The Hanseatic League 1360-1754

Around 1360, a Hanseatic Kontor, or trading office, was set up on Bryggen in Bergen, as in Novgorod, Brugge and London. For the next four centuries, the Germans dominated life on Bryggen. They based their trade on dried fish exports and grain imports. When the dried fish was brought from north Norway, the wharves and sheds seethed with activity.

Counterpoise hoists were used to load and unload cargoes, which were then provisionally stored in quay side sheds before being taken to the warehouses. The Hanseatic Kontor on Bryggen was a male-dominated community characterised by hard work and strict discipline. The Kontor had its own laws and educational system. Members were not allowed to fraternise with the locals, and especially not with the local women.

Fish dried in north Norway was the country's most important export commodity. The many religious fasts in Europe's Roman Catholic countries ensured a steady demand for stockfish. In turn, Norway depended on grain imported from England and the Baltic countries. Bryggen acted as an entrepôt for this trade.

Luxuries such as textiles, wines and ceramics were also imported in large quantities. Though most of the buildings on Bryggen were built as warehouses, they also housed simple offices and living quarters for merchants, journeymen and apprentices. Assembly rooms - schøtstuer - were located in the rear of each tenement, and the men would gather here for meals and recreation. Today, Bryggen is the only Hanseatic Kontor still in existence.

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The Norwegian Kontor 1754 - 1899

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Cinnamon Rolls on Bryggen

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Bryggen early history 1070 - 1360