110 North
to get the English question on the agenda, however, the Electoral Council hin-
dered a publication of the decided upon decree of 1582. With this, new political
situations arose, because Electoral Pfalz, for instance, as an alliance partner
of England, was therefore dedicated to stall a judgment on the “Merchant
Adventurers”.
Only the Emperor’s petition to the Wendish Hanseatic Cities to take part
in the defense against the Turks (Türkenhilfe) and their response that they
were by reason of the impairment of their commerce not in a position to
do so brought a reversal in 1595. Now Rudolf ii demanded the restoration
of Hanseatic privileges in England and the abolition of the monopoly of the
“Merchant Adventurers”. Because England responded to this demand evasively,
the Hanseatic Cities once again requested a ban from the Emperor on English
trade in the Empire. After the Spanish envoy to the Empire and Archduke
Albert, the Governor of the Spanish Netherlands, put pressure on the Emperor,
the Aulic Council decreed the expulsion of the “Adventurers” from the Empire
in 1597. The reclamation of Hanseatic privileges in England was also intended
with the mandate released on August 1. The “Merchant Adventurers” protested
sharply, and the Queen was also surprised by the mandate. She applied not
only in writing to the Protestant Imperial Princes, rather also sent envoys to
the Imperial Diet (Reichstag) and Regensburg, who were intended to prevent
the execution of the mandate. The Hanseatic Cities were banned from all trade
in England and the occupants of the Stahlhof ordered to leave London. The
Hanseatic Cities, with the Emperor, still worked their way towards the execu-
tion of the mandate. Thus the people of Lübeck asked permission for the sei-
zure of English goods, which was denied by Archduke Matthias, who attended
his imperial brother at the Imperial Diet of Regensburg:
[.. .] How evil really are several in the Empire, inconsiderate initial testers
of the Hanseatic issued mandate, which was largely advised and settled
in general diets and deputation councils, who still to this day would effect
in the execution and operation of the same, also how unwilling to burden
themselves with war in Germany’s need to oppose the Turks, of this your
Imperial Majesty is well aware [.. .]19To be sure, the Imperial Estates which like Elector Pfalz called for a lifting of the
mandate, could still not push it through the Imperial Diet; the Aulic Council
also encouraged the Imperial Circle (Reichskreise) anew to the enactment of
19 Beutin, Das Reich, 23 (Vienna, 26, 610–613).