Editing Hanseatic League (section)

== Organization ==
[[File:Siegel Stralsund 1329.preview.png|thumb|Hanseatic Seal of [[Stralsund]]]]
The Hanseatic League was a complex, loose-jointed constellation of protagonists pursuing their interests, which coincided in a shared program of economic domination in the Baltic region, and a by no means a monolithic organization or a 'state within a state'.<ref name="Jahnke">{{cite book
 |last= Jahnke
 |first= Carsten
 |date= 2012
 |title= The Hanse in Medieval and Early Modern Europe
 |editor1-last= Wubs-Mrozewicz
 |editor1-first= Justyna
 |editor2-last= Jenks
 |editor2-first= Stuart
 |location= Leiden
 |publisher= Brill Academic Publishers
 |isbn= 978-90-0421-252-7
}}</ref>{{rp|37–38}} It gradually grew from a network of merchant guilds into a more formal association of cities, but never formed into a [[legal person]].<ref name="Wubs-Mrozewicz2010"/>{{rp|page=91}}

League members were [[Middle Low German|Low German]]-speaking, except for [[Dinant]]. Not all towns with Low German merchant communities were members (e.g., [[Emden]], Memel (today [[Klaipėda]]), Viborg (today [[Vyborg]]), and [[Narva]]). However, Hansards also came from settlements without [[German town law]]—the premise for league membership was birth to German parents, subjection to German law, and commercial education. The league served to advance and defend its members' common interests: commercial ambitions such as enhancement of trade, and political ambitions such as ensuring maximum independence from the territorial rulers.<ref name="Hammel-Kiesow">{{cite book
 |last= Hammel-Kiesow
 |first= Rolf
 |date= 2008
 |title= Die Hanse
 |language= de
 |trans-title= The Hanseatic League
 |location= Munich
 |publisher= C H Beck
 |isbn= 978-3-406-58352-0
}}</ref>{{rp|10–11}}

League decisions and actions were taken via a consensus-based procedure. If an issue arose, members were invited to participate in a central meeting, the ''Tagfahrt'' (Hanseatic Diet, "meeting ride", sometimes also referred to as ''Hansetag''), that may have begun around 1300,<ref name="Hammel-Kiesow2"/>{{rp|page=59}} and were formalized since 1358 (or possibly 1356).<ref name="Sarnowsky"/>{{rp|pages=66–67}} The member communities then chose envoys (''Ratssendeboten'') to represent their local consensus on the issue at the Diet. Not every community sent an envoy; delegates were often entitled to represent multiple communities. Consensus-building on local and ''Tagfahrt'' levels followed the Low Saxon tradition of ''Einung'', where consensus was defined as the absence of protest: after a discussion, the proposals that gained sufficient support were dictated to the scribe and passed as binding ''Rezess'' if the attendees did not object; those favoring alternative proposals unlikely to get sufficient support remained silent during this procedure. If consensus could not be established on a certain issue, it was found instead in the appointment of league members empowered to work out a compromise.<ref name="Hammel-Kiesow" />{{rp|70–72}}

The League was characterised by legal pluralism and the diets could not issue laws. But the cities cooperated to achieve limited trade regulation, such as measures against fraud, or worked together on a regional level. Attempts to harmonize maritime law yielded a series of ordinances in the 15th and 16th centuries. The most extensive maritime ordinance was the ''Ship Ordinance and Sea Law'' of 1614, but it may not have been enforced.<ref>{{cite book
 |first= Tobias
 |last= Boestad
 |editor-last1= Aust
 |editor-first1= Helmut P.
 |editor-last2= Marcenko
 |editor-first2= Miha
 |editor-last3= Nijman
 |editor-first3= Janne E.
 |date= 2021
 |title= Research Handbook on International Law and Cities
 |chapter= Legitimizing interurban cooperation in the Middle Ages: the legal system of the Hanse
 |publisher= Edward Elgar Publishing
 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=MXg8EAAAQBAJ
 |isbn= 978-1-78897-328-1
 |archive-date= 12 July 2024
 |access-date= 8 March 2023
 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20240712030955/https://books.google.com/books?id=MXg8EAAAQBAJ
 |url-status= live
 }}</ref>{{rp|pages=31, 37–38}}

