Editing Hanseatic League (section)

=== End of the Hansa ===
[[File:Heinrich Sudermann.jpg|thumb|left|[[Heinrich Sudermann]]]]
The development of transatlantic trade after the discovery of the Americas caused the remaining contours to decline, especially in Bruges, because it centered on other ports. It also changed business practice to short-term contracts and obsoleted the Hanseatic model of privileged guaranteed trade.<ref name = "Burkhardt"/>{{rp|pages=154}}

The trends of local feudal lords asserting control over towns and suppressing their autonomy, and of foreign rulers repressing Hanseatic traders continued in the next century.

In the [[Swedish War of Liberation]] 1521–1523, the Hanseatic League was successful in opposition to an economic conflict it had over the trade, mining, and metal industry in [[Bergslagen]]<ref>{{cite book
 |last= Skantze
 |first= Margareta
 |title= Där brast ett ädelt hjärta: Kung Kristian II och hans värld
 |trans-title= There a noble heart broke. King Christian II and his world
 |language= sv
 |date= 2019
 |location= Lyckeby
 |publisher= Arakne Förlag AB
 |isbn= 978-91-9786-813-6
}}</ref> (the main mining area of Sweden in the 16th century) with [[Jakob Fugger]] (industrialist in the mining and metal industry) and his unfriendly business take-over attempt. Fugger allied with his financially dependent pope [[Leo X]], [[Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor]], and [[Christian II]] of Denmark/Norway. Both sides made costly investments in support of [[mercenaries]] to win the war. After the war, [[Gustav Vasa]]'s Sweden and [[Frederick I of Denmark|Frederick I]]'s [[Denmark]] pursued independent policies and didn't support Lübeck's effort against Dutch trade.<ref name="North"/>{{rp|page=113}}

However, Lübeck under [[Jürgen Wullenwever]] overextended in the [[Count's Feud]] in [[Scania]] and [[Denmark]] and lost influence in 1536 after [[Christian III]]'s victory.<ref name="hansentnhn"/>{{rp|page=144}} Lübeck's attempts at forcing competitors out of the Sound eventually alienated even [[Gustav Vasa]].<ref name="North"/>{{rp|page=113–114}} Its influence in the [[Nordic countries]] began to decline.

The Hanseatic towns of [[Guelders]] were obstructed in the 1530s by [[Charles II, Duke of Guelders]]. Charles, a strict Catholic, objected to [[Lutheranism]], in his words "Lutheran heresy", of Lübeck and other north German cities. This frustrated but did not end the towns' Hanseatic trade and a small resurgence came later.<ref>{{cite book
 |last= Benders
 |first= Jeroen
 |title= De stad Groningen en de Hanze tot het eind van de zestiende eeuw
 |trans-title= The city Groningen and the Hanseatic League till the end of the sixteenth century
 |url= {{google books |plainurl=y |id=T5e68QReeykC |page=184}}
 |page= 184
}} in {{harvnb|Brand|Egge|2010}}</ref>

Later in the 16th century, Denmark-Norway took control of much of the Baltic. Sweden had regained control over its own trade, the ''Kontor'' in Novgorod had closed, and the [[Kontor of Bruges|''Kontor'' in Bruges]] had become effectively moribund because the [[Zwin]] inlet was closing up.<ref name="Burkhardt"/>{{rp|page=132}} Finally, the growing political authority of the German princes constrained the independence of Hanse towns.

The league attempted to deal with some of these issues: it created the post of [[syndic]] in 1556 and elected [[Heinrich Sudermann]] to the position, who worked to protect and extend the diplomatic agreements of the member towns. In 1557 and 1579, revised agreements spelled out the duties of towns and some progress was made. The [[Kontor of Bruges|Bruges ''Kontor'']] moved to [[Antwerp]] in 1520<ref name="Burkhardt"/>{{rp|page=140–154}} and the Hansa attempted to pioneer new routes. However, the league proved unable to prevent the growing mercantile competition.

