Tea culture in china

“This was the routine of the old China trade. These were the commodities traditionally brought to China and traditionally carried away. And at the heart of the trade was tea. It came from no other place. India did not then produce any, nor Ceylon, Java, or Formosa; Japan was inaccessible; the world perforce drank China teas. Above all, the English drank them” (17).

How did tea transform English society? Who were its main consumers and what were some of the new rituals that surrounded tea?

One of the largest points that the author makes is the significance of tea to the people in the colonies. While there were many who thought that tea was evil and caused health issues, the overwhelming majority of colonist were obsessed. Tea was something new and seen as a luxury item. It took a six-month voyage for the EIC to bring to the precious leaves to Boston. Once there, it was auctioned to those who could afford it. While the bourgeoisie sipped their tea and

“For all the Tea in China -How England Stole the World 's Favorite Drink and Changed History

- First in its market to brew its tea from tea leaves as opposed to artificial powders.

During the late 1700s, the East India Company had a monopoly on all of the tea in the colonies. Tea was everything

Tea became a mainstream drink in Asia around 100 BCE. It then became a mainstream drink in Europe around 1610 CE.

Saberi, H. (2010). Tea Comes to the West. In Tea:A Global History. [Adobe Digital Editions Version]. Retrieved from http://site.ebrary.com/

The British hoped that the tea act would undercut the tea smuggled into britain's north american colonies.The British government led by the Prime Minister, Lord North, hoped to reassert Parliament’s right to impose direct revenue taxes on the American Colonies with the cheap tea.Never-the-less the British anticipated a good reception to the Tea Act in America, after all, the colonists would get their tea at a cost lower than ever before.Tea would be cheaper in America than Britain. Ships laden with more than half a million pounds of tea set off for the colonies shortly after the Tea Act was passed.

Tea: Tea began as a luxury drink, and then trickled down to become the beverage of the working man. The story of tea is the story of imperialism, industrialization, and world domination. According to Chinese tradition, the first cup of tea was brewed by the emperor Shen Nung. Before tea was a beverage, it was used for medicinal purposes and foodstuff. Tea became a daily drink in China around the third century A.D. As the Industrial Revolution of 18th and 19th centuries gained steam, tea provided some of the fuel. Factory workers stayed alert during long, monotonous shifts thanks to welcome tea breaks. The beverage also had unintended health benefits for rapidly growing urban areas. Chewing leaves and rubbing them on wounds were ways that tea was used for medicinal purposes.

The Tea Act of 1773 helped grant the East Indian Company a monopoly on tea importation. A group of Boston protestors disguised themselves as Indians, boarded a ship with crates of tea on it, and dumped those chests of tea into the harbor of Boston. This event became known as the Boston Tea

These disguised men traveled to the docks where the tea was harbored and destroyed most of the stock. No one could purchase damaged product, thus resulting in a lower capital for the British East India Company. The rebellion by the Sons of Liberty “caused considerable property damage”: around 342 chests of tea (History.com Staff). This destruction of property amounted to 18,000 euros (“Boston Tea Party”). This translates to approximately $24,000 in tea. Their uprising resulted in an additional capital loss for the already struggling East India Company.

In the late sixteenth- century Europe adopted a caffeinated warm drink for the first time this included chocolate, tea and coffee. Tea fills the senses with a bittersweet scent. This herb came from china by ship. Unlike cider and beer tea was new to the English-speaking world (49). Starting in the eighteenth- century Europe trading companies began to market green and black tea (51). Before this time period tea was very rare in the west region of British north America. Only the wealthy could originally afford tea and sugar. Tea was also used as a source of herbal medicine rather than traditional methods. This herb was also expensive because it shipped across great distances and allowed the East India Company to charge higher prices and labor added an extra charge. This resulted in tea becoming a luxury item in the colonies (53). The Townshend’s act in 1767 put a tax on tea which Americans responded that parliament could not tax without their consent. This frustrated the colonist because it put their love for tea at risk, so they responded to parliament by aiming at British merchants and manufactures

The Tea that reach America from china inspired new addictions, new trade connections and new forms of luxury, new social critiques and simmering provincial inferiority. Many caffeinated drinks had come before the tea however this was a new drink to the English-speaking world. Nevertheless, this drink did not come without its own problems (50).

Attention getter: In the East tea has always been looked at as playing a major role in having good health, happiness, and wisdom, and it has now begun to gain more attention from researchers here in the West.