The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire · ¶38
The Hanseatic League commanded the trade and navigation of the north: the confederates of the Rhine secured the peace and intercourse of the inland country; the influence of the cities has been adequate to their wealth and policy, and their negative still invalidates the acts of the two superior colleges of electors and princes.Read in context ›
Edward Gibbon · Project Gutenberg #735 (Milman edition) — public domain
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