=== Kontors ===
[[File:Hansehausantwerpen.jpg|thumb|The [[Oostershuis]], a [[kontor]] in Antwerp]]

A Hanseatic ''[[Kontor]]'' was a settlement of Hansards organized in the mid-14th century as a private corporation that had its treasury, court, legislation, and seal. They operated like an early [[stock exchange]].<ref>{{cite book
 |editor-last= Northrup
 |editor-first= Cynthia Clark
 |date= 2015
 |orig-date= 2005
 |edition= Reprint
 |title= Encyclopedia of World Trade: From Ancient Times to the Present
 |volume= 2
 |chapter= Hanseatic League
 |location= London and New York
 |publisher= Routledge
 |quote= To facilitate trade in foreign countries, the Hansa established counters (Kontore) [...]. [...] The counters operated as the equivalent of an early stock exchange.
 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=LXkGCAAAQBAJ&pg=PA-
 |via= books.google.com
 |access-date= 19 February 2018
 |isbn= 978-0-7656-8058-7
 |archive-date= 12 July 2024
 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20240712083919/https://books.google.com/books?id=LXkGCAAAQBAJ&pg=PA-
 |url-status= live
 }}</ref>{{rp|443–446}} Kontors were first established to provide security, but also served to secure privileges and engage in diplomacy.<ref name="Burkhardt">{{cite book
 |last= Burkhardt
 |first= Mike
 |title= 'Kontors' and Outposts
 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=sfhyBgAAQBAJ&pg=PA127
 |pages= 127–161
 |archive-date= 24 November 2024
 |access-date= 5 January 2025
 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20241124164442/https://books.google.com/books?pg=PA127&id=sfhyBgAAQBAJ
 |url-status= live
 }} in {{harvnb|Harreld|2015}}</ref>{{rp|pages=128–130, 134–135}} The quality of goods was also examined at Kontors, increasing trade efficiency, and they served as bases to develop connections with local rulers and as sources of economic and political information.<ref name="Wubs-Mrozewicz2010">{{cite book
 |last= Wubs-Mrozewicz
 |first= Justyna
 |title= De Kantoren van de Hanze: Bergen, Brugge, Londen en Nowgorod
 |trans-title= The Kontors of the Hanseatic League: Bergen, Brugge, London and Novgorod
 |date= 2010 
 |page= 91
 |url= {{google books |plainurl=y |id=T5e68QReeykC |page=91}}
}} in {{harvnb|Brand|Egge|2010}}</ref>{{rp|page=91}}{{efn|name=kantq1}} Most contours were also physical locations containing buildings that were integrated and segregated from city life to different degrees. The [[kontor of Bruges]] was an exception in this regard; it acquired buildings only as of the 15th century.<ref name="Burkhardt"/>{{rp|pages=131–133}} Like the guilds, the ''Kontore'' were usually led by ''Ältermänner'' ("eldermen", or English [[aldermen]]). The [[Stalhof]], a special case, had a Hanseatic and an English alderman. In [[Peterhof (Novgorod)|Novgorod]] the aldermen were replaced by a ''hofknecht'' in the 15th century.<ref name="Dollinger2000 tensions" />{{rp|pages=100–101}} The contours statutes were read aloud to the present merchants once a year.<ref name="Burkhardt"/>{{rp|pages=131–133}}

In 1347 the ''Kontor'' of Bruges modified its statute to ensure an equal representation of League members. To that end, member communities from different regions were pooled into three circles (''Drittel'' ("third [part]"): the [[Germania Slavica|Wendish]] and [[Duchy of Saxony|Saxon]] Drittel, the [[Westphalia]]n and [[Prussia (region)|Prussian]] Drittel as well as the [[Gotland]]ian, [[Livonia]]n and [[History of Sweden|Swedish]] Drittel). Merchants from each ''Drittel'' chose two aldermen and six members of the Eighteen Men Council (''Achtzehnmännerrat'') to administer the ''Kontor'' for a set period.<ref name="Wubs-Mrozewicz2010" />{{rp|page=91, 101}}<ref name="Burkhardt"/>{{rp|pages=138–139}}

