--- title: "Josiah Strong — APUSH Definition & Exam Guide" description: "Josiah Strong was the clergyman whose 1885 book Our Country used Anglo-Saxon racial theory and religion to justify U.S. expansion, a core imperialist argument in Topic 7.2." canonical: "https://fiveable.me/apush/key-terms/josiah-strong" type: "key-term" subject: "AP US History" unit: "Unit 7" --- # Josiah Strong — APUSH Definition & Exam Guide ## Definition Josiah Strong was an American Protestant clergyman whose 1885 book Our Country argued that Anglo-Saxons were racially and religiously destined to spread their civilization worldwide, giving U.S. imperialism in the 1890s a moral and racial justification (APUSH Topic 7.2). ## What It Is Josiah Strong was a Congregationalist minister who became one of the loudest intellectual cheerleaders for American expansion. In his 1885 bestseller *Our Country*, he claimed the Anglo-Saxon "race" was God's chosen instrument for civilizing the world, and that the United States, with its supposedly superior institutions and Protestant [Christianity](/apush/unit-1/european-exploration-americas/study-guide/4Xo0Z9vsVo97AfHCtNzM "fv-autolink"), had a duty to spread both across the globe. In other words, he took [Manifest Destiny](/apush/unit-5/manifest-destiny/study-guide/QCAKf0AWBCPTgZHZtUPD "fv-autolink"), which had pointed west across the continent, and aimed it overseas. For the AP exam, Strong is your go-to example of the **racial and religious justifications** for imperialism. The CED (KC-7.3.I.A) says imperialists cited economic opportunities, racial theories, competition with European empires, and the "closed" frontier to argue America was destined to expand. Strong is the face of the racial-theory piece. Where [Alfred Thayer Mahan](/apush/key-terms/alfred-thayer-mahan "fv-autolink") made the strategic case for empire, Strong made the moral one, framing conquest as a civilizing mission rather than a land grab. ## Why It Matters Strong lives in **[Unit 7](/apush/unit-7 "fv-autolink"), Topic 7.2 (Imperialism: Debates)** and supports learning objective **[APUSH](/apush "fv-autolink") 7.2.A**, which asks you to explain similarities and differences in attitudes about America's proper role in the world. That objective is built around the imperialist vs. anti-imperialist debate of the 1890s, and Strong is one of the cleanest pieces of evidence for the imperialist side. He shows that expansion wasn't sold only as good business or smart strategy. It was sold as destiny. Naming Strong and *Our Country* lets you put a specific person, text, and date behind the phrase "racial theories" from KC-7.3.I.A, which is exactly the kind of specific evidence that earns points on essays. He also connects to the America in the World theme, since his ideas shaped how Americans justified taking the Philippines, Puerto Rico, and other territories after 1898. ## Connections ### [Alfred Thayer Mahan (Unit 7)](/apush/key-terms/alfred-thayer-mahan) Mahan and Strong are the two big pro-imperialism thinkers you should know as a pair. Mahan's The Influence of Sea Power upon History (1890) made the military-economic case for empire (build a navy, grab coaling stations), while Strong made the racial-religious case. Same conclusion, different logic, and the exam loves asking you to tell those justifications apart. ### [Closed frontier (Unit 7)](/apush/key-terms/closed-frontier) The 1890 census declared the [Western frontier](/apush/unit-7/imperialism-debates/study-guide/XQhEsqd89b8yG7yqh4dK "fv-autolink") closed, and the CED lists this perception as one of the drivers of imperialism. Strong's argument fed off the same anxiety. If Anglo-Saxon civilization could no longer expand westward at home, his answer was to expand outward across the oceans. ### [Anti-Imperialist League (Unit 7)](/apush/key-terms/anti-imperialist-league) Strong is one half of the debate that LO 7.2.A is built on. [Anti-imperialists](/apush/key-terms/anti-imperialists "fv-autolink") pushed back with self-determination and the isolationist tradition (KC-7.3.I.B), and some even used racial arguments of their own, claiming nonwhite peoples shouldn't be absorbed into the U.S. Knowing Strong gives you the "for" side of a contrast essay; the League gives you the "against." ### Manifest Destiny (Unit 5) Strong is basically Manifest Destiny 2.0. The 1840s version justified continental expansion to the [Pacific](/apush/unit-7/context-20th-century-global-conflicts/study-guide/4AKsCOPpRLPL2usRPyD6 "fv-autolink"); Strong's 1885 version repackaged the same God-given-mission logic for overseas empire. This is a perfect continuity-and-change link across periods, exactly the kind of cross-unit move DBQs and LEQs reward. ## On the AP Exam Strong typically shows up in multiple-choice stimulus questions built around an excerpt from *Our Country*, where you have to identify the argument (Anglo-Saxon superiority, civilizing duty) and connect it to the broader push for imperialism in the 1890s. You won't be asked to recite his biography. You need to recognize his reasoning and place it