The Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division, better known by its acronym S.H.I.E.L.D., is an American extra-governmental counter-terrorism and intelligence agency tasked with maintaining both national and global security
Founded in the wake of the Allied victory over the Axis powers and Hydra during World War II, S.H.I.E.L.D. was organized to protect the United States from all possible threats. With its advanced weapons and extraordinary agents, S.H.I.E.L.D. was maybe the greatest military power on Earth. Following his encounter with Captain Marvel, S.H.I.E.L.D. was run by Nick Fury and the World Security Council in the modern age; S.H.I.E.L.D. had to deal with the significant rise in enhanced individuals, dangerous advanced technology, and alien contact. But all the problems that S.H.I.E.L.D. had to solve eventually led to the formation of the Avengers, initially a response team that was recruited to save the world during the alien invasion of Earth in 2012. The agency became publicly known after the Battle of New York, partially because of the Rising Tide website
In 2014, through the actions of Black Widow and Nick Fury, the world became aware of the fact that S.H.I.E.L.D. was infiltrated and largely controlled by Hydra. After the battle in which S.H.I.E.L.D.'s primary headquarters, the Triskelion, was heavily damaged, all of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s classified files were dumped on the Internet, and the agency was disavowed by the United States government and labeled a terrorist organization. Many S.H.I.E.L.D. officials were taken into custody and subjected to rigorous questioning. However, despite the massive manhunt on S.H.I.E.L.D.'s agents, a few operatives scattered across the world in most secret bases remained loyal to their oath, saving the most necessary technology for future use. But the team most responsible for the survival of S.H.I.E.L.D. was the team of Agent Phil Coulson, who valiantly led his teammates against the forces of Hydra led by the traitors John Garrett and Grant Ward, winning the battle in which Garrett's plan ultimately failed. After that battle, Fury appointed Phil Coulson as the new director of S.H.I.E.L.D. and tasked him with rebuilding the agency from scratch, becoming a shadow para-policial agency
