The Importance Of Intelligence In The Revolutionary War

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The leaders of the Revolutionary War knew in order to gain the edge against the British, they would need timely and precise intelligence regarding the enemy’s movements and overall strategy. The sheer demand for intelligence during this war eventually formed one of the most intelligence-driven governments for centuries to come. The Continental Congress and the Continental Army both executed intelligence operations inventively throughout the war. A number of committees shaped the structure of the Congress that accomplished many intelligence operations. For example, one intelligence objective of the Committee for Secret Correspondence was to encourage the eagerness of defending the American cause in European countries by methods such as propaganda. Similar to that of the Continental Congress’ structure, the Continental Army’s intelligence was not dependent upon organization. Perhaps the most spectacular intelligence effort during the Revolution was carried out by George Washington and the Continental Army. George Washington persistently communicated the importance of having intelligence on enemy plans, as he portrayed strong convictions in circumventing surprise attacks by the British. Intelligence efforts by the Army were often done on short notice and without proper planning, but as time went on they became more developed and fine-tuned (Tidd, 2008).…show more content…
Espionage and counterespionage efforts developed enormously during this time period. Spycraft techniques like using double-agents to perfected cover stories were created and further enhanced throughout this war. These techniques not only added to the success of the war, but the people implementing them were just as helpful. Both the brave patriots involved in intelligence gathering and the development of spycraft techniques during the Revolutionary War contributed immensely to the liberty of our nation (Gilmore,
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