In 1830, under the precedency of Andrew Jackson, the Indian Removal Act went into effect. Andrew Jackson set out to “negotiate” with Native American tribes within the southeastern region of the United States and those within the states of America. These negotiations stipulated that removed Native American tribes would be given land west of the Mississippi River, that is, if they relinquished their control of their territory within the states settled by the United States. Although the Indian Removal Act was the first governmental policy to formally revere the legal rights of Native Americans, it soon turned into a means by which the government could forcefully remove Natives from their territories. The northern Native tribes’ relocation was more of a peaceful endeavor compared to those in the southeast, as the government faced more resistance from the Seminole, Cherokee, Creek, Choctaw, and Chickasaw tribes.

The Five Civilized Tribes did not want to relinquish their farmland to the government, not to mention sacrificing what manner of civilization they had within the region if they willingly migrated west of the Mississippi. The military was soon involved as they forced the men of the tribes to relocate west in restraints. The Trail of Tears was thus a result of the Indian Removal Act that saw the forced relocation of the Five Civilized Tribes.