Maritime Trade around Europe 1300-1600 Commercial Networks and Urban Autonomy

The integration of European markets was brought about by both overland transport as well as of sea-borne connections. Around 1300, bulk cargoes of consumer goods became increasingly common, not only on the Mediterranean but also along the Atlantic, North Sea and Baltic coasts. The maritime connections around the continent became all-encompassing, more integrated and more relevant in terms of volume and variety. This book aims to get a better understanding of the ways in which obstacles to this extension and intensification of maritime commercial networks could be overcome. It does so by identifying the conditions under which maritime ports could effectively connect major trade routes. Thus, the position of each of them within the market hierarchy has to be related to the characteristics of their location, their hinterland, the dimensions of their connections, their institutional arrangements related to their commercial activities and the ways in which they tried to overcome cultural differences and resolve conflicts. One of the key questions to be raised will thus be the level of autonomy that port cities of a particular type needed to enjoy vis-à-vis other powers in their environment or network. Here, the approach chosen for this volume concentrating on maritime networks will complement the more conventional analysis of the relations between cities and states.