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| | Hanseatic League (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-10-09) |
 | | Its location on the Baltic provided access for trade with Scandinavia and Russia, putting it in direct competition with the Scandinavians who had previously controlled most of the Baltic trade routes. |
 | | In fact, at the height of its power, the merchants of the Hanseatic League were able to use their economic clout (and sometimes their military might -- trade routes needed protecting, and the League's ships were well-armed) to influence Imperial policy. |
 | | Even in the 21st century, the cities of Deventer, Kampen, Zutphen, Lübeck, Hamburg, Bremen, Rostock, Wismar, Stralsund, Greifswald and Anklam call themselves Hanse cities. |
| www.worldhistory.com /wiki/H/Hanseatic-League.htm (881 words) |
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