# Rojas Silva killed at Fortín Sorpresa (27 February 1927)

URL: https://allhistories.com/paraguay/timeline/1927-rojas-silva-killed-at-fortin-sorpresa
Location: Fortín Sorpresa, Chaco Boreal
Themes: Society

A Paraguayan patrol is captured near the Pilcomayo River and taken to the Bolivian outpost of Fortín Sorpresa, where its commander, Lieutenant Adolfo Rojas Silva, is shot dead in disputed circumstances. He is the first fatality of the Chaco conflict. His death provokes mass protests in Asunción. Rojas Silva was the son of former provisional president Liberato Marcial Rojas.

## Why it matters
The killing marked the first bloodshed in the Chaco dispute and inflamed Paraguayan nationalism against Bolivia.

Ruler at the Time: [Eligio Ayala](https://allhistories.com/paraguay/rulers/eligio-ayala)

## Sources
- [Wikipedia — Chaco War](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chaco_War)
- [Wikipedia — Liberato Marcial Rojas](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberato_Marcial_Rojas)
- [Wikipedia — Post-War & Liberal Era (period overview)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Paraguay)