8 Crazy Facts About Historical Spies

Jeffrey Burd of Northeastern University says the oldest known espionage reference is in the Old Testament. Rahab, a prostitute in Jericho, hid two Jewish spies on her roof under flax bundles. The spies, shown flanking Rahab in the painting above, served Israelite commander Joshua, who followed God’s orders to kill all Canaanites. This sounds extreme, but it exists in the Old Testament.Jeffrey Burd of Northeastern University states the oldest known espionage reference is in the Old Testament. Rahab, a prostitute in Canaanite town Jericho, hid two Jewish spies on her roof under bundles of flax. The spies, pictured flanking Rahab in the painting above, acted for Israelite commander Joshua, who followed God’s orders to murder all Canaanites. This is in the Old Testament.

When Canaanite soldiers learned about the spies, Rahab refused to hand them over. The spies agreed to spare her and her family because she was kind. She only needed to mark her house window with a red cord, signaling the troops to skip it during the area cleansing. Some scholars suggest the red cord might have become the red light in Amsterdam, marking a bordello location, but others disagree.The parallel is almost too good to be true..”

Sun Tzu’sThe Art of War(500 BCE) has a chapter called “Employing Spies,” whichhas been called“a seminal work in the world history of espionage.” In his treatise, Sun Tzu argued foreknowledge equals power: espionage stops “commotion at home and abroad” caused by warfare’s “heavy burdens on the people.” Sun Tzu rejected old, superstitious ways of knowing things, stressing human intelligence. His espionage ideas centered on dividing information.

Compartmentalization explains why people enjoy spy stories. This drives the drama: Who knows what, and how? Compartmentalization stops one spy from knowing everything. If caught, spies lack enough knowledge to ruin a mission. Sun Tzu told military leaders to use several spy types, including double agents and moles, keeping them separate—a process he named the "divine manipulation of the threads.

Roman spies used carrier pigeons as a method to send intelligence and counter-intelligence. AsRose Mary Sheldon writesinIntelligence Activities in Ancient Rome: Trust in the Gods But Verify, military leader Hirtius trained pigeons to carry letters by starving them and keeping them dark near the city walls of Mutina, where soldier Decimus Brutus was trapped.

The plan forced the pigeons to want food and light. When released, they carried letters tied to their necks with human hair to the highest nearby spot. Brutus, stuck in the city but able to walk, received letters, placing food there to train the pigeons to seek that spot as a trusted food source.

RM Sheldon writesinEspionage in the Ancient WorldNo secret was better kept than the Greek Fire recipe. Greek Fire acted like proto-napalm, creating flames that burned almost never out, even on water. This made it a devastating naval weapon. The exact recipe and method for Greek Fire are lost.History tells us that Byzantine armies kept the Greek Fire secret from enemies. They used counterintelligence methods, including compartmentalization.Byzantine armies, around 678 CE, kept the Greek Fire secret from enemies using counterintelligence. They spread the secret among an elite group of spies.Elite spies spread the Greek Fire secret among Byzantine armies around 678 CE. They used counterintelligence methods, including compartmentalization.These spies produced the necessary components independently at remote sites.

Spymaster Sir Francis Walsingham stopped the assassination of Elizabeth I. He used a double agent named Gilbert Gifford and a method of hiding messages.Sir Francis Walsingham used a method of hiding messages to thwart the assassination of Elizabeth I.Walsingham might have created this after drinking too much ale at the local pub. Walsingham paid Gifford to bribe a brewer. This gave him access to ale barrels meant for Chartley Hall. Mary, Queen of Scots, whose people sought Elizabeth's death, was held there.

Gifford promised Mary the barrels held coded letters in watertight containers for passing between her and conspirators. Walsingham's codebreakers intercepted and deciphered these letters, placing them back unnoticed. This revealed the Babbington Plot, and they stopped it. Mary's subsequent execution followed this foiled plot.Mary's subsequent execution followed the foiled Babbington Plot.The foiled plot led to Mary's subsequent execution.

George Washington was a great spymaster. He was initially reluctant to use espionage during the Revolutionary War because he thought it was uncivilized. Once he accepted its benefits, Washington used modern methods of espionage.George Washington was at first reluctant to use espionage during the Revolutionary War because he thought it was uncivilized.He used espionage during the Revolutionary War. He believed this method was uncivilized. After seeing its benefits, Washington used new techniques.Washington employed surprisingly modern methods of espionage.Washington's Culper Ring spy network used code books, dead drops, codes in clotheslines, propaganda, and invisible ink. Washington had James Jay, John Jay's brother, make ink readable only through a chemical reaction. This remained top secret. Still, we do not know the methods Jay and Washington used to hide their messages. We do not know what methods Jay and Washington used to hide their messages.

Communications officer George Scovell helped the British defeat the French in 1813.George Scovell helped the British defeat the French in 1813.Scovell used an obscure book called Cryptographia to defeat the French in 1813.The book Scovell used was Cryptographia. Cryptographia is The Art of Decyphering.The Art of Decyphering was written by David Arnold Conradus. Considered a beginner’s guide to cryptography, this work is mysterious. It was never published; people copied it by hand, passing it from codebreaker to codebreaker. Scovell found it perhaps 100 years later; the exact date it was written is unclear.Scovell used the book to decipher sensitive French documents with no prior experience in codebreaking.Scovell used the book to decipher sensitive French documents, changing the course of the Napoleonic Wars.

Union spy Elizabeth Van Lew was the greatest spy.Elizabeth Van Lew was the greatest spy.Professor Jeffrey Burds of Northeastern University wrote about the Civil War. She gathered intelligence for the North in a bold way. With her elderly mother, she approached captured Union soldiers in Confederate prison camps. She asked them what they knew. She then encoded that information and sent it through courier networks to Union leaders.

Confederate soldiers thought she was a 'madwoman' because her service—providing food, water, and medical care—was socially wrong. However, they did not suspect her of spying. Her almost clear espionage helped the Union win.