Why were the Brits traditionally regarded as experts on intelligence?

>>3176116
Taking a wild guess here but I assume it was due to the ability for the British Empire to place/have agents wherever they were needed. The Empire ruled the seas and there were probably more British tourists in the world than anyone else prior to WWI due to their high living standard spurred by the industrial revolution. These factors could allow the Brits to move agents around and provide an easy alibi.

Currently reading about R. S. S. Baden-Powell and his 5-year stint for British Intelligence based out of Malta. He was easily able to disguise himself as a travelling artist of various disciplines and fool the Italians, Turks and French while witnessing and recording maneuvers and details of the their armed forces.

>>3176179
Are the British really that well traveled though? It seems to me that they mostly clustered in the westernised parts of colonies, and only the army really got around.

>>3176236

The upper and middle classes, who would be often the only ones to make it to the intelligence services were very well travelled typically and they still are.

>>3176236
That's how you know your intelligence arm is great, when no one suspects that the agents could be anywhere.

From what I hear nowadays, the Israeli's have the best intelligence force. This is definitely debatable but it seems like they are considered the best for having agents everywhere that are easy to hide amongst the general populace.

>>3176116
perfidious albion is the world leader in terms of secrecy and deception. No surprise there.

Tbqh I don't know. The more I read into espionage in WW2 the more layers are uncovered. For example the Germans knew the British had cracked the enigma code, but their system was so corrupt no one admitted it openly and it was enough of an obstacle and the cost of building new code machines and training everyone too great that it justified its continued use. Cracking it was an outstanding achievement though its effect is overinflated in meme history.

>>3176236
Not true at all, in fact when you look at the history of the British Empire it was almost solely created by merchants and businessmen with the military largely showing up when the businessmen needed a bit of back up.

>>3176303
>The enigma code is literally the only intelligence event in history

>>3176116
Not past ww2, their intelligence was pretty much useless during the whole cold war and constantly begging the cousins.
You just have to look at Philby to see the level of their failure.

>>3176116
The KGB have always been the best, even today they managed to put Donald Trump in the White House.

>>3176313
>examples should not be notable and familiar but obscure and show off your vast breadth of knowledge

>>3176357
>He doesnt even know about the long deception
KGB literally has fooled everyone into thinking the soviet union collapsed when in reality they did it on purpose still run russia

File: 816-119bd9bbf70c8087b739ad003636e7ce0a4a30a5.jpg (9KB, 155x192px) Image search: [Google]

9KB, 155x192px

Did somebody say...British Spies?

File: 7145d8b27a3845db88902aa43d94e819_18.jpg (35KB, 800x450px) Image search: [Google]

35KB, 800x450px

The British are strange and able to find their way into many places and situations.

>>3176357
KGB hasn't existed for over two decades brainlet. You're thinking of FSB.

>>3176116
They were very capable during ww2.

File: maxresdefault (2).jpg (197KB, 1920x1080px) Image search: [Google]

197KB, 1920x1080px

>>3176701
>KGB hasn't existed for over two decades brainlet

>>3176701

>KGB doesn't exist
>their top dogs just happen to rule to country and its businesses.

>>3176701
As KGB agent said during the 90's, "when new owners get in a house, the circuits are still the same as when the previous one was there".

>>3176307

That's arguably a contributing factor as to why they were so fucking good. The British Empire was the undisputed master of Soft Power. With the exception of the Boer War and Afghanistan, Brits always favored soft influence until control was certain.

Let's look at the pre-WW1 intelligence strategies of Germany vs. the UK.

>Kaiser Willy realizes that Islam is a potentially goat destablizing force in British holdings in Africa and Asia

>German intelligence jumps thouhj hoops arming, relocating, and distributing propaganda to potential dissidents

>such widespread subversion is inevitably discovered and manipulated by British intelligence. Framing German-backed Indian terrorists especially as foreign-backed insurgents ironically makes India more loyal to the crown than it ever would be otherwise.

>British Empire realizes Germany is trying to undermine it's shit. Gets 1 agent in Austria-Hungary to leak cables and documents to Russia that frame Germany and Austria as inevitable aggressors, thus bringing Russia into the Entente

>>3176307
In this regard can it be concluded that financial hegemony comes first in regards towards the military and political aspects of a hegemony and that said aspects only truely matter when they exist to support the generation of wealth (and therefore stability) for a society?

Cross reference with the USA as a Superpower. A nation that was militarily unremarkable for a long time on the world stage and only really ascended to super power status when they turned their financial machine up by 11 during the second world war. All the while Britain ruining themselves on the Germs and the Japs until their Empire started costing more than it produced.

Also in regards to the USSR which was not able to outcompete the US or provide financial stability for its allies and citizens, having to rely on hard military power within their hegemony (see; hungary).

>>3179368

Tbf, the US was an economic superpower by WW1, we had a higher GDP than most of the European Empires combined. You're not wrong though, our armed forces were fucking laughable until '42 with the exception or our navy, which supplanted the Royal Nacy in all aspects save Merchant-Marine by the 1930s.

>>3179343
>>With the exception of the Boer War and Afghanistan, Brits always favored soft influence until control was certain.
>what is Burma

>>3179390

Oy vey. I forgot something. How will I ever recover?

>>3176303
>the Germans knew the British had cracked the enigma code, but their system was so corrupt no one admitted it openly and it was enough of an obstacle and the cost of building new code machines and training everyone too great that it justified its continued use
do you have a source on this

>>3179343
>With the exception of the Boer War and Afghanistan, Brits always favored soft influence until control was certain.

This is why I don't understand the way people act like the British empire was some sort of military juggernaut that razed all in its path.

>>3179675

Because they were very good at picking their battles, deciding how those battles should be fought, and then using those victories as propaganda.

Tbf though, the Royal Navy and Britain's Merchant-Marine were unmatched until the WW2 US

File: IMG_0403.jpg (64KB, 600x448px) Image search: [Google]

64KB, 600x448px

They just have good planning, like in the early 1900s they realized there might be a big war in the future so they laid extra telegraph sea cables with back up. roundabout connections to thier allies and territories. When ww2 happened the German cables were cut early while the British lines lasted throughout the war.
.
No one had better intel then Stalin era ussr though. like they had spies in Japan, so they knew they weren't going to attack so he was able to pull his Far East divisions to fight hilter.
And the biggest Intell fuck up of the last 200 years was letting a Russian spy get the nuker bomb plans in the 50s. USSR was able to brainwash so many retarded idealistic commies/REDs, so they had a natural advantage though. The reds had access to the highest lvls of British intell forever too.

>>3179716
Didn't the same spy in Japan also went to brothels and shit and Stalin called him out on it when he tried explaining Germany was preparing an invasion?

>>3179675
Oh please. What were the opium wars? What was the take over of India? And don't pretend the East Indian company was exclusive outside of British troops

>>3179379
That just provides more evidence for my point doesnt it? It seems almost logical in hindsight (which is a fallacy I know). As Britain fell on its own blade we saw the US intact and expanding. It was strong and stable and its form of government that provided the stability became the new standard.

Sea power was vital to any would-be power and its financial empire. Controlling the world's shipping lanes is important for any hegemon on the rise.

File: IMG_0397.jpg (104KB, 600x399px) Image search: [Google]

104KB, 600x399px

>>3179716
When ww2 happened the German cables were cut early while the British lines lasted throughout the war.
That should read ww1