HISTORICAL

Intelligence in the Ancient World

Rose Mary Sheldon

Col. Rose Mary Sheldon, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor of History at Virginia Military Institute.

Sheldon, Rose Mary. "The Ancient Imperative: Clandestine Operations and Covert Action." International Journal of Intelligence and Counterintelligence 10, no. 3 (Fall 1997): 299-315.

The ancient Romans "were experts at political manipulation, spying, and dirty tricks." In fact, "covert actions and clandestine operations [were] used as an indispensable part of Roman foreign policy."

Sheldon, Rose Mary. "Byzantine Counterintelligence and the Bulgarians." Intelligence Quarterly 1, no. 4 (Feb. 1986).

Sheldon, Rose Mary. "Caesar, Intelligence, and Ancient Britain." International Journal of Intelligence and Counterintelligence 15, no. 1 (Spring 2002): 77-100.

In two campaigns in Britain, in 55 and 54 B.C., "Caesar and his men were put in great danger as a consequence of poor intelligence gathering." Essentially, Caesar "overreached himself and walked blindly into an untenable position."

Sheldon, Rose Mary. Espionage in the Ancient World: An Annotated Bibliography of Books and Articles in Western Languages. Jefferson, NC: McFarland, 2002.

Young, AFIO WIN 2-03, 14 Jan. 2003, finds that Sheldon "has produced a fascinating and comprehensive guide to the literature of ancient intelligence." However, "[t]his work is more than a bibliography; it provides the most comprehensive documentation and commentary on the literature of intelligence in antiquity. It is an indispensable reference work -- and great for casual browsing as well."

For Kruh, Cryptologia 27.2, this "first comprehensive guide to the literature of ancient intelligence ... is a worthwhile book to have in your personal library."

Peake, Studies in Intelligence 47.3, notes that the author "presents 839 entries -- a “Rosetta Stone” for scholars -- citing books and articles mainly in Western European languages plus Latin and Greek....  The annotations give a short summary of the content and in many cases references for further study.  For those interested in the ancient history of intelligence this is an essential reference work."

To Smith, IJI&C 17.4 (Winter 2004-2005), Sheldon's "comments to entries are a mini-education in themselves." This is a "notable and sound introduction to the literature of intelligence in the ancient world."

Sheldon, Rose Mary. "Hannibal's Spies." Espionage 2, no. 3 (Aug. 1986): 149-152.

Sheldon, Rose Mary. "Hannibal's Spies." International Journal of Intelligence and Counterintelligence 1, no. 3 (1986): 53-70.

Sheldon, Rose Mary. "The Ill-Fated Trojan Spy." Studies in Intelligence 31, no. 1 (1987): 35-39. Reprinted in American Intelligence Journal 9, no. 3 (Fall 1988): 18-22.

Here, we have the contrast of successful and unsuccessful spies in the Iliad. The failure of the Trojan spy Dolon whose mission was so ill-fated as to cross the paths of Diomedes and Odysseus, off from the Greek side on their own intelligence-gathering venture, is told in the tenth book of Homer's classic work.

Sheldon, Rose Mary. Intelligence Activities in Ancient Rome: Trust in the Gods, but Verify. London: Frank Cass, 2005. London: Routledge, 2007. [pb]

From advertisement: "Intelligence activities have always been an integral part of statecraft, and this book looks at how the Romans used intelligence to maintain their empire's security."

Peake, Studies 49.4 (2005), says that the author "has assembled extensive documentation" to show that intelligence "in some form" was practiced throughout Roman history. There are detailed chapters covering "the evolution of Roman military and domestic intelligence." This work "is a comprehensive account that demonstrates the Romans faced many of the same problems -- bureaucratic and technological -- that confront today's professionals."

For Lewin, I&NS 22.4 (Aug. 2007), this book "has much to recommend it to both the ancient historian and the historian of intelligence services. It approaches specific events in Roman history from an original angle," and "provides fascinating and intimate insights into an elusive aspect of Roman society." The reviewer's "main criticism" is the work's "occasional slippage into modern jargon and models."

Sheldon, Rose Mary. "Jesus, the Security Risk: Intelligence and Security in First Century Palestine." Small Wars and Insurgencies 9, no. 2 (Autumn 1998): 1-37. [Israel/Historical]

Sheldon, Rose Mary. "The Polygraph, Adultery and the Romans or Fluttering in Antiquity." Foreign Intelligence Literary Scene 5, no. 2 (Mar./Apr. 1986): 2.

