An ancient Egyptian city, once mentioned in the Bible by that
name (Isaiah xxx. 4). Its ruins have been identified, about 70
miles above Cairo, on the western bank of the Nile. The
Egyptian name of the city was Chenensu; the Greek name
Heracleopolis.
_R. S. Poole,
Cities of Egypt,
chapter 3._
HANNIBAL, The war of, with Rome.
See PUNIC WAR, THE SECOND.
----------HANOVER: Start--------
HANOVER, OR BRUNSWICK-LÜNEBURG:
Origin of the Kingdom and House.
See SAXONY: THE OLD DUCHY,
and A. D. 1178-1183.
HANOVER:
The Guelf connection.
See GUELFS AND GHIBELLINES;
and ESTE, HOUSE OF.
HANOVER: A. D. 1529.
The Duke joins in the Protest which gave origin to the name
Protestants.
See PAPACY: A. D. 1525-1529.
HANOVER: A. D. 1546.
Final separation from the Wolfenbüttel branch of the House.
The two principalities of Brunswick and Lüneburg, which had
been divided, were reunited by Ernest, called the Confessor.
On his death, in 1546, they were again divided, the heir of
his elder son taking Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, or Brunswick, and
the younger receiving Brunswick-Lüneburg, or Hanover. From the
latter branch sprang the Electoral House of Hanover, and the
present royal family of England; from the former descended the
Ducal Brunswick family.
_Sir A. Halliday,
Annals of the House of Hanover,
book 9 (volume 2)._
{1624}
HANOVER: A. D. 1648.
Losses and acquisitions in the Peace of Westphalia.
The alternating Bishopric.
See GERMANY: A. D. 1648.
HANOVER: A. D. 1692.
Rise to Electoral rank.
See GERMANY: A. D. 1648-1705; and 1125-1152.
HANOVER: A. D. 1694-1696.
The war of the Grand Alliance against Louis XIV.
See FRANCE: A.D. 1694; and 1695-1696.
HANOVER: A. D. 1701.
Settlement of the Succession of the Brunswick-Lüneberg line to
the English Crown.
See ENGLAND: A. D. 1701.
HANOVER: A. D. 1714.
Succession of the Elector to the British Crown.
See ENGLAND: A. D. 1714.
HANOVER: A. D. 1720.
Acquisition of the duchies of Bremen and Verden by the
Elector.
See SCANDINAVIAN STATES (SWEDEN): A. D. 1719-1721.
HANOVER: A. D. 1741.
The War of the Austrian Succession: Neutrality declared.
See AUSTRIA: A. D. 1741 (AUGUST-NOVEMBER).
HANOVER: A. D. 1745.
The English-Hanoverian defeat at Fontenoy.
See NETHERLANDS (THE AUSTRIAN PROVINCES): A. D. 1745.
HANOVER: A. D. 1757-1762.
French attack and British defense of the electorate in the
Seven Years War.
See GERMANY: A. D. 1757 (JULY-DECEMBER), to 1761-1762.
HANOVER: A. D. 1763.
The Peace of Paris, ending the Seven Years War.
See SEVEN YEARS WAR: THE TREATIES.
HANOVER: A. D. 1776.
Troops hired to Great Britain for service in the American War.
See UNITED STATES OF AMERICA:
A. D. 1776 (JANUARY-JUNE).
HANOVER: A. D. 1801-1803.
Annexation of Osnabruck.
See GERMANY: A. D. 1801-1803.
HANOVER: A. D. 1803-1806.
Seizure by the French.
Cession to Prussia.
See FRANCE: A. D. 1802-1803;
and GERMANY: 1806 (JANUARY-AUGUST).
HANOVER: A. D. 1807.
Absorbed in the kingdom of Westphalia.
See GERMANY: A. D. 1807 (JUNE-JULY).
HANOVER: A. D. 1810.
Northern part annexed to France.
See FRANCE: A. D. 1810 (FEBRUARY-DECEMBER).
HANOVER: A. D. 1813.
Deliverance from Napoleon.
Restoration to the King of England.
See GERMANY: A. D. 1813 (OCTOBER-DECEMBER).
HANOVER: A. D. 1815.
Raised to the rank of a kingdom, with territorial enlargement.
See VIENNA, THE CONGRESS OF.
HANOVER: A. D. 1837,
Separation of the Crown from that of Great Britain.
