With a PoD anytime after 1267 (when the word Hanse appears in a document) postulate a timeline where the towns of the Hanseatic League evolve into a modern state by 21st century standards.
AH Challenge: Hanseatic State
- Thread starter MNP
- Start date
Well, far from postulating a timeline, but I have an idea.
One of setbacks of the Hanseatic League was its reliance on circulation of silver coin in kind. As a result, merchants from Southern and Western Europe knowing letters of credit and such stuff gradually outcompeted Hansa.
Enter Templars, sometimes called 'inventors of modern banking' (probably an exaggeration, but still there's some sense to it). They had connections with Teutonic Order, and when in early XIV century their order was destroyed, some individual members probably fled to the Baltic Region. (there are dozens of myths and conspiracy theories about this, I'll leave this part to Aunt Google
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Now, let's have Templars receive an advance warning, so more of them can come to Baltic shores, bringing at least some remnants of organization with them. From this point, there are lots of opportunities.
One of setbacks of the Hanseatic League was its reliance on circulation of silver coin in kind. As a result, merchants from Southern and Western Europe knowing letters of credit and such stuff gradually outcompeted Hansa.
Enter Templars, sometimes called 'inventors of modern banking' (probably an exaggeration, but still there's some sense to it). They had connections with Teutonic Order, and when in early XIV century their order was destroyed, some individual members probably fled to the Baltic Region. (there are dozens of myths and conspiracy theories about this, I'll leave this part to Aunt Google
)Now, let's have Templars receive an advance warning, so more of them can come to Baltic shores, bringing at least some remnants of organization with them. From this point, there are lots of opportunities.
A Hanseatic state as an oligarchic republic in the mold of Venice and Genoa? Perhaps an early supporter of Lutheranism by the 1500's? A power-broker among the Scandinavian kingdoms, Poland, Lithuania and the Holy Roman Empire? And poised to be an early colonial power?
Well, far from postulating a timeline, but I have an idea.
One of setbacks of the Hanseatic League was its reliance on circulation of silver coin in kind. As a result, merchants from Southern and Western Europe knowing letters of credit and such stuff gradually outcompeted Hansa.
Enter Templars, sometimes called 'inventors of modern banking' (probably an exaggeration, but still there's some sense to it). They had connections with Teutonic Order, and when in early XIV century their order was destroyed, some individual members probably fled to the Baltic Region. (there are dozens of myths and conspiracy theories about this, I'll leave this part to Aunt Google
Now, let's have Templars receive an advance warning, so more of them can come to Baltic shores, bringing at least some remnants of organization with them. From this point, there are lots of opportunities.
This is interesting, but I'm not sure it really was a matter of knowing as much as embracing financial instruments.
It would offer a way of adressing the biggest obstacle to Hansa unity, the radically diverse political systems and dependencies of its members. Imagine foer a moment the Hansa cities, more into financial services, making loans to powerful nobles routinely. It's a dodgy and jittery business - nobility were known to defauilt on their debts and force loans at times - but it could create a situation in which the Hansa cities found themselves facing a shared and predictable constellation of interests: they against the princes. That could make them more inclined to use their leverage as creditors to negotuate liberties, territory and privileges on a grander scale. That would produce a situation in which you have comparatively independent cities with shared interests who would find it easier and more natural to invest in joint military and infrastructure developments the way the biggest ones did OTL.