History Main / DeathMarch

* Wikipedia has [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_march a list]], including examples from as far back as 1603; notable Death Marches include the forced relocation of Native American tribes (among them, the Long Walk of the Navajo and the Cherokee Trail of Tears), war crimes committed by both the Soviets and the Nazis during the failed invasion of Russia, and Stalin's forced transfer of groups within the Soviet Union.

* In 1945, the Nazis had concentration camp inmates in death marches far from Allied forces which would have freed them.
* As part of the Armenian Genocide, Armenians were marched to the Syrian desert, with large numbers being murdered, starved, robbed and raped along the way.
* The Khmer Rouge forcibly evacuated town residents under extremely poor conditions.
* During UsefulNotes/WorldWar2, the Imperial Japanese Army forcibly transferred 80,000 American and Filipino prisoners of war from Saysain Point Bagac, Bataan, to Camp O'Donnell in what would be called the Bataan Death March - characterized by severe physical abuse and wanton killings and was later judged by an Allied military commission to be a war crime.

* Creator/JoeHaldeman's ''Camouflage'' features the Bataan Death March as one of the things that the Changeling has endured, having been impersonating an American Marine at the time. Despite being capable of fleeing at any time [[VoluntaryShapeshifting in almost any conceivable form]], it chooses to remain with the other captives and suffer alongside them, witnessing numerous atrocities along the way - most prominently the mass-slaughter of any prisoners who took water when the Japanese troops offered it. This segment ends when the Changeling accidentally yanks one of its jailers off a passing truck during [[WhatADrag a lassoing game]], prompting the Japanese to execute it: it's [[DigYourOwnGrave forced to dig its own grave]], beheaded, then unknowingly BuriedAlive. As an [[ShapeshiftingLongevity immortal shapeshifter]], the Changeling simply digs itself up and walks away.

* In the Larry [=McMurtry=] novel ''Dead Mans Walk'' has the main heroes(after an expedition to capture Santa Fe in Mexico ends with death and a dwindling party thanks to Comanches)are arrested in a remote Mexican village and are forced on Death March across the titular Dead Mans Walk(the real world Jornada del Muerto). The walk itself through the desert is a long trek through Apache territory to a prison camp to take the expeditions prisoners. With the burning desert during the day, the freezing cold and night, horses being stolen as their horses are stolen, the Mexican soldiers executing any of the expedition who can't make the journey anymore and Apaches picking them off one by one, the party quickly dwindles. Eventually, their lead captor offers them their freedom if they kill him, relieving him of his duty, though mainly because he is exhausted and his men are all dying. However, each of the group has come to realize that they are struggling together to survive and have no more hatred for the man for keeping them prisoner and so the march continues, with some survivors making it through. Unfortunately, as soon as they arrive, the main characters are quickly forced to choose stones for who lives and who dies, making the small party even smaller and the Mexican soldiers and Captain Salazar are sent back through the Dead Mans Walk, with little thanks from their superiors for their sacrifice or time given to them to resupply with food or water or acquire horses to make the trip easier.Everyone, even their former captor, realize this is a death sentence.

* In ''Literature/HarmonicFeedback'', Drea's grandma tells her that her older brother Paul died in the Bataan Death March at age 18. He paused to help someone who had fallen and was shot for it.
* In "The Long March of Judge Dee" (a FanSequel of sorts to Literature/JudgeDee), the titular judge writes a report to his superiors stressing that there isn't enough food being brought in to the capital Chang-An. The administration promptly takes action and... decides to exile a large fraction of the capital's population (decided by lottery, using family names) to a town hundreds of miles away. The judge is given responsibility over the convoy, but soon figures out the route was planned to have as many people die on the way as possible (confirmed when the Empress has some noble families added to the list as they might be politically dangerous to her). He does what he can to save as many as possible, which is made even worse when they finally arrive and it turns out no one expected that many people to get dumped on a town mostly used as a resort for noble families.

->''[[UsefulNotes/TheArmenianGenocide The citizen of Yerevan died crying, wandering through foreign lands.]]''
-->-- '''Message upon capitulation of Armenia''', ''VideoGame/TheNewOrderLastDaysOfEurope''

* ''Film/SpecialForces'' uses this as an EstablishingCharacterMoment for it's main villain, General Rafendek. Right in his first scene, he's commandeering his army leading over a hundred refugees from Moldonia towards the border, where they will be promised their freedom, only for Rafendek to suddenly order his soldiers to unveil a pair of heavy-machine guns, which fires away into the crowd of refugees, killing all of them ''[[WouldHurtAChild including many children]]''. A later scene reveals that General Rafendek has been doing this on a regular basis as an act of ethnic cleansing.

