Hanseatic League begins to take shape

1241

German merchant towns along the Baltic, led by Lubeck, negotiated mutual trading privileges and common defense agreements that would slowly crystallize into the Hanseatic League. Their cog ships carried salted herring, furs, and amber from Novgorod to Bruges, weaving northern Europe's economy into a single commercial web. At its height the League would encompass nearly two hundred towns and command its own navy.