Sheldon, Rose Mary. "A Quirk of Fate." Intelligence Quarterly 3, no. 4 (1988): 6.

Sheldon, Rose Mary. "The Roman Secret Service." Intelligence Quarterly 1, no. 2 (Jul. 1985): 7-8.

Sheldon, Rose Mary. "Slaughter in the Forest: German Insurgency and Roman Intelligence Mistakes." Small Wars and Insurgencies 12, no. 3 (Autumn 2001): 1-38.

Sheldon, Rose Mary. "The Spartacus Rebellion: A Roman Intelligence Failure?" International Journal of Intelligence and Counterintelligence 6, no. 1 (Spring 1993): 69-84.

Sheldon, Rose Mary. Spies of the Bible: Espionage in Israel from the Exodus to the Bar Kokhba Revolt. St. Paul, MN: MBI Publishing, 2007.

Clark comment: In my opinion, Rose Mary Sheldon is the premier expert on intelligence in the ancient world.

According to Peake, Studies 51.3 (2007), the author "provides the historical detail to understand the circumstances of the times and the intelligence requirements they generated.... [She] concludes that many of the espionage tales of the Bible didn't take place, at least as described. Professor Sheldon provides ample evidence to support her conclusions.... As to the existence of spies in ancient times, Professor Sheldon argues that the documented military battles make their existence a practical necessity, but the best the historian can do with regard to specifics is make 'an educated guess.'" [Israel/Historical]

Sheldon, Rose Mary. "Spies and Mailmen and the Royal Road to Persia." American Intelligence Journal 14, no. 1 (Autumn/Winter 1992/1993): 37-40.

Persia's kings "set up a road network and postal system for the transmission of political and military intelligence."

Sheldon, Rose Mary. "Spying in Mesopotamia: The World's Oldest Classified Documents." Studies in Intelligence 33, no. 1 (Spring 1989): 7-12.

Archaeological excavations at Mari, Ebla, and Shubat Enlil in Syria "have produced results of great interest to intelligence historians. Each site produced a royal archive containing thousands of written documents ... [from] around 1800 B.C.... [For example,] Mari's relationships with its neighbors were complex, and much of its diplomatic activity was carried on clandestinely." The author also notes evidence of the importance of intelligence gathering, the classification of documents, the practice of subversion of the enemy, and the use of propaganda.

Sheldon, Rose Mary. "Taking on Goliath: The Jews Against Rome, AD 66-73." Small Wars and Insurgencies 5, no. 1 (Spring 1994): 1-28.

"The war of liberation fought by the Jews against the Romans in AD 66-73 provides an interesting study on the strengths and weaknesses of guerrilla warfare, terrorism, and insurgency in an ancient Near Eastern context. The war also illustrates the intelligence needs of a small country waging war against a larger occupation force." [Israel/Historical]

Sheldon, Rose Mary. Tinker, Tailor, Caesar, Spy: Espionage in Ancient Rome. Dissertation. Available from University Microfilms International, Ann Arbor, MI.

When publication of Dr. Sheldon's dissertation was anticipated in 1990, Surveillant 1.2 commented that this is a "useful guide for students of ancient history unfamiliar with intelligence studies, and, of course, for intelligence scholars who need to grasp the background of the field in ancient times."

Sheldon, Rose Mary. "Tinker, Tailor, Caesar, Spy: Intelligence in Ancient Rome." American Intelligence Journal, Jun. 1986, 3-5.

Sheldon, Rose Mary. "Toga and Dagger." Washington Post, 16 Jul. 1985, A15. Reprinted in Signal 40, no. 1 (Sep. 1985): 55-57.

Sheldon, Rose Mary. "Toga & Dagger: Espionage in Ancient Rome." MHQ: The Quarterly Journal of Military History (Autumn 2000): 28-33. [http://www.historynet.com/mhq/blespionageinancientrome/]

"Ancient Rome is remembered as one of the greatest military powers in history, its fame derived from the fearsome reputation of the empire's legionnaires. Lost in the telling, however, is the important role that espionage played in Rome's ascent to empire."

Sheldon, Rose Mary. "Tradecraft in Ancient Greece." Studies in Intelligence 30, no. 1 (1986): 39-47. International Journal of Intelligence and Counterintelligence 2, no. 2 (1988): 189-202 (revised with notes).

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