Published: Thursday, 12th June 2025
King’s Lynn celebrates its Hanseatic connections this weekend and the new Hanse Commissioner for England is a west Norfolk resident.
This Sunday, 15 June, in King’s Lynn there will be pirates on the Quayside, flags paraded through the town, medieval markets and live music in King’s Staithe Square to mark King’s Lynn Hanse Festival 2025. Full details can be found at kingslynnhansefestival.co.uk.
In addition to the range of festivities in town this weekend, the new Hanse Commissioner for England was announced at The International Hanse Festival in Visby, Sweden, last week as Phillip Eke, the Senior Tourism Officer at the borough council.
Cllr Simon Ring, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Business, said:
“King’s Lynn has a proud Hanseatic heritage that stretches back to the 13th century, and we renewed our connection with Die Hanse, the Hanseatic League, in 2005 along with five other towns in this country. It is right to mark this local history and celebrate our membership of the new league that brings about closer economic, cultural, social and national ties across northern Europe.
“I’m also delighted that, once again, one of our own is taking on the Commissioner role as the representative for the UK. Honorary Alderman and former Borough Council Leader Nick Daubney was the driving force behind King’s Lynn rejoining the new Hanse twenty years ago. Now Phillip Eke, who is well respected for his tourism work in our area and already an excellent ambassador for West Norfolk, has accepted the prestigious position. I have no doubt he will represent England well within the Hanseatic League.”
Phillip Eke added:
“I’m deeply honoured to have been voted-in by the other English members of the Modern Hanse League to take on this role on behalf of the country for the next three years. I have been working with the Hanse League for the past 15 years and am honoured to have worked alongside the first Hanse Commissioner for England during much of that time, our former borough mayor, Honorary Alderman and councillor Nick Daubney.
“Nick was a time-served and much-respected member of the council and, as the very first English Commissioner for the Modern Hanse League, he was instrumental in expanding England’s membership by encouraging and supporting membership applications from other English towns. I hope to honour Nick Daubney’s historic work on this 20th anniversary milestone of him bringing the Hanse League connection back to King’s Lynn and beyond.”