Fluvial Wars (Spanish: Guerras Fluviales; Portuguese: Guerras Fluviais), or Big Stream Wars, or, more recently, Continental Wars, is the name given by historians to a series of major continental wars that took place in 19th century South America. The name is due to these wars being fought around some of the continent's big rivers - namely River Plate, San Francisco River, and Paraguay River. All wars happened in the mid-century between 1825 and 1875, and were decisive to shape the continent's political frontiers. The main Fluvial Wars were: River Plate War (Spanish: Guerra del Río de La Plata);