How a 19th-century act of “corporate espionage” changed world history
In the mid-17th century, tea found its way to the coffeehouses of London, and by the mid-18th century, the drink was so widespread that Chelsea began manufacturing imitation Chinese tea ware. The famous English “tea time” tradition was an invention of the 1830s, more specifically by Anna Russell, Duchess of Bedford. For over 200 years, the British were obsessed with tea—all without knowing how it was made or exactly what it was made from.
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Tyler Roney is the former managing editor at The World of Chinese.
