What was the Hanseatic League and what did it do?
In 1356, the Hanseatic League was officially organized. For about 400 years, the Hanseatic League dominated commercial shipping in the Baltic Sea. At their height, they contained more than 70 towns, controlled their own military, set their own trade tariffs, and for a while even had their own parliament.
What is Hanseatic?
Hanse, later spelled as Hansa, was the Old High German word for a convoy, and this word was applied to bands of merchants traveling between the Hanseatic cities whether by land or by sea.
What is the best book on the Hanseatic League?
Harrison, Gordon. "The Hanseatic League in Historical Interpretation." The Historian 33 (1971): 385–97. doi: 10.1111/j.1540-6563.1971.tb01514.x. Szepesi, Istvan. "Reflecting the Nation: The Historiography of Hanseatic Institutions." Waterloo Historical Review 7 (2015). online Chief cities shown in smallcaps.
What is the Hansa League?
The league had a fluid structure, but its members shared some characteristics; most of the Hansa cities either started as independent cities or gained independence through the collective bargaining power of the league, though such independence remained limited.
What does the word Hanseatic mean?
A medieval merchant guild or trade association. [Middle English, from Old French, from Middle Low German, from Old High German hansa, military troop.] han′se·at′ic (hăn′sē-ăt′ĭk) adj.
What does Hanseatic League mean in history?
Hanseatic League, also called Hansa, German Hanse, organization founded by north German towns and German merchant communities abroad to protect their mutual trading interests. The league dominated commercial activity in northern Europe from the 13th to the 15th century.
What do the Hanseatic cities refer to?
Definition. The Hanseatic League (also known as Hansa, Hanse, 1356-1862 CE) was a federation of north German towns and cities formed in the 12th century CE to facilitate trade and protect mutual interests.
What countries were part of the Hanseatic League?
Hanseatic LeagueHanseatic League Hanse HansaCapitalLübeckLingua francaMiddle Low GermanMembershipVarious cities across the Baltic regionToday part ofGermany Netherlands Poland Russia Norway Sweden Denmark Latvia Estonia2 more rows
Why is Kings Lynn a Hanseatic town?
By the 13th century King's Lynn was one of the country's foremost ports. The town attracted traders from the Hanseatic League, a group of German cities whose ships travelled together in convoys for safety, especially against pirates.
What does Hansa mean in German?
Definition of Hansa 1 : a league originally constituted of merchants of various free German cities dealing abroad in the medieval period and later of the cities themselves and organized to secure greater safety and privileges in trading. 2 : a medieval merchant guild or trading association.
Is Munich a Hanseatic city?
Berlin, Cologne, Munich, and Hamburg usually top the list for most visits to Germany, but considering that half of the 80 cities in Germany have less than 200,000 people, sticking to the big cities means missing quite a lot of what Germany is really like.
Was England part of the Hanseatic League?
English towns and cities were never a formal part of the Hanseatic League. Even in medieval times English merchants were semi-detached from the dominant European network of the day.
Was the Hanseatic League in the Holy Roman Empire?
The Hanseatic League was an alliance between merchant guilds and related cities in several states of the Holy Roman Empire that were established around the Baltic Sea.
Was Gdansk a Hanseatic city?
Gdansk Old Town is one of the best examples of hanseatic cities. From 1361 or 1363 Gdansk was Hanseatic League member. Hanseatic League became one of the most powerfull players in Northern Europe in 14th century.
How many cities were in the Hanseatic League?
In the mid-thirteenth century, North German seafaring merchants joined together to form the Hanseatic League as a way to pursue their shared economic interests. Throughout the North Sea and Baltic Sea region, up to 200 towns and cities were members of the League, as were several large trading houses.
How many cities were represented at the last meeting of the Hanseatic towns?
In July 1669 the last Hanseatic day took place in Lübeck, with only 9 delegates. Changed economic structures and the barely developed politically power structures were the demise of the Hanseatic League.
What is the Hanseatic League?
Hanseatic League, also called Hansa, German Hanse, organization founded by north German towns and German merchant communities abroad to protect their mutual trading interests. The league dominated commercial activity in northern Europe from the 13th to the 15th century. ( Hanse was a medieval German word for “guild,” ...
What was the law of Lübeck?
By 1265 all towns having the “law of Lübeck ” had agreed on common legislation for the defense of merchants and their goods. Strong in their control of the Baltic trade, Lübeck, Danzig, Riga, and their satellites forced their way into the west. They entered areas where Rhineland merchants had formerly been dominant, secured for themselves the privileges formerly reserved to the Rhinelanders, and finally joined their rivals in the creation of common Hanses in London and Brugge. At the same time, the group put the final touches on their control of the Baltic by reducing Visby to subservience with the capture of Gotland in 1293 and by fusing the two great Hanses operating in Gotland into one great union largely dominated by Lübeck. The upshot was that the Hanses in London, Brugge, and the Baltic were united into a single grouping and with the association of German towns itself.
How did German traders achieve dominance?
The dominance achieved by German traders came about largely as a result of cooperation that took two forms: (1) Merchants far from their various hometowns but with a common interest in some particular branch of foreign trade tended increasingly to form Hanses with each other; (2) German towns formed loose unions.
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The Hanseatic League
We've all heard the phrase that says there is safety in numbers. If you're a little fish in the ocean, this could mean safety from sharks. If you're a shipping merchant in 13th-century Northern Europe, this probably meant safety from pirates.
Formation
Where did this league come from? Well, it's important to remember that at this time much of Northern Europe was organized into independent city-states or small kingdoms, not unified countries. Many of the cities, which basically operated on their own, relied on trading for survival.
Function
For about 400 years, the Hanseatic League dominated commercial shipping in the Baltic Sea. At their height, they contained more than 70 towns, controlled their own military, set their own trade tariffs, and for a while even had their own parliament. Still, defining the league is trickier than it may sound.
