The efficacy of Ottoman counter-intelligence in the 16th century

Gürkan, Emrah (2012) The efficacy of Ottoman counter-intelligence in the 16th century. Acta Orientalia, 65 (1). pp. 1-38. ISSN 0001-6446

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Abstract

This article examines the Ottoman counter-intelligence mechanism and the extent to which it succeeded in preventing enemy intelligence. In the 16th century, the length and the scope of both Ottoman-Habsburg and the Ottoman Safavid Rivalry convinced the Ottomans to establish an intelligence network that gathered information in a large geography. Nevertheless, in the war of information between the Ottomans and their rivals, the success of Ottoman information-gathering was intertwined with the efficiency of Ottoman counter-intelligence. In order to gain an advantage in “politics of information”, the Ottoman secret diplomacy successfully refused its enemies a comfort which it sought for itself: access to information about the adversary.

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