英格兰饮茶风俗由何而来？Tea,thatmostquintessentialofEnglish
英格兰饮茶风俗由何而来？ Tea, that most
quintessential of English
英格兰饮茶风俗由何而来,
Tea, that most quintessential of English drinks, is a relative latecomer to British shores. Although the custom of drinking tea dates back to the third millennium BC in China, it was not until the mid 17th century that the beverage first appeared in England.
The use of tea spread slowly from its Asian homeland, reaching Europe by way of Venice around 1560, although Portuguese trading ships may have made contact with the Chinese as early as 1515.
Tea shop in Chilham, Kent
It was the Portuguese and Dutch traders who first imported tea to Europe, with regular shipm
ents by 1610. England was a latecomer to the tea trade, as the East India Company did not capitalize on tea's popularity until the mid-18th century.
Coffee Houses. Curiously, it was the London coffee houses that were responsible for introducing tea to England. One of the first coffee house merchants to offer tea was Thomas Garway, who owned an establishment in Exchange Alley. He sold both liquid and dry tea to the public as early as 1657. Three years later he issued a broadsheet advertising tea at ,6 and ,10 per pound (ouch!), touting its virtues at "making
the body active and lusty", and "preserving perfect health until extreme old age".
Tea gained popularity quickly in the coffee houses, and by 1700 over 500 coffee houses sold it. This distressed the tavern owners, as tea cut their sales of ale and gin, and it was bad news for the government, who depended upon a steady stream of revenue from taxes on liquor sales. By 1750 tea had become the favoured drink of Britain's lower classes.
Taxation on Tea. Charles II did his bit to counter the growth of tea, with several acts forbiddi
portugueseng its sale in private houses. This measure was designed to counter sedition, but it was so unpopular that it was impossible to enforce. A 1676 act taxed tea and required coffee house operators to apply for a license.
This was just the start of government attempts to control, or at least, to profit from the popularity of tea in Britain. By the mid 18th century the duty on tea had reached an absurd 119%. This heavy taxation had the effect of creating a whole new industry - tea smuggling.
Smuggling Tea. Ships from Holland and Scandinavia brought tea to the British coast, then stood offshore while smugglers met them and unloaded the precious cargo in small vessels. The smugglers, often local fishermen, snuck the tea inland through underground passages and hidden paths to special hiding places. One of the best hiding
places was in the local parish church!
Even smuggled tea was expensive, however, and therefore extremely profitable, so many smugglers began to adulterate the tea with other
substances, such as willow, licorice, and sloe leaves. Used tea leaves were also redried and added to fresh leaves.
Finally, in 1784 William Pitt the Younger introduced the Commutation Act, which dropped the tax on tea from 119% to 12.5%, effectively ending smuggling. Adulteration remained a problem, though, until the Food and Drug Act of 1875 brought in stiff penalties for the practice.
下午茶被认为是起源于一个名为安娜的贝德福七世女公爵。在1800年，她开
始有在下午举行
茶会用来填补午餐和晚餐之间的空隙的想法，因为当时的上流社会直到晚上八点才开始使用
晚餐。当时这种时尚的习惯迅速发展为一种工薪阶级的高级茶会，茶会上的餐点之后也演变
成了人们一天中最重要的食物。
Tea Clippers. In the early 1800's ships carrying tea from the Far East to Britain could take o
ver a year to bring home their precious cargo. When the East India Company was given a monopoly on the tea trade in 1832, they realized the need to cut the time of this journey. The Americans actually designed the first "clippers", or streamlined, tall-masted vessels, but the British were close behind. These clippers sped along at nearly 18 knots by contemporary accounts - nearly as fast as a modern ocean liner.
So great was the race for speed that an annual competition was begun for clippers to race from the Canton River to the London Docks. The
first ship to unload its cargo won the captain and crew a hefty bonus.
The most famous of the clipper ships was the Cutty Sark, built in 1868. It only made the tea run eight times, but for its era it was a remarkable ship. The Cutty Sark is now on exhibition at Greenwich.
Tea Customs. Afternoon tea is said to have originated with one person; Anna, 7th Duchess of Bedford. In the early 1800's she launched the idea of having tea in the late afternoon to
bridge the gap between luncheon and dinner, which in fashionable circles might not be served until 8 o'clock at night. This fashionable custom soon evolved into high tea among the working classes, where this late afternoon repast became the main meal of the day.