Information, Spies, and Secrecy in a 12th Century Arabic Military Treatise

Authors

  • George Narimanishvili Free University of Tbilisi
  • Davit Beradze Free University of Tbilisi

Keywords:

history, Middle East, military treatise, intelligence, al-Harawi.

Abstract

Since ancient times, information has been one of the most valuable bargaining products. Throughout history, large and small states, various organizations, and groups have waged a relentless battle to obtain information vital to them. Along with high-profile war battles and diplomatic negotiations, there was always a secret, behind-the-scenes war waged by people unknown to the general public. Considering the secrecy of the mentioned activities, manuals were not written very often regarding the mentioned issues. However, in the military-political works created throughout history, some information still appeared. One such example is the 12th-century Muslim author al-Harawi’s work, Al-Harawi’s Treatise on Military Tricks. It is noteworthy that the author worked during the era of the famous Muslim Sultan and commander-in-chief, Salah al-Din Ayyub, and probably performed secret missions for him. Al-Harawi’s work coincided with such important events as the capture of Jerusalem by Salah al-Din and the Third Crusade. It is natural that during such a global conflict, intelligence activities and covert battles were of great importance. Opposing parties tried by all means to obtain information about the enemy and its plans, form secret coalitions, and gain the favor or obedience of the local population in order to win a strategic advantage and strengthen their own positions.

In his work, al-Harawi mainly discusses military-political issues, although he also emphasizes the importance of intelligence activities to some extent. According to the author, every government should have a well-organized intelligence network through which it will receive important information and influence the population. Also, according to al-Harawi, the governor should carefully approach any kind of information so that no important issue is left without attention. In addition, the governor should carefully analyze and reconcile the information received and act only after a deep study and analysis of all data. Based on his experience working in the conditions of global geopolitical confrontation and his own secret activities, al-Harawi is distinguished by his deep knowledge of the issue, pragmatism, and realistic approaches.

Published

2024-12-24

How to Cite

Narimanishvili, George, and Davit Beradze. 2024. “Information, Spies, and Secrecy in a 12th Century Arabic Military Treatise”. Free University Journal of Asian Studies, no. 6 (December). Tbilisi. https://journals.org.ge/index.php/asianstudies/article/view/176.

Issue

Section

ARTICLES