= Visby =
[c] Origins of the village Visby [c]
The name of Visby (nord. 'vi' = sacrifice site) indicates that the location has a pre-christian significance. On the west coast of Gotland, where the shoreline  bends to the north east the location of the later settlement Visby is very well suited: The shore together with the then existing sandbanks provided a protected bay where the steep coast drops terraced. It was an ideal landing place for deep lying early ships. In addition there were many fresh water sources. The beginnings of Visby probably date back to a time where traditional trade routes could no longer be used due to the Arabic expansion and the trade with the Byzantine and the Frakish empire had to be carried out more and more through the eastern Europe rivers and the Baltic sea. The main shipping routes from the south to the north and east of the Baltic sea were located between the Swedish east coast and Gotlands west cost to avoid a direct crossing over the open sea.
Traces of the oldest settlements are rare; however the location was continuously used since the beginning of the area of the vikings (800 AD). Remains of wooden houses that were found in the town center could be dated back to that time. One can assume that the place was only inhabited seasonally by resident trade peasants. during the norther Teutonic expansion in the time of the Vikings, where the inhabitants of Gotland were an active part, the island became an important vantage point of travels aboard and back home. The Gotlandians took over the Viking trade tradition and Visby became a trade center between the west and the Baltic. In the 11th century the now yearlong inhabited village grew and the first church in the area of the port was built.
[c] Visby as leading trading port in the 12th century [c]
In the middle of the 12th century Visby became the predominant trading port in the Baltic sea. Already in the preceding century there was an treaty concerning trading between Visby and Novgorod. Gotlandfahrer, meaning merchants traveling to Visby, are first documented among the Russian and Danes: For the Russian there is at least testimonial through a Russian merchant church (St. Olav) in Visby and a mentioning in the Novgorod chronicle; the presence of the Danes is documented through a privilege letter by the Dane king Waldemar the Great. German merchants were probably only after 1161 in greater numbers present. If Visby was approached at first because the direct route through the Baltic sea was too risky, it soon became a trading site where products from western Europe (among others cloth, wine and spices) were traded with Swedish (iron), Russian and Eastbaltic products (fur and wax). Visby profited from the growing demand of the products from the east Baltic sea in central Europe.
[c] Historical beginning of the German Gotlandfahrer [c]
The population of Gotland obtained extensive trading privileges from emperor Lothar in 1134. However German merchants, who traded in the Baltic area, did not have such privileges on Gotland, this caused disagreement between both parties. For the time between 1143 and 1161 fights between Gotlandians and Germans are documented. Heinrich the Loin could arbitrate with the Artlenburg-privilege, which granted the Golandians the same rights in Saxony as the German merchants had there. By this he accomplished that German merchants could trade freely on Gotland. However even after this privilege the German merchants were disliked in Visby; there were some gory disputes, that is why the build their own church (St. Per) while the Golandians kept their own churches St. Hans and St. Clemens. This was the basis for the later split of the community between Germans and Gotlandians.
In this way a small German community was established in Visby, which was separated from the Gotland community; only in 1318/1320 both communities merged due to the good relationship, by joining their councils. Till 1215/1220 the Germans on Gotland were homines of the duke of Saxony; after that they became citizens of Gotland. That is why Heinrich the Loin appointed Pdalich as reeve or Alderman of the Germans, who intended to settle in Visby.
Earlier research assumed that the German merchants outclassed the Gotlandian because with the cog they had the better ships type available. This assumption could definitly be falsifyed through modern ships archeology. Nowadays it's assumed that the German merchants had sufficient capital and were better trained in trading and its administration. In any case the had to relay on the Gotlander at first for the trad in the eastern part of the Baltic sea; because they had good contacts into the Rus and were more adepts in trading ploitically dealing with the Russian partners. On top of that they had in contrast to the German merchants a trading office in Novgorod, the so called Gotenhof. Once some German merchants wed their daughters of Gotlandian merchants they were invited by them to participate in that trade.
