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Missionary DiplomacyMissionary Diplomacy illuminates the crucial place of religion in nineteenth-century American diplomacy. From the 1810s through the 1920s, Protestant missionaries positioned themselves as key experts in the development of American relations in Asia, Africa, the Pacific, and the Middle East. Missionaries served as consuls, translators, and occasional trouble-makers who forced the State Department to take actions it otherwise would have avoided. Yet as decades passed, more Americans began to question the propriety of missionaries’ power. Were missionaries serving the interests of American diplomacy? Or were they creating unnecessary problems?
As Emily Conroy-Krutz demonstrates, they were doing both. Across the century, missionaries forced the government to articulate new conceptions of the rights of US citizens abroad and of the role of the US as an engine of humanitarianism and religious freedom. By the time the US entered the first world war, missionary diplomacy had for nearly a century created the conditions for some Americans to embrace a vision of their country as an internationally engaged world power. Missionary Diplomacy exposes the longstanding influence of evangelical missions on the shape of American foreign relations. Missionary Diplomacy was published by Cornell University Press in March 2024. Order your copy here.
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Reviews
"In this brilliant and captivating book, Emily Conroy-Krutz masterfully weaves together diplomatic and missionary history, showing that we cannot understand one without the other. Missionary Diplomacy is one of the most important books on religion and foreign policy produced in a generation."
-Matthew A. Sutton, Washington State University, Author of Double Crossed
"In this brilliant, fascinating new book, Emily Conroy-Krutz illustrates the different ways "missionary intelligence" brought Americans to the world, and the world to Americans, during the nineteenth century. Missionary Diplomacy will instantly become an authoritative guide to understanding how American religion and American foreign relations shaped each other."
-Andrew Preston, Cambridge University, author of Sword of the Spirit, Shield of Faith
"Offering a formidable survey of interactions between US missionaries and the US government in the nineteenth century, Missionary Diplomacy is a major achievement."
-Ian Tyrrell, author of American Exceptionalism
"Impressive. With stories and anecdotes of missionaries from all around the world, Missionary Diplomacy convincingly demonstrates the inextricable connection of Protestant Christian missionaries and American foreign policy in the nineteenth century. This is essential reading on the history of United States foreign relations."
-Spencer W. McBride, author of Joseph Smith for President
"In her outstanding second book, Emily Conroy-Krutz tackles the question of how scholars can make sense of the relationship between US Protestant missions and US foreign affairs in the nineteenth century.... The book makes a strong argument that a deeper understanding of the history of US Protestant missions is gained by carefully incorporating the history of US foreign affairs—and vice versa. Conroy-Krutz shows in vivid detail how these two histories were in fact deeply intertwined, shaping each other’s course over the span of the century. The book is firmly grounded in stories from the archive and the numerous accounts—of missionaries and presidents, military officers and sultans, prisoners and patients, kidnappers, interpreters, scholars, and diplomatic agents— make the book an enjoyable read."
-Ingie Hovland in Journal of Contemporary Religion
"Drawing on a wealth of sources—diplomatic correspondence, records of such organizations as the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions and of individual missionaries, and contemporary Christian and secular periodicals—Conroy-Krutz demonstrates that one cannot understand the growth of US diplomacy beyond Europe and Latin America without reference to the missionary enterprise."
-Robert Shaffer in Christian Century
"Missionary Diplomacy is clearly a must read for students of diplomatic history.... She also intervenes in several of the most salient conversations in the fields of US religious history and religious studies more broadly. By weaving these materials together so skillfully, Conroy-Krutz demonstrates conclusively the enduring connections between US faith and foreign relations."
-Heather Curtis in Diplomatic History
"Missionary Diplomacy is one of those unique books that straddles multiple domains in a broadly erudite manner while still succeeding at being readable, thought-provoking, and leaving the reader with a better grasp of a meaningful swathe of history."
-Zachariah Motts in Religion
"Providing a well-balanced assessment of missionaries and their work is a challenging task, but Emily Conroy-Krutz manages to do it successfully in Missionary Diplomacy, which is a painstakingly researched and clearly written history of the shifting relationship between US missionaries and the US government from the early 1800s to 1920."
-Clifford Putney in Journal of Religious History
Overall, Missionary Diplomacy adds needed complexity to the study of nineteenth-century Protestant missions and Western imperialism while also rounding out the twentieth-century focused work of scholars such as David Hollinger and Matthew Sutton. The book is a truly global study examining the American presence in China, Korea, the Ottoman Empire, the Congo, Cuba, the Philippines, and beyond. … Missionary Diplomacy is an excellent addition to the field of American religion and foreign relations and will be a certain benchmark for future scholarship.-James Strasburg in Journal of Church and State
In sum, Conroy-Krutz has written an important book that fills a critical gap in our knowledge. Her emphasis on primary sources, accessible prose style, and engaging storytelling make the book a pleasure to read.
-John Haddad in Church History
Missionary Diplomacy will be valuable to a wide range of scholars, including those of religion, government, and economics. Explaining how missionaries augmented the U.S.’s diplomatic weakness helps us understand how their significance in American history transcends evangelism.
-Joseph Slaughter in Journal of the Early Republic
-Matthew A. Sutton, Washington State University, Author of Double Crossed
"In this brilliant, fascinating new book, Emily Conroy-Krutz illustrates the different ways "missionary intelligence" brought Americans to the world, and the world to Americans, during the nineteenth century. Missionary Diplomacy will instantly become an authoritative guide to understanding how American religion and American foreign relations shaped each other."
