Kontors and Outposts 131
“Civilizing Process,”1 which shows that rather unplanned proceedings starting
in the twelfth century led to a more centralized structure of power with more
determined players in the political process. Before we look at the development
of the kontors’ organization and the background of this theory, we need to look
at the different geographical conditions that the Hanseatic merchants found at
the four main kontors in London, Bruges, Bergen, and Novgorod.
Geographical Observations
London, Bruges, Bergen, and Novgorod were situated at the edges of the mari-
time trade zone that covered the Baltic and the North Seas. Between London
and Bruges at the western and southern shores of the North Sea, Bergen in the
far north, Novgorod east of the Finnish Inlet, and the Hanseatic ports at the
southern shores of the Baltic and North Seas, the Hansards controlled much
of the trade between the interregional trade in the High and late Middle Ages.
Within this area, the Hansards were still a big player in early Modern times.
These two facts—the Hanseatic dominance in trade and the emergence of the
four kontors at the edges of the North and Baltic seas trade zone—are the main
reason the Hanseatic League is seen as an organization with its main focus on
Baltic and North Seas trade and politics, despite most member towns being
situated far away from any port or harbor.
The four kontors were situated in very different climates as well as cultural
and geostrategic places. In all four towns, the kontors and their merchants were
part of the town and the daily life. However, the intensity of contact and social
and architectonical integration differed considerably.
In London, the kontor was situated in the middle of the town, at the banks of
the Thames River. The kontor could be reached by sea-going vessels, but these
large ships had to travel against the current to reach the town, which made
blocking the harbor and kontor entrance fairly easy.
Bryggen in Bergen was placed at the northern banks of a bay that cuts east-
ward into the west Norwegian coast. Right beside the kontor on the northern
banks was the royal castle, which controlled the entry to the bay, Vågen. The
Norwegian town was situated at the southern shore. Most of the Hansard rivals
in the dried cod trade had their warehouses there, namely English, Dutch, and
Scottish merchants. Norwegian towns and kontors were connected by the set-
tling of craftsmen, mostly of Germanic origin, at the eastern edge of Vågen.
1 Elias (1994).