* In the Larry McMurtry novel''Dead Mans Walk''has the main heroes(after an expedition to capture Santa Fe in Mexico ends with death and a dwindling party thanks to Comanches)are arrested in a remote Mexican village and are forced on Death March across the titular Dead Mans Walk(the real world Jornada del Muerto). The walk itself through the desert is a long trek through Apache territory to a prison camp to take the expeditions prisoners. With the burning desert during the day, the freezing cold and night, horses being stolen as their horses are stolen, the Mexican soldiers executing any of the expedition who can't make the journey anymore and Apaches picking them off one by one, the party quickly dwindles. Eventually, their lead captor offers them their freedom if they kill him, relieving him of his duty, though mainly because he is exhausted and his men are all dying. However, each of the group has come to realize that they are struggling together to survive and have no more hatred for the man for keeping them prisoner and so the march continues, with some survivors making it through. Unfortunately, as soon as they arrive, the main characters are quickly forced to choose stones for who lives and who dies, making the small party even smaller and the Mexican soldiers and Captain Salazar are sent back through the Dead Mans Walk, with little thanks from their superiors for their sacrifice or time given to them to resupply with food or water or acquire horses to make the trip easier.Everyone, even their former captor, realize this is a death sentence.

[[quoteright:257:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/death_march_stamp.jpg]]

* ''ComicBook/{{Superman}}'': In "The Death March!" in ''[[ComicBook/JimmyOlsen Superman's Pal, Jimmy Olsen]]'' #76, Perry White's great-grandfather is accused of having lead a "death-march" in the desert. Perry then decides to re-enact the march in order to clear his great-grandfather's name, using Daily Planet staff as stand-ins for the troops and civilians involved.

* Wikipedia has [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_march a list]], including examples from as far back as 1603; notable Death Marches include the forced relocation of Native American tribes, war crimes committed by both the Soviets and the Nazis during the failed invasion of Russia, and Stalin's forced transfer of groups within the Soviet Union.

* On 1945, Nazis had concentration camp inmates in death marches far from Allied forces which would have freed them.
* As part of the Armenian Genocide, Armenians were marched to the Syrian desert, being murdered, starved, robbed and raped along the way.

* During UsefulNotes/WorldWar2, the Japanese Army forcibly transferred 80,000 American and Filipino prisoners of war from Saysain Point Bagac, Bataan, to Camp O'Donnell in what would be called the Bataan Death March - characterized by severe physical abuse and wanton killings and was later judged by an Allied military commission to be a war crime.

* The Stephen King novel ''Literature/TheLongWalk'' is set in a dystopian AlternateHistory America where the government organizes a DeadlyGame known as the "Long Walk" every year: one hundred 18-year old boys are selected to march from the US-Canadian border on the coast of Maine down the Atlantic coast until only one boy remains. They're accompanied by soldiers in jeeps and half-tracks who monitor the walkers with scanners, and will shoot to kill after issuing a walker three warnings for falling below the required speed limit.

Most modern prisons transport their inmates via busses if or when the time comes for them to be transferred to a new location, both for humanitarian reasons and for practical ones. However, another form of transportation exists, commonly used in wartime and only used in circumstances where the survival of the inmates is considered optional -- if desirable at all.

The Death March is essentially a forced march for captives such as slaves or [=POWs=], most commonly one in which the participants are not expected to survive: this can be through dangerous terrain, harsh weather, torturous extremes of climate, or even additional work duties, and can often feature any guards assigned to march torturing or executing any prisoners unable to keep up.

The goal of a Death March varies: sometimes it really is a brutal form of transportation to new territory, and any deaths along the way are considered acceptable losses or even a useful side-benefit in culling the inmate population; at other times, it's intended as execution and little else -- with the march continuing until every last captive is dead.

* ''Series/BabylonFive'': In the episode "[[Recap/BabylonFiveS04E11LinesOfCommunication Lines Of Communication]]", the Warrior Caste on Minbar attacks the religious caste, destroying their ships and forcing them to walk to the next city. Since this city was at the planet's polar region, many of them died from exposure.

Most modern prisons transport their inmates via busses if or when the time comes for them to be transferred to a new location, both for humanitarian reasons and for practical ones. However, another form of transportation exists, commonly used in wartime and only used in circumstances where the survival of the inmates is considered optional - if desirable at all.

The goal of a Death March varies: sometimes it really is a brutal form of transportation to new territory, and any deaths along the way are considered acceptable losses or even a useful side-benefit in culling the inmate population; at other times, it's intended as execution and little else - with the march continuing until every last captive is dead.

[[folder:Film - Live Action]]

* Series/BabylonFive - in the episode "[[Recap/BabylonFiveS04E11LinesOfCommunication Lines Of Communication]]", the Warrior Caste on Minbar attacks the religious caste, destroying their ships and forcing them to walk to the next city. Since this city was at the planet's polar region, many of them died from exposure.

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* During UsefulNotes/WorldWar2, the Japanese Army forcibly transferred 80,000 American and Filipino prisoners of war from Saysain Point Bagac, Bataan, to Camp O'Donnell in what would be called the Bataan Death March - characterized by severe physical abuse and wanton killings and was later judged by an Allied military commission to be a war crime.