-Andrew Preston, Cambridge University, author of Sword of the Spirit, Shield of Faith
"Offering a formidable survey of interactions between US missionaries and the US government in the nineteenth century, Missionary Diplomacy is a major achievement."
-Ian Tyrrell, author of American Exceptionalism
"Impressive. With stories and anecdotes of missionaries from all around the world, Missionary Diplomacy convincingly demonstrates the inextricable connection of Protestant Christian missionaries and American foreign policy in the nineteenth century. This is essential reading on the history of United States foreign relations."
-Spencer W. McBride, author of Joseph Smith for President
"In her outstanding second book, Emily Conroy-Krutz tackles the question of how scholars can make sense of the relationship between US Protestant missions and US foreign affairs in the nineteenth century.... The book makes a strong argument that a deeper understanding of the history of US Protestant missions is gained by carefully incorporating the history of US foreign affairs—and vice versa. Conroy-Krutz shows in vivid detail how these two histories were in fact deeply intertwined, shaping each other’s course over the span of the century. The book is firmly grounded in stories from the archive and the numerous accounts—of missionaries and presidents, military officers and sultans, prisoners and patients, kidnappers, interpreters, scholars, and diplomatic agents— make the book an enjoyable read."
-Ingie Hovland in Journal of Contemporary Religion
"Drawing on a wealth of sources—diplomatic correspondence, records of such organizations as the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions and of individual missionaries, and contemporary Christian and secular periodicals—Conroy-Krutz demonstrates that one cannot understand the growth of US diplomacy beyond Europe and Latin America without reference to the missionary enterprise."
-Robert Shaffer in Christian Century
"Missionary Diplomacy is clearly a must read for students of diplomatic history.... She also intervenes in several of the most salient conversations in the fields of US religious history and religious studies more broadly. By weaving these materials together so skillfully, Conroy-Krutz demonstrates conclusively the enduring connections between US faith and foreign relations."
-Heather Curtis in Diplomatic History
"Missionary Diplomacy is one of those unique books that straddles multiple domains in a broadly erudite manner while still succeeding at being readable, thought-provoking, and leaving the reader with a better grasp of a meaningful swathe of history."
-Zachariah Motts in Religion
"Providing a well-balanced assessment of missionaries and their work is a challenging task, but Emily Conroy-Krutz manages to do it successfully in Missionary Diplomacy, which is a painstakingly researched and clearly written history of the shifting relationship between US missionaries and the US government from the early 1800s to 1920."
-Clifford Putney in Journal of Religious History
Overall, Missionary Diplomacy adds needed complexity to the study of nineteenth-century Protestant missions and Western imperialism while also rounding out the twentieth-century focused work of scholars such as David Hollinger and Matthew Sutton. The book is a truly global study examining the American presence in China, Korea, the Ottoman Empire, the Congo, Cuba, the Philippines, and beyond. … Missionary Diplomacy is an excellent addition to the field of American religion and foreign relations and will be a certain benchmark for future scholarship.-James Strasburg in Journal of Church and State
In sum, Conroy-Krutz has written an important book that fills a critical gap in our knowledge. Her emphasis on primary sources, accessible prose style, and engaging storytelling make the book a pleasure to read.
-John Haddad in Church History
Missionary Diplomacy will be valuable to a wide range of scholars, including those of religion, government, and economics. Explaining how missionaries augmented the U.S.’s diplomatic weakness helps us understand how their significance in American history transcends evangelism.
-Joseph Slaughter in Journal of the Early Republic
Video and Podcast
Center for Presidential History, Southern Methodist University: "Missionary Diplomacy"
Dolan Seminar at the Cushwa Center, University of Notre Dame. Commentary by Dr. Heather Curtis and Dr. Amy Greenberg
C-SPAN: "Missionary Diplomacy in the 19th Century" with Dr. Ronald Angelo Johnson, Dr. Ben Wright, Dr. Gale Kenny, Dr. Melissa Borja, and Dr. Andrew Preston
Congregational Library: Emily Conroy-Krutz on her book Missionary Diplomacy
History of Christianity Podcast: "Missionary Diplomacy"
Gilded Age and Progressive Era Podcast: “Missionary Diplomacy”
New Books Network Podcasts: “New Books in Diplomatic History: Missionary Diplomacy”
Unsung History Podcast: “Foreign Missionaries and American Diplomacy in the 19th Century”
Common Threads, WGVU Radio: “Emily Conroy-Krutz: Missionary Diplomacy,” 2 parts (February 26, March 4)
Dolan Seminar at the Cushwa Center, University of Notre Dame. Commentary by Dr. Heather Curtis and Dr. Amy Greenberg
C-SPAN: "Missionary Diplomacy in the 19th Century" with Dr. Ronald Angelo Johnson, Dr. Ben Wright, Dr. Gale Kenny, Dr. Melissa Borja, and Dr. Andrew Preston
Congregational Library: Emily Conroy-Krutz on her book Missionary Diplomacy
History of Christianity Podcast: "Missionary Diplomacy"
Gilded Age and Progressive Era Podcast: “Missionary Diplomacy”
New Books Network Podcasts: “New Books in Diplomatic History: Missionary Diplomacy”
Unsung History Podcast: “Foreign Missionaries and American Diplomacy in the 19th Century”
Common Threads, WGVU Radio: “Emily Conroy-Krutz: Missionary Diplomacy,” 2 parts (February 26, March 4)