 Around that time trade with Norway, England and the northern Netherlands began to grow, thus increasing the importance of the city.In 1186 the Bremian Prince-Archbishop Hartwig of Uthlede and his bailiff in Bremen confirmed – without generally waiving the prince-archbishop's overlordship over the city – the , by which Frederick I "Barbarossa" granted the city considerable privileges.The city was recognised as a political entity with its own laws.