In the middle ages the Rhine was Europe's most important commercial waterway. Like many modern highways, it was a toll route. Toll points were meant to be approved by the Holy Roman Emperor, but local landowners often charged river traffic for passing through. These "robber barons", as they became known, were a serious impediment to trade, and imperial forces had to take costly punitive action to remove them. The relationship between business and the state bears some resemblance to this medieval tussle. Like those Rhine boatmen, the companies operating within national borders must pay something towards the cost of supporting commerce, but if the tolls are excessive, trade will suffer. At least some of the world's 200 or so countries will be tempted to act as robber barons, charging the equivalent of protection money to the companies they deal with.
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