1932-1935/|title=Algunas armas utilizadas en la guerra del Chaco 1932–1935|date=20 September 2013|work=Aquellas armas de guerra|access-date=2018-07-30|language=es-ES}}</ref> to equip all of its front-line infantry forces.<ref name="SEV"/>

Paraguay had a population only a third as large as that of Bolivia (880,000 vs. 2,150,000). However, Paraguay gained the upper hand because of its innovative style of fighting, centered on rapid marches and flanking encirclements, compared to Bolivia's more conventional strategy. In June 1932, the Paraguayan Army totaled about 4,026 men (355 combat officers, 146 surgeons and non-combatant officers, 200 cadets, 690 NCOs and 2,653 soldiers). Both racially and culturally, the Paraguayan Army was practically homogeneous. Almost all of its soldiers were European-Guaraní ''[[mestizo]]s''. Bolivia's army, however, were mostly descended from the Altiplano's [[Indigenous peoples of the Americas|aboriginals]] of [[Quechua people|Quechua]] or [[Aymara people|Aymará]] (90% of the infantry troops), while the lower-ranking officers were of Spanish or other European ancestry, and the army commander-in-chief, [[Hans Kundt]], was German. Although the Bolivian army had more manpower, it never mobilized more than 60,000 men, and no more than two-thirds of its army were ever on the Chaco. Paraguay, on the other hand, mobilized its entire army.<ref name="Scheina, Robert L 2001">Scheina, Robert L. (2003). "Latin America's Wars Volume II: The Age of the Professional Soldier, 1900–2001." Washington D.C.: Brasseys. {{ISBN|978-1-57488-452-4}}</ref> A British diplomat reported in 1932 that the average Bolivian had never been anywhere close to the Chaco and "had not the slightest expectation of visiting it in the course of his life."<ref name="ReferenceA">Hughes, Matthew "Logistics and the Chaco War: Bolivia versus Paraguay, 1932–1935" pp. 411–437 from ''The Journal of Military History'', Volume 69, Issue # 2 April 2005 p. 428.</ref> Most Bolivians had little interest in fighting, let alone dying, for the Chaco. Furthermore, the typical Bolivian soldier was a [[Quechua people|Quechua]] or [[Aymara people|Aymara]] peasant conscript accustomed to life high in the [[Andes Mountains]] and did not fare well in the low-lying, hot, and humid land of the Chaco.<ref name="ReferenceA" />

Many Paraguayan Army commanders had gained combat experience as volunteers with the French Army in World War I.<ref name="FERN">Fernandez, Col. Carlos José, ''La Guerra del Chaco Vols I–IV'', La Paz: Impresora Oeste (1956)</ref> Its army commander, Colonel (later General and then Marshal) [[José Félix Estigarribia]], soon rose to the top of the combat command.<ref name="FERN"/> Estigarribia capitalized on the native Guarani knowledge of the forest and ability to live off the land to gain valuable intelligence on conducting his military campaigns.<ref name="FERN"/> Estigarribia preferred to bypass Bolivian garrisons, and his subordinates, such as Colonel [[Rafael Franco]], proved adept at infiltrating enemy lines often by encircling Bolivian strongholds (Paraguay held over 21,000 prisoners-of-war when the war ended, Bolivia some 2,500).<ref name="FERN"/> Both sides resorted to entrenched strongpoints and used barbed wire, mortars, machineguns, and mines with interlocking fields of fire.<ref name="FERN"/>

