After the Cherokees were ordered to leave their lands and move to Indian Territory, only about 2,000 had left by the designated date. The tribe had divided into those who felt they had no choice and left and those who stayed and fought. Those who stayed were later forced out at gun point and forced to march to Indian Territory losing around 4,000 people to what has become known as the Trail of Tears. These divisions would last and fester over the next several years and even play a part in the Civil War as the same divides tended to determine which groups joined the Union and which sided with the Confederacy.
Historically Speaking 