The Role of Espionage in American History Knowledge is power. It's that simple. Espionage is the covert collection of information, often referred to as "intelligence." Intelligence refers to the processed information needed to make any decision. This could be used for business, military, economic or political decisions. In most cases, this term refers to a country's domestic or foreign policy. Espionage is illegal in all countries, but all countries have some form of spy organization. The first act of espionage was recorded 2500 years ago. The first book on espionage, The Art of War, was written by a Chinese emperor/general Sun Tzu around 500 BC There is another type of espionage, counter-espionage. This is the intelligence gathering of any espionage (Ransom 1). American espionage is particularly important. It brought us to where we are today. Without it, we would not have survived the Revolutionary War and our independence. From the Revolutionary War to today's high-tech world, espionage in America has always played a role in shaping American history. The Revolutionary War was the war for American independence. The Americans' intelligence gathering capabilities were not very good. Foley, the author of the book Famous American Spies, states that the Americans were very disorganized. They weren't very secretive either. They held open meetings in public taverns for the community to see. They relied primarily on infiltration of enemy lines and word of mouth (Foley 17-18). The most famous tavern was the Green Dragon tavern. Foley mentions that some of the members were Sam and John Adams, John Hancock, James Oti... halfway through the document... instead the CIA's power was limited to the United States only and its task was drug warfare and national security ( Ameringer 391). America and espionage, unfortunately, have become synonymous. Secrets abound and conspiracy theories fly in our country. Espionage, in one way or another, has always played an important role in American history. Works Cited Foley, Rae. Famous American spies. New York: Dodd, Meard and Company. 1964.Ransom, Howe. "Espionage." Encarta. CD-ROM. IBM ed.2000.Seattle, WA: Microsoft, 1987-2000Jeffreys-Jones, Rhodrl. "CIA." Encarta. CD-ROM. IBM ed.2000.Seattle, WA: Microsoft, 1987-2000Ameringer, Charles DUS Foreign Intelligence: The Secret Side of American History. Lexington: Lexington Books, 1990.Richelson, Jeffrey T. A Century of Spies: Intelligence in the Twentieth Century. New York: Oxford University Press, 1955.