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Why the Hanseatic League Linked Northern Ports

7th grade nonfiction passage about medieval northern trading towns: 238 words, six questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

7th grade nonfiction medieval northern trading towns 238 words

Why the Hanseatic League Linked Northern Ports

In medieval Europe, a merchant who sailed across the Baltic or North Sea faced real risks. Storms wrecked ships, pirates attacked them, and a foreign ruler might charge unfair fees at any harbor. To protect their business, merchants from towns across northern Europe agreed to work together. Historians call this alliance the Hanseatic League, or the Hansa.

The League was never a single country. It was a loose network of trading towns, including Lubeck, Hamburg, and Bergen, that were joined by common interests. From the 1200s into the 1400s, member towns shared rules about weights, measures, and fair dealing. Delegates met to settle disputes and decide what to do about a harbor that treated its merchants badly. If a town broke its promises, other members might refuse to trade with it.

The goods that moved through these ports show what people needed. Merchants carried timber, furs, grain, wax, and salted fish from the north and east, and brought back cloth, metalwork, and wine. A wide, sturdy ship called a cog could carry large loads, which made trade cheaper. The League also kept offices in far-off cities where its merchants lived and stored their goods.

Over time, the Hansa weakened. Rulers grew stronger and built their own trade systems, and new sea routes changed how goods traveled. Yet the old harbor towns kept their warehouses and their sense of history, and some are proud of this heritage today.

Questions

  1. What risks did merchants face on the Baltic and North Seas? in the text

  2. What was the Hanseatic League? in the text

  3. What kinds of goods did the merchants carry? in the text

  4. What kind of ship carried large loads? in the text

  5. Why would a town want to keep its promises to the League? think about it

  6. Why did the League weaken over time? think about it

Words to know

medieval
from the Middle Ages, long ago in Europe
alliance
a group joined together for a shared goal
delegates
people chosen to speak and act for a group
disputes
arguments or disagreements
heritage
traditions and history passed down from the past
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One passage, three levels

The same topic and facts written three ways, so a mixed class can read and talk about one text. Each group’s sheet shows only a shape; the key says which is which.

● Easier · 215 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 4.3

In the Middle Ages, a merchant who sailed the Baltic or North Sea faced risks. Storms wrecked ships. Pirates attacked them. A foreign ruler could charge unfair fees at a harbor. So merchants from towns in northern Europe agreed to work together. Historians call this group the Hanseatic League, or the Hansa.

The League was not one country. It was a loose network of trading towns, like Lubeck, Hamburg, and Bergen. From the 1200s into the 1400s, the towns shared rules about weights, measures, and fair dealing. Delegates met to settle disputes. They also decided what to do about a harbor that treated its merchants badly. If a town broke its promises, other towns might stop trading with it.

The goods that moved through the ports show what people needed. Merchants carried timber, furs, grain, wax, and salted fish. They brought back cloth, metalwork, and wine. A wide, strong ship called a cog could carry big loads. That made trade cheaper. The League also kept offices in far cities where its merchants stayed and stored goods.

Over time, the Hansa grew weak. Rulers grew stronger and built their own trade systems. New sea routes changed how goods moved. But the old harbor towns kept their warehouses and their history. Some are proud of it today.

▲ This passage · 238 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 7

In medieval Europe, a merchant who sailed across the Baltic or North Sea faced real risks. Storms wrecked ships, pirates attacked them, and a foreign ruler might charge unfair fees at any harbor. To protect their business, merchants from towns across northern Europe agreed to work together. Historians call this alliance the Hanseatic League, or the Hansa.

The League was never a single country. It was a loose network of trading towns, including Lubeck, Hamburg, and Bergen, that were joined by common interests. From the 1200s into the 1400s, member towns shared rules about weights, measures, and fair dealing. Delegates met to settle disputes and decide what to do about a harbor that treated its merchants badly. If a town broke its promises, other members might refuse to trade with it.

The goods that moved through these ports show what people needed. Merchants carried timber, furs, grain, wax, and salted fish from the north and east, and brought back cloth, metalwork, and wine. A wide, sturdy ship called a cog could carry large loads, which made trade cheaper. The League also kept offices in far-off cities where its merchants lived and stored their goods.

Over time, the Hansa weakened. Rulers grew stronger and built their own trade systems, and new sea routes changed how goods traveled. Yet the old harbor towns kept their warehouses and their sense of history, and some are proud of this heritage today.

■ Harder · 261 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 9.7

In medieval Europe, a merchant who sailed across the Baltic or the North Sea confronted genuine hazards. Storms wrecked vessels, pirates preyed on them, and a foreign ruler might impose unreasonable fees at any harbor. To safeguard their livelihoods, merchants from towns throughout northern Europe agreed to cooperate with one another. Historians refer to this alliance as the Hanseatic League, or simply the Hansa.

The League was never a single nation. It was a loose network of trading towns, among them Lubeck, Hamburg, and Bergen, that were bound together by shared interests. From the 1200s into the 1400s, member towns observed common rules concerning weights, measures, and honest dealing. Delegates gathered in order to settle disputes and to determine how to respond when a harbor treated its merchants unfairly. If a town broke its promises, the other members might refuse to trade with it altogether.

The goods that flowed through these ports reveal what people of the time required. Merchants transported timber, furs, grain, wax, and salted fish from the north and east, and they returned with cloth, metalwork, and wine. A broad, sturdy vessel called a cog could carry enormous loads, which made commerce less expensive. The League additionally maintained offices in distant cities where its merchants resided and stored their cargo.

Gradually, the Hansa lost its strength. Rulers became more powerful and established trade systems of their own, and new sea routes altered the way goods traveled. Nevertheless, the old harbor towns preserved their warehouses and their sense of history, and some take considerable pride in this heritage today.

Download as one PDF

How to use it

  1. Press Read it big (or B) to put the text on the projector, or Full screen (F) to fill the whole screen.
  2. Ask the questions one at a time and use Show answer when the class has decided. A shows or hides every answer.
  3. Print student copy for the class, or Print with answers for yourself.

Ideas for class

  • Before reading, put medieval, alliance, delegates, disputes and heritage on the board with their meanings from the Words to know section and have students predict what the text will be about.
  • Read it aloud once while students follow along, then have them reread it alone or with a partner. At a calm 100 words a minute it takes about 2 minutes to read aloud.
  • Use the Read it big button (or B) to put the text on the projector, and Show answer on one question at a time so the class commits to an answer first.
  • Question 5 asks the reader to infer. Ask students to point to the words in the passage that led them to their answer.
  • Ask students to write one question the passage did not answer, then look for the answer in a book or on a classroom screen.
  • Print the student copy for independent work and keep the answer-key copy for yourself.

Related

Questions

What reading level is "Why the Hanseatic League Linked Northern Ports"?

It was written for 7th grade. It has 238 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 7.0. That is a formula's estimate from sentence length and syllables, and it is not a Lexile or a guided reading level, so check it against your students.

What do the questions ask?

There are six. 4 ask for something the text says directly and 2 ask the reader to work something out from clues. Each has an answer in the key, and the answers are written as a teacher would accept them, not as the only possible wording.

How long does it take to read?

About 2 minutes read aloud at 100 words a minute. For a one-minute fluency check, paste it into the fluency timer and use the word count.

Can I print it?

Yes. Print student copy gives the passage, the questions with lines to write on, and the word meanings. Print with answers gives the same page with the answers filled in. Both are made in your browser.

Is this passage from a published book?

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