Most of the traffic of the Champagne fairs went North and South, by way of Flanders and of Italy. Merchants from Normandy ascended the river Oise to its junction with the land route. The route of German merchants is unknown, but most of them probably went by way of Bruges. ] =75. Trade at the Champagne fairs; other continental fairs.=—In the thirteenth century, the period of their greatest prosperity, six fairs were held at different places in Champagne, of which Troyes and Provins, southeast of Paris, were the most important. Each lasted over six weeks, and, following in rotation, they supplied an almost continuous market. Here one might find all the wares which formed the objects of commerce in Europe; textiles of silk, wool, and linen; minor manufactures and jewelry; drugs and spices; raw materials like salt and metals; leather, skins, and furs; foods and drinks, live stock and slaves. The bulk of the trading was done by merchants from various parts of France and Flanders (modern Belgium) and by Italians who came up over the Alpine passes; there were also Germans and Spanish, and, in less number, English, Dutch, and Swiss. Wares came from more distant countries, Scandinavia and the eastern Mediterranean, but changed hands on the way. The fairs declined as heavier dues were imposed, and especially when Champagne was brought directly under the French king, about 1300; wars diverted the merchants from Champagne to Flanders, and the growth of sea-trade favored this same movement. The Champagne fairs dwindled to insignificance, and their place was taken by the fairs of Bruges and Cologne, of Frankfurt on the Main, Geneva, and Lyons.