Paraguay's war effort was total. Buses were commandeered to transport troops, wedding rings were donated to buy weapons, and Paraguay had by 1935 widened conscription to include 17-year-olds and policemen. Perhaps the most important advantage enjoyed by Paraguay was that the Paraguayans had a rail network running to the Chaco with five narrow-gauge railroads totaling some {{convert|266|mi|km|order=flip}} running from the ports on the Paraguay River to the Chaco, which allowed the Paraguayan Army to bring men and supplies to the front far more effectively than the Bolivians ever managed.<ref>Hughes, Matthew "Logistics and the Chaco War: Bolivia versus Paraguay, 1932–1935" pp. 411–437 from ''The Journal of Military History'', Volume 69, Issue # 2 April 2005 p. 435.</ref> In 1928, the British legation in La Paz reported to London that it took the Bolivian Army two weeks to march their men and supplies to the Chaco and that Bolivia's "inordinately long lines of communication" would help Paraguay if war broke out.<ref name="ReferenceA"/> Furthermore, the drop in altitude from {{convert|12000|ft|m|order=flip|abbr=on}} in the Andes to {{convert|500|ft|m|order=flip}} in the Chaco imposed further strain on Bolivia's efforts to supply its soldiers in the Chaco.<ref name="ReferenceA"/> Bolivia's railroads did not run to the Chaco, and all Bolivian supplies and soldiers had to travel to the front on badly-maintained dirt roads.<ref name="ReferenceA"/> Hughes wrote that the Bolivian elite was well aware of the logistical problems but that throughout the war, Bolivia's leaders had a "fatalistic" outlook.<ref name="ReferenceA"/> It took for granted that the fact that the Bolivian Army had been trained by a German military mission whilst the Paraguayan Army had been trained by a French military mission, together with the tough nature of their Quechua and Aymara Indian conscripts and the country's will to win and determination, would give them the edge in the war.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>

===Cavalry forces===
Both armies deployed a significant number of cavalry regiments, but they actually served as infantry since it was soon learned that the dry Chaco could not provide enough water and forage for horses. Only a relatively few mounted squadrons carried out reconnaissance missions at the divisional level.<ref>Farcau, p. 185</ref>

===Armor, artillery, and motorized forces===
{{See also|Tank warfare in the Chaco War}}
At the insistence of the Minister of War General [[Hans Kundt]], Bolivia purchased a number of light tanks and tankettes for support of infantry forces. German instructors provided training to the mostly-Bolivian crews, who received eight weeks' training. The [[Vickers 6-Ton|Vickers light tanks]] bought by Bolivia were the Vickers Type A and Type B, commissioned into the Bolivian army in December 1932 and were originally painted in camouflage patterns.

Hampered by the geography and difficult terrain of the Gran Chaco, combined with scarce water sources and inadequate logistical preparations, the Bolivian superiority in vehicles (water-cooled), tanks, and towed artillery did not prove decisive in the end. Thousands of truck and vehicle engines succumbed to the thick Chaco dust, which also jammed the heavy water-cooled machine guns employed by both sides.<ref name="SEV"/> Having relatively few artillery pieces of its own, Paraguay purchased a quantity of [[Brandt Mle 27/31|Stokes-Brandt Model 1931 mortars]]. Highly portable (each of three parts could be carried by a soldier) and accurate, with a range of 3,000 yards, the ''angu'as'' ("corn-mashers" or "mortar" in Guarani) caused many casualties among Bolivian troops.<ref name="SEV"/> In the course of the conflict, Paraguayan factories developed their own type of pyrotechnic-ignater [[Grenade#Fragmentation grenade|hand grenade]], the pineapple shaped  ''carumbe'i'' (Guaraní for "little turtle")<ref>{{Cite web |title=Subfusil Erma Mp-35, Calibre 9mm Parabellum Heinrich Vollmer, Un – ID:5c5356346fa2e |url=https://xdoc.mx/documents/subfusil-erma-mp-35-calibre-9mm-parabellum-heinrich-vollmer-un-5c5356346fa2e |access-date=2022-07-11 |website=xdoc.mx |language=es}}</ref><ref>[http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5n-Cj-wWUYQ/TdVkm1clL9I/AAAAAAAABHo/DOzqMHhSHa4/s1600/GRANADA+DE+MANO+O+CARUMBEI.JPG Bodies of Paraguayan ''carumbe'i'' grenades] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140227024655/http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5n-Cj-wWUYQ/TdVkm1clL9I/AAAAAAAABHo/DOzqMHhSHa4/s1600/GRANADA+DE+MANO+O+CARUMBEI.JPG |date=27 February 2014 }} Museum "Villar Cáceres"</ref> and produced trailers, mortar tubes, artillery grenades, and aerial bombs. The Paraguayan war effort was centralized and led by the state-owned national dockyards, managed by [[José Bozzano]].<ref name="boz">[http://www.histarmar.com.ar/InfHistorica-2/AstCarmeloNDF-3DirectNav.htm ''Astillero Carmelo de MDF SA''] {{in lang|es}}</ref><ref>Cardozo, Efraím (1964). ''Hoy en Nuestra Historia''. Ed. Nizza, p. 15</ref> The Paraguayan Army received its first consignment of ''carumbe'i'' grenades in January 1933.<ref name="gonz">González, Antonio E. (1960). ''[http://www.bvp.org.py/biblio_htm/gonzalez2/001_cap001.pdf Yasíh Rendíh]{{dead link|date=November 2016|bot=InternetArchiveBot|fix-attempted=yes}}''. Editorial el Gráfico, p. 61 {{in lang|es}}</ref>

