What if spies weren’t expected to spy? On the recruitment of Cosimo I de’ Medici’s intelligence agents in France
Nevejans, Pierre
What if spies weren’t expected to spy? On the recruitment of Cosimo I de’ Medici’s intelligence agents in France - 2023.
28
Studies on intelligence and espionage have undergone a significant revival in recent years, in the wake of the more innovative works on the history of diplomacy. Today, as in the case of diplomacy, the challenge is to redefine the contours of what we call espionage and intelligence. This paper proposes, through examining the case of the spies recruited by the Florentines sent to France by the Duke of Florence, Cosimo I de’ Medici, such a redefinition. It explores the role of spies in diplomatic agents’ networks, rejecting the idea that they had to be isolated and hidden figures. On the contrary, some spies, such as the Gazzettis, a brother and sister in the service of Piero Strozzi, the sworn enemy of Cosimo I de’ Medici and Queen Catherine de’ Medici, his cousin, were known to all the agents operating freely on foreign soil, to the extent that one might wonder whether they were really expected to spy or to carry out more diverse functions. Recruitment methods for these agents, but also the relationships they maintained over time with their recruiters, show the social and political mechanisms surrounding espionage, beyond the fantastic image espionage creates in our collective imaginary.
What if spies weren’t expected to spy? On the recruitment of Cosimo I de’ Medici’s intelligence agents in France - 2023.
28
Studies on intelligence and espionage have undergone a significant revival in recent years, in the wake of the more innovative works on the history of diplomacy. Today, as in the case of diplomacy, the challenge is to redefine the contours of what we call espionage and intelligence. This paper proposes, through examining the case of the spies recruited by the Florentines sent to France by the Duke of Florence, Cosimo I de’ Medici, such a redefinition. It explores the role of spies in diplomatic agents’ networks, rejecting the idea that they had to be isolated and hidden figures. On the contrary, some spies, such as the Gazzettis, a brother and sister in the service of Piero Strozzi, the sworn enemy of Cosimo I de’ Medici and Queen Catherine de’ Medici, his cousin, were known to all the agents operating freely on foreign soil, to the extent that one might wonder whether they were really expected to spy or to carry out more diverse functions. Recruitment methods for these agents, but also the relationships they maintained over time with their recruiters, show the social and political mechanisms surrounding espionage, beyond the fantastic image espionage creates in our collective imaginary.
Réseaux sociaux