[1] The goal of the imperial fleet was to carry out explorations along the river and its streams, with the aim of capturing or destroying the remaining ships of the Paraguayan armada that had taken refuge.

A total of three expeditions were carried out, which proved to be extremely dangerous for Brazilian ships due to the sinuosity of the river and the blockades created by the Paraguayans.

[3] On November 28, the Brazilian fleet launched a final bombardment of the Paraguayan capital Asunción, destroying one of the turrets of the presidential palace and damaging several other public buildings, including the shipyard.

The Brazilian goal was to capture or destroy the small Paraguayan fleet that had taken refuge, due to such a disproportion of forces in the Manduvirá River.

[3] After quick reconnaissance of the place, it was decided that Bahia, Ivaí and Mearim had to remain there to block the exit, since they were not able to navigate the river, which was considered to be very tortuous.

Faced with this first contact, commander Delfim Carlos de Carvalho ordered his fleet to full force, but it was only at 6 pm that they managed to reach the Paraguayan ships.

On the Paraguayan side, the situation was extremely disadvantageous, as their vessels were not artillery and, even if they were, they were no match for the Brazilian battleship monitors, so they did not offer resistance.

The winding and narrow stream proved to be more difficult to navigate, added to the difficulties created by the Paraguayan sailors who felled numerous large trees on the bed and logs of the sunken ships.

[4] The entire fleet started the return to Asunción and during the maneuvers Pará hit a log with her stern, breaking the rudder and had to be towed by Alagoas.

[5] Changes in the Brazilian forces as made as Squadron Chief Elisiário Antônio dos Santos replaced Joaquim José Inácio, Viscount of Inhaúma.

[6] On the 20th, a detachment under the command of Captain Fonseca Ramos, who was advancing along the river, he was surprised by three lines of Paraguayan snipers, causing the loss of four men and leaving some wounded.

[7] The tracking of the fleet by the Paraguayans was possible due to the multiple curves that the river had, in addition to the ease of perceiving when the ships were close by the sight of the high masts and the smoke from the chimneys.

Faced with the calm, the officers, seeing that the volume of the river continued to decrease, decided to do something unusual: When they were in the sight of the Paraguayans, they would set fire to their own ships before handing them over in the event of an attack.

In this scenario, the Brazilians were at a disadvantage, as the monitors did not have the space to accommodate many troops, in addition to the low rivers that didn't allow safe navigation.

Even so, Gonçalves ordered the fleet to remain there until the arrival of the launches that had returned to the mouth of the Manduvirá in search of provisions and thus, in a possible flood of the river, he could destroy the Paraguayan ships.

Upon learning, 1st Lieutenant Vasconcellos signaled to Ceará, which was at her stern, from danger and set sail at full speed where the squadron was to give the warning.

The monitors, who passed at a safe distance from Ceará, so as not to disturb it, were under intense fire from coastal artillery but didn't respond immediately with their cannons.

[13] On the Brazilian side, there was only one death and six injuries, among which the machinist Júlio Raposo de Mello stands out, who was hit twice and removed one of the bullets with his own hands.

[14] The river was blocked with the end of the second expedition and the steamboat João das Botas carried out an exploration of about 50 km on July 7 without finding anything.

Due to the low tides, the speedboats had to return however the gunboat Iguatemi sailed a few kilometers from the mouth, as the shallow water prevented it from advancing, remaining in Passo Orqueta.

On the same day, a Brazilian vanguard commanded by General Câmarahe dispersed some Paraguayan sailors who, on the way, set fire to the interned vessels, a total of six: the Piravevé, Anhambaí, Salto de Guairá, Apa, Paraná and Yporá [pt].

[15] With the exception of some explorations organized in September and October of that year, the Manduvirá River was declared free for navigation from as far as Rosário, becoming a line of communication with the army troops.

[16] The fighting on the river sealed the end of the Paraguayan Navy, as the last ships that were in service were destroyed both by the Brazilian hands and by their own sailors.

Work was carried out to recover, catalog and create an open-air museum called the Vapor Cué National Park [es], based on the remains of the six ships that were in one of the Manduvirá streams, the Iaguí.