Underground alliances and preventive strikes : British intelligence and secret diplomacy during the Napoleonic wars, 1807-1810

Abstract

This article examines the role of intelligence in the formation of British war policy during the Napoleonic Wars, 1807-1810. During this period, intelligence was conceived of broadly and was inseparably linked with secret diplomacy

to attempt to separate these strands would be anachronistic. It shall be argued that a lack of professionalism and institutional support was one of the key factors that limited the effectiveness of intelligence but that nevertheless it exerted a significant influence over Britain's war policy. Ultimately, it is argued that the intelligence dimension is central to understanding British policy during the Napoleonic Wars.