===Logistics, communications, and intelligence===
The Paraguayans took advantage of their ability to communicate over the radio in Guaraní, a language not spoken by the average Bolivian soldier. Paraguay had little trouble in transporting its army in large barges and gunboats on the Paraguay River to Puerto Casado and from there directly to the front lines by railway, but most Bolivian troops had to come from the western highlands, some 800&nbsp;km away and with little or no logistic support. In fact, it took a Bolivian soldier 14 days to cross the distance, as opposed to a Paraguayan soldier's four.<ref name="Scheina, Robert L 2001" /> The heavy equipment used by the Bolivian Army made things even worse. The poor water supply and the dry climate of the region played a key role during the conflict.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Rout |first=Leslie B. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NRqCBAAAQBAJ&dq=water+supply+chaco+bolivian+troops&pg=PT59 |title=Politics of the Chaco Peace Conference, 1935–1939 |date=2014|publisher=University of Texas Press |isbn=978-1-4773-0294-1 |language=en}}</ref> There were thousands of non-combat casualties from [[dehydration]], mostly by the Bolivian troops.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Quesada |first=Alejandro de |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dTm3CwAAQBAJ&dq=dehydration+chaco+bolivian+troops&pg=PA17 |title=The Chaco War 1932–35: South America's greatest modern conflict |date=2011 |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing |isbn=978-1-84908-417-8 |page=17 |language=en}}</ref>

=== Air and naval assets ===
{{see also|Aerial operations in the Chaco War|Humaitá-class gunboat|ARP Humaitá|ARP Tacuary}}
[[File:ARP-Humaitá.jpg|thumb|One of the key Paraguayan assets was the gunboat ''[[ARP Humaitá|Humaitá]]'', shown here shortly after being launched in Italy, without its main armament.]]
The Chaco War is also important historically as the first instance of large-scale [[aerial warfare]] to take place in the Americas. Both sides used obsolete single-engined [[biplane]] fighter-bombers. The Paraguayans deployed 14 [[Potez 25]]s, and the Bolivians made extensive use of at least 20 [[Curtiss-Wright CW-14 Osprey|CW-14 Osprey]]s. Despite an international [[arms embargo]] imposed by the [[League of Nations]], Bolivia in particular went to great lengths in trying to import a small number of [[Curtiss T-32 Condor II]] twin-engined bombers, disguised as civil transport planes, but they were stopped in [[Peru]] before they could be delivered.<ref>Dan Hagedorn and Antonio L. Sapienza, ''Aircraft of the Chaco War 1928–1935'', Schiffer Publishing Ltd, Atglen PA, 1997, {{ISBN|978-0-7643-0146-9}}</ref>

