Editing Ministry of Fortitude

{{Era|Covenant|Human|UNSC|HCW}}
{{disambig header|the Covenant ministry|the San'Shyuum who was once its minister|Prophet of Truth}}
The '''Ministry of Fortitude''' was a [[Ministry|ministerial]] branch of the government of the [[Covenant]] that dealt with the balanced distribution of [[Forerunner]] relics to the rest of the Covenant's member species. Although client species of the Covenant had agreed to allow the [[San'Shyuum]] to be responsible for the investigation and distribution of all discovered Forerunner artifacts, many species wished to use the artifacts for themselves for wealth, power, and prestige. To prevent conflict, the ministry decided the proper distribution of the artifacts.<ref>'''[[Halo: Contact Harvest]]''', ''page 144''</ref>

The Minister of Fortitude was the individual responsible for managing the ministry's vast bureaucracy.<ref>'''Halo: Contact Harvest''', ''page 149''</ref> The ministry's tower was located among the [[Tower Districts]] of ''[[High Charity]]''. In one of the upper levels of the tower, [[junior staffer]]s serving with the ministry worked in a large antechamber. This antechamber channeled to a large room that was lined with hallways that led to the individual offices of the staffers. In between each hallway, there were life-sized statues of each previous Minister of Fortitude that levitated above the floor. These statues were carved from the stony base of ''High Charity'' and stylized with [[holography|holographic]] robes that listed each Minister's notable accomplishments. Several [[Lights of Sanghelios]] guardsmen protected the tower.<ref>'''Halo: Contact Harvest''', ''page 153''</ref> The top floor of the tower was home to the Minister's office. Narrow and relatively cramped, the office was designed for security and as an architectural metaphor to represent the Minister's status: ''"At the top, there is only room for one"''.<ref>'''Halo: Contact Harvest''', ''pages 154-155''</ref>

The [[Prophet of Truth]] was formerly the Minister of Fortitude before ascending to the position of [[Hierarchs|Hierarch]].<ref>'''[[Halo Encyclopedia (2009 edition)]]''', ''page 127''</ref> On [[2525|January 18, 2525]], when a [[Prophet of Regret|Vice Minister]] serving the [[Ministry of Tranquility]] was informed of the [[Luminary]] detections made by the [[missionary ship]] ''[[Minor Transgression]]'', he reported it to the Minister of Fortitude. The Luminary had detected numerous Forerunner relics on a [[Harvest|world]] outside of Covenant space.<ref>'''Halo: Contact Harvest''', ''page 158''</ref> Ultimately, the Minister discovered that these supposed artifacts were in fact the planet's [[human]] inhabitants—the species the Forerunners tasked with the [[Reclaimer|reclamation]] of the [[Mantle]]. Realizing this discovery would lead to the dissolution of the Covenant empire, the Minister tasked [[Chieftain]] [[Maccabeus]] with the [[glassing]] of the planet, thus beginning the [[Human-Covenant War]].<ref>'''Halo: Contact Harvest''', ''page 313''</ref> In [[2552]], ''[[Clarity of Faith]]'' served under the ministry and its [[shipmaster]], [[Thon 'Talamee]], worked directly with the Minister.<ref>'''[[Halo: Blood Line]]''', ''[[Halo: Blood Line Issue 1|Issue #1]]''</ref>

==List of appearances==
*''[[Halo: Contact Harvest]]'' {{1st}}
*''[[Halo: Blood Line]]'' {{Mo}}

==Sources==
{{Ref/Sources}}

{{Covenant government}}