Scania Market
Encyclopedia
Scania Market was a major fish market
for herring
which took place annually in Scania
during the Middle Ages
. From around 1200, it became one of the most important events for trade around the Baltic Sea
and made Scania into a major distribution center for West-European goods bound for eastern Scandinavia
. The Scania Market continued to be an important trade center for 250 years and was a cornerstone of the Hanseatic League
's wealth.
The fair took place from August 24 to October 9, mainly in locations between the two Scanian towns of Skanör
and Falsterbo
at the southern mouth of Öresund
, with much of the connected industry spread out on the surrounding peninsula, but Køge
, Dragør
, Copenhagen
, Malmö
, Helsingborg
, Simrishamn
, Ystad
and Trelleborg
were also part of the Scania Market. Since the fishermen erected their trading booths and temporary shops close to the area where the herring was spawning
, the exact locations of the Scania Market changed from year to year.
The basis for the market's popularity was the rich herring fishing
around the Falsterbo Peninsula. Legend tells that the herring fishery off the Scanian coast was so rich, that one could scoop up the fish with one's hands. After a visit to the region in 1364, the French
crusader
Philippe de Mezieres
wrote: "Two months a year, that is in September and October, the herring travel from one sea to the other through the Sound, by order of God, in such large numbers that it is a great wonder, and so many pass through the sound in these months, that at several places one can cut them with a dagger."
As early as the 12th century the peninsula had become a centre for the herring trade; the Scanian name for the town Falsterbo
was Falsterbothe, which meant "the booths for fish from Falster". The 13th-century German
chronicler Arnold of Lübeck
, author of Chronicon Slavorum
, wrote that the Danes had wealth and an abundance of everything thanks to the yearly catches of herring at the Scanian coast. The laws of the city of Leiden in the 15th century stated that all herring sellers selling herring other than from Scania, should warn their customers with a clear marking.
The demand for herring during this period was great; it was a fairly inexpensive source of protein
for the populations around the Baltic during the winter and the Catholic Church demanded fasting
(from meat), in Christ
's following, in connection with Lent
. Due to the large production and the great demand, the Scania Market became the most important North European market in the 14th century.
During the fishing season, the necessary salt
and barrels for conservation came from Hanseatic Lüneburg
and were provided by Hanseatic traders mainly from Lübeck
. Lübeck also, to some extent, provided the Scanians with an additional work force, so called "gill
-women" who cleaned the fish, ensuring a swift salting of the landed fish.
The fishing trade was closely regulated by the Danish crown, with special rules regarding issues such as the fishing nets' mesh size, enforced by special bailiffs who policed the trade. Royal governors were installed in castles at Skanør and Falsterbo to collect customs and act as judicial and administrative leaders.
Apart from the fishermen and the local fish traders, merchants from Lübeck and other Hanseatic towns, as well as from England
, Scotland
, Flanders
and Normandy
, came to the herring market to buy and sell herring, but also to trade in other goods with the Scandinavian merchants, landowners and peasants. Traders arrived from Denmark, eastern Norway
and Sweden
, as well as the rest of the Baltic. A wide variety of goods were traded, among them horse
s, butter
, iron
, tar
, grain
and handicraft
products from the North, Prussia
, and Livonia
.
The fishing and the Scania Market yielded a large income to the Danish Crown
, and made together with the Sound Toll the state virtually independent of tax
incomes for extended periods of time. A good fishing year in the 14th century could mean an export of 300.000 barrels of herring; and it is estimated that one third of the Danish king's income came from the Scania Market.
Most of the 14th century was characterized by strife and wars between Danish kings and the Hansa. According to a German view, the Danes got herring "for nothing from God" — only to sell it dearly. As opposed to Stockholm
and Bergen
, which had Scandinavia's largest Hanseatic colonies, the Danish towns of the Scania Market did not encourage large permanent settlements of Hansa merchants; most of the merchants arrived in the summer and went back home after the end of the market.
In 1367, the Hansa towns allied themselves with Sweden
, Mecklenburg
and Holstein
, and the Confederation of Cologne
went to war against Denmark and Norway. With the Treaty of Stralsund
in 1370, a peace was settled that left the Hanseatic League in control of the fortifications at the Scania Market and along the rest of Oresund for 15 years.
The abundance of herring around Scania abruptly ceased in the beginning of the 15th century and the region lost its importance as a trading place.
