The Alto Paraguay War was fought between an Argentine-Bolivian alliance and the allied forces of Chile and Paraguay from 1846 to 1849. The conflict arose over Argentina's claim over the disputed Alto Paraguay and Chaco regions, and the bloody conflict ultimately resulted in an Argentine victory, the annexation of large parts of Paraguay, and the Argentine occupation of Osorno on the Chilean coast.
Following the War of the Confederation, Argentine strongman Juan Manuel de Rosas sought great power status for the Argentine Confederation. He intervened in the Uruguayan Civil War and the Bolivian Civil War, solidifying his alliances with both countries. While, in 1844, Argentina recognized Paraguayan independence, Rosas saw Paraguay as an easy opportunity for territorial expansion. During the summer of 1846, the Argentine Army staged several border incidents to justify a war with Paraguay, although the media reported on the false-flag nature of these operations, causing Rosas to acquire international infamy. On 6 November 1846, he declared war on Paraguay, thinking that Chile - Argentina's ally in the war against the Peru-Bolivian Confederation - would stay out of the conflict.
However, the Conservative Chilean president Manuel Bulnes was also looking to flex his country's military muscles, and he committed his country to the war on Paraguay's side, effectively taking command of the alliance. Argentina's autonomous Corrientes and Entre Rios provinces answered Rosas' call, as did the Bolivian dictator Jose Ballivian. The war initially went poorly for Argentina, as well-supplied Chilean and Paraguayan forces crossed the frontier and began to occupy border regions. Though the Argentines chased the Chilean army back across the border, they were defeated at the Battle of Santiago on 2 December 1846, preventing them from counterattacking into Chile. On 19 January 1847, the Argentine invasion of Paraguay was defeated at the First Battle of Resistencia, forcing the Argentines to retreat from the north as well. An Argentine counterattack at the Second Battle of Resistencia on 7 April 1847 resulted in a costly disaster, even as Correntine forces occupied Encarnacion and Enterrian troops captured Pilar. On 22 July 1847, the Chileans smashed another Argnetine force at the Battle of Curaco, enabling them to occupy much of Patagonia.
By the turn of 1848, it appeared as if Chile and Paraguay were winning the war. However, Argentina employed its vast manpower reserves to turn the tide of the conflict. On 25 February 1848, the Argentines repulsed Luis Melgarejo's invading Chilean army at the Battle of Catamarca, and, on 22 April 1848, Pedro Corrico's Chilean army suffered heavy losses in a crushing defeat at Laboulaye. In May, Bolivia established its own war goal, namely Paraguay's payment of reparations. On 26 May 1848, the combined armies of Bolivia and Argentina prevailed over Melgarejo's remaining 749 soldiers at San Juan. On 16 July 1848, Corrico's remaining 5,992 troops were wiped out at the Second Battle of Laboulaye. With Chile's field armies destroyed, the Argentines ignored the Chilean occupation of Patagonia and instead crossed the Andes, occupying the Chilean capital of Santiago on 20 October 1848. Emboldened by this victory, the Argentines made the acquisition of Chilean Araucania a war goal, and they liberated the rest of occupied Patagonia by the turn of the new year. On 1 January 1849, Chile acceded to Argentina's peace terms: Paraguay lost Alto Paraguay and the Argentine Chaco to Argentina, while Argentina permanently occupied Osorno, which was to be governed as part of Argentina. On the same day as the triumph over Chile, Rosas abolished slavery in Argentina as part of the victory celebrations. At least 46,925 Argentines, 36,100 Chileans, 12,778 Paraguayans, and around 1,000 Bolivians were killed during the conflict.
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