The link between multicultural countries and colonialism is extensive. Prior to the
Renaissance, the Catholic Church was the unifying force over Europe’s feudal kingdoms.
The Renaissance enlightened the masses to alternative ways of life to that of Catholicism,
and ultimately led to the Protestant Reformation. The Treaty of Westphalia brought an
end to the Thirty Years War, a final battle between the champions of Catholicism and
Protestantism. From that point forward, powerful nation states emerged in Europe that
evolved to imperialistic empires. These imperialistic European states came to dominate
weaker societies in Eastern Asia, the Middle East (which had previously been dominated
by the expansion of Islam), Africa, and Latin America. Russia in turn expanded into the