A social history of tea. (Product Showcase).By Jane Pettigrew This new book by Jane Pettigrew, editor of Tea International, tells the story of tea drinking in Britain from the 1650s to the present day. Enjoying a cup of tea is something we now take very much for granted, but that has not always been the case. In the 16th century, the new herb from the East was an exotic luxury that only the rich could afford. In this intriguing story, Jane Pettigrew explores the important place tea has occupied in British society. So important that Churchill reckoned it to be more influential than ammunition in winning the Second World War. The emergence of tea rooms and the freedom they gave women to exchange ideas in public played a vital role in the progress of the suffragette movement. It has even been suggested that tea was the secret ingredient A secret ingredient is a component of a product that is closely guarded from public disclosure for competitive advantage. Sometimes the ingredient makes a noticeable difference in the way a product performs, looks or tastes; other times it is used for advertising puffery. in Britain's industrial supremacy. Workers in Britain boiled the water to brew up, thus safeguarding themselves from the horrors of dysentery dysentery (dĭs`əntĕr'ē), inflammation of the intestine characterized by the frequent passage of feces, usually with blood and mucus. and the like and stealing a march on non-tea drinking nations. Advocated as an alternative to alcohol during the days of the Temperance Movement temperance movement International social movement dedicated to the control of alcohol consumption through the promotion of moderation and abstinence. It began as a church-sponsored movement in the U.S. in the early 19th century. , tea has always been recognized for its health-giving qualities, and today this is even more true as tea's antioxidant antioxidant, substance that prevents or slows the breakdown of another substance by oxygen. Synthetic and natural antioxidants are used to slow the deterioration of gasoline and rubber, and such antioxidants as vitamin C (ascorbic acid), butylated hydroxytoluene properties are making it fashionable in the health market. The Boston Tea Party Boston Tea Party, 1773. In the contest between British Parliament and the American colonists before the Revolution, Parliament, when repealing the Townshend Acts, had retained the tea tax, partly as a symbol of its right to tax the colonies, partly to aid the , the eccentricity of tango tea dances, tea gowns, clipper races, smuggling smuggling, illegal transport across state or national boundaries of goods or persons liable to customs or to prohibition. Smuggling has been carried on in nearly all nations and has occasionally been adopted as an instrument of national policy, as by Great Britain , high teas, afternoon teas, tea at breakfast, and unusual tea wares all make their appearance in the story. The book charts the development of tea from an exotic commodity to its present day position as a pick-me-up for just about everyone in Britain. The book is illustrated with stunning and informative pictures ranging from 18th-century wallpaper showing Chinese tea pickers to tea parties in National Trust houses, paintings, cartoons, advertising prints and photographs of tea events. |
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