History of Tea
The John Company
The John Company was granted the unbelievably wide monopoly
of all trade east of the Cape of Good Hope and west of Cape
Horn. Its powers were almost without limit and included among
others the right to:
- Legally acquire territory and govern it.
- Coin money.
- Raise arms and build forts.
- Form foreign alliances.
- Declare war.
- Conclude peace.
- Pass laws.
- Try and punish law breakers.
It was the single largest, most powerful monopoly to ever
exist in the world. And its power was based on the importation
of tea.
At the same time, the newer East India Company floundered
against such competition. Appealing to Parliament for relief,
the decision was made to merge the John Company and the East
India Company (1773). Their re-drafted charts gave the new East
India Company a complete and total trade monopoly on all
commerce in China and India. As a result, the price of tea was
kept artificially high, leading to later global difficulties
for the British crown.
Afternoon Tea in England
Tea mania swept across England as it had earlier spread
throughout France and Holland. Tea importation rose from 40,000
pounds in 1699 to an annual average of 240,000 pounds by 1708.
Tea was drunk by all levels of society.
Prior to the introduction of tea into Britain, the English
had two main meals- breakfast and dinner. Breakfast was ale,
bread and beef. Dinner was a long, massive meal at the end of
the day. It was no wonder that Anna, the Duchess of Bedford
(1788-1861) experienced a "sinking feeling" in the late
afternoon. Adopting the European tea service format, she
invited friends to join her for an additional afternoon meal at
five o'clock in her rooms at Belvoir Castle. The menu centered
around small cakes, bread and butter sandwiches, assorted
sweets, and, of course, tea. This summer practice proved so
popular, the Duchess continued it when she returned to London,
sending cards to her friends asking them to join her for "tea
and a walking the fields."
The practice of inviting friends to come for tea in the
afternoon was quickly picked up by other social hostesses. A
common pattern of service soon merged. The first pot of tea was
made in the kitchen and carried to the lady of the house who
waited with her invited guests, surrounded by fine porcelain
from China. The first pot was warmed by the hostess from a
second pot (usually silver) that was kept heated over a small
flame. Food and tea was then passed among the guests, the main
purpose of the visiting being conversation.
Russian Tea Tradition
Imperial Russia was attempting to engage China and Japan in
trade at the same time as the East Indian Company. The Russian
interest in tea began as early as 1618 when the Chinese embassy
in Moscow presented several chests of tea to Czar Alexis. By
1689 the Trade Treaty of Newchinsk established a common border
between Russia and China, allowing caravans to then cross back
and forth freely. Still, the journey was not easy. The trip was
11,000 miles long and took over sixteen months to complete. The
average caravan consisted of 200 to 300 camels. As a result of
such factors, the cost of tea was initially prohibitive and
available only to the wealthy. By the time Catherine the Great
died (1796), the price had dropped some, and tea was spreading
throughout Russian society. Tea was ideally suited to Russian
life: hearty, warm, and sustaining.
The samovar, adopted from the Tibetan "hot pot", is a
combination bubbling hot water heater and tea pot. Placed in
the center of the Russian home, it could run all day and serve
up to forty cups of tea at a time. Again showing the Asian
influence in the Russian culture, guests sipped their tea from
glasses in silver holders, very similar to Turkish coffee cups.
The Russians have always favored strong tea highly sweetened
with sugar, honey, or jam.
With the completion of the Trans-Siberian Railroad in 1900,
the overland caravans were abandoned. Although the Revolution
intervened in the flow of the Russian society, tea remained a
staple throughout. Tea (along with vodka) is the national drink
of the Russians today.
Tea and America
It was not until 1670 that English colonists in Boston
became aware of tea, and it was not publicly available for sale
until twenty years later. Tea Gardens were first opened in New
York City, already aware of tea as a former Dutch colony. The
new Gardens were centered around the natural springs, which the
city fathers now equipped with pumps to facilitate the "tea
craze". The most famous of these "tea springs" was at Roosevelt
and Chatham (later Park Row Street).
By 1720 tea was a generally accepted staple of trade between
the Colony and the Mother country. It was especially a favorite
of colonial women, a factor England was to base a major
political decision on later. Tea trade was centered in Boston,
New York, and Philadelphia, future centers of American
rebellion. As tea was heavily taxed, even at this early date,
contraband tea was smuggled into the colonies by the
independent minded American merchants from ports far away and
adopted herbal teas from the Indians. The directors of the then
John Company fumed as they saw their profits diminish and they
pressured Parliament to take action.
|