1 74 Ewert and Selzer
Social Proximity vs. Spatial Vicinity as a Network Basis:
Societies and Neighborhoods
One approach to reconstruct social networks of Hansards is to examine mem-
bership in societies and fraternities, which gives indication about the social
proximity between the members of these institutions. Membership could
improve the quality of social networks in Hanseatic towns because it was
extremely important for the informal communication within the political and
economic leading groups. A majority of the councilors of Lübeck, for example,
were also members of the distinguished Zirkelgesellschaft (“society of circle”).25
In the Prussian towns of the Hanse, town councilors, lay assessors, and mer-
chants met in the Artus courts26 and were always members of the fraternities
belonging to these courts, too. As was customary, they would bring guests to
the meetings, and travelers and strangers were generally allowed to join such
functions as well. The institution of Artus courts also enabled interurban social
contacts.
A good example of how effective and enduring such contacts were is seen
with the Schwarzhäuptergesellschaft (“black head society”) of Riga. This soci-
ety was a popular meeting place for experienced long-distance traders and
their young apprentices. The young apprentices were usually sent to the Baltic
region to learn more about the goods and practices of the Hanseatic trade with
Russia. Two of these young men, Hans Swaneke from Danzig and Johann van
dem Springe from Lübeck, might have met each other in 1419 in the meeting
place of the Schwarzhäuptergesellschaft. The two of them might also have met
at this time a third person, Gerd von Borcken, a citizen of Riga. The acquain-
tance of these three Hansards and especially the way they became acquainted
with each other is important to better understand their business relationship,
which can be verified only over a decade later. In 1430, Gerd von Borcken sent
25 Sonja Dünnebeil, Die Lübecker Zirkel-Gesellschaft. Formen der Selbstdarstellung einer
städtischen Oberschicht, Veröffentlichungen zur Geschichte der Hansestadt Lübeck,
vol. B27, (Lübeck: Archiv der Hansestadt Lübeck, 1996).
26 Stephan Selzer, Artushöfe im Ostseeraum. Ritterlich-höfische Kultur in den Städten des
Preußenlandes im 14. Jahrhundert, Kieler Werkstücke, vol. D8 (Frankfurt/Main: Peter
Lang, 1996); Id., “Trinkstuben als Orte der Kommunikation. Das Beispiel der Artushöfe
im Preußenland (ca. 1350–1550),” in Gerhard Fouquet, Matthias Steinbrink and Gabriel
Zeilinger, eds., Geschlechtergesellschaften, Zunft-Trinkstuben und Bruderschaften in spät-
mittelalterlichen und frühneuzeitlichen Städten, Stadt in der Geschichte, vol. 30 (Stuttgart:
Jan Thorbecke Verlag, 2003), 73–98.