The Hanseatic Era
Stralsund’s heyday came during its time as a member of the Hanseatic League. After joining the famous trading alliance at the end of the thirteenth century, Stralsund developed to become a flourishing transhipment point, and its “fat-bellied” sailing ships (“Koggen”) were famed throughout the North Sea and Baltic regions. Stralsund’s merchant fleet sailed to Russia, Scandinavia, France, England and the Netherlands loaded with herrings, beer, wine, cloth, furs and ore. At any one time up to three hundred ships were at sea under the Stralsund flag, carrying agricultural products from Rügen and the surrounding region or exotic goods from further afield to foreign destinations across Europe.
Economic and political life were focused entirely on maintaining and developing the trading community, and the Gothic burgher houses with their integrated offices and warehouses were laid out specifically to meet the needs of the merchant families.
The Hanseatic times were not always peaceful, however. Early in the fourteenth century the Danish king Erik Menved defeated the cities of Lübeck, Wismar and Rostock and laid siege to Stralsund. The citizens of Stralsund succeeded in making a surprise counterattack and inflicted a heavy military defeat on the enemy. The ransom for the captured princes was used to finance the splendid ornamental façade of the City Hall. Another Danish king, Valdemar IV, also attempted to break the dominance of the Hanseatic League, but he too was defeated by the alliance. On 24 May 1370 peace was concluded between the Hanseatic cities and the kingdom of Denmark. The famous Peace of Stralsund ended almost ten years of struggle between the League and the Danes, but it also reflected Stralsund’s enhanced standing within the Wendish and Pomeranian Circle of the Hanseatic League.
