In the Spy Power, the United States, who are the most familiar Chinese spies?
Probably, Xi Shi.
There is an International Spy Museum in Washington, D.C. It's not too hard to get here.
On the east side of the White House, the famous domestic intelligence and security agency, the FBI, less than two kilometers south, you can see the building with red lines on the gray wall. At the top of the building, a red plaque reads a huge "SPY" (SPY).
International Spy Museum. Image source: spymuseum
The museum does not receive government funds and is not managed by the government, and is committed to presenting the development of the world's espionage to the public.
It contains more than 7,000 pieces. In one place, a white curtain hung on which Chinese shadow puppetry was played. The protagonist is an ancient Chinese woman who introduces herself in English: "I am lady Xishi".
Xi Shi's story is mostly legendary, but the museum still lists her as one of the world's earliest beautiful female spies. This is not without reason. It means that humans had the idea of a spy a long time ago. Don't look at the fact that spies have always given people the feeling of being full of high-tech style, but it is indeed the oldest profession of mankind.
On July 20, 2002, when the International Spy Museum in Washington, D.C., opened, several agent actors performed the stunt of flying cornices and walking on the wall. (Xinhua News Agency photo)
Theory began with Sun Tzu.
In terms of calculation, Xi Shi can also be regarded as an "international spy". The Yue monarch sent her to the wu state jun, spied on the intelligence, alienated the relationship between the wu state and the subjects, and eventually made a mess of the Wu state government.
From the point of view of today's intelligence system, she is definitely an efficient, strong execution, and loyal intelligence officer, which is worthy of serious study by future generations.
In fact, the earliest spy originator should be a god.
The earliest clearly documented acts of espionage came from the Bible, such as a chapter in the Old Testament that God gave the canaanites to the Israelites, but there were already many tribes living in this land, and God told Moses to send spies to these tribes in order to help the Israelites obtain this land. One of the local prostitutes became their most powerful provider of intelligence information.
Israel's current Mossad intelligence system is so powerful that it has historical roots.
Chinese gods also use spies, most notably Nuwa to confuse the King of Sui. Later generations think that they have harmed the country and the people, but from another point of view, like Xi Shi, this is also an ace agent, level 007, successfully completed the task assigned by the mother country, worthy of recognition by future generations.
Similar to today, one of the most important jobs of spies is to serve politics, to spy on political opponents, to spy on popular sentiments, or to obtain military espionage intelligence. In his book A Brief History of Espionage, espionage expert Bogdan Paul Papadi argues that one of the countries that took espionage to the extreme in the ancient historical stage was none other than ancient Rome.
On October 11, 2017, in Washington, D.C., espionage tools and related history were displayed at the International Spy Museum. (Sipa figure)
"Without resorting to espionage, they could not have built the greatest empire of antiquity and maintained expansion. From the first century BC onwards, there was the existence of the secret police, the so-called 'Frumentarii', and it was also a censorship body. The Government also employs inspectors, who are primarily responsible for counter-espionage. "It is worth mentioning that scholars who have studied ancient times have commented: 'The Romans were very good at political manipulation, espionage, and dirty operations ... Rome's successful administration was inseparable from covert action. ’”
Not only Westerners, but people all over the world are using spies and accumulating a wealth of experience. In the history of espionage, one of the earliest theoretical works was written by Chinese, "Sun Tzu's Art of War". "The book carefully describes the duties and working methods of spies, as well as data related to the recruitment of spies." What Bogdan mentions in "A Brief History of Espionage" is the "Use of Intervals" in the Art of War.
In this chapter, Sun Wu details five types of espionage:
Because of this, it is used by its villagers, mainly to penetrate deep into the enemy, using villagers, friends, and colleagues to spy on intelligence;
The inner chamber is used for its official entry, mainly to penetrate into the enemy's interior, using its officials and staff who are familiar with the internal situation;
Anti-ma, used by its enemies to plot against enemy spies;
In the dead, in order to deceive the outside world, so that I know it, and pass it on to the enemy, I also make false information and disclose it to the other party through my own spy, if it is discovered by the enemy, my spy is likely to be executed;
The living, the living, the counter-retribution, the spies sent to the enemy's interior, can come back alive.
