Professionalizing clandestine military intelligence in Northern Ireland: creating the Special Reconnaissance Unit

摘要

This article explains the origins of the British Army's covert counter-insurgency intelligence efforts in Northern Ireland, and shows how the army professionalized its approach to clandestine intelligence collection there. It traces the pre-1969 precedents for covert collection. It also shows that the early ad hoc efforts proved insufficient and problematic; some collection operations were exposed and compromised. Thus, the army decided to 'professionalize' the clandestine collection of intelligence, and created a special body-the Special Reconnaissance Unit-to handle the task. This laid the foundations for later intelligence successes and for current army intelligence doctrine.