58 Hammel-Kiesow
the seaside towns had already been able to obtain just such a pledge from the
King of Denmark.123 Thus, with the treaty of the Wendish cities (1280s), we
are already encountering within the eastern region of the Hanse a treaty of
peace and security, which included both princes and rulers and served as the
basis for an active policy of blockade against Norway intended for the realiza-
tion of their economic interests. These economic interests also drew Denmark
into the alliance (and tried to do so with England).124 The Treaty of Rostock
concluded for peace on land and at sea, already exhibited structural charac-
teristics similar to those common in the Confederation of Cologne during the
period from 1367–1385. These structural characteristics included the (later)
Hanse cities as central to the treaty, close connections and arrangements with
both princes and noblemen, and joint sanctions carried out by the members to
enforce their political trade goals.
More than a decade before, the cities and merchants in the Eastern
Hanseatic trade region, as they had in the West, had begun to rally together
for joint actions intended to enforce their various trade interests. In 1268 and
1277/78 they declared trade blockades against Novgorod,125 and in the 1280’s
they, together with the Spaniards, realized their interests against the City of
Bruges by removing the emporium to Aardenburg (1280–1282) until the privi-
leges they desired had been affirmed.126 In 1284, the aforementioned blockade
of Norway occurred and in conjunction with it, the first case of ‘Hansification’
(Verhansung) when Bremen merchants were prohibited from further trade
with the seaside towns.127 Letters from Kampen and Zwolle delivered to
Lübeck in the year 1294 attest to the fact that trade competitors, such as the
Frisians and the Flemish, were prevented, presumably by force, from trading
in the Baltic Region, while Gotlandish merchants were barred from trading
in the Western Sea (i.e.—the North Sea).128 Furthermore, in 1282, the individ-
ual town Hanses of merchants from Cologne, or the Rhineland, Lübeck and
Hamburg, had formed a Hanse Alman(ie) in London. Presumably, this was
more a response to the pressure from the London city government and the
English king than an act of voluntary accord. However, the rivaling groups of
123 hub 1, No. 956.
124 hub 1, No. 954.
125 hub 1, No. 655, 656, 816.
126 hr i, 1, No. 12–27, 8–15.
127 hr i, 1, 16f., no. 34, 20f.
128 hub 1, no. 1154, 1155.