History of tea

The history of tea dates back to the earliest past of Asia; legends and stories intertwine to tell of its origins in China, more than 2,000 years BC.
Gradually, the preparation and ceremony of tea developed into refined rituals that found their ideal expression in Chinese Taoism. Japan was then introduced to its delights and made it an essential element of its culture.

It was only in the 17th century that Europe discovered tea when ships of the East India Company brought the precious commodity back from the Far East. The English then made tea their national drink, and its trade became one of the foundations of their global supremacy during the era of the clipper ships. An entire art of hospitality developed around tea, while the plantations of Assam, the jewel of the British Raj, flourished amidst bloodshed and tears: tens of thousands of coolies were massacred there.

Such was the price of the brutal expansion of a conquering economy that would sustain the refinement of Victorian drawing rooms. A beverage with a fabulous history, both in its origins and its more recent developments, tea continues to captivate the imagination with the exoticism associated with its name. Today, it is a global drink, a significant economic force, a way of life, and one of the symbols of the British world.

Number of pages: 256
Publisher: DESJONQUÈRES EDITIONS
Publication date: 31/01/1997
Dimensions: 2 × 14.5 × 22.4cm