The valuable aerial reconnaissance produced by Bolivia's superior air force in spotting approaching Paraguayan encirclements of Bolivian forces was largely ignored by Kundt and other Bolivian Army generals, who tended to dismiss such reports as exaggerations by overzealous airmen.<ref name="FERN"/><ref>Thompson, R. W., ''An Echo of Trumpets'', London: George Allen and Unwin (1964), pp. 27–64</ref><ref>Zook, David H., ''The Conduct of the Chaco War'', New Haven, CT: Bookman Publishing (1960)</ref>

Four [[Junkers Ju 52]]s were purchased by Bolivia, which used the German transports mainly for [[medical evacuation]] and air supply. The Ju 52s alone delivered more than 4,400 tons of cargo to the front.<ref>Hagedorn, Dan & Antonio Luis Sapienza. (1996) "Aircraft of the Chaco War, 1928–1935." ''Schiffer Publishing Co.'' Atglen, pp. 96–100. {{ISBN|0764301462}}.</ref>

The Paraguayan Navy played a key role in the conflict by carrying thousands of troops and tons of supplies to the front lines via the [[Paraguay River]], as well as by providing anti-aircraft support to transport ships and port facilities.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://cominganarchy.com/2007/07/08/landlocked-nations-have-navies-part-1-paraguay/ |title=Landlocked navies |access-date=2018-12-11 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071109150156/http://cominganarchy.com/2007/07/08/landlocked-nations-have-navies-part-1-paraguay/ |archive-date=2007-11-09 |url-status=usurped }}</ref>

The [[Humaitá-class gunboat|''Humaitá'' and ''Paraguay'']], two Italian-built gunboats, ferried troops to [[Puerto Casado]]. On 22 December 1932, three Bolivian [[Vickers Vespa]]s attacked the Paraguayan riverine outpost of Bahía Negra, on the Paraguay River, and killed an army colonel, but one of the aircraft was shot down by the gunboat ''[[ARP Tacuary|Tacuary]]''. Both surviving Vespas met another gunboat, the ''[[ARP Humaitá|Humaitá]]'', while they were flying downriver. Paraguayan sources claim that one of them was damaged.<ref>Richard, Nicolás (2008). ''Mala guerra: los indígenas en la Guerra del Chaco, 1932–1935''. CoLibris, pp. 286–288.{{ISBN|978-99953-869-3-1}} {{in lang|es}}</ref><ref>Dávalos, Rodolfo (1974). ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=EdUrAAAAYAAJ&q=%22humait%C3%A1%22%20%22tacuary%22%20%22bah%C3%ADa%20negra%22%20%22bomba%22 Actuación de la marina en la Guerra del Chaco: puntos de vista de un ex-combatiente]''. El Gráfico, p. 69 {{in lang|es}}</ref> Conversely, the Bolivian army reported that the ''Humaitá'' limped back to Asunción seriously damaged.<ref>Villa de la Tapia, Amalia (1974). ''Alas de Bolivia: La Aviación Boliviana durante la Campaña del Chaco''. N/A, p. 181 {{in lang|es}}</ref> The Paraguayan Navy admitted that ''Humaitá'' was struck by machine gun fire from the aircraft but claimed that its armor shield averted damage.<ref>Farina, Bernardo Neri (2011).''José Bozzano y la Guerra del Material''. Colección Protagonistas de la Historia, Editorial El Lector, [http://www.portalguarani.com/obras_autores_detalles.php?id_obras=15255 Online edition], Chapter ''El Viaje Inolvidable''. {{in lang|es}}</ref>