To this day, most spies barely go beyond these types. The analysis of spies in Sun Tzu's Art of War still has its value to this day. In addition to the book "A Brief History of Espionage", the International Spy Museum in Washington also lists "Sun Tzu's Art of War" as an important work of espionage. In his book "The Recruitment and Training of Spies", Raymond Palmer, a British intelligence research expert, repeatedly mentioned Sun Tzu's theory of reconnaissance and espionage.
Business, women are better.
The espionage industry is definitely one of the first industries to achieve co-workers.
There is a reason why the Yue King chose Xi Shi and Nuwa chose Dai Ji. Early on, people realized that in the spy industry, women usually do better than men. According to statistics, during the American Civil War, the largest number of female spies in the Intelligence System of the Northern Coalition Army, including many black female slaves.
Tamil Pardo, a former director of the Israeli intelligence group Mossad, praised female spies during his tenure.
On May 16, 2009, at a "high heel spy school" in New York, founder Alana Winter taught fighting skills. (@Visual China Photo)
"Women have a significant advantage over men in intelligence warfare because they have the ability to multitask. In addition to this, women can play their role well. They are more able to suppress themselves than men in order to accomplish their goals. Tamir Pardo said, "Women are born to judge the situation. Contrary to conventional wisdom, women are superior to men in interpreting geographical location, judging situations, and spatial awareness. When women have these skills well, they can perform very well. ”
Another CIA female spy, Lindsay Moran, also revealed that one of the CIA's best-kept secrets was that their best spies were women.
One of the periods of great female spies was world war I.
For the development of espionage, World War I was a key node. Prior to this, spies were more in the service of the military, and during World War I, the intelligence front was no longer separated from military confrontation. After research, Borgdan, author of "A Brief History of Espionage", believes that this is the first time in history. "This requires restructuring intelligence agencies to address global challenges related to conflict." During this period, Bogdan said, not only did spy wars become globalized, but there were also some super spies. Britain's MI5, France's "Second Bureau", Germany's "3B" Mi6, and so on, were all established during this period. The demand for spies from various countries is also growing.
At that time, intelligence agencies would discover cultural celebrities to serve themselves, and British and French intelligence agencies loved to mobilize intellectuals and writers. They are more social and observant, such as Maugham, a British writer who is very popular among today's literary and artistic youth, who once worked for the British Secret Intelligence Service.
Intelligence agencies in almost all countries prefer women. At one point during World War I, the United States purged more than 200 German spies, many of them women.
In addition to the advantages of women themselves, in that era when women's status was still not high, women who wanted to express themselves on the battlefield were more likely to get jobs as spies. The famous French spy Marte Richer has a beautiful code name, "Lark". Her husband joined the army and died on the battlefield. In order to avenge her husband, Malt found the French military intelligence agency "Second Bureau", and Mao volunteered to become a spy. After training, she rushed to Spain and, relying on her own advantages, confused the military attaché of the German embassy in Madrid and sent false information to Germany through him.
Of all the wars in humanity's past, there has never been one as tragic as World War I and World War II, and there has never been a need for spies as much as in these two wars. The espionage networks established during World War I continued to play a huge role in the brief peace phase that followed, and in the ensuing World War II, and they grew in scale.
The Allies won World War II in part because they won the Espionage War. Historian Max Hastings wrote a book about the secret war that chronicles that period. In his opinion, only 0.01% of the intelligence collected by the Allies in World War II played a role, but these effects are still extraordinary. Especially the code-breaking work. After 1942, for example, the Allies gained the location of their submarines by deciphering German codes, which contributed to the Allied victory in the Battle of the Atlantic.
Although beauty has always been a common "weapon" used by female spies, women can actually do more when they participate in espionage work. During World War II, the British agency in Bletchley Park was responsible for deciphering the German code. Originally part of Eaton Manor, Bletchley Park moved here after World War II when the British government's cryptocentre moved here. In a photograph from the time, one can see that in that room, standing in what appears to be the leader, is a man. And sitting together and working hard, all of them are female intelligence officers.
Bletchley Park Codebreaking Center.
Without them, World War II might have been a different story.
References: A Brief History of Espionage (Part I), by Bogdan Paul Papadi, Zhejiang Publishing Group Digital Media Co., Ltd.
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