History of Catholicism and Protestantism in Russia
The number of Catholics is about 300-500 thousand, Protestants - 400-1,000 thousands. Catholicism is traditionally professed in the western areas of Russia. The spread of Catholicism began in the beginning of the 19th century after annexation of the Polish and Belarusian lands. Protestantism emerged in Russia in the 16th century and spread in the 18th – 19th centuries, when the country was flooded with immigrants from Germany.
Within Protestantism Lutheranism stands out: the German Evangelical Lutheran Church is the largest Lutheran church in Russia (of about 300 parishes).
There are also Lutherans, Baptists, Seventh Day Adventists, Pentecostals, Jehovah's Witnesses and others. Currently the number of adherents of these movements is insignificant.