In 1356, during a Hanseatic meeting in preparation for the first (or one of the first) ''Tagfahrt'', the League confirmed this statute. All trader settlements including the ''Kontors'' were subordinated to the Diet's decisions around this time, and their envoys received the right to attend and speak at Diets, albeit without voting power.<ref name="Wubs-Mrozewicz2010" />{{rp|page=91}}{{efn|name=kantq2}}

=== Drittel ===
The league gradually divided the organization into three constituent parts called ''Drittel'' (German ''[[Wikt:Drittel|thirds]]''), as shown in the table below.<ref name="Hammel-Kiesow" />{{rp|62–63}}<ref name="Pfeiffer">{{cite book
 |last= Pfeiffer
 |first= Hermannus
 |date= 2009
 |title= Seemacht Deutschland. Die Hanse, Kaiser Wilhelm II. und der neue Maritime Komplex
 |language= de
 |trans-title= Sea power Germany. The Hanseatic League, Kaiser Wilhelm II, and the new Maritime Complex
 |location= Berlin
 |publisher= Ch. Links Verlag
 |isbn= 978-3-86153-513-3
}}</ref>{{rp|55}}<ref name="Mills">{{cite encyclopedia
 |last= Mills
 |first= Jennifer
 |date= May 1998
 |title= The Hanseatic League in the Eastern Baltic
 |encyclopedia= Encyclopedia of Baltic History (group research project)
 |location= Seattle, WA
 |publisher= [[University of Washington]]
 |url= http://depts.washington.edu/baltic/papers/hansa.html
 |via= depts.washington.edu
 |access-date= 15 May 2011
 |archive-date= 29 June 2011
 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110629134048/http://depts.washington.edu/baltic/papers/hansa.html
 |url-status= live
 }}</ref><ref name="Falke">{{cite book
 |last= Falke
 |first= Dr Johannes
 |date= 1863
 |title= Die Hansa als deutsche See- und Handelsmacht
 |language= de
 |trans-title= The Hanseatic League as a German maritime and trading power
 |location= Berlin
 |publisher= F Henschel
 |url= {{google books |plainurl=y |id=01NAAAAAcAAJ |page=62}}
 |via= books.google.com
}}</ref>{{rp|pages=62–64}}

{| class="wikitable floatleft"
! ''Drittel'' (1356–1554)
! Regions
! Chief city (''Vorort'')
|-
| Wendish-Saxon
| [[Duchy of Holstein|Holstein]], [[Duchy of Saxony|Saxony]], [[Duchy of Mecklenburg|Mecklenburg]], [[Duchy of Pomerania|Pomerania]], [[Margraviate of Brandenburg|Brandenburg]]
| [[Lübeck]]
|-
| Westphalian-Prussian
| [[Westphalia]], [[Rhineland]], [[Prussia (region)|Prussia]]
| [[Dortmund]], later [[Imperial Free City of Cologne|Cologne]]
|-
| Gotlandian-Livonian-Swedish
| [[Gotland]], [[Livonia]], [[History of Sweden|Sweden]]
| [[Visby]], later [[Riga]]
|}
{{clear}}

The ''Hansetag'' was the only central institution of the Hanseatic League. However, with the division into ''Drittel'', the members of the respective subdivisions frequently held a ''Dritteltage'' ("''Drittel'' meeting") to work out common positions which could then be presented at a ''Hansetag''. On a more local level, league members also met, and while such regional meetings never crystalized into a Hanseatic institution, they gradually gained importance in the process of preparing and implementing the Diet's decisions.<ref name="Distler">{{cite book
 |last= Distler
 |first= Eva-Marie
 |date= 2006
 |title= Städtebünde im deutschen Spätmittelalter. Eine rechtshistorische Untersuchung zu Begriff, Verfassung und Funktion
 |language= de
 |trans-title= City leagues in the German late Middle Ages. A legal-historical study of the concept, constitution and function
 |location= Frankfurt
 |publisher= Vittorio Klostermann
 |isbn= 978-34-6504001-9
}}</ref>{{rp|pages=55–57}}

