Ondrej Halaga's Contribution to the Study of the Hanseatic League's Trade Relations with Central and Eastern Europe

Ondrej Richard Halaga, a Slovak historian, conducted extensive research on the economic relations between Eastern Slovak cities and the Hanseatic League during the latter half of the 20th century. His research provides a thorough analysis of the integration of the Carpathian region into international trade and the history of its trade relations with Poland and the Teutonic Order. Halaga's works, despite their unique subject matter, are rarely mentioned in Hanseatic studies outside Slovakia, including in Russia. His works were largely unknown to Soviet historians and are rarely used by current Russian medievalists because Halaga was banned from publishing due to his political views. Additionally, due to his criticism of the Communist regime and following his emigration to Western Europe, other researchers could not cite his works, which prevented their use in Soviet-Russian historiography. This article employs biographical and historical-genetical methods to explore Halaga's significant contribution to the relations between East-Central Europe and the Hanseatic League. The focus is on the rich trade history of Košice, located in Eastern Slovakia. During the Middle Ages, Košice exchanged goods with Novgorod, Halych-Volhynia, and the Grand Duchy of Moscow. Halaga's work has re-evaluated the history of Košice and its regions, leading to a change in perspective. Through his research, the Slovak historian has demonstrated that Košice played a major role in Hanseatic and European trade, and should not be considered as part of an underdeveloped territory. It is anticipated that Ondrej Halaga's works will be incorporated into current Russian historiography.