---
entity_slug: hanseatic_league
evaluator: null
evaluated_at: '2026-02-23T05:34:20.444648'
overall_score: 4.6
scores:
- name: definition_precision
  value: 4.0
  max_value: 5.0
  rationale: The definition clearly identifies the Hanseatic League as a specific
    historical confederation with distinct characteristics (commercial/defensive,
    merchant guilds, Northwestern/Central Europe, medieval period). It avoids circularity
    and captures the essential nature of this economic organization, though it could
    be slightly more precise about the League's operational mechanisms.
- name: source_grounding
  value: 5.0
  max_value: 5.0
  rationale: This entity is directly grounded in Smith's text from Book III, Chapter
    3, where he explicitly discusses the Hanseatic League as an example of free towns
    gaining economic power during weak central authority. The context accurately reflects
    Smith's use of the League to illustrate his broader argument about urban commercial
    development.
- name: domain_placement
  value: 5.0
  max_value: 5.0
  rationale: The "Exchange" domain is perfectly appropriate for the Hanseatic League,
    as it was fundamentally a trading confederation that facilitated commercial exchange
    across Northern Europe. The League's primary function was organizing and protecting
    trade networks, making it a quintessential exchange mechanism.
- name: vsm_relevance
  value: 4.0
  max_value: 5.0
  rationale: 'The Hanseatic League maps well to multiple VSM systems: S1 (primary
    trading operations), S2 (coordination among member cities), S3 (internal regulation
    of trade standards), and S4 (adaptation to changing political/economic environments).
    It represents a viable system that maintained coherent identity and operations
    across diverse territories.'
- name: explanatory_value
  value: 5.0
  max_value: 5.0
  rationale: This entity provides excellent explanatory power by illustrating Smith's
    key mechanism of how commercial freedom and weak central authority can enable
    urban economic networks to flourish. It demonstrates the structural relationship
    between political decentralization and commercial innovation that Smith argues
    was crucial for economic development.
---

# Evaluation: Hanseatic League

## definition_precision — 4.0 / 5.0

The definition clearly identifies the Hanseatic League as a specific historical confederation with distinct characteristics (commercial/defensive, merchant guilds, Northwestern/Central Europe, medieval period). It avoids circularity and captures the essential nature of this economic organization, though it could be slightly more precise about the League's operational mechanisms.

## source_grounding — 5.0 / 5.0

This entity is directly grounded in Smith's text from Book III, Chapter 3, where he explicitly discusses the Hanseatic League as an example of free towns gaining economic power during weak central authority. The context accurately reflects Smith's use of the League to illustrate his broader argument about urban commercial development.

## domain_placement — 5.0 / 5.0

The "Exchange" domain is perfectly appropriate for the Hanseatic League, as it was fundamentally a trading confederation that facilitated commercial exchange across Northern Europe. The League's primary function was organizing and protecting trade networks, making it a quintessential exchange mechanism.

## vsm_relevance — 4.0 / 5.0

The Hanseatic League maps well to multiple VSM systems: S1 (primary trading operations), S2 (coordination among member cities), S3 (internal regulation of trade standards), and S4 (adaptation to changing political/economic environments). It represents a viable system that maintained coherent identity and operations across diverse territories.

## explanatory_value — 5.0 / 5.0

This entity provides excellent explanatory power by illustrating Smith's key mechanism of how commercial freedom and weak central authority can enable urban economic networks to flourish. It demonstrates the structural relationship between political decentralization and commercial innovation that Smith argues was crucial for economic development.