Fish market
A fish market is a marketplace used for marketing fish products. It can be dedicated to wholesale trade between fishermen and fish merchants, or to the sale of seafood to individual consumers, or to both...
for herring
Herring
Herring is an oily fish of the genus Clupea, found in the shallow, temperate waters of the North Pacific and the North Atlantic oceans, including the Baltic Sea. Three species of Clupea are recognized. The main taxa, the Atlantic herring and the Pacific herring may each be divided into subspecies...
which took place annually in Scania
Scania
Scania is the southernmost of the 25 traditional non-administrative provinces of Sweden, constituting a peninsula on the southern tip of the Scandinavian peninsula, and some adjacent islands. The modern administrative subdivision Skåne County is almost, but not totally, congruent with the...
during the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
. From around 1200, it became one of the most important events for trade around the Baltic Sea
Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is a brackish mediterranean sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and...
and made Scania into a major distribution center for West-European goods bound for eastern Scandinavia
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and language. Modern Norway and Sweden proper are situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula,...
. The Scania Market continued to be an important trade center for 250 years and was a cornerstone of the Hanseatic League
Hanseatic League
The Hanseatic League was an economic alliance of trading cities and their merchant guilds that dominated trade along the coast of Northern Europe...
's wealth.
The fair took place from August 24 to October 9, mainly in locations between the two Scanian towns of Skanör
Skanör
Skanör is a town in Vellinge Municipality and part of the conurbation Skanör med Falsterbo in southwestern Scania, Sweden. City facilities include hotels, restaurants, a harbour, an old church and an elementary school. A greenbelt called Skanörs vångar will be a new residential area in Skanör.-The...
and Falsterbo
Falsterbo
Falsterbo is a town located at the south-western tip of Sweden in Vellinge Municipality in Skåne County. Falsterbo is situated in the southern part of the Falsterbo peninsula. It is part of Skanör med Falsterbo, one of Sweden's historical cities.-History:...
at the southern mouth of Öresund
Oresund
The Sound , is the strait that separates the Danish island Zealand from the southern Swedish province of Scania. Its width is just at the narrowest point between Helsingør, Denmark, and Helsingborg, Sweden...
, with much of the connected industry spread out on the surrounding peninsula, but Køge
Køge
Køge Municipality is a municipality in Region Sjælland on the east coast of the island of Zealand approx. 40 km. southwest of Copenhagen. The municipality covers an area of 255 km² , and has a total population of 56,637...
, Dragør
Dragør
Dragør Kommune is a municipality in Copenhagen County on the southern coast of the island of Amager just east of Zealand in eastern Denmark. The municipality covers an area of 18 km², and has a total population of 13,411...
, Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
, Malmö
Malmö
Malmö , in the southernmost province of Scania, is the third most populous city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg.Malmö is the seat of Malmö Municipality and the capital of Skåne County...
, Helsingborg
Helsingborg
Helsingborg is a city and the seat of Helsingborg Municipality, Skåne County, Sweden with 97,122 inhabitants in 2010. Helsingborg is the centre of an area in the Øresund region of about 320,000 inhabitants in north-west Scania, and is Sweden's closest point to Denmark, with the Danish city...
, Simrishamn
Simrishamn
Simrishamn is a locality and the seat of Simrishamn Municipality, Skåne County, Sweden with 6,546 inhabitants in 2005. Simrishamn is, despite its small population, for historical reasons normally still referred to as a city....
, Ystad
Ystad
Ystad is a "locality", or town, and the seat of Ystad Municipality, Skåne County, Sweden, with 17,286 inhabitants .Settlement dates back to the 11th century and the town has become a busy ferryport, local administrative centre and tourist attraction...
and Trelleborg
Trelleborg
Trelleborg is a locality and the seat of Trelleborg Municipality, Skåne County, Sweden with 25,643 inhabitants in 2005. It is the southernmost town in Sweden.-History:...
were also part of the Scania Market. Since the fishermen erected their trading booths and temporary shops close to the area where the herring was spawning
Spawn (biology)
Spawn refers to the eggs and sperm released or deposited, usually into water, by aquatic animals. As a verb, spawn refers to the process of releasing the eggs and sperm, also called spawning...
, the exact locations of the Scania Market changed from year to year.
Herring trade and salt import
Fishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch wild fish. Fish are normally caught in the wild. Techniques for catching fish include hand gathering, spearing, netting, angling and trapping....
around the Falsterbo Peninsula. Legend tells that the herring fishery off the Scanian coast was so rich, that one could scoop up the fish with one's hands. After a visit to the region in 1364, the French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
crusader
Crusades
The Crusades were a series of religious wars, blessed by the Pope and the Catholic Church with the main goal of restoring Christian access to the holy places in and near Jerusalem...