"From the hour that the Crown of these kingdoms [Great Britain
and Ireland] devolved upon Queen Victoria, dates a change
which was a real blessing in the relations of the Sovereign to
the Continent of Europe. Hanover was at that instant wholly
separated from Great Britain. By the law of that country a
female could not reign except in default of heirs male in the
Royal family. But in addition to the great advantage of
separating the policy of England wholly from the intrigues and
complications of a petty German State, it was an immediate
happiness that the most hated and in some respects the most
dangerous man in these islands was removed to a sphere where
his political system might be worked out with less danger to
the good of society than amongst a people where his influence
was associated with the grossest follies of Toryism and the
darkest designs of Orangeism. On the 24th of June the duke of
Cumberland, now become Ernest Augustus, King of Hanover, left
London. On the 28th he made a solemn entrance into the capital
of his states, and at once exhibited to his new subjects his
character and disposition by refusing to receive a deputation
of the Chambers, who came to offer him their homage and their
congratulations. By a proclamation of the 5th of July he
announced his intention to abolish the representative
constitution, which he had previously refused to recognize by
the customary oath. We shall have little further occasion to
notice the course of this worst disciple of the old school of
intolerance and irresponsible government, and we may therefore
at once state that he succeeded in depriving Hanover of the
forms of freedom under which she had begun to live; ejected
from their offices and banished some of the ablest professors
of the University of Gottingen, who had ventured to think that
letters would flourish best in a free soil; and reached the
height of his ambition in becoming the representative of
whatever in sovereign power was most repugnant to the spirit
of the age."
_C. Knight,
Popular History of England,
volume 8, chapter 23._
HANOVER: A. D. 1866.
Extinction of the kingdom.
Absorption by Prussia.
See GERMANY: A. D. 1866.
----------HANOVER: End--------
HANOVER, The Alliance of.
See SPAIN: A. D. 1713-1725.
HANOVER JUNCTION, Engagement at.
See UNITED STATES OF AMERICA:
A. D. 18112 (MAY-JUNE: VIRGINIA).
HANSA TOWNS, The.
"In consequence of the liberty and security enjoyed by the
inhabitants of the free towns [of Germany—see CITIES:
IMPERIAL AND FREE, OF GERMANY], while the rest of the country
was a prey to all the evils of feudal anarchy and oppression,
they made a comparatively rapid progress in wealth and
population. Nuremberg, Augsburg, Worms, Spires, Frankfort, and
other cities, became at an early period celebrated alike for
the extent of their commerce, the magnificence of their
buildings, and the opulence of their citizens. … The
commercial spirit awakened in the north about the same time as
in the south of Germany. Hamburgh was founded by Charlemagne
in the beginning of the ninth century, in the intention of
serving as a fort to bridle the Saxons, who had been
subjugated by the emperor. Its favourable situation on the
Elbe necessarily rendered it a commercial emporium. Towards
the close of the twelfth century, the inhabitants, who had
already been extensively engaged in naval enterprizes, began
to form the design of emancipating themselves from the
authority of their counts, and of becoming a sovereign and
independent state; and in 1189 they obtained an Imperial
charter which gave them various privileges, including among
others the power of electing councillors, or aldermen, to
whom, in conjunction with the deputy of the count, the
government of the town was to be entrusted. Not long after
Hamburgh became entirely free. In 1224 the citizens purchased
from Count Albert the renunciation of all his rights, whether
real or pretended, to any property in or sovereignty over the
town, and its immediate vicinity. And the government was thus
early placed on that liberal footing on which it has ever
since remained. Lubeck, situated on the Trave, was founded
about the middle of the twelfth century. It rapidly grew to be
a place of great trade.
{1625}
It became the principal emporium for the commerce of the
Baltic, and its merchants extended their dealings to Italy and
the Levant. At a period when navigation was still imperfect,
and when the seas were infested with pirates, it was of great
importance to be able to maintain a safe intercourse by land
between Lubeck and Hamburgh, as by that means the difficult
and dangerous navigation of the Sound was avoided. And it is
said by some, that the first political union between these
cities had the protection of merchandize carried between them
by land for its sole object. But this is contradicted by
Lambec in his 'Origines Hamburgenses' (lib. xi., pa. 26). …
But whatever may have been the motives which led to the
alliance between these two cities, it was the origin of the
famous Hanseatic League, so called from the German word
'hansa,' signifying a corporation. There is no very distinct
evidence as to the time when the alliance in question was
established; but the more general opinion seems to be that it
dates from the year 1241. … From the beginning of the
twelfth century, the progress of commerce and navigation in
the north was exceedingly rapid. The countries which stretch
along the bottom of the Baltic from Holstein to Russia, and
which had been occupied by barbarous tribes of Sclavonic
origin, were then subjugated by the Kings of Denmark, the
Dukes of Saxony, and other princes. The greater part of the
inhabitants being exterminated, their place was filled by
German colonists, who founded the towns of Stralsund, Rostock,
Wismar, etc. Prussia and Poland were afterwards subjugated by
the Christian princes, and the Knights of the Teutonic order.
