[WIP] Spies of the Roman Army

We are working on an episode to cover the history of the Speculatores, spies of the Roman army. Here is an excerpt from the script:

These agents appear to have been selected for service on the basis of their loyalty and discretion. They were likely recruited on an adhoc basis with little in the way of standardization. Afterall spies had been a feature of Roman warfare for quite a while and groups of Speculatores came in all sorts of shapes and sizes. It's only later on during the imperial era that we start to hear of the formalization of this institution. Supposedly there were 10 undercover agents attached to each legion with the individual spies reporting up through the regular chain of command.

In terms of what they did, our sources are replete with examples. This ranges from carrying messages, engaging in diplomacy, taking on sensitive missions, scouting, sabotaging, and spying. However there is some academic debate about this subject as the word “speculatores” ends up being used interchangeably in various contexts. This muddies the waters a bit and has led to confusion, for instance, about whether the people who acted as couriers and spies were one and the same or whether these were two distinct groups. However to get caught up in these semantics is likely a losing battle given the irregular nature of Rome’s intelligence operation which surely varied widely from time to time and place to place. For the purposes of this video we will focus mostly on the role of the Speculatores as spies.

So what exactly did this entail? Well, as with most spies across the ages, it was their objective to collect information about the enemy in a covert manner. The target in question could vary. For instance, a spy might be sent by a commander to learn about an individual, an army, a fortification, a city, or a region. The duration of their operation could also vary from a short term stint to a long term embedment. Whatever the case they would attempt to perform the infiltration discreetly. This almost always meant shedding any Roman military gear and donning some disguise. Their appearance would be like that of a chameleon. As the situation demanded, a Speculatores might take on the dress of a local, a merchant, a diplomat, a refugee, a deserter, or even an enemy soldier.

Thus disguised they would then begin their intelligence gathering operation.