Battle of Canyon de Chelly The Battle of Canyon de Chelly was fought in 1864 as part of the Navajo Wars . It was a successful operation for the United States Army which precipitated the Long Walk and was the final major military engagement between the Navajo and the Americans . The battle ended with the fall of the main Navajo settlements of Canyon de Chelly in present day northern Arizona . Background . By the time of the American Civil War the Navajo was the largest nation in the Southwest and one of the largest remaining Native American nations within the United States . Colonel Christopher H . " Kit " Carson had been waging a successful campaign against the Navajos employing a scorched earth policy , destroying homes , food and supplies . It was Carson ' s policy to treat the Navajo people as humanely as possible , capturing instead of killing them . However , by November 1863 Carson had only sent 200 people on to the reservation at Basque Redondo . Brigadier General James H . Carleton ordered Carson into the Navajo stronghold in Canyon de Chelly . The canyon had been explored once before in 1858 by Colonel Dixon S . Miles . Miles had recommended no command should re - enter it . The Navajo in Canyon de Chelly were members of the bands led by Manuelito , Barboncito and his brother Delgado . By the time Carson ’ s men came into their lands , these Navajo groups had already suffered attacks from Ute warriors . The raids by the Utes and soldiers had taken its toll on some of the Navajos . Delgado ’ s followers concluded they would not be able to survive the winter and surrendered at Fort Defiance . Barboncito vowed never to surrender and continue fighting the army . Battle . When Carson was ready to move against Canyon de Chelly , Barboncito ’ s men ran off all the army mules . Carson ’ s men had to return to Fort Defiance and delay the attack . By 6 January , Carson was re - equipped and ready to move against Canyon de Chelly despite heavy snow . Carson had with him 389 troopers from the 1st New Mexico Cavalry . He divided his command , sending Captain Albert H . Pfeiffer into the east end of the canyon with 100 men , while Carson led the remaining 300 to the west end of the canyon . Carson traversed the entire canyon , occasionally engaging in skirmishes and destroying every abandoned native camp he found until reaching the opposite end without encountering the main Navajo band or Captain Pfeiffer . Pfeiffer had missed the entrance to the canyon in a snowstorm and was instead traversing through a northern branch called Canyon del Muerto . Carson meanwhile retraced his route back to the west entrance and waited for Pfeiffer to arrive . Pfeiffer arrived having been harassed by natives along the cliffs but , like Carson , had only engaged in light skirmishing . The army set up camp near Chinle , Arizona . Barboncito and Manuelito had both vowed not to surrender . The two led their followers to a rocky butte known as Fortress Rock , at the confluence of the two canyons . Here the Navajos had stockpiled food and were able to hold out against the army ’ s incursions into the canyon . However , this isolated position left the Navajo without many necessities for the coming winter . Many decided to turn themselves in . In the meantime , Carson sent Captain Asa B . Carey through the canyon one last time before the entire command returned to Fort Canby . Aftermath . Although the battle itself had been somewhat anticlimactic , the operation as a whole proved to be a great success to the United States . The destruction of the Navajo camps , crops and supplies came at a crucial time for the Navajo . Cold , hungry and tired , many realized they would not be killed or captured by the soldiers if they came in peacefully . Delgado tried to convince others to surrender by reminding them of food , blankets and protection at the army forts . Manuelito was one of a few who never surrendered and fled into Hopi lands . By the summer of 1864 Carson had accepted the largest Native American surrender in history . Nearly 8 , 000 people had surrendered and were soon moved to the Basque Redondo reservation . The arduous journey became known as the Long Walk of the Navajo . In 1868 , after four years of exile , the Navajo were allowed to return to their homeland . The site is operated by the National Park Service as the Canyon de Chelly National Monument . The Visitor Center is three miles from Route 191 in Chinle , Arizona .