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The Long Walk of the Navajo, also called the Long Walk to Bosque Redondo, was a twenty day foot walk many Navajos made in 1864 to a reservation in southeastern New Mexico.These lands are called, in the Navajo language, Dinétah. Dinetah included land within the borders of the four sacred mountains, from northeastern Arizona through western New Mexico, and north into Utah and Colorado. (Ackerly)
The Navajo farmed crops on the fertile lands of canyons, including Canyon de Chelly, and raised sheep, which they traded or stole from the Spanish and Mexicans. There was a historical pattern in the southwest of groups raiding and trading with each other. This included Navajo, Spanish, Mexican, Pueblos, Apache, Comanche and later Americans. (Ackerly)
The conflicts rose with the Americans following the killing of respected Navajo leader Narbona in 1849. Treaties negotiated and signed in 1849, 1858 and 1861 were broken. In August 1851, the U.S. government established Fort Defiance, present-day Window Rock, Arizona and Fort Wingate. The Bonneville Treaty of 1858 lessened the amount of Navajo land. (Ackerly)
Typical events in the period between 1846 and 1863 included a number of treaties, raids and counter-raids by the Army and Navajo and a civilian military, with civilian speculators often on the end watching. Some examples include the murder of Major Brooks's personal servant in July 1858, and an alleged raping of a Navajo by a servant of the commander of Fort Defiance, William T. H. Brooks. There was an attack on Fort Defiance by about 1,000 Navajo warriors under the leadership of Manuelito and Barboncito on April 30, 1860, who were angry that the Army did not bring in feed for their animals and often used the best grazing land. A treaty was signed on February 15, 1861, to calm the Navajo. Then Manuel Chaves of the New Mexico Volunteer Militia took the field with 400 men and searched Navajo land. By 1862, the Union Army had pushed the Confederates down...