So that in a comparatively short period, the foundations of
civilization and the arts were laid in countries whose
barbarism had ever remained impervious to the Roman power. The
cities that were established along the coasts of the Baltic,
and even in the interior of the countries bordering upon it,
eagerly joined the Hanseatic confederation. They were indebted
to the merchants of Lubeck for supplies of the commodities
produced in more civilized countries, and they looked up to
them for protection against the barbarians by whom they were
surrounded. The progress of the league was in consequence
singularly rapid. Previously to the end of the thirteenth
century it embraced every considerable city in all those vast
countries extending from Livonia to Holland; and was a match
for the most powerful monarchs. The Hanseatic confederacy was
at its highest degree of power and splendour during the
fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. It then comprised from
sixty to eighty cities, which were distributed into four
classes or circles. Lubeck was at the head of the first
circle, and had under it Hamburgh, Bremen, Rostock, Wismar,
etc. Cologne was at the head of the second circle, with
twenty-nine towns under it. Brunswick was at the head of the
third circle, consisting of thirteen towns. Dantzic was at the
head of the fourth circle, having under it eight towns in its
vicinity, besides several that were more remote. The supreme
authority of the League was vested in the deputies of the
different towns assembled in Congress. In it they discussed
all their measures; decided upon the sum that each city should
contribute to the common fund; and upon the questions that
arose between the confederacy and other powers, as well as
those that frequently arose between the different members of
the confederacy. The place for the meeting of Congress was not
fixed, but it was most frequently held at Lubeck, which was
considered as the capital of the League, and there its
archives were kept. … Besides the towns already mentioned,
there were others that were denominated confederated cities,
or allies. … The Golden Bull proscribed all sorts of leagues
and associations, as contrary to the fundamental laws of the
empire, and to the subordination due to the emperor and the
different princes. But Charles IV., the author of this famous
edict, judged it expedient to conciliate the Hanseatic League;
and his successors seem generally to have followed his
example. As the power of the confederated cities was increased
and consolidated, they became more ambitious. Instead of
limiting their efforts to the mere advancement of commerce and
their own protection, they endeavoured to acquire the monopoly
of the trade of the North, and to exercise the same sort of
dominion over the Baltic that the Venetians exercised over the
Adriatic. For this purpose they succeeded in obtaining, partly
in return for loans of money, and partly by force, various
privileges and immunities from the Northern sovereigns which
secured to them almost the whole foreign commerce of
Scandinavia, Denmark, Prussia, Poland, Russia, etc. They
exclusively carried on the herring-fishery of the Sound, at
the same time that they endeavoured to obstruct and hinder the
navigation of foreign vessels in the Baltic. … The Kings of
Denmark, Sweden and Norway were frequently engaged in
hostilities with the Hanse towns. They regarded, and it must
be admitted not without pretty good reason, the privileges
acquired by the League in their kingdoms as so many
usurpations. But their efforts to abolish these privileges
served, for more than two centuries, only to augment and
extend them. … Waldemar III., who ascended the Danish throne
in 1340, engaged in a furious contest with the League. Success
seemed at first rather to incline to his arms. Ultimately,
however, he was completely defeated by the forces of the
League and its allies, and was even obliged to fly from his
kingdom. In his exile he prevailed on the Emperor and the Pope
to interpose in his favour. But neither the imperial rescripts
nor the thunders of the Vatican were able to divert the
confederated cities from their purposes. At length, in 1370,
the regents, to whom the government of Denmark had been
intrusted during the absence of the monarch, concluded a peace
with the League on the conditions dictated by the latter; one
of which was that most of the strong places in the kingdom
should be given up to the League for fifteen years, in
security for the faithful performance of the treaty. Waldemar
having assented to these humiliating terms, returned soon
after to Denmark. In the early part of the fifteenth century
the Hanse towns having espoused the side of the Count of
Holstein, who was at war with Eric X., King of Denmark, sent
an armament of upwards of 200 ships, having more than 12,000
troops on board, to the assistance of their ally. This
powerful aid decided the contest in his favour. Nearly at the
same time the League raised their ally, Albert of
Mecklenburgh, to the throne of Norway, who confirmed to them
several important commercial privileges.
{1626}
In their contests with Sweden, during the fourteenth and
fifteenth centuries, the League were equally successful. Such,
indeed, was their ascendancy in that kingdom, that they were
authorized to nominate some of the principal magistrates in
most of the Swedish maritime towns of any importance! … The
town of Wisby, situated on the west coast of the island of
Gothland, became, during the ascendancy of the League, one of
its principal depots, and also one of the best frequented
emporiums of the North. But Wisby is chiefly famous from its
name having become identified with the code of maritime laws
that was long of paramount authority in the Baltic. … The
principal Northern jurists and historians regard the Wisby
code, or compilation, as anterior to the code, or compilation,
denominated the Rules or Judgments of Oleron, and as being in
fact the most ancient monument of the maritime laws of the
middle ages. But no learning or ingenuity can give
plausibility to so improbable a theory. … In order to
facilitate and extend their commercial transactions, the
League established various factories in foreign countries, the
principal of which were at Novogorod in Russia, London in
England, Bruges in the Netherlands, and Bergen in Norway.