=== Quarters ===<!--linked from [[Template:Hanseatic League]]-->
From 1554, the division into ''Drittel'' was modified to reduce the circles' heterogeneity, to enhance the collaboration of the members on a regional level and thus to make the League's decision-making process more efficient.<ref name="Fritze">{{cite book
 |last1= Fritze
 |first1= Konrad
 |last2= Schildhauer
 |first2= J.
 |last3= Stark
 |first3= W.
 |display-authors= etal
 |date= 1985
 |title= Die Geschichte der Hanse
 |language= de
 |trans-title= The History of the Hanseatic League
 |location= Berlin
 |publisher= Das Europäische Buch
 |isbn= 978-3-8843-6142-9
}}</ref>{{rp|page=217}} The number of circles rose to four, so they were called ''Quartiere'' (quarters):<ref name="Pfeiffer" />

{| class="wikitable floatleft"
! Quartier (since 1554)
! Chief city (''Vorort'')
|-
| Wendish and Pomeranian<ref name="Natkiel">{{cite book
 |last1= Natkiel
 |first1= Richard
 |last2= Preston
 |first2= Antony 
 |date= 1989
 |title= Atlas of Maritime History
 |page= 33
 |location= New York
 |publisher= Smithmark Publishing
 |isbn= 978-0-8317-0485-8
 |url= https://archive.org/details/atlasofmaritimeh0000natk/page/33
 |via= archive.org
}}</ref>
| [[Lübeck]]<ref name="Natkiel" />
|-
| Saxon, Thuringian and Brandenburg<ref name="Natkiel" />
| [[Braunschweig|Brunswick]],<ref name="Natkiel" /> [[Magdeburg]]{{Citation needed|date= December 2011}}
|-
| Prussia, Livonia and Sweden<ref name="Natkiel" />&nbsp;– or East Baltic<ref name="Keating">{{cite book
 |last= Keating
 |first= Michael
 |date= 2004
 |title= Regions and Regionalism in Europe
 |location= Cheltenham
 |publisher= Edward Elgar Publishing
 |isbn= 978-0-8317-0485-8
 |url= {{google books |plainurl=y |id=6meikazgxksC}}
 |via= books.google.com
}}</ref>{{rp|pages=47,120}}
| [[Danzig]] (now Gdańsk)<ref name="Natkiel" />
|-
| Rhine, Westphalia and the Netherlands<ref name="Natkiel" />
| [[Cologne]]<ref name="Natkiel" />
|}
{{clear}}

This division was however not adopted by the ''Kontore'', who, for their purposes (like ''Ältermänner'' elections), grouped League members in different ways (e.g., the division adopted by the [[Stalhof]] in London in 1554 grouped members into ''Dritteln'', whereby Lübeck merchants represented the Wendish, Pomeranian Saxon, and several Westphalian towns, Cologne merchants represented the [[Duchy of Cleves|Cleves]], [[County of Mark|Mark]], [[Berg (state)|Berg]] and Dutch towns, while Danzig merchants represented the Prussian and Livonian towns).<ref name="Reibstein">{{cite journal
 |last= Reibstein
 |first= Ernst
 |date= 1956
 |title= Das Völkerrecht der deutschen Hanse
 |language= de
 |trans-title= The international law of the German Hanseatic League
 |journal= Zeitschrift für ausländisches öffentliches Recht und Völkerrecht
 |trans-journal= Journal for Foreign Public Law and International Law
 |volume= 17
 |issue= 1
 |issn= 0044-2348
 |location= Heidelberg
 |publisher= Max-Planck-Institut für ausländisches öffentliches Recht und Völkerrecht
 |url= http://www.zaoerv.de/17_1956_57/17_1956_1_a_38_92.pdf
 |access-date= 30 April 2010
 |via= www.zaoerv.de
 |archive-date= 4 October 2011
 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20111004023752/http://www.zaoerv.de/17_1956_57/17_1956_1_a_38_92.pdf
 |url-status= live
 }}</ref>{{rp|page=38–92}}