Paraguay Río de la Plata to the Paraná River, and finally up the Paraguay River. In 1537, they established the city of Asunción, which was the first capital of the Governorate of Paraguay and Río de la Plata. Paraguay was the epicenter of the Jesuit Missions, where the Guaraní people were educated and introduced to Christianity and European culture under the direction of the Society of Jesus in Jesuit reductions, mainly during the 17th century. However, after the expulsion of the Jesuits from Spanish territories in 1767, Paraguay increasingly became a peripheral colony, with few urban centers and settlers. Following independence
Alto Paraguay Department Chaco at over 200.000 hectare for 2008 alone The department's most important activity by far is cattle ranching, both extensive in the savannas of the east and intensive on the planted pastures of cleared land. Cultivation of sorghum, sugar cane and (in planning stage as of January 2009, for the arid west) jatropha are very recent developments. The department is divided into five districts: Alto Paraguay Department Alto Paraguay (; "Upper Paraguay") is a sparsely populated department of Paraguay. The capital is the town of Fuerte Olimpo. In 1992 the Chaco Department was merged with Alto Paraguay, effectively recreating the