In 1567, a Hanseatic League agreement reconfirmed previous obligations and rights of league members, such as common protection and defense against enemies.<ref>{{cite web
 |title= Agreement of the Hanseatic League at Lübeck, 1557
 |publisher= Baltic Connections
 |url= http://www.balticconnections.net/views/exhibition/detail.cfm?mode=language&ID=18CEDA3F-D929-4A8E-E777F313AC7EB8E4
 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090104184125/http://www.balticconnections.net/views/exhibition/detail.cfm?mode=language&ID=18CEDA3F-D929-4A8E-E777F313AC7EB8E4
 |archive-date= 4 January 2009
 |access-date= 5 May 2009
}}</ref> The Prussian Quartier cities of Thorn, Elbing, [[Königsberg]] and Riga and Dorpat also signed. When pressed by the King of [[Polish–Lithuanian union|Poland–Lithuania]], Danzig remained neutral and would not allow ships running for Poland into its territory. They had to anchor somewhere else, such as at [[Puck, Poland|Pautzke]] (Puck).

The Antwerp ''Kontor'', moribund after the [[Fall of Antwerp|fall of the city]], closed in 1593. In 1597 Queen [[Elizabeth I of England]] expelled the League from London, and the Steelyard closed and sequestered in 1598. The Kontor returned in 1606 under her successor, [[James VI and I|James I]], but it could not recover.<ref name="Dollinger2000 tensions"/>{{rp|pages=341–343}} The Bergen ''Kontor'' continued until 1754; of all the ''Kontore'', only its buildings, the ''[[Bryggen]]'', survive.

Not all states tried to suppress their cities' former Hanseatic links; the Dutch Republic encouraged its eastern former members to maintain ties with the remaining Hanseatic League. The States-General relied on those cities in diplomacy at the time of the [[Kalmar War]].<ref name="Looper"/>{{rp|page=123}}

The [[Thirty Years' War]] was destructive for the Hanseatic League and members suffered heavily from both the imperials, the Danes and the Swedes. In the beginning, Saxon and Wendish faced attacks because of the desire of [[Christian IV of Denmark]] to control the Elbe and Weser. Pomerania had a major population decline. Sweden took [[Bremen-Verden]] (excluding the city of Bremen), [[Swedish Pomerania]] (including Stralsund, Greifswald, Rostock) and [[Swedish Wismar]], preventing their cities from participating in the League, and controlled the Oder, Weser, and Elbe, and could levy tolls on their traffic.<ref name="North">{{cite book
 |last= North
 |first= Michael
 |title= The Hanseatic League in the Early Modern Period
 |pages= 101–124
 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=sfhyBgAAQBAJ&pg=PA114
 |archive-date= 13 November 2024
 |access-date= 5 January 2025
 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20241113060830/https://books.google.com/books?pg=PA114&id=sfhyBgAAQBAJ
 |url-status= live
 }} in {{harvnb|Harreld|2015}}</ref>{{rp|pages=114–116}} The league became increasingly irrelevant despite its inclusion in the [[Peace of Westphalia]].<ref name="Brand2010"/>{{rp|page=43}}

In 1666, the [[Steelyard]] burned in the [[Great Fire of London]]. The Kontor-manager sent a letter to Lübeck appealing for immediate financial assistance for a reconstruction. Hamburg, Bremen, and Lübeck called for a Hanseatic Day in 1669. Only a few cities participated and those who came were reluctant to contribute financially to the reconstruction. It was the last formal meeting, unbeknownst to any of the parties. This date is often taken in retrospect as the effective end date of the Hansa, but the League never formally disbanded. It silently disintegrated.<ref name="Hammel-Kiesow3">{{cite book
 |last= Hammel-Kiesow
 |first= Rolf
 |title= Hoe de Hanze verdween en op de drempel van de 20e naar de 21e eeuw weer opleeft
 |trans-title= How the Hansa disappeared and rises on the threshold of the 20th to the 21st century again
 |url= {{google books |plainurl=y |id=T5e68QReeykC |page=191}}
 |page= 191
}} in {{harvnb|Brand|Egge|2010}}</ref>{{rp|page=192}}<ref name="beerbuehl"/>{{rp|page=2}}