Battle of Actium
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- "Let no one here question our place in human history. That we are here right now is not coincidence or accident. It is our fate. And this war, our birthright — our legacy. Our generation was born to fight the Covenant, and you, my fellow soldiers - were born for this very day. Today the enemy will hear the roar of humanity. And they will fear us."
- — Colonel Akono Menteith's address to the 53rd Armored Division[2]
The Battle of Actium was a key military engagement[1] during the Human-Covenant War, occurring between United Nations Space Command and Covenant forces during May 2545 on the human Inner Colony planet of Actium in the Erem system.[1]
The battle
In May 2545, a Covenant fleet invaded Actium. By May 10, Colonel Akono Menteith, whom had assumed command of the UNSC Army's 53rd Armored Division, gave a rousing speech to the roughly twelve-thousand surviving UNSC soldiers.[2] Later that month, the 53rd Armored Division carried out targeted strikes on the Covenant's leadership cadres[1] and then marched deep into Covenant-held territory in order to destroy three of the largest Covenant staging areas on record; the 53rd did so with the aid of a pair of HAVOK tactical nuclear weapons, though they suffered heavy attrition. Within the month, the 53rd Armored Division was annihilated.[2]
The Covenant later returned en force and glassed much of Actium's surface.[1] The marshal of the Sangheili state of Varo was involved in this battle, and ultimately killed in the conflict.[4]
Aftermath
Colonel Menteith's speech to the 53rd Armored Division became legendary throughout the colonies as a symbol of human resistance against the Covenant.[2] The tactics used by the 53rd Armored Division during the Battle of Actium later informed the United Nations Space Command's other late-war military strategies, including Operation: RED FLAG in 2552.[1]
During the battle, the 34th Armored Division recovered a Nahle'hax-pattern needler from the Covenant that was later displayed at Outpost Discovery, an exploratory initiative launched by the United Nations Space Command.[3]
Production notes
The battle shares its name with a real-world engagement that occurred in 31 BC. The historical Battle of Actium is often considered a crucial step in the transition of the Roman Republic into the Empire.
List of appearances
- Halo: Divine Wind (First mentioned)
Sources
