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Brian Grafton
Victoria BC Canada
Posts: 4720
Joined: 2004
Free cities …
3/23/2023 9:30:02 PM
I need some help, please, about Free Cities.

I know they have been around for centuries. London has been a “free city” for centuries, IIUC. Has Paris? There were Hanseatic League cities which were declared “Frei Stadts”, including Hamburg, Lübeck and Rostock (and others?). There was the infamous Free City of Danzig after WW1, and IIRC the International City of Trieste for a brief period at the end of WW2.

Does anybody know of articles which deal with such cities as a group? Can they be considered as a group? Did they have similar safety nets because of their labelling?

I’ll be honest here. I’m so confused over this that I’m not even sure what questions to ask. Increasingly, as I consider the existence of such cities over the past six or seven centuries, I wonder whether they had support for their charters, or whether they were all protected by recognized authority. Any help would be appreciated.

Cheers
Brian G
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"We have met the enemy, and he is us." Walt Kelly. "The Best Things in Life Aren't Things" Bumper sticker.
Michigan Dave
Muskegon MI USA
Posts: 8089
Joined: 2006
Free cities …
3/23/2023 9:37:23 PM
Hi Brian,

Were the Greek City States, "Free Cities"?

Thanks,
MD
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"The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract."
Brian Grafton
Victoria BC Canada
Posts: 4720
Joined: 2004
Free cities …
3/23/2023 10:19:22 PM
Not as I understand them. I had thought ancient Greece was not a nation, but merely a geographical area sharing language and mythology. The various City States could be drawn together for mutual defence in times of need, but were often at war between themselves when not under external threat.

The City States as I’m thinking of them are a product of post-medieval European history. At least some of them seem to have “charters” of some kind, and many of the ones I think of have maintained their special status as “Frei Stadts” long after their original charter.

Cheers
Brian G
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"We have met the enemy, and he is us." Walt Kelly. "The Best Things in Life Aren't Things" Bumper sticker.
scoucer
Berlin  Germany
Posts: 3223
Joined: 2010
Free cities …
3/24/2023 10:48:32 AM
Quote:
Not as I understand them. I had thought ancient Greece was not a nation, but merely a geographical area sharing language and mythology. The various City States could be drawn together for mutual defence in times of need, but were often at war between themselves when not under external threat.

The City States as I’m thinking of them are a product of post-medieval European history. At least some of them seem to have “charters” of some kind, and many of the ones I think of have maintained their special status as “Frei Stadts” long after their original charter.

Cheers
Brian G



Hi Brian,

[Read More]

Bremen and Hamburg, because of their population, remain as Federal States.

Trevor
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`Hey don´t the wars come easy and don´t the peace come hard`- Buffy Sainte-Marie Some swim with the stream. Some swim against the stream. Me - I´m stuck somewhere in the woods and can´t even find the stupid stream.
Brian Grafton
Victoria BC Canada
Posts: 4720
Joined: 2004
Free cities …
3/25/2023 7:11:15 PM
Trevor, thanks for that link. It gave an acceptable explanation, though I found it heavy reading.

Cheers
Brian G
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"We have met the enemy, and he is us." Walt Kelly. "The Best Things in Life Aren't Things" Bumper sticker.

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