European integration from the seaside a comparative analysis

Great histories of the Mediterranean, the Baltic and other seas have been written and continue to inspire research. This volume is the first to encompass not only the southern and the northern traditions, but also that of the European Atlantic and North Sea coasts. It should not come as a surprise that it took time to combine historiographies, which until now have focused predominately on the connections of individual cities or within particular areas. The reconstruction of connections over long distances was already a challenging task, since travelling meant crossing borders presented by geographical, economic, political, religious, cultural and linguistic entities. Overcoming all these differences was all but self-evident – in the historical experience, just as in historiography. National historiographical traditions and the specific skills needed to access and interpret the sources have fragmented the research area and made an all-encompassing view of European maritime connections rare. The collective enterprise attempted in the present volume is aimed at reconnecting the various historiographical traditions in order to attain a better understanding of the commercial linkages integrating Europe from the sea as occurred more and more starting around 1300.