Tea Travels to Europe
March 18, 2010
The last article in the series discussed how tea had a mythical origin and how it started to grow in Asia because of Buddhist monks. This time, the discussion will focus on Europe and how tea affected this continent’s culture for the better.
Europe can thank the Jesuit priest named Jasper de Cruz for being the first European to taste tea. It was only 1560. This was the first time a missionary tasted the beverage. However, it was Portugal who brought tea to Lisbon as a commercial product. They brought a lot of it, not just little bags to give to family and friends.
The Dutch however were responsible for bringing tea to France, Holland and some Baltic countries. Do you know that tea then costs $100 per pound? The reason for this is the cost of traveling. The merchant ships were not easy or cheap to set up.
In a few years, Holland and France became the leading users of tea in all of Europe.
Britain and Tea development
Although most eastern and western Europe was all tea drinkers, it was Britain who developed tea further. In the early 19th century, Britain actually transplanted tea on British colonies like Java, India, and Sri Lanka. This facilitated the trade a lot.
This is why Britain and its history with tea will be discussed a bit below.
Coffee and Tea
Ironically enough, tea was popularized by Thomas Garraway on 1667. He sold tea along with coffee in his coffee house. He advertised tea as a medicinal drink that can revitalize you and improve lust. This made tea very popular with men. Soon, coffee houses became hubs of activity and relaxation in Britain. It was also a center for men to read newspapers, hear trade news, and meet friends and family.
When Catherine de Braganza of Portugal married Charles II, being Portuguese, Catherine de Braganza brought with her the love of tea. The East India Company then brought some tea to the court for Catherine in order to please Henry II.
By this time, the East India Company was still not sure that tea was a viable product to commercialize in Britain. However, Catherine de Braganza made tea drinking acceptable to women and she also popularized tea to the artists. Artists would serve tea while they have gatherings.
Because of this popularity, the east India Company realized that tea was indeed good for trade. Tea became the new commodity to trade and not just a special item for King Charles II and Catherine de Braganza.
British Tea Culture
As tea became popular in Britain; it has also affected the culture of the place. Afternoon tea time was started by Anna, the 7th duchess of Bedford. She would time it in such a way that they would have tea a few hours before the 8 o’ clock dinner time.
This tea time ritual was copied by the masses and became very popular in Britain up until now.
- There is also a British tea ritual. According to Wikipedia, this is how formal British tea ritual goes.The kettle is boiled and water poured into a tea pot.
- Water is swirled around the pot to warm it and then poured out.
- Teaspoons full of loose tea or tea-bags are then added to the pot while the kettle is reboiled. The traditional quantity is one per person and one for the pot.
- Water is added to the pot and allowed to brew for several minutes while a tea cosy is placed on the pot to keep the tea warm.
- A tea strainer is placed over the top of the cup to catch tea leaves and the tea poured through it.
- The straight black tea is then given to guests and they are allowed to add milk and sugar to their taste.
- The pot will normally hold enough tea so as not to be empty after filling the cups of all the guests. If this is the case, the tea cosy is replaced after everyone has been served.
You would think that it doesn’t matter if you put milk or not, that It’s just a matter of preference. But this topic is heavily debated up until now. Debate occurs because tea was conjectured to be a more patriotic drink. It was said to have become more popular than chocolate and coffee because of this, since tea was produced in British colonized countries.
Next time in the series, tea and its history with the Americas will be discussed. You’ll know a man named Paul Revere and why his crew was popular for the Boston tea party.
The History of Tea in America
March 1, 2010
As tea went to Europe, the world will soon know the beverage much better. England has tried and transplanted tea into India and soon it will reach new worlds and new heights in popularity. Since tea went on to conquer the palate of the British people, it also spread all throughout the British colonies including colonies in America.
It was Peter Stuyvesant who first brought tea in 1650 to New York, then known as New Amsterdam. According to historians, settlers here are tea drinker and it was found out that the people here consumed more tea than all of England.
Boston became aware of tea only on 1670. New York then had commercialized the beverage and even put fountains outside to facilitate the “tea craze” as it is dubbed now. Soon, tea spread to the whole of Boston and Philadelphia, cities that will soon become center for rebellion against the mother country.
By 1750 tea has become a staple for trade between the colonies and England. Because of heavy taxes, enterprising American sailors started smuggling tea to the New York, Boston, and Philadelphia. Some people also adopted the herbal tea from Native Americans. This really irritated the East India Company as they saw their profits plummet. This led them to pressure parliament to do something about the situation.
Since the British had just finished the French and India war, they decided that the cost of the war should be shouldered by the colonists. The parliament’s Charles Townshend presented a tax for a lot of things that had to do with free speech. Newspapers were taxed, taverns (a place for free speech) were taxed and even marriage licenses, and docking licenses were taxed. When they decided to tax tea, that was the last straw for the colonists.
The colonists boycotted the English tea and imported tea from the Dutch, this worried the East India Company more as they saw their profits dip a bit more. The John Company and the East India Company merged for stability. Lord North, Lord of the Treasury granted the Tea Act of 1773. This act allowed the traders from the companies to deal directly with the colonists. Lord North actually thought to appeal to the aristocratic women to buy from them. This backfired as the women swore not to buy tea coming from them until their free rights were restored.
Here was when the Sons of Liberty from Boston came into the picture. In 1773 50 members of the political party, some dressed as Mohawk Indians, boarded 3 merchant ships and plunked into the ocean almost 10,000 sterling worth of Darjeeling into the sea. Patriots like Paul Revere, Samuel Adams, and John Hancock were said to be present during this raid.
In retaliation, England closed off the Boston harbor and sent in troops to guard Boston. The colonial leaders had a meeting and the American Revolution was declared.
This was how tea got into the mix between two powers during that time. One aims to enslave and one was fighting for freedom and free trade.