Shortly before 29 March 1933, a Bolivian Osprey was shot down over the Paraguay River,<ref>Hagedorn and Sapienza, p. 21</ref> and on 27 April, a strike force of six Ospreys launched a successful mission from the base at Muñoz against the logistic riverine base and town of Puerto Casado, but the strong diplomatic reaction of Argentina prevented any further strategic attacks on targets along the Paraguay River.<ref>Hagedorn and Sapienza, p. 23</ref> On 26 November 1934, the Brazilian steamer ''Paraguay'' was strafed and mistakenly bombed by Bolivian aircraft while it was sailing the Paraguay River near [[Puerto Mihanovich]]. The Brazilian government sent 11 naval planes to the area, and its navy began to convoy shipping on the river.<ref>[https://www.nytimes.com/1934/11/29/archives/brazil-gets-apology-for-bolivian-attack-consul-at-ladario-voices.html Brazil gets apology for Bolivian attack] ''[[The New York Times]]'', 29 November 1934</ref><ref>[https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=GWk1AAAAIBAJ&sjid=UX4EAAAAIBAJ&pg=6802,1763948&dq=bolivian-airplanes+ship&hl=en Brazilian ship is fired upon] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160604065106/https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=GWk1AAAAIBAJ&sjid=UX4EAAAAIBAJ&pg=6802,1763948&dq=bolivian-airplanes+ship&hl=en |date=4 June 2016 }} [[Associated Press]], 27 November 1934</ref><ref>[https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=gaNAAAAAIBAJ&sjid=kaUMAAAAIBAJ&pg=2601,4005864&dq=bolivia+paraguay-river+boat&hl=en Brazilian boat bombed in Chaco] [[Glasgow Herald]], 27 November 1934</ref>

The Paraguayan navy air service was also very active in the conflict by harassing Bolivian troops deployed along the northern front with [[flying boat]]s. The aircraft were moored at Bahía Negra Naval Air Base, and consisted of two [[Macchi M.18]]s.<ref>Hagedorn & Sapienza, pp. 61–64</ref> The seaplanes carried out the first night air attack in South America when they raided the Bolivian outposts of Vitriones and San Juan,<ref>Scheina, p. 102</ref> on 22 December 1934. The Paraguayan Navy has celebrated ever since the annual "Day of the Naval Air Service" on the anniversary of the action.<ref>''Los Ecos del primer Bombardeo Nocturno en la Guerra del Chaco'', Chaco-Re, No. 28 (julio/septiembre 1989), 12–13. {{in lang|es}}</ref>

The Bolivian Army deployed at least 10 locally-built patrol boats and transport vessels during the conflict,<ref name=navb>[http://www.aviacionboliviana.net/uae/fnb/resena2.htm ''Fuerza Naval Boliviana: Reseña Histórica''] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120330235252/http://www.aviacionboliviana.net/uae/fnb/resena2.htm |date=30 March 2012 }} {{in lang|es}}</ref> mostly to ship military supplies to the northern Chaco through the [[Mamoré River|Mamoré]]-[[Madeira river|Madeira]] system.<ref name=th>Scheina, Robert L. (1987). ''Latin America: a naval history, 1810–1987''. Naval Institute Press, p. 124. {{ISBN|978-0-87021-295-6}}</ref> The transport ships ''Presidente Saavedra'' and ''Presidente Siles'' steamed on the Paraguay River from 1927 to the beginning of the war, when both units were sold to private companies.<ref name=navb/> The 50-ton armed launch ''Tahuamanu'', based in the Mamoré-Madeira fluvial system, was briefly transferred to [[Laguna Cáceres]] to ferry troops downriver from [[Puerto Suárez]] and challenged for eight months the Paraguayan naval presence in Bahía Negra. She was withdrawn to the [[Guaporé River|Itenez River]], in northern Bolivia, after Bolivian aerial reconnaissance revealed the actual strength of the Paraguayan Navy in the area.<ref name=navb/><ref>''Historial de combate de la patrullera V-01 Tahuamanu''. [[Bolivian Naval Force|Fuerza Naval Boliviana]], Comando Naval, La Paz {{in lang|es}}</ref>