Novogorod, situated at the confluence of the Volkof with the
Imler Lake, was, for a lengthened period, the most renowned
emporium in the north-eastern parts of Europe. … The
merchants of the Hanse towns, or Hansards, as they were then
commonly termed, were established in London at a very early
period, and their factory here was of considerable magnitude
and importance. They enjoyed various privileges and
immunities; they were permitted to govern themselves by their
own laws and regulations; the custody of one of the gates of
the city (Bishopsgate) was committed to their care; and the
duties on various sorts of imported commodities were
considerably reduced in their favour. These privileges
necessarily excited the ill-will and animosity of the English
merchants. … The League exerted themselves vigorously in
defence of their privileges; and having declared war against
England, they succeeded in excluding our vessels from the
Baltic, and acted with such energy, that Edward IV. was glad
to come to an accommodation with them, on terms which were
anything but honourable to the English. In the treaty for this
purpose, negotiated in 1474, the privileges of the merchants
of the Hanse towns were renewed, and the king assigned to
them, in absolute property, a large space of ground, with the
buildings upon it, in Thames Street, denominated the Steel
Yard, whence the Hanse merchants have been commonly
denominated the Association of the Steel Yard. … In 1498,
all direct commerce with the Netherlands being suspended, the
trade fell into the hands of the Hanse merchants, whose
commerce was in consequence very greatly extended. But,
according as the spirit of commercial enterprise awakened in
the nation, and as the benefits resulting from the prosecution
of foreign trade came to be better known, the privileges of
the Hanse merchants became more and more obnoxious. They were
in consequence considerably modified in the reigns of Henry
VII. and Henry VIII., and were at length wholly abolished in
1597. The different individuals belonging to the factory in
London, as well as those belonging to the other factories of
the League, lived together at a common table, and were
enjoined to observe the strictest celibacy. … By means of
their factory at Bergen, and of the privileges which had been
either granted to or usurped by them, the League enjoyed for a
lengthened period the monopoly of the commerce of Norway. But
the principal factory of the League was at Bruges in the
Netherlands. Bruges became, at a very early period, one of the
first commercial cities of Europe, and the centre of the most
extensive trade carried on to the north of Italy. The art of
navigation in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries was so
imperfect, that a voyage from Italy to the Baltic and back
again could not be performed in a single season, and hence,
for the sake of their mutual convenience, the Italian and
Hanseatic merchants determined on establishing a magazine or
store-house of their respective products in some intermediate
situation. Bruges was fixed upon for this purpose, a
distinction which it seems to have owed as much to the freedom
enjoyed by the inhabitants, and the liberality of the
government of the Low Countries, as to the conveniency of its
situation. In consequence of this preference, Bruges speedily
rose to the very highest rank among commercial cities, and
became a place of vast wealth. … From the middle of the
fifteenth century the power of the confederacy, though still
very formidable, began to decline. This was not owing to any
misconduct on the part of its leaders, but to the progress of
that improvement it had done so much to promote. … Lubeck,
Hamburgh, Bremen, and the towns in their vicinity, were
latterly the only ones that had any interest in its
maintenance. The cities in Zealand and Holland joined it,
chiefly because they would otherwise have been excluded from
the commerce of the Baltic; and those of Prussia, Poland and
Russia did the same, because, had they not belonged to it,
they would have been shut out from all intercourse with
strangers. When, however, the Zealanders and Hollanders became
sufficiently powerful at sea to be able to vindicate their
right to the free navigation of the Baltic by force of arms,
they immediately seceded from the League; and no sooner had
the ships of the Dutch, the English, etc., begun to trade
directly with the Polish and Prussian Hanse Towns, than these
nations also embraced the first opportunity of withdrawing
from it. … At the middle of the seventeenth century the
cities of Lubeck, Hamburgh, and Bremen were all that continued
to acknowledge the authority of the League."
History of the Hanseatic League
(Foreign Quarterly Review, January, 1831).
ALSO IN:
_S. A. Dunham,
History of the Germanic Empire,
book 1, chapter 4 (volume 2)._
_C. Walford,
Outline History of the Hanseatic League
(Royal Historical Society Transactions, volume 9)._
_H. Zimmern,
The Hansa Towns
(Stories of the Nations)._
_J. Yeats,
The Growth and Vicissitudes of Commerce._
See, also,
CITIES, IMPERIAL AND FREE, OF GERMANY;
and SCANDINAVIAN STATES: A. D. 1018-1397.
HANSE OF LONDON, The Flemish.
See FLANDERS: 13TH CENTURY.