Tea: a brief history

Tea may have become pretty much our national hot drink but the story behind our brew of choice started a long time ago, far, far away.

The beginnings.
Tea was first discovered 2800BC in China. Allegedly die to the wind blowing tea bush leaves into a pot of boiling water. In the centuries that followed tea became a popular drink throughout China and by 350AD the word tea found had made its way into the Chinese dictionary. In 805AD tea started to go global when Dengyo Dash brings it to Japan, 400 years later the legendary tea ceremony is invented by Buddhist monks. But not everybody seems to be approving of the brew. After the Japanese Sung Dynasty considered it a national drink, under Mongol rule drinking tea is considered decadent. The Ming Dynasty that followed Mongol rule were quick to reinstate the drink in its rightful place and introduced the greatest tea-related invention yet: the tea pot.

The English get in on the action.
In 1660 Samuel Pepys is the first English person to mention a "Cupp of Tee" in writing. ("did send for a Cupp of Tee (a China drink) of which I never drank before") Four years later saw the first legal import of tea into England. Courtesy of the Dutch East India Company in Java: 100lbs of Chinese tea. By this point the drink had already become popular common good in Portugal. Charles II was betrothed to Catherine of Braganza who, after arriving by ship asked for a cuppa, but tea was still so rare in England at this time that there was none available and the princess was offered ale instead. After its first official introduction tea was pretty much an instant hit in the Britain and 15 years later the London Tea Auction opened its doors. The 18^th century that followed saw Thomas Twining set up his (now) legendary tea company. The first store is can still be found in its original place in the Strand in London. In 1840 Anna Russell, Duchess of Bedford, is believed to have invented afternoon tea. The first 'commercial' tea room opened 24 years later in 1864. In London, where else?

Tea's 'homecoming'
Years later, in 1908, the tea bag is invented and, just like tea itself, by accident! Thomas Sullivan, a New York tea merchant, sent samples of dry tea to his customers in small silken bags. The customers wanted to order more of these small bags of tea, but did ask if he could perhaps use a bit of a more course material so the tea would steep a bit better. A breakthrough for the home-consumption of tea, but, shockingly retail tea bags weren't introduced in Britain until 1953 after tea came off the World War II ration.

So, many different nations and cultures were involved in the invention of the cuppa we know and love now. So, why is it our national drink? Simple. Because nobody loves it quite like we do.