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Mcintosh Elizabeth Role of Women in Intelligence AFIO Monograph 5.Pdf This document is copyrighted 1989 by the Association The Intelligence Profession Series of Former Intelligence Officers (AFIO), 6723 Whittier Ave Ste 200 McLean, VA 20101. All Rights Reserved. No Number FIVE part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or transmitted in any form or by any means without the prior permission in writing from the copyright holder. Authorization to photocopy items for internal and personal use is granted by the copyright holder for libraries and other users registered with their local Reprooduction Rights Organizations [Copyright Clearance Center] 222 Rosewood Dr, Danvers, MA 01923 www.copyright.com provided the appropriate fee is paid directly to the CCC. This consent does not extend to other kinds of copying such as copying for general distribution, for advertising and promotional purposes, for creating new collective works or for resale. Special requests should be addressed to [email protected] , THE ROLE ON WOMEN IN INTELLIGENCE by Elizabeth P. Mcintosh The Iltih 01 8 series 01 monographs published by 'hi AtlOChulon of Former Intelligence Officers 6723 Whittier Avenue, Suite 303A McLean, Virginia 22101 (703) 790-0320 $1.50 Ine Association of Former Intelligence OfriceMi (AFl O) was formed In 1975 hy former intelligence personnel from the Federal military and (wilian intelhgen~e anl.l ~ecl,lrity agencies. Its purpose IS to promOte public understanding of, and support for, [I strong and responsible national Intelligence eSlablishment, AFI O believes that effective Intelligence is the nation's fiMi t line of defense against Sl,Irprise from abroad and subveMiion at home and is indispensible for our national leaders In the conduct of foreign and defense policy, AFI O Iherefore holds Ihal reliable IOleliigence is essential to the cause of peace. THE ROLE OF WOMEN In ,ts firsl yea~ AFIO was active in providing expert testimony to rommlltees of Congress which ",ere investigallng various aspects in national intelligence. With D IN INTELLIGENCE lessening of the amount of effort reqUired to pTQI.ide Congn:ss with object"'(:, expert leslimony, AFlO IS embarking on an edl,lcation project designed to pl'OVlde mlllenill which will support Ihe teaching of the subject In American 1,I""'(:Millles and college$ l 'h,~ series of monographs is one aspect of Ihal project. Elizabeth P. McI ntosh AFIO is independent and has no affiliation with the United SUItes Govemn',nt 1'l,Iblications of the Association. however, which could divulge sen~lIlve Inrurm~h"n regarding sources, me thodology and tecllniques, an: cleared WIth the proper dement t,1 tile inlelligence community, Clearance witll a gOI/emmenl clement merely .c"TI to sallsfy secunty requin:ments and does not COnsti tute substantive arprol,"1 t>~ tht element: In fact, AflO ,.ill not 3c«pt substantive direction, Opinions crpttUCd In t~ monographS are t!lose of the authOMi. nOt necessanl) those nf !he Gt>wmmc.u n, )( AFlO. Fl,ltl,lre editions of this series WIll address other sl,Ibjc:cts of cl,lm:nt ('MIKoIl tnlt'I'f"' t" the Uni ted Slates intelligence comml,lnity and the citizenry, Illese Will Il1Ilull~ lot If...,. W'dTning, estimates, the leg~1 and ethical bases for national Inleiligen l"(:, Ihe hl.tury u{ Inte ll igence Profession Series na tional inlelligence in lile United Stotes, comparisons With foreign ioC"'lft'a, wlit-II"I!, policy and Ille establishment of requirements. Number Five Olher pamphlets in Ihis series an:: TIle Clandestine Service of tile Cemral 1l1lelligence Agellc),. by Hans Moses NatiOllal Security alld 71,e First Amendment, by John S. Warner 71,e KGB: All IllstnmlC/l{ of Soviet Power, by Thomas Polgar Waming Intelligellce, by Cynthia M. Grabo The Association of Former InteJligcnce Offi cers Mclean, Virginia 1989 About tbe Autbor TIlE ROLE OF WOMEN IN INTELLIGENCE After graduation from the University of Washington, Elizabeth p. McIotosh became a newspaper writer and later' a columnist and Contents womeos' page editor for newspapers in Hawaii and San Francisco. On December 7, 1941, she was hired by Scripps Howard Newspapers to A Historical Survey 1 cover the Pearl Harbor attack and was assigned as war correspondent, Pacific Ocean Area, uoder Admiral Cbester Nimitz's command. Sbe Women Spies In The American Revolution 3 was later transferred to Washington, D.C. as White House correspondent and columnist for Scripps Howard's news fcatw'el. Women Spies In The Civil War 5 She joined the Office of Strategic Services in January of 1943, where Women In World War I 8 she conducted morale operations (MO) aga.iDst the J.pucIC in Burma; later she was reassigned to Kunming, China aDd IUpportcd Women In World War II 12 MO teams behind enemy lines. She received the tboIIor citIdoa (or her work. After VJ Day, she worked 00 the ass ChillI IaiItory (or the Women In The French Resistance 14 Joint Chiefs of Staff. Mcintosh was a radio wormadOD aped,!!., with Voice of America and