Stapelrecht, or staple right, was a medieval privilege granted to certain cities in the Holy Roman Empire allowing them to require passing merchants to unload and offer their goods for sale locally, fostering urban prosperity but often hindering long-distance trade.
Staple rights can be compared to Marktrecht (market rights), the right to hold a regular market, as they were extremely important for the economic prosperity of the river cities that possessed such rights, such as Leipzig (1507), Mainz and Cologne (where a Stapelhaus still stands as a reminder of the former right). At the same time, they created a strong barrier against long-distance trade because of the increased costs and the time required to unload and load ships, especially as a river might have multiple cities in a row with staple rights.
