“The Bombardment of Paradise” By David J. Woods The Spanish Pacific fleet bombarded the Chilean port town of Valparaiso, on 31 March 1866. In human terms, the costs were minimal though the destruction of property, most of it European-owned, was large - perhaps as much as $225 million in today’s money burned in the customs stores on the shore. Yet for the international standing, self esteem and credibility of England, Spain and the United States, the impact was immense. At least for a while, reputations, national and personal, were ruined. “The Bombardment of Paradise”  seeks to deconstruct this apparently innocuous event. Using largely contemporary official records, newspaper accounts and other recollections, the book seeks to examine each element that contributed to what became an international cause célèbre and generated political embarrassment in London, Madrid and Washington.