razed the Fortress to the ground. The war was a catastrophe for Paraguay, which on a conservative estimate lost between a quarter and a half of its population. Despite Article XIV's stipulations on indemnities, Paraguay's bankruptcy meant that the expenses of the war were irrecoverable and so the demands were eventually dropped. Conflict between Argentina and Brazil Argentina and Brazil were on the brink of war between 1870 and 1876 because of treaty disputes and misunderstandings. At the end of the war, a provisional government was set up in Paraguay, under the auspices of the Allies. Paraguay continued to be occupied by Allied troops, chiefly Brazilian. Additionally, Brazilian forces occupied the Isla del Cerrito, an island near the mouth of the Paraguay River that was claimed by Argentina but which had served as Brazil's main naval base during the war. Despite Article VI, which forbade a separate peace treaty, in 1872, Brazil sent the Baron of Cotegipe to Asunción to negotiate a separate treaty with Paraguay without any explanation to Argentina or Uruguay. Argentina was infuriated and its foreign minister, Carlos Tejedor, sent a harshly-worded missive, excoriating Brazil for trying to negotiate privately with Paraguay. The Buenos Aires press misunderstood and exaggerated the extent of Brazil's breach of faith and claimed that war with Brazil was the only way of answering it. (In fact, Brazil and Paraguay signed four treaties in 1872, but none of them had any implications for the rights of Argentina; they dealt with extradition, commerce, and consular privileges). As a result, Argentina took possession of Villa Occidental, a settlement in the Central Chaco, to the north of the Pilcomayo River. The Central Chaco was an area claimed by Paraguay and Argentina but had been given to Argentina by Article XVI of the Treaty of the Triple Alliance. Argentina sent an ex-president, Bartolomé Mitre, to Brazil to help to restore good relations, and by late 1873, the tension seemed to be over. However, it was not long before Argentina fortified Martín García Island. This island is a geographical anomaly, since by agreement it is today an exclave of Argentine territory located entirely in Uruguayan territorial waters. At the time, however, it was a longstanding bone of contention, being disputed between Argentina and Uruguay (backed by Brazil). Its location off the Uruguayan coast near the mouths of the Rivers Paraná and Uruguay meant it could be used to