An important map of the ‘War of the Seven Reductions’

An important map of Paraguay , showing the Spanish towns (including those destroyed) and native villages. Engraved by Petroschi in 1732, this example comes from the second edition of 1760. During the 17th & early 18th centuries the Jesuits can created an empire in the region, founding 'Jesuit Reductions', colonies of Guaraní natives converted to Christianity and utilised as workers. In the account that accompanied Juan Francisco D'Avila's map of 1732 the population of the reductions was recorded as 141,242. The wealth of the reductions was envied by the Spanish and Portuguese and in 1754 the Jesuits surrendered control, but force was needed to force the Guaraní to leave the missions. In 1756 a joint force of 3,000 Spanish and Portuguese soldiers fought a pitched battle with the Guaraní, killing 1,500 for the loss of 4 troops. This new version of D'Avila's map, drawn by Jesuit cartographer Giovanni Petroschi (1715-66), records the aftermath, prior to the expulsion of the Jesuits from Spanish territories in 1767.