The Empire of Tea: The Remarkable History of the Plant That Took Over the World

by Alan Macfarlane and Iris MacFarlane

Book Overview

Apart from water, tea is more widely consumed than any other food or drink. Tens of billions of cups are drunk every day. How and why has tea conquered the world? Tea was the first global product. It... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1590201752
• ISBN13: 9781590201756
• Release Date: February 2009
• Publisher: Harry N. Abrams
• Length: 308 Pages
• Weight: 0.74 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 4.9" x 7.2"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

The Best History of Tea I've Read So Far

Iris MacFarlane wrote a touching story about her life on the tea garden in India. Then Alan MacFarlane proceeded to write the kind of history that lifts tea up to its rightful place above all other beverages. I like it better than other perspectives on history because its focus is that superiority of tea. Of particular note was how tea was compared to wine and beer. It was explained how the alcoholic drinks could never conquer the world because they take too many resources of land and labor. They were always meant for the elites in moderation while tea could be enjoyed by the masses--the drink of everyman. This history was the most inspiring when it came time to write my own book.

A Must Read for Evryone who wants to know the whole story of Tea

At last a book on tea, which describes the whole story with all the fascination and romance of the tea plant, and the industry it developed and much more. "Tea is more than just a drink. Over the last two thousands years this humble camellia tree has grown into one of the most powerful social and economic forces known to man." Thus starts MacFarlan'e book "Green Gold, The Empire of Tea." Tea industry has great affect not only on the East India Company but on the entire commerce of the British empire that question may be asked, "Was there a possible link between the rise of trading and tea drinking and the rapid spread of the British empire?" The story of modern tea industry itself is very fascinating, and it practically started with the discovery of wild tea plant, Camellia Assamica, in the foothills of the eastern Himalayas, in the beautiful state of Assam, India in early nineteenth century. Since then the tea industry has contributed to the wealth and economy of many nations. Most importantly, it has contributed to the growth of the British Empire itself. But these growths in wealth and economy of nations were achieved at what cost? Tea Industry had its mixed affect on the native people of Assam who were exposed to the benefits of the western culture on one hand but on the other hand they lost their most valuable thing, their political independence because of it. In fact, the growth of the modern tea industry is intricately intertwined with the history and culture of the Assamese people during the British colonialism in the nineteenth century. That story is very sensitively captured in the book by the authors. Like the expansion of the British Empire with its colonialism, the growth of the modern tea industry itself is an outcome of the western concept of perpetual economic progress by exploitation of nature by man, a concept quite foreign to the Orient till the other day. Thus Tea industry, like coffee and sugarcane, had its conflicts and victims, and if every success story has a dark side, the growth of tea industry in Assam and the growth of the British Empire has also has its dark side. It may be very well argued that it is for tea industry that the people of Assam not only lost their independence but also are fast loosing their cultural identity. To understand this sensitive story, one will have to live in Assam and while trying to understand the tea industry must also try to understand the Assamese society from inside. And that is what Mrs. MacFarlane and her son, the co-authors of the book did. Mrs. Iris MacFarlane was a widow a tea planter in Assam, and while spending their lives in tea gardens in Assam, they have encountered the Assamese culture closely. MacFarlanes reflect that history of annexation of Assam by the British: "On March 13, 1824 the British marched slowly up from Calcutta, guns mounted on elephants, to take Assam.... The newly appointed Commissioner David Scott was reassuring, "We are not forced into your

A Must Read for everyone who wants to know the whole story about tea.

At last a book on tea, which describes the whole story with all the fascination and romance of the tea plant, and the industry it developed and much more. "Tea is more than just a drink. Over the last two thousands years this humble camellia tree has grown into one of the most powerful social and economic forces known to man." Thus starts MacFarlan'e book "Green Gold, The Empire of Tea." No one really knows where exactly the tea originated. Although China is thought to be the place or origin, modern studies show that the tea plant, Camellia Sinensis var Camellia Assamica actually originated in the foothills of eastern Himalayas, around Assam, some sixty to hundred thousand years ago. Probably taking their cue from the monkeys, the early tribesmen began chewing tea and found it to be relaxing to the body and mind. Over the years, tea became very popular among some tribes of North East India, Burma and the general population in China from where it spread to Japan at one time. In China and gradually, "a huge trade in bricks of tea grew along the Silk Road criss crossing from southwest China to Siberia and as far as the Islamic civilizations of the Middle East." By the twelfth century in fact tea bricks were being used as one popular currency in China in trade. By the fifteenth century tea drinking has influenced a greater part of the world. "The records of the use of tea suggest that it first arrived in Amsterdam in 1610, in France in 1630s and England in 1657." In Britain tea has complimented beer as a national drink. Some actually argue that without tea, the British could not have fought the war. Tea industry has great affect not only on the East India Company but on the entire commerce of the British empire that question may be asked, "Was there a possible link between the rise of trading and tea drinking and the rapid spread of the British empire?" The story of modern tea industry itself is very fascinating, and it practically started with the discovery of wild tea plant, Camellia Assamica, in the foothills of the eastern Himalayas, in the beautiful state of Assam, India in early nineteenth century. Since then the tea industry has contributed to the wealth and economy of many nations. But these growths in wealth and economy of nations were achieved at what cost? Tea Industry had its mixed affect on the native people of Assam who were exposed to the benefits of the western culture on one hand but on the other hand they lost their most valuable thing, their political independence because of it. In fact, the growth of the modern tea industry is intricately intertwined with the history and culture of the Assamese people during the British colonialism in the nineteenth century. That story is very sensitively captured in the book by the authors. MacFarlanes reflect that history of annexation of Assam by the British: "On March 13, 1824 the British marched slowly up from Calcutta, guns mounted on elephants, to take Assam.... The newly appoi

A must read for history buffs or fans of "biographies of things"

If you can get over the political leanings of the authors, who clearly have a particularly unique perspective on the subject they're addressing, you'll find plenty of interesting information to entice even the casual tea-drinker to finishing this book. Did you know that tea has natural anteseptic properties which can be passed from nursing mothers to babies, possibly providing an extra safeguard against infection? Or that every single kind of tea in the world comes from the same plant - and only the location and processing change the flavor? Or how tea became a "social equalizer" of sorts in class-concious Britain, as everyone from lords to factory workers had the unspoken right to a "tea break", which may have possibly contributed to the massive industrial expansion, by allowing workers to work longer with more energy due to the caffine? See? Regardless of your politics, this remains a fascinating subject, and one that you can't deny had some affect on the history of not only the British Empire, but all the societies that have adopted it as more than a casual drink.

Take your time reading this over a cuppa

This book provides a comprehensive historical and anthropological view on tea, the world's second favorite beverage (after water). Especially fascinating was the first chapter with Iris's first-person account as an expat wife of a tea garden manager. For anyone looking for a thorough background on the production, politics and cultural changes brought about by the simple beverage, this is a must read.