Though the climate of Paraguay is subtropical to temperate, the western portion is simiarid and sparcely populated. From what I can gather, though, this north western chunk was won in the bloodiest 20th century war of all of South America- The Chaco War (1932-1935).
This war with neighboring country Bolivia seems to have been in response to Paraguays loss of land in the War of the Triple Aliance (1864-1870). Paraguay lost half it's territory to Brazil and Argentina and seems to have been eager to make a comeback. Bolivia, by the same token, was reeling from its loss of oceanfront property in its own war with Chile in 1883 called the War of the Pacific. Needless to say, both sides had a point to prove.
Though Paraguay was outnumbered two to one in this war, they were, in the end, victorious. This was due to, among other things, its access to the mobility provided by the Paraguay River, the homogeny of the military personnel and its ability to use Guraní as a sort of code talk, and also the centralized production of the carumbeí (Guraní for little turtle) which is a type of grenade.
The ironic part? A major factor in determining the value of war with Bolivia for a simiarid track of 20,000 square miles in the middle of nowhere was the prospect of oil. Guess how much oil is produced in Paraguay today... Zero. I like how Wikapedia puts it "Two Paraguayans and three Bolivians died for every square mile."
Now this area is mainly occupied by Menonites who were invited there before the war began as a way to populate the area as part of Paraguay. They are said to provide 70% of the nations dairy based products out of this unfriendly environment and are known as resourceful, hard working people. There is some dispute as to their ethical treatment of the land in an environmental sence, but I will wait to comment on this until I am more informed.
By the way, this narrative is information compiled from some fairly unreliable sources such as the aforementioned Wikapedia, so don't quote me on this stuff. Please comment if you find some faulty information here as I am learning and forming my own opinions as I go along. Thanks!
By Danny
