Can anyone give me more information on them?
What exactly were they?
How powerful was their organization?
What was there relationship to the local governments?
Were they involved in any wars?
>>1078076
They were a League
>>1078076
>How powerful was their organization?
Very powerful. They controlled trade in the Baltic and north for a long time.
>Were they involved in any wars?
One or two, but I can't remember which.
They were a brutal lot. To become a merchant of the league you had to go through a violent initiation ritual, like in a street gang.
>What exactly were they?
A trade league with alot of citites.
>How powerful was their organization?
Pretty damn powerful, and they even cucked the Danish king once, making him paying about 90% of Danish lands in mortage.
>What was there relationship to the local governments?
No idea.
>Were they involved in any wars?
Yes, during the 1300s and up until Erik of Pommeren they were involved in some wars with Denmark.
Basically, they had their apex during the 1300's, but in the end they got cucked by the Danes and Swedes.
>>1078234
I think they never officially dissolved, but as the trade monopoly of the league was broken and southern markets as well as eastern ones opened up, it gradually lost power, which made participation in it less and less attractive for its members.
I think the last meeting of the league was in the 19th century, but only attended by representatives from Lübeck, Hamburg and Bremen.
>fiscal
>baltic
>league
>>1078234
A big part of their success (and really their necessity) was the fact that they came into being when Baltic trade was primarily conducted with smaller, short-ranged vessels that required you to stop at every other port. With a situation like that, you needed good relations with all the regional cities if you wanted to have any success.
Problem was, by the 15th century, the size of ships was increasing, as was the distance they could travel without going to port. Plus, the focus of trade was gradually shifting elsewhere, so the League began a gradual decline.
They didn't get thoroughly fucked until the 30 Years War, however.
