In the 1830s, thousands of Native American Indians were forcibly removed from their ancestral lands in the Southeastern United States and relocated west to newly designated "Indian Territory." Ordered at gunpoint to make their way on foot, these Indigenous peoples, together with numerous enslaved African Americans, suffered from exposure, disease, and starvation during their arduous trek, the route of which became known as the "Trail of Tears."
Historians today refer to this shameful chapter in US history as an early example of ethic cleansing, with the brutal journeys described as "death marches." So, how did the forced displacement of these Indian tribes occur, and who were those affected?
Click through this gallery and find out what happened on the Trail of Tears.