Clandestine Operations Throughout History

The Central Intelligence Agency is not the first organized group to carry out espionage. Certainly, it won't be the last. Many ancient civilizations, especially in the Middle East, had networks of spies to maintain the government and oust any potential threats. However, clandestine operations were also used on the offensive. The most noteable instance in ancient times was during the Trojan War. Here, in the seige on Troy, the Greeks left a building sized wooden horse and left with most of the army. The Trojans believed that they had won and took in the horse not knowing that inside were waiting many Greek soldiers waiting for nightfall to overtake the Trojans from the inside out. In Elizabethan times, Sir Francis Welsingham became the father of intelligence in England. Such operations evolved to the Revolutionary War and early America with such spies as Benedict Arnold. Espionage and clandestine operations have been carried out throughout history, changing only with technology. It wasn't until World War II that espionage became a prime concern. This era led to the birth of a string of national agencies, including the father to the CIA.