The Hanseatic League

The Baltic Cities: Rostock, Stralsund, Wismar, and Beyond

The Baltic coast, from the Danish Sound in the west to the Gulf of Finland in the east, was the heart of the Hanseatic world, and the cities of the Baltic coast were the backbone of the League’s commercial and political power. The cities of the Baltic were not, in the first instance, members of a single league: each had its own history, its own institutions, and its own interests. But they shared a common legal tradition, a common merchant culture, and a common dependence on the trade of the Baltic, and the cities acted together whenever the situation required.

This article describes the principal cities of the Baltic, beginning with the Wendish towns of the southern coast (Rostock, Wismar, Stralsund, Greifswald) and continuing with the great cities of the east (Danzig, Riga, Tallinn, Königsberg). The article also describes the great kontore that the League maintained in the region, particularly the kontor at Bergen in Norway and the kontor at Novgorod in Russia.

The Wendish towns

The Wendish towns — Rostock, Wismar, Stralsund, Greifswald, and a number of smaller cities — were the backbone of the Hanseatic League. These cities were founded or rebuilt in the thirteenth century, after the German eastward settlement, and they were all built on the Lübeck model. The cities shared a common legal tradition, a common merchant culture, and a common dependence on the salt trade from Lüneburg and the herring trade of the Sound.

Rostock was founded in 1218, and it was granted Lübeck law in the same year. The city grew rapidly, thanks to its position on the Warnow River near the Baltic, and it became one of the most important cities of the Wendish district. The city’s principal trade was in salt, herring, and grain, and the city’s merchants were the principal channel through which the goods of the Baltic reached the markets of the West. The city’s university, founded in 1419, was one of the earliest universities in northern Europe.

Wismar was founded in 1229, and it was granted Lübeck law in the same year. The city grew rapidly, thanks to its position on the Baltic at the head of the Wismar Bay, and it became one of the most important ports of the Wendish district. The city’s principal trade was in herring and grain, and the city’s merchants were particularly active in the herring fisheries of the Sound. The city’s architecture, like that of the other Wendish towns, was characterised by the brick Gothic style, and the city’s Wassertor, the water gate that stands at the entrance to the old harbour, is one of the most distinctive monuments of the city.

Stralsund was founded in 1234, and it was granted Lübeck law in the same year. The city grew rapidly, thanks to its position on the Strelasund, the strait that separates the island of Rügen from the mainland, and it became one of the most important ports of the Wendish district. The city’s principal trade was in herring, salt, and grain, and the city’s merchants were particularly active in the herring fisheries of the Sound. The city’s architecture is exceptionally well preserved, and the city’s old town is today a UNESCO World Heritage Site (jointly with Wismar, inscribed 2002).

Greifswald was founded in 1250, and it was granted Lübeck law in the same year. The city grew rapidly, thanks to its position on the Ryck River near the Baltic, and it became an important centre of the herring and grain trade. The city’s university, founded in 1456, was an important centre of learning, and the city’s library, the Bibliothek des Geistlichen Ministeriums, contains one of the most important collections of medieval manuscripts in northern Europe.

The great cities of the east

The great cities of the east — Danzig (Gdańsk), Riga, Tallinn, Königsberg, and a number of smaller cities — were the eastern frontier of the Hanseatic world. These cities were founded or rebuilt in the thirteenth century, after the conquest of the Slavic and Baltic territories, and they were the principal channel through which the goods of the east reached the markets of the west.

Danzig (Gdańsk) was founded in 1263, and it was granted Lübeck law in the same year. The city grew rapidly, thanks to its position on the Vistula, the principal river of Poland, and it became the great port of the Polish grain trade. The city’s principal trade was in grain, timber, and furs, and the city’s merchants were the principal channel through which the agricultural surplus of Poland reached the markets of the West. The city’s architecture is a remarkable blend of brick Gothic, Renaissance, and Baroque styles, and the city’s Krantor, the crane gate that stands at the entrance to the old harbour, is one of the most distinctive monuments of the city.

Riga was founded in 1201 by Albert of Riga, the bishop of Livonia, and it was granted Lübeck law in the thirteenth century. The city grew rapidly, thanks to its position on the Dvina, the principal river of Livonia, and it became the principal channel through which the goods of the Russian north reached the markets of the West. The city’s principal trade was in furs, wax, and timber.

Tallinn (Reval) was founded in 1248, and it was granted Lübeck law in the same year. The city grew rapidly, thanks to its position on the Gulf of Finland, and it became the principal port of Estonia. The city’s principal trade was in timber, tar, and flax, and the city’s merchants were particularly active in the trade with Russia. The city’s old town is today a UNESCO World Heritage Site (inscribed 1997), and it is one of the best-preserved medieval cities in northern Europe.

Königsberg (Kaliningrad) was founded in 1255 by the Teutonic Order, and it was granted Kulm law in the same year (the Kulm law of 1233 was a modified version of the Lübeck law for the Prussian cities). The city grew rapidly, thanks to its position on the Pregel River, and it became the principal port of the amber coast. The city is famous as the birthplace of Immanuel Kant, and the city’s cathedral is one of the most important Gothic churches in the region.

The kontore in the Baltic

The League maintained a number of kontore in the Baltic, in addition to the great kontore at Bergen and Novgorod. The most important of these were the kontor at Bergen in Norway, which was one of the four great kontore of the League, and the kontor at Visby on the island of Gotland, which had been an important trading centre since the Viking Age and which retained a kontor until 1361, when the Danish king Valdemar IV conquered the island and put an end to its independence.

The kontor at Visby was, before its destruction by the Danes, the principal centre of the Baltic trade, and the city’s merchants were the principal channel through which the goods of Russia and the Baltic reached the markets of the West. After 1361, the kontor at Visby was no longer active, and the League’s principal centres in the Baltic were the cities themselves.

The politics of the Baltic cities

The Baltic cities were, in their internal politics, similar to the other Hanseatic cities: they were governed by councils, presided over by Bürgermeister, and the councils were elected by the citizens. The cities of the Baltic, however, had their own distinctive features, and the political life of the Baltic cities was, in many ways, more turbulent than that of the cities of the West.

The turbulence of Baltic politics was, in part, the product of the geography: the Baltic cities were more exposed to attack than the cities of the West, and the cities had to maintain larger militias and stronger fortifications. The turbulence was also the product of the politics: the cities of the Baltic were often at odds with the territorial states that surrounded them, and the cities had to defend their privileges against the encroachments of the kings of Denmark, Sweden, and Poland-Lithuania.

A specific case: the 1411 Danzig uprising against the Teutonic Order. Danzig revolted in 1411 against the Order’s taxation, and the revolt was a major event in the League’s history. The League, which was bound to both the Order (a major trading partner) and Danzig (one of its principal members), found itself caught between the two, and the Hansetag was unable to resolve the conflict for nearly a decade.

Further reading