Thirty-nine towns are represented at the Hanseatic League’s diet of 1447.

Tensions between the Prussian region and the "Wendish" cities (Lübeck and its eastern neighbors) have increased as the fifteenth century has progressed.

Lübeck is dependent on its role as center of the Hansa, being on the shore of the sea without a major river.

It is on the entrance of the land route to Hamburg, but this land route can be bypassed by sea travel around Denmark and through the Sound.

Prussia's main interest, on the other hand, is primarily the export of bulk products like grain and timber, which are very important for England, the Low Countries, and later on also for Spain and Italy.