July 15, 1827 - Francisco Solano López

Francisco Solano López Carrillo (24 July 1827 or 1826 – 1 March 1870) was a Paraguayan statesman, military officer and politician who served as President of Paraguay between 1862 and 1870, of which he served mostly during the Paraguayan War (1864–1870). He is the only Paraguayan president to have been killed in action.

At a very young age, he served in the Paraguayan Army fighting against Juan Manuel de Rosas in the sporadic hostilities sustained by Paraguay and Argentina during the Platine Wars. After the downfall of Rosas, he became Ambassador of Paraguay, as Minister Plenipotentiary, in several European countries from 1853 to 1855. At his return to Asunción, he was appointed Vice-President of the Supreme Government of his father Carlos Antonio López, and then assumed the presidency when his father died. He is one of only two Paraguayans to have received the rank of Marshal, along with José Félix Estigarribia.

He is one of the most controversial figures in South American history, particularly because of the Paraguayan War, known in the Plate Basin as "the War of the Triple Alliance" (Spanish: la Guerra de la Triple Alianza). At least 50% of Paraguayans died during the war, numbers which made the country's recovery take decades.

Content sourced from en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francisco Solano López under CC BY-SA 4.0.