then went on special "''en'''OaI with the Britain's Women Agents 19 Department of State to the United N.tiona to write apeecbea for delegates and cover ECOSOC and the CommiuioD oa Statw of Women of OSS 26 • Women. In 1952, she transferred to tbe 0IIke 01 Special Requirements to obtain by-line articlca from promiDeal AIDeric.ans for French Women With OSS 33 use in overseas information prOfP'UU; did liaiIoa WOC'k with congressional leaders, college bcada and mIPzinc and aewspaper British Women With OSS 34 editors. She served with the Central Intelligena: Agency from December 1958 until she retired in 1973. American Women Cited For OSS Operations 34 After retirement she worked at tbe Smithsonian in the public Women In The CIA 39 relations office, writing pamphlets and covering Smithsonian Institute activities for the inhouse newspaper. Bibliography 43 McIntosh is the author of Untkrco~r Girl, the story of women in OSS. She wrote two children's books, Inki, the story of a Seeing Eye Puppy and Palace Under The Sea, about underwater exploration off . Turkey. ii iii THE ROLE OF WOMEN IN INTELLIGENCE Acknowledgements A Historical Survey My appreciation to those who reviewed my manuscript for content The role of the spy, that clandestine agent who secretly observes and/or editorial consistency: Robert T. Crowley, Charles E. and reports, is as old as recorded history. A government controlled Cuningham, Geoffrey M. T. Jones, William M. Henboeffer , Edward F. civilian intelligence agency, keyed to national objectives, is relatively Sayle and John Taylor new. The participation of women as important operatives in organized espionage, is also new. Thanks are also due to WiUiam E. Colby for his very considerable assistance, to Gretchen Campbell for preparing tbe manuscript for Over the centuries there have been colorful, clever, drab, untrained, publication, and to all those sub·roSQ friends who also wish to remain dedicated women, aU engaged in gathering secret information. The so. more famous ones are still remembered. The Bible speaks of Deli1a.b. who betrayed Samson to the Philistines. Empress Wu Chao, A.D. 625- 70S, was tbe Hrst ruler in China to set up a sovereign-controlled secret service. Higb priestesses at Delphi in Greece are credited with passing on intelligence while supposedly in drug induced trances. The Byzantine Empress Theodora danced nude before her court while her spies worked the streets. The early run..af-th~mill Mala Haridans were not trained as they are today. They relied on sex, good sense and a woman's natural instinct to be devious when tbe situation called for covert action. Over the centuries tbeirs was a membership in a baphazard trade, more often than not a convenient merging of the first and second oldest professions. It was not until tbe sixteenth century that ground work was established for the formation of a secret service mechanism, the vestiges of whicb still operate in England today. Queen Elizabeth the First brought the art of espionage to an international · level with the belp and guidance of her principal secretary, Sir Francis Wa1singham. When she came to power in 1558, England was torn with religious dissent; the country faced a huge debt brought on by wars with France; tbe people were impoverished. At her death 45 years later, England had passed through one of the greatest periods in her history. She was united as a nation; sbe was establisbed as a flfst rate naval power in Europe; commerce and industry flourisbed; colonization of tbe New World had started. Women fa IateUigtnce 1 WOMEN SPIES Elizabeth's power base was a far reaching secret service network IN THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION that Walsingbam developed with her. Her ambassadors abroad were utilized as agents, and she established a supporting auache system to increase coverage. English coUege students were sent to European capitals to report on current events. Jesuit priests were subverted to The American colonies, which Elizabeth's great adventurers such as spy on political activities within their church. Third countries, such as Francis Drake and John Hawkins helped establish, iDheriled DO ltaly, were used as bases to mount subversive action against Elizabeth's regulated intelligence system when the revolutioD started. General arch enemy, Spain. Disinformation campaigns were developed that kept George Washington's espionage network was loose and amateurish. It the powerful Spanish armada from attacking England for at least a was an operation of expediency, based upon scraps of information year. The Queen used her Welsh astrologe~ and cryp'ographer, tendered by farmers. itinerant artisans, country women passing through Cambridge -educated John Dee, as an agent of influence m. the courts loosely-held lines in search of food. Their very anonymity permitted of Europe where astrological predictions could be subtley mterpreted them to enter enemy-held territory unobtrusively and return with for required results.
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