The Swords of Sanghelios are an alliance of Sangheili keeps that serve as the effective governing body for their eponymous home world of Sanghelios. The organization was originally founded in The Former Age of Sangheili history prior to their co-founding of the Covenant empire, originally created as a sworn alliance of brothers committed to Sangheili unity on their home world, before going on to be reformed numerous times in response to various crises. In their current iteration, the Swords are one of a number of remnant factions to have emerged from the fall of the Covenant in 2552. The various keeps under the Swords' banner were united by the Arbiter Thel 'Vadam during the immediate aftermath of the Covenant's collapse, using his prestige from having led the separatists to victory in the civil war with the goal of maintaining peace and order on Sanghelios itself. To-date, the Arbiter serves as the leader of the Swords of Sanghelios, alongside a grand council of kaidons.
Broadly, the Swords of Sanghelios aim to peacefully unite all of the Sangheili people, including all of their colony worlds, under one united banner of the Concert of Worlds. However, this goal has been subject to controversy from both members and enemies alike for numerous reasons including the Swords' abandonment of the Covenant religion, their alliance with humanity, the Arbiter's breaking of tradition due to his lack of sacrifice in battle and perceived cowardice, and their more egalitarian view of both the role of gender and species within the alliance (particularly its military). During the early post-Covenant years, the Swords of Sanghelios fought a series of bloody civil wars collectively termed the Blooding Years, which pitted them against a number of opposing warlords seeking to revive the Covenant in various forms in direct opposition to the Swords' goals. While the Blooding Years formally ended in 2558, they continue to be embroiled in a number of conflicts including an ongoing war against the Jiralhanae continuing the original civil war that ended the Covenant, and most recently a concerted effort to hunt down the Order of Restoration; a faction of San'Shyuum survivors who fled the Covenant's fall and now seek to revive the empire.
Individual members of the faction identify themselves with the title Sword of Sanghelios.