The inhabitants of the smaller territorial lands, especially in central and southern Germany greatly rejected the Prussianized concept of the nation and preferred to associate such terms with their individual home state. The Hanseatic port cities of Hamburg, Bremen and Lübeck ranked among the most ferocious opponents of the "so-called contract with Prussia". As advocates of free trade, they objected to Prussian ideas of economic integration and refused to sign the renewed Zollverein (Custom Union) treaties until 1888. The Hanseatic merchants' overseas economic success corresponded with their globalist mindset. The citizen of Hamburg, whom Bismark characterized as "extremely irritating" and the German ambassador in London as "the worst Germans we have", were particularly appalled by Prussian militarism and its unopposed growing influence.