A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels - Volume 18 / Historical Sketch of the Progress of Discovery, Navigation, and / Commerce, from the Earliest Records to the Beginning of the Nineteenth / Century, By William Stevenson

by Robert Kerr; William Stevenson

It was at this period that the Hanse towns were the most flourishing; and that Bruges, largely partaking of their prosperity, and the sole staple for all their goods, rose to its highest wealth and consequence, and, in fact, was the grand entrepôt of the trade of Europe. The Hanse towns were at this time divided into four classes: Lubeck was at the head of the whole League; in it the meetings of the deputies from the other towns were held, and the archives of the League were kept. Under it were Hamburgh, Rostok, Wismar, and other nine towns situated in the north of Germany. Cologne was the chief city of the second class, with twenty-nine towns under it, lying in that part of Germany. Brunswick was the capital of the third class, having under it twelve towns, farther to the south than those under Lubeck. Dantzic was at the head of the fourth class, having under it eight towns in its vicinity, besides some smaller ones more remote. The four chief factories of the League were Novogorod in Russia, London, Bruges, and Bergen.

From this period till the middle of the sixteenth century, their power, though sometimes formidable, and their commerce, though sometimes flourishing, were both on the decline. Several causes contributed to this: they were often engaged in disputes, and not unfrequently in wars, with the northern powers. That civilization, knowledge, and wealth, to which, as we have remarked, they contributed so essentially, though indirectly, and without having these objects in view, disposed and enabled other powers to participate in the commerce which they had hitherto exclusively carried on. It was not indeed to be supposed, that either the monarchs or the subjects would willingly and cheerfully submit to have all their own trade in the very heart of their own country conducted, and the fruit of it reaped by foreign merchants. They, therefore, first used their efforts to gain possession of their own commerce, and then aspired to participate in the trade of other countries; succeeding by degrees, and after a length of time, in both these objects, the Hanseatic League was necessarily depressed in the same proportion.

The Dutch and the English first began to seek a participation in the commerce of the North. The chief cities which formed the republic of Holland had been among the earliest members or confederates of the League, and when they threw off the yoke of Germany, and attached themselves to the house of Bourbon, they ceased to form part of the League; and after much dispute, and even hostility with the remaining members of it, they succeeded in obtaining a part of the commerce of the Baltic, and commercial treaties with the king of Denmark, and the knights of the Teutonic order.

The commerce of the League was also curtailed in the Baltic, where it had always been most formidable and flourishing, by the English, who, in the beginning of the fifteenth century, gained admission for their vessels into Dantzic and the ports of Sweden and Denmark. The only port of consequence in the northern nations, to which the ships of the League were exclusively admitted, was Bergen, which at this period was rather under their dominion than under that of Norway. In the middle of the sixteenth century, however, they abandoned it, in consequence of disputes with the king of Denmark. About the same time they abandoned Novogorod, the czar having treated their merchants there in a very arbitrary and tyrannical manner. These, and other circumstances to which we have already adverted, made their commerce and power decline; and, towards the beginning of the seventeenth century, they had ceased to be of much consequence. Though, however, the League itself at this period had lost its influence and commerce, yet some cities, which had been from the first members of it, still retained a lucrative trade: this remark applies chiefly to Lubeck and Hamburgh; the former of these cities possessed, about the middle of the seventeenth century, 600 ships, some of which were very large; and the commerce by which Hamburgh is still distinguished, is in some measure the result of what it enjoyed as a member of the Hanseatic League.

We shall now turn our attention to the Italian states: Venice and Amalfi were the first which directed their labours to the arts of domestic industry, the forerunners and causes of commercial prosperity. New wants and desires being created, and a taste for elegance and luxury formed, foreign countries were visited. Muratori mentions several circumstances which indicate a revival of a commercial spirit; and, as Dr. Robertson remarks, from the close of the seventh century, an attentive observer may discern faint traces of its progress. Indeed, towards the beginning of the sixth century, the Venetians had become so expert at sea, that Cassiodorus addressed a letter to the maritime tribunes of Venice, (which is still extant,) in which he requests them to undertake the transporting of the public stores of wine and oil from Istria to Ravenna. In this letter, a curious but rather poetical account is given of the state of the city and its inhabitants: all the houses were alike: all the citizens lived on the same food, viz. fish: the manufacture to which they chiefly applied themselves was salt; an article, he says, more indispensable to them than gold. He adds, that they tie their boats to their walls, as people tie their cows and horses in other places.

In the middle of the eighth century, the Venetians no longer confined their navigation to the Adriatic, but ventured to double the southern promontory of Greece, and to trade to Constantinople itself. The principal merchandize with which they freighted their ships, on their return-voyage, consisted of silk, the rich produce of the East, the drapery of Tyre, and furs; about a century afterwards, they ventured to trade to Alexandria. Amalfi, Genoa, and Pisa followed their example; but their trade never became very considerable till the period of the crusades, when the treasures of the West were in fact placed in their hands, and thus fresh vigour was given to their carrying trade, manufactures, and commerce.

There are a few notices, however, respecting the commerce of Venice, and the other states of Italy, prior to the crusades, which it may be necessary very briefly to give. About the year 969, Venice and Amalfi are represented, by contemporary authors, as possessing an equal share of trade. The latter traded to Africa, Constantinople, and, it would appear, to some ports in the east end of the Mediterranean; and Italy, as well as the rest of Europe, entirely depended on these two states for their supply of the produce of the East. At the beginning of the eleventh century, the citizens of Amalfi seem to nave got the start of the Venetians in the favor and commerce of the Mahomedan states of the East: they were permitted to establish factories in the maritime towns, and even in Jerusalem; and those privileges were granted them expressly because they imported many articles of merchandize hitherto unknown in the East.

In the middle of the same century, Pisa rose into eminence for its commerce; it traded principally with the Saracen king of Sicily, and with Africa. The Genoese also, at this period, are represented as possessing a large portion of the trade of the Levant, particularly of Joppa.

As the most lucrative branch of commerce of all the Italian states was that in the productions of the East, and as these could only be obtained through Constantinople or Egypt, each state was eager to gain the favor of rulers of these places. The favor of the Greek emperor could be obtained principally by affording him succours against his enemies; and these the Venetians afforded in 1082 so effectually, that, in return, they were allowed to build a number of warehouses at Constantinople, and were favoured with exclusive commercial privileges. Dalmatia and Croatia were also ceded to them.

We now come to the period of the crusades, from which may be dated the rapid increase of the commerce and power of the Italian states. As none of the other European powers had ships numerous enough to convey the crusaders to Dalmatia, whence they marched to Constantinople, the fleets of Venice, Pisa, and Genoa were employed for this purpose. But before they agreed to lend their fleets, they bargained, that on the reduction of any city favorable to commerce, they should be permitted to trade there without duty or molestation, and be favoured with every privilege and protection which they might desire. In consequence of this bargain, they obtained, in some places, the exclusive right over whole streets, and the appointment of judges to try all who lived in them, or traded under their protection.