What is the Hansa?

The Hansa was an economic alliance of German traders and existed from 12th to the 17th century in North Europe. It was created to protect the commercial interests of traders in foreign countries. In the 14th century, it was a major power in northern Europe. Along with Lubeck, the founder of the alliance, almost 200 cities like Hamburg, Cologne, Gdansk, and Riga were included in the as alliance. The Hansa also controlled the traffic of goods on the North and Baltic Sea.