Philippe de Mezieres
Philippe de Mézières
Philippe de Mézières , French soldier and author, was born at the chateau of Mézières in Picardy.He belonged to the poorer nobility, and first served under Lucchino Visconti in Lombardy, but within a year he entered the service of Andrew, Duke of Calabria, who was assassinated in September 1345...
wrote: "Two months a year, that is in September and October, the herring travel from one sea to the other through the Sound, by order of God, in such large numbers that it is a great wonder, and so many pass through the sound in these months, that at several places one can cut them with a dagger."
Falsterbo
Falsterbo is a town located at the south-western tip of Sweden in Vellinge Municipality in Skåne County. Falsterbo is situated in the southern part of the Falsterbo peninsula. It is part of Skanör med Falsterbo, one of Sweden's historical cities.-History:...
was Falsterbothe, which meant "the booths for fish from Falster". The 13th-century German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
chronicler Arnold of Lübeck
Arnold of Lübeck
Arnold of Lübeck was a Benedictine abbot, a chronicler, the author of the Chronica Slavorum.-References:...
, author of Chronicon Slavorum
Chronicon Slavorum
Chronica Slavorum is a historical record attributed to Helmold. It is a continuation of Deeds of bishops of the Hamburg Church by Adam von Bremen. Chronica describes events related to North-West Slavic tribes known as the Wends up to 1171. Chronica is a very significant historic record of...
, wrote that the Danes had wealth and an abundance of everything thanks to the yearly catches of herring at the Scanian coast. The laws of the city of Leiden in the 15th century stated that all herring sellers selling herring other than from Scania, should warn their customers with a clear marking.
The demand for herring during this period was great; it was a fairly inexpensive source of protein
Protein
Proteins are biochemical compounds consisting of one or more polypeptides typically folded into a globular or fibrous form, facilitating a biological function. A polypeptide is a single linear polymer chain of amino acids bonded together by peptide bonds between the carboxyl and amino groups of...
for the populations around the Baltic during the winter and the Catholic Church demanded fasting
Fasting
Fasting is primarily the act of willingly abstaining from some or all food, drink, or both, for a period of time. An absolute fast is normally defined as abstinence from all food and liquid for a defined period, usually a single day , or several days. Other fasts may be only partially restrictive,...
(from meat), in Christ
Christ
Christ is the English term for the Greek meaning "the anointed one". It is a translation of the Hebrew , usually transliterated into English as Messiah or Mashiach...
's following, in connection with Lent
Lent
In the Christian tradition, Lent is the period of the liturgical year from Ash Wednesday to Easter. The traditional purpose of Lent is the preparation of the believer – through prayer, repentance, almsgiving and self-denial – for the annual commemoration during Holy Week of the Death and...
. Due to the large production and the great demand, the Scania Market became the most important North European market in the 14th century.
During the fishing season, the necessary salt
Salt
In chemistry, salts are ionic compounds that result from the neutralization reaction of an acid and a base. They are composed of cations and anions so that the product is electrically neutral...
and barrels for conservation came from Hanseatic Lüneburg
Lüneburg
Lüneburg is a town in the German state of Lower Saxony. It is located about southeast of fellow Hanseatic city Hamburg. It is part of the Hamburg Metropolitan Region, and one of Hamburg's inner suburbs...
and were provided by Hanseatic traders mainly from Lübeck
Lübeck
The Hanseatic City of Lübeck is the second-largest city in Schleswig-Holstein, in northern Germany, and one of the major ports of Germany. It was for several centuries the "capital" of the Hanseatic League and, because of its Brick Gothic architectural heritage, is listed by UNESCO as a World...
. Lübeck also, to some extent, provided the Scanians with an additional work force, so called "gill
Gill
A gill is a respiratory organ found in many aquatic organisms that extracts dissolved oxygen from water, afterward excreting carbon dioxide. The gills of some species such as hermit crabs have adapted to allow respiration on land provided they are kept moist...
-women" who cleaned the fish, ensuring a swift salting of the landed fish.