in context. No released FRQ requires Strong by name, but he's high-value evidence for any essay on imperialism debates, the justifications for the Spanish-American War, or continuity between Manifest Destiny and overseas expansion. A strong essay move is pairing him with Mahan to show imperialism had both moral and strategic salesmen, or contrasting him with the Anti-Imperialist League to hit a comparison prompt. ## Josiah Strong vs Alfred Thayer Mahan Both pushed America toward empire in the 1880s-90s, so they blur together fast. Keep them straight by their logic. Mahan was a naval officer arguing from strategy and economics (sea power, naval bases, trade routes). Strong was a minister arguing from race and religion (Anglo-Saxon superiority, Christian duty to civilize). If the excerpt talks about navies and commerce, it's Mahan; if it talks about God, race, and destiny, it's Strong. ## Key Takeaways - Josiah Strong was a Protestant clergyman whose 1885 book Our Country argued that Anglo-Saxons were divinely destined to spread American civilization and Christianity worldwide. - He is the AP exam's prime example of the racial theories that KC-7.3.I.A lists as a justification imperialists used for overseas expansion. - Strong made the moral and religious case for empire, while Alfred Thayer Mahan made the strategic and naval case; together they cover the main imperialist arguments. - His ideas extended Manifest Destiny logic overseas, making him a strong continuity link between Unit 5 westward expansion and Unit 7 imperialism. - Strong's arguments helped Americans justify acquiring territories like the Philippines and Puerto Rico after the Spanish-American War as a civilizing mission rather than conquest. ## FAQs ### What did Josiah Strong believe? Strong believed the Anglo-Saxon "race" was God's chosen agent for civilizing the world, and that the United States had a religious duty to spread its institutions and Protestant Christianity globally. He laid this out in his 1885 book Our Country. ### Was Josiah Strong an imperialist or anti-imperialist? Imperialist, firmly. He's one of the main intellectual figures the CED's imperialist side (KC-7.3.I.A) is built around, supplying the racial and religious justification for expansion. Anti-imperialists like the Anti-Imperialist League argued the opposite, citing self-determination and isolationism. ### How is Josiah Strong different from Alfred Thayer Mahan? Strong was a minister who justified empire with race and religion; Mahan was a naval officer who justified it with sea power and trade. On a stimulus question, religious destiny language points to Strong, while naval bases and commerce point to Mahan. ### What was Our Country by Josiah Strong? Our Country (1885) was Strong's bestselling book claiming Anglo-Saxons were destined to dominate the globe and that America should lead that expansion. It became a key text fueling the imperialist movement of the 1890s. ### Did Josiah Strong cause the Spanish-American War? No, but his ideas shaped the climate that made the 1898 war and the annexations after it feel justified to many Americans. Think of him as supplying the ideology, not the trigger; yellow journalism, the Maine explosion, and Cuban revolt did that. ## Related Study Guides - [7.2 Imperialism: Debates](/apush/unit-7/imperialism-debates/study-guide/XQhEsqd89b8yG7yqh4dK) ## Structured Data ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"LearningResource","@id":"https://fiveable.me/apush/key-terms/josiah-strong#resource","name":"Josiah Strong — APUSH Definition & Exam Guide","url":"https://fiveable.me/apush/key-terms/josiah-strong","learningResourceType":"Concept explainer","educationalLevel":"AP® / High School","about":{"@id":"https://fiveable.me/apush/key-terms/josiah-strong#term"},"audience":{"@type":"EducationalAudience","educationalRole":"student"},"dateModified":"2026-06-11T05:27:30.131Z","isPartOf":{"@type":"Collection","name":"AP US History Key Terms","url":"https://fiveable.me/apush/key-terms"},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Fiveable","url":"https://fiveable.me"}},{"@type":"DefinedTerm","@id":"https://fiveable.me/apush/key-terms/josiah-strong#term","name":"Josiah Strong","description":"Josiah Strong was an American Protestant clergyman whose 1885 book Our Country argued that Anglo-Saxons were racially and religiously destined to spread their civilization worldwide, giving U.S. imperialism in the 1890s a moral and racial justification (APUSH Topic 7.2).","url":"https://fiveable.me/apush/key-terms/josiah-strong","inDefinedTermSet":{"@type":"DefinedTermSet","name":"AP US History Key Terms","url":"https://fiveable.me/apush/key-terms"}},{"@type":"FAQPage","mainEntity":[{"@type":"Question","name":"What did Josiah Strong believe?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"Strong believed the Anglo-Saxon \"race\" was God's chosen agent for civilizing the world, and that the United States had a religious duty to spread its institutions and Protestant Christianity globally. 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