Robles, Wenceslao (?–1866)

Wenceslao Robles (d. January 1866), Paraguayan general. At the outbreak of the War of the Triple Alliance in 1864, Robles was a ranking army officer stationed at the fortress of Humaitá, in southern Paraguay. Less than a year later, he was chosen by President Francisco Solano López to command a large force sent to invade the neighboring Argentine province of Corrientes. After the surprise capture of the port of Corrientes on 13 April 1865, Robles disembarked with 3,000 men and immediately pushed southward along the east bank of the Paraná. Reinforcements amounting to another 22,000 men reached Robles en route, and permitted him to advance as far as Goya.

Diversionary attacks by the Argentines in late May and the disastrous naval engagement at Riachuelo in June caused Robles to falter, however, and by the end of the year, the Paraguayans had evacuated Corrientes, leaving much destruction behind. Robles had been relieved of command in July. López later had him arrested and charged with dereliction of duty and possible collusion with the enemy. Despite the lack of evidence against him, a military court found Robles guilty, and he was executed at Humaitá.

See alsoWar of the Triple Alliance .

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Charles J. Kolinski, Independence or Death! The Story of the Paraguayan War (1965).

Leandro Aponte Benítez, Hombres … armas … y batallas de la epopeya de los siglos (1971), pp. 168-170.

Additional Bibliography

Whigham, Thomas. The Paraguayan War. Volume 1. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 2002.

                                Thomas L. Whigham