Canon

The Covenant

From Halopedia, the Halo wiki

This article is about the original theocratic empire. For other factions of the same name, see Covenant (disambiguation).
The Covenant
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An SVG recreation of the Covenant "eye" of the Great Journey icon from Halo 5: Guardians and Halo: Campaign Evolved, based on this concept artMedia:H5Concept -The Path.jpg. The symbol was originally found in Halo 2 on the Covenant murals, the San'Shyuum High Councilors, and the Halo 3 Prophet of Truth robes.
The symbol of the Covenant religion.

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A symbol of the Hierarchs.

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A number of Covenant species side-by-side on a Forerunner world

Government overview

Type:

Founder(s):

Founding documents:

Head of state:

Hierarchs

Executive branch:

High Council[1]

Legislative branch:

Government branches:

Societal overview

Capital:

Official language(s):

Sangheili[4]

Official religion(s):

Covenant religion

Official script(s):

Syllabary and logograms

Notable event(s):

History of the Covenant

Historical overview

Formation:

852 BCE: First Age of Reconciliation[5]

Reorganization:

November 3, 2552: Great Schism

Dissolution:

December 11, 2552: Battle of the Citadel[6][7][8][4]

 

"Creatures of the Covenant: the path is broad, and we shall walk it side by side!"
— The High Prophet of Truth[9]

The Covenant, also referred to as the Covenant Empire[10][11] or Covenant Hegemony,[12] was a massive religious hegemony of multiple alien species that completely controlled a large portion of the Orion Arm in the Milky Way Galaxy for thousands of years.[13][14] Originally a mutual alliance between the San'Shyuum and the Sangheili, the Covenant expanded to include six other species (Huragok, Mgalekgolo, Unggoy, Kig-Yar, Yanme'e, and Jiralhanae) united in the worship of the mythified Forerunners and the Halo Array.

Ruled by the High Prophet of Truth along with High Prophets Mercy and Regret in 2525, the Covenant waged a genocidal campaign against humanity until they were defeated in December 2552. Despite being one of the most powerful military forces in the known Milky Way galaxy at the time, internal conflict combined with stubborn human resistance were formidable enough to shatter the bonds that held the empire together. This internal conflict broke the Covenant in two, forcing out the Sangheili species. [15]

Following the Covenant empire's end at the Battle of the Citadel,[6][4] a small remnant of surviving loyalists would reemerge years later,[16][17] and a number of new factions were created by the fallen empire's former subject species after the conclusion of the war. [18] Some of the separatists sought to recreate the Covenant entirely under Sangheili rule, free from San'Shyuum influence.[19][20] One notable splinter faction of Sangheili self-proclaimed to be a new "Covenant" was created by Jul 'Mdama, being one of several factions which maintain some tenets of the fallen Covenant's religion.[21] Other hostile factions that utilize assets from the former Covenant empire include Merg Vol's faction, Sali 'Nyon's faction, Vata 'Gajat's faction, the Banished and the Order of Restoration.