HANSESTADT

A Rakvere Stamp

asgerd — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 18:53:30 +0000

A 4.40 krooni Estonian stamp, issued in 2002 to commemorate the 700th anniversary of the granting of Lübeck Law to Rakvere; the Law was effectively a municipal constitution that gave power to a council (Rat) of merchants. The following is from the Estonian Philately site:

On 12 June 1302, King Eric Menved of Denmark granted the Lübeck Charter to the town of Rakvere (German: Wesenberg) in lands then under Danish rule in northern Estonia, giving it the right to independently regulate important aspects of community life.

The stamp features the old aurochs-head coat-of-arms of Rakvere on the background of a 15th century certificate issued by the municipality, with the present coat-of arms shown in the upper right-hand corner.

Many, but evidently not all, cities with Lübeck rights joined the Hansa; there seems to be some discrepancy with regard to Rakvere (or Wesenberg, as it was then known). It clearly had links with the Hansa, but was it a member? Information welcome. Thanks to Trishka for the stamp.

More from Lüneburg

asgerd — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 23:19:27 +0000

Panorama at the Wasserviertel. See also the other Lüneburg cards.

Salz- und Hansestadt Lüneburg

asgerd — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 23:11:31 +0000

Lüneburg lies on the Ilmenau River, a tributary of the Elbe, and in an area rich in salt deposts. Henry the Lion granted city status in 1189 and with it the monopoly for the extraction of salt in northern Germany. The salt was in demand for preserving Baltic fish, and Lüneburg prospered, becoming an early member of the Hansa. The Salzstraße was originally an overland route but the Stecknitz Canal was opened in 1398, allowing transport by Kogge.

Tartu

asgerd — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 22:36:01 +0000

Tartu in southern Estonia was settled from the 5th century. The crusading Livonian Knights took the town finally in 1224, establishing a bishopric, and, by the time of an attack by Dmitri of Novgorod (son of Alexander Nevsky) in 1262, a settlement of German merchants and artisans had developed. Tartu (or Dorpat at the time) joined the Hanseatic League in the 1280s.

Webcam (town hall square)

Der Bremer Roland

asgerd — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 22:38:15 +0000

The Rathaus (1405) and the figure of Roland in Bremen were awarded Unesco WHS status in 2004. Roland was a figure of chivalric literature in mediæval Europe and in Germany became a defiant symbol of the independence of the growing cities and their prosperity through trade.

An earlier wooden Roland existed in Bremen but was burnt in 1366; the stone figure (5.5m tall) was erected in 1404. Roland is made of limestone, and in his younger days he was more colourfully painted; and his head is now a replica, with the original reposing in the Focke Museum.

Bremen also has a few odd customs.

Freie Hansestadt Bremen

asgerd — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 22:16:21 +0000

Bremen, a port city on the Weser, was a free imperial city of the Holy Roman Empire with long-standing trade links with Norway, England and the Netherlands. Bremen had a long but uneasy relationship with the Hansa, with four separate periods of membership (1260 to 1285, 1358 to 1427, 1438 to 1563 and 1576 to 1669) and many points of conflict with the other members.

Koggen (cog ships, the workhorses of the Hansa) were built at Bremen, though the Weser was not always navigable for Koggen and cargoes sometimes had to be unloaded to other vessels. In 1560 the Bremen fleet comprised some 65 vessels. A well-preserved Bremen Kogge from 1380 was found in 1962 and joined the collection of the Deutsches Schiffahrtsmuseum in Bremerhaven.

See also Der Bremer Roland. Thanks again to Claus for these splendid cards.

Wrocław/Breslau

asgerd — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 20:50:48 +0000

Ancient Wrocław was founded on an island in the Odra/Oder, at the intersection of two trade routes: the Amber Road (Bernsteinstraße/Jantarowy Szlak) linking the Baltic to the Adriatic, and the east-west Via Regia linking the Rhine with Silesia. It flourished as a trade town and by the 14th century, markets were held on Thursday and Saturdays and there were three annual trade fairs, on St John’s Day, St Elizabeth’s Day and in October. Merchants came from the Baltic, the Netherlands, Germany and Italy, and furs and hemp from the east were traded for finished textiles and luxuries from the west.

Wrocław was a member of the Hanseatic League from 1387 to 1515, although the city did not derive much benefit from the association and its active participation ended in 1474 as the Hansa’s influence declined and independent trade circles were formed, with connections to Leipzig, Nuremberg and Augsburg (none of which had been in the Hansa.)

Rattenfängerstadt Hameln

asgerd — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 20:17:05 +0000

Hamelin, which grew up on the banks of the Weser around a monastery founded c850, was a late and minor member of the Hansa from 1426 to 1572. It is of course much better known for the famous story of the Pied Piper, which is said to have happened (in some form or other) on 26 June 1284.

Hasselt, Overijssel

asgerd — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 21:38:38 +0000

Hasselt near Zwolle in Overijssel was granted city rights in 1252 and joined the Hansa in 1350. Its location at the confluence of the Zwartewater and Overijsselse Vecht and the right to hold weekly markets and annual fairs led to a period of prosperity centred around shipbuilding, weaving and later limekilns, which date from around 1500 and were in use until the 1990s. The video is here.

Kampen on the IJssel

asgerd — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 16:11:09 +0000

Kampen, lying onthe IJssel river, became an important Hansa centre for cargo in the 12th and 13th centuries. There’s a video here (showing also a Kogge ship under sail.)