The Long Walk

The Long Walk refers to the period of time in which the elvish slaves freed during the First Exalted March traveled from the Imperium down to the land which is now known as the Dales.

History

During the vast majority of the Tevinter Imperium's existence, the Dalish were subjugated as slaves to the common-folk. When the First Exalted March was in full swing, many of these elves rebelled against the Tevinters and aided Andraste in her goal of destroying the Imperium.
When the March came to an end, Maferath granted the Dales to the freed elves as a token of his thanks for helping the March's cause. Those freed had to walk from the northern edge of Thedas to the southern edge, near the Frostback Mountains. The walk was long and tiring. Many elves died along the route. However, this place became their new home.

Written Accounts

"When we left Tevinter, we had nothing except the knowledge that for the first time in countless centuries, we were free. Families were broken, the dead laid in shallow graves, but we held a future in our hands.
We called our journey the Long Walk, for that was what it was. We walked with what little we had on our backs. Some walked without shoes, for they had none. Whole families — women with infants, the old, and young alike — all of the made their way across the land on foot. And if one of our people could no longer walk, we carried him, or sometimes left him behind.
Many perished along the way. Some died of exhaustion, others simply gave up and fell by the wayside. A great number were set upon by human highway-men, even though we had few possessions. Along the way, a growing number began to bemoan the decision to leave the Imperium. 'At least in Tevinter,' they said, 'we had food, and water, and shelter. What have we here? Nothing but the open sky and the prospect of the never-ending road ahead.' Some turned back toward Tevinter. But most of us continued walking.
And the gods rewarded those of us who did not waver by bringing us to the Dales. Our people called the new city Halamshiral — 'the end of the journey'."

"Only sixty-five of our group made it to Halamshiral. Some gave up. Some sickened, especially the little ones. Bandits stalked us like wolves. My mother forgive me, I had to steal food. A child fought me for extra scraps of bread. A few days later, I carried her for miles after he legs gave out. She died shivering in my arms.
I used to have a master, a mage. He fed me well, never beat me, even taught me how to read so I could do his accounts. But if he had a theory or a spell he wanted to test out, he'd get out his daggers, have the other servants tie me to a post, and carve furrows into my skin. I was so afraid. Every time, I was sure I would die. But at worst I'd collapse, get bandaged up, and lie in bed too weak to move for days. The other slaves visited me in secret to survey the damage. I'd heal just enough before he needed blood again. That is why I traveled from Vol Dorma to the Dales with nothing but rags on my back.
That is why there were one hundred and five of us when we set out, all elves. That is why I fell to my knees and wept when we crossed through the gates of my new home, a village for my people."