
The Lübeck law () was the family of codified municipal law developed at
Lübeck
Lübeck (; or ; Latin: ), officially the Hanseatic League, Hanseatic City of Lübeck (), is a city in Northern Germany. With around 220,000 inhabitants, it is the second-largest city on the German Baltic Sea, Baltic coast and the second-larg ...
, which became a
free imperial city in 1226 and is located in present-day
Schleswig-Holstein
Schleswig-Holstein (; ; ; ; ; occasionally in English ''Sleswick-Holsatia'') is the Northern Germany, northernmost of the 16 states of Germany, comprising most of the historical Duchy of Holstein and the southern part of the former Duchy of S ...
. It was the second most prevalent form of municipal law in
medieval
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...
and
early modern
The early modern period is a Periodization, historical period that is defined either as part of or as immediately preceding the modern period, with divisions based primarily on the history of Europe and the broader concept of modernity. There i ...
Germany next to the
Magdeburg Law.
Lübeck Law provided for municipal self-government and self-administration yet did not negate dependence upon a lord, be it a bishop, duke, king or, in Lübeck's case, an emperor. Instead, it allowed the cities a certain degree of autonomy and self-reliance in legislative, judicial and executive matters. While these authorities were vested in the city council (Rat), the members of which could be elected by
co-option
Co-option, also known as co-optation and sometimes spelt cooption or cooptation, is a term with three common meanings. It may refer to:
1) The process of adding members to an elite Social group, group at the discretion of members of the body, us ...
, the Lübeck Law represents a significant modernization of governance in that a class of
burghers, as opposed to
nobles
Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally appointed by and ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. T ...
, were responsible for the day-to-day affairs of governing.
The Lübeck Law is not analogous to Hanseatic law.
Hanseatic cities
The Hanseatic League was a Middle Ages, medieval commercial and defensive network of merchant guilds and market towns in Central Europe, Central and Northern Europe, Northern Europe. Growing from a few Northern Germany, North German towns in the ...
adopted either Lübeck or
Magdeburg law.
History
Lübeck set about spreading its form of government to other cities around the
Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by the countries of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden, and the North European Plain, North and Central European Plain regions. It is the ...
. Eventually about 100 adopted a government based on the law. It still serves as a foundation for
German town laws in many of those cities. Later in the 13th century, cities predominantly governed by the Lübeck Law formed into a powerful trade association, the
Hanseatic League
The Hanseatic League was a Middle Ages, medieval commercial and defensive network of merchant guilds and market towns in Central Europe, Central and Northern Europe, Northern Europe. Growing from a few Northern Germany, North German towns in the ...
, which amounted to a quasi-confederacy with headquarters at Lübeck. However, by the 15th century, major ''
kontor
A ''kontor'' (also Kontor; ) was a major foreign trading post of the Hanseatic League. Kontors were legal entities established in a foreign city (i.e. a city that did not belong to the Hanseatic League), with a degree of legal autonomy. Most kon ...
e'' and smaller trading posts of the ''Hanse'', which was then at the high point of its influence, spread throughout northern
Central Europe
Central Europe is a geographical region of Europe between Eastern Europe, Eastern, Southern Europe, Southern, Western Europe, Western and Northern Europe, Northern Europe. Central Europe is known for its cultural diversity; however, countries in ...
and the British Isles, from
London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
to
Veliky Novgorod
Veliky Novgorod ( ; , ; ), also known simply as Novgorod (), is the largest city and administrative centre of Novgorod Oblast, Russia. It is one of the oldest cities in Russia, being first mentioned in the 9th century. The city lies along the ...
and from
Trondheim
Trondheim ( , , ; ), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros, and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2022, it had a population of 212,660. Trondheim is the third most populous municipality in Norway, and is ...
to
Frankfurt
Frankfurt am Main () is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Hesse. Its 773,068 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the List of cities in Germany by population, fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located in the forela ...
, dominating trade far beyond German-speaking regions and also far beyond the cities where Lübeck law was in force.
The earliest Latin manuscript transmitting the Lubeck law dates to 1226, the oldest
Middle Low German manuscript to 1270. The earliest reference to a Lübeck law manuscript is attributed to 1188. The Lübeck law is influenced by the merchants from
Westphalia who settled Lübeck as well as by the
Holstein land law and the
Schleswig Law.
Lübeck law was prevalent throughout cities in Northern and Northeastern Germany (''Niederdeutschland'') until 1900, when the modern German civil code (''
Bürgerliches Gesetzbuch
The ''Bürgerliches Gesetzbuch'' (, ), abbreviated BGB, is the civil code of Germany, codifying most generally-applicably private law. In development since 1881, it became effective on 1 January 1900, and was considered a massive and groundbr ...
'') was implemented.
Main principle
The Lübeck law provided that a city should be governed by a ''Rat'' (Council), having 20 ''Ratsherrn'' (council members). They were not elected by the citizens, but they would appoint a new member on their own from the city's merchant
guilds
A guild ( ) is an association of artisans and merchants who oversee the practice of their craft/trade in a particular territory. The earliest types of guild formed as organizations of tradespeople belonging to a professional association. They so ...
. This was considered a key to representation of the guilds in the Rat of the city. The period of office was in principle 2 years, but the ''Rat'' could ask a ''Ratsherr'' to stay in office, which usually happened, so that the election was effectively for life.
The ''Rat'' elected up to four ''Bürgermeister'' (
burgomaster, mayor) from its members, who shared the power of government. The "first burgomaster", usually the eldest of them, acted as a ''
primus inter pares
is a Latin phrase meaning first among equals. It is typically used as an honorary title for someone who is formally equal to other members of their group but is accorded unofficial respect, traditionally owing to their seniority in office.
H ...
''. These rules were in force up to the middle of the 19th century. The burgomasters stayed in office as long as they could. There are several examples from the Middle Ages in which burgomasters of Hanseatic League cities were sentenced to death for unsuccessful politics.
This model of a city government provided that only the most experienced, influential and personally most successful merchants - and a few lawyers, called ''
Syndics'' - became members of the ''Rat''. It was also a rule that a father and his son, or brothers, could never be members of the ''Rat'' at the same time, so that influential families could not get too large a share of influence on the city's politics.
Cities with Lübeck law
See also
*
German town law
*
Kulm law
*
Magdeburg rights
Magdeburg rights (, , ; also called Magdeburg Law) were a set of town privileges first developed by Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor (936–973) and based on the Flemish Law, which regulated the degree of internal autonomy within cities and villages gr ...
Notes
Citations
References
*Dollinger, Phillipe. ''The German Hansa.'' Translated and Edited by D. S. Ault and S. H. Steinberg. Stanford University Press, 1970.
*Wilhelm Ebel: Lübisches Recht. 1. Band, Lübeck 1971
External links
Heutiges Lübisches Stadtrecht nach der Revision vom Jahre 1586
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lubeck Law
Law of the Holy Roman Empire
History of Lübeck
Hanseatic League
Urban planning in Germany