There’s only one completely new book so far this month, so this is fairly brief for me!
King’s Lynn and The German Hanse 1250 – 1550
While previous histories of England and the German Hanse have carried sections on the east coast ports, the place of King’s Lynn in the Anglo-Hanseatic medieval world warrants an independent study. Together with Boston, it became a senior trading partner of the German Hanseatic towns which dominated the overseas commerce of late medieval northern Europe. This book investigates the character of the German Hanse and why Hanseatic ships used King’s Lynn as a prime destination.
Paul Richards conducts a thorough survey of Anglo-Hanseatic commerce through the East Anglian ports in the 15th century and explores the political consequences of English merchants beginning to penetrate the German Baltic during this period.
A short Anglo-Hanseatic Sea War ended with a peace treaty (1474). One provision was the establishment of a German trading post in King’s Lynn, known today as Hanse House. The history of this building and its national importance is explained in depth.
In the 21st century, King’s Lynn became the first English member of the modern Hanse, an active network of some 200 towns and cities, spread across sixteen northern European nations, that had connections with the medieval Hanseatic League. Today they celebrate their heritage through an annual International Hanse Day as an inspiration for developing community cooperation.
King’s Lynn and The German Hanse 1250 – 1550
Paperback 210 pages; Poppyland Publishing
ISBN 9781909796911; RRP £10.95
We do have one other book on Hanseatic history:
In Six Essays in Hanseatic History the authors come together to present aspects of the League from their own perspectives and specialisations. The New Hanseatic League was founded in the Netherlands in 1980, and now including Hull, Kings Lynn and Boston. All its members recognise the importance of international trade and participate in many practical ways, as well as rediscovering something of the story of the first Hanseatic League.
Six Essays in Hanseatic History
Paperback; Poppyland Publishing
ISBN 9781909796331; RRP £9.95