This however still excluded most of the German merchants from the trade policy; therefore it came to a split of the German merchants into ones resident on Gotland, the Gotlandia manentes, and the only visiting of Gotland, the Gotlandiam frequentantes. To the excluded German merchants the path to Novgorod was denied. For that reason they confiscated Russian goods in the year 1188 in Visby, to inflict a penalty for open debts of Russian merchants. This caused a cancellation of the trade with the west by the Possadnik of Novgorod, which also put pressure on the Gotlandians and isolated the Gotlandiam frequentantes, to whom the churches on Gotland remained closed and therefore started with the building othe St. Mary church. This stop lasted for three years, then the Gotlandians and Gotlandia manentes agreed to parley in the name of all Germans in Novgorod. This was executed by the Gotlandian Arbud. The Gotlandiam frequentantes released the confiscated goods when the Gotlandian agreed to bargain for them the trade rights in Novgorod. Due to this Visby became an attractive destination for German merchants. The civil service however took measures so that a situation like the one of 1188 could not arise again  by building the oldest sea wall of Visby which was unsuitable for defense but used to control the market and port in case of emergency.
The association of Gotlandfahrer was first documented in 1252 by Margarete of Flanders and was the founding stone for Hanseatic trade activities in the Baltic sea.
[c] 13th century [c]
The 13th and 14 century was the economical zenith of Visby, from which the even today usual byname "Regina Maris" (Queen of the sea) stems. The town grew in the 13th century into a city, where in the center mainly rich merchants lived. Until the end of the 13th century there were more than 15 churches; three monasteries formed: a Dominican monastery (around 1230), a Franciscan-monastery (1233) and a Cistercian monastery (1246).
The continuously increasing number of German merchants (mainly from the Westphalian towns) expanded the trade with Novgorod further, where they soon had their own trading office (the St. Peters-Hof was mentioned in 1259 for the first time). The lead of the trade with Novgorod was exceedingly transferred in the 13th century from the mercantile association of the frequentantes to the town itself. The protection of the merchants was guaranteed by a pact with Lübeck in 1280 which was joined in 1282 by Riga. In German towns the Gotlandian had unknown privileges for people of the north and often could even become councilman. Visby was fully involved into the Hanseatic league until its economical downfall.
At the beginning of the 13th century Gotland fell under the rule of the Swedish crown. For economic reasons the two town municipalities of Visby were interested in a split from the Gotlandian surroundings and therefor from the constitution of the Gotland municipalities. This separation meant as well a separation from the royal influence. After 1270 Visby began with the construction of a city wall which caused a civil war between the town and the surrounding that escalated in 1288. An annihilating defeat of the peasants avoided the intervention of the Swedish king Magnus Ladulås (1275-1290). The Swedish king forced the city to recognize his sovereign right; at the same time the factual independence of Visby was acknowledged.
[c] First half of the 14th century [c]
At first in the 14th century Visby could hold its position as foremost trade town in the Baltic sea. So it still had a leading role and established itself as head of the Gotlandian-Livlandian third within the Hanseatic league. The formal sovereign right of the Swedish king still existed. It asserted itself for example in the promulgation of the ordinance privileges of Visby by king Magnus Eriksson after 1340, which also exists in a German version, while the Swedish version probably was not released and contains elements of German ans Swedish law.
Already at the beginning of the 13th century a power struggle between Lübeck and the confident communities of Visby escalated over the predominance in the Baltic sea and was manifested at first in the question who should have control over the factories in Novgorod. Many towns supported Lübeck but other important cities stood by Visby so it was decided at the beginning of the 14th century that both cities should share the highest control over the trade with Novgorod. The struggle for dominance still lasted some decades until Visby lost more and more of importance in the second half of the 14th century, due to the changes in trading realities (end of the seasonal migration of merchants and progress in navigation).
[c] History after 1350 [c]
The Dane king Waldemar IV Atterdag (1340-1375) conquered Visby in 1361 (battle of Visby). From 1394 till 1398 the Vitalien brothers sought protection behind the city wall of Visby. Until they were driven out by a host of the Teutonic Order they reached a dominance on the Baltic sea. The island and city fell to Denmark again in 1408. In 1411 the foundation for the Visborg was laid.
Visby was attacked in 1525 by troops of the Hanseatic town Lübeck. All churches safe the German merchant church St. Marien, nowadays the Cathedral St. Mary, were destroyed.
[https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visby, 2015-09-17]