Danish taxation
Apart from the fishermen and the local fish traders, merchants from Lübeck and other Hanseatic towns, as well as from England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, Flanders
Flanders
Flanders is the community of the Flemings but also one of the institutions in Belgium, and a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France and the Netherlands. "Flanders" can also refer to the northern part of Belgium that contains Brussels, Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp...
and Normandy
Normandy
Normandy is a geographical region corresponding to the former Duchy of Normandy. It is in France.The continental territory covers 30,627 km² and forms the preponderant part of Normandy and roughly 5% of the territory of France. It is divided for administrative purposes into two régions:...
, came to the herring market to buy and sell herring, but also to trade in other goods with the Scandinavian merchants, landowners and peasants. Traders arrived from Denmark, eastern Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
and Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, as well as the rest of the Baltic. A wide variety of goods were traded, among them horse
Horse
The horse is one of two extant subspecies of Equus ferus, or the wild horse. It is a single-hooved mammal belonging to the taxonomic family Equidae. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million years from a small multi-toed creature into the large, single-toed animal of today...
s, butter
Butter
Butter is a dairy product made by churning fresh or fermented cream or milk. It is generally used as a spread and a condiment, as well as in cooking applications, such as baking, sauce making, and pan frying...
, iron
Iron
Iron is a chemical element with the symbol Fe and atomic number 26. It is a metal in the first transition series. It is the most common element forming the planet Earth as a whole, forming much of Earth's outer and inner core. It is the fourth most common element in the Earth's crust...
, tar
Tar
Tar is modified pitch produced primarily from the wood and roots of pine by destructive distillation under pyrolysis. Production and trade in tar was a major contributor in the economies of Northern Europe and Colonial America. Its main use was in preserving wooden vessels against rot. The largest...
, grain
Cereal
Cereals are grasses cultivated for the edible components of their grain , composed of the endosperm, germ, and bran...
and handicraft
Handicraft
Handicraft, more precisely expressed as artisanic handicraft, sometimes also called artisanry, is a type of work where useful and decorative devices are made completely by hand or by using only simple tools. It is a traditional main sector of craft. Usually the term is applied to traditional means...
products from the North, Prussia
Prussia
Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...
, and Livonia
Livonia
Livonia is a historic region along the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea. It was once the land of the Finnic Livonians inhabiting the principal ancient Livonian County Metsepole with its center at Turaida...
.
The fishing and the Scania Market yielded a large income to the Danish Crown
Danish Crown
Danish Crown may refer to several things.* Danish krone, currency used in Denmark* The monarchy of Denmark* Danish Crown Regalia, symbols of the Danish monarchy.* Danish Crown AmbA, a large meat processing company....
, and made together with the Sound Toll the state virtually independent of tax
Tax
To tax is to impose a financial charge or other levy upon a taxpayer by a state or the functional equivalent of a state such that failure to pay is punishable by law. Taxes are also imposed by many subnational entities...
incomes for extended periods of time. A good fishing year in the 14th century could mean an export of 300.000 barrels of herring; and it is estimated that one third of the Danish king's income came from the Scania Market.
Strife between Denmark and the Hanseatic League
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
and Bergen
Bergen
Bergen is the second largest city in Norway with a population of as of , . Bergen is the administrative centre of Hordaland county. Greater Bergen or Bergen Metropolitan Area as defined by Statistics Norway, has a population of as of , ....
, which had Scandinavia's largest Hanseatic colonies, the Danish towns of the Scania Market did not encourage large permanent settlements of Hansa merchants; most of the merchants arrived in the summer and went back home after the end of the market.
In 1367, the Hansa towns allied themselves with Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, Mecklenburg
Mecklenburg
Mecklenburg is a historical region in northern Germany comprising the western and larger part of the federal-state Mecklenburg-Vorpommern...
and Holstein
Holstein
Holstein is the region between the rivers Elbe and Eider. It is part of Schleswig-Holstein, the northernmost state of Germany....
, and the Confederation of Cologne
Confederation of Cologne
The Confederation of Cologne was a mediaeval military alliance against Denmark signed 1367 by cities of the Hanseatic League on their meeting called Hansetag in Cologne....
went to war against Denmark and Norway. With the Treaty of Stralsund
Treaty of Stralsund
The Treaty of Stralsund ended the war between the Hanseatic League and the kingdom of Denmark. The Hanseatic League reached the peak of its power by the conditions of this treaty....
in 1370, a peace was settled that left the Hanseatic League in control of the fortifications at the Scania Market and along the rest of Oresund for 15 years.
The abundance of herring around Scania abruptly ceased in the beginning of the 15th century and the region lost its importance as a trading place.
External links
- Scanian Market - by Oresundstid