# Question regarding three medieval German Hanse towns:Anklam, Stolpe, Kolberg and Königsberg **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 21, 2022, 4:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-regarding-three-medieval-german-hanse-towns-anklam-stolpe-kolberg-and-konigsberg/973576 "2022-10-21T04:54:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Octagon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/2acd7d/32.png) [@Octagon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Octagon)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2022, 4:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-regarding-three-medieval-german-hanse-towns-anklam-stolpe-kolberg-and-konigsberg/973576/1 "2022-10-21T04:54:12Z")
Regarding German Hanse towns:Anklam, Stolpe, Kolberg and Königsberg, were any of these medieval free city-states. if not what was their status in the “Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation”? ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2022, 6:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-regarding-three-medieval-german-hanse-towns-anklam-stolpe-kolberg-and-konigsberg/973576/2 "2022-10-21T06:04:13Z")
Anklam, Stolpe and Kolberg were not free cities, but were part of the Duchy of Pomerania. This became part of the Empire in 1181, for all of 4 years. It then became a more permanent part in 1227. Until 1637, at any rate. Königsberg wasn’t exactly a city-state, either, it was part of the larger [Deutschordensstaat crusader state](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/State_of_the_Teutonic_Order). And then part of the [Duchy of Prussia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duchy_of_Prussia). It was thus never part of the Empire. You can find out who was sovereign in any Hansa city [on the table here](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hanseatic_League#Lists_of_former_Hansa_cities). Only 3 Hansa towns were Free Cities _sensu strictu_- Bremen, Lubeck and Hamburg. Others were Imperial Cities -. Dortmond, Gosla, Cologne. [The division between these blurred over time](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_imperial_city#Origin). ---
**Author:** ![Octagon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/2acd7d/32.png) [@Octagon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Octagon)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2022, 6:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-regarding-three-medieval-german-hanse-towns-anklam-stolpe-kolberg-and-konigsberg/973576/3 "2022-10-21T06:26:43Z")
Thanks MrDibble. Very helpful. ---
**Author:** ![Schnitte](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/schnitte/32/9033_2.png) [@Schnitte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Schnitte)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2022, 7:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-regarding-three-medieval-german-hanse-towns-anklam-stolpe-kolberg-and-konigsberg/973576/4 "2022-10-21T07:18:01Z")
But note that there were many cities in medieval Germany which were formally subject to some territorial ruler rather than imperial cities, but which still maintained a high degree of autonomy from the control of that ruler in practice. The Holy Roman Empire was an exceedingly complex political and legal structure. ---
**Author:** ![Octagon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/2acd7d/32.png) [@Octagon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Octagon)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2022, 1:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/question-regarding-three-medieval-german-hanse-towns-anklam-stolpe-kolberg-and-konigsberg/973576/5 "2022-10-21T13:18:48Z")
Thanks Schnitte. So if Wismar or Rostock enjoyed a lot of autonomy but were’s free city-states like Lübeck or Danzig, what would they have been called. Was there a designation for these kinds of cities?