Putting the tea in Britain : the Scots who made our national drink / Les Wilson.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Wilson, Les (Leslie), author.

Contributor:

James Samuel Blank Fund.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Tea--Social aspects--Great Britain--History.

Tea.

Tea--Great Britain--History.

Tea--Scotland--History.

Adventure and adventurers--Scotland--History.

Adventure and adventurers.

Tea--Social aspects.

History.

Great Britain.

Scotland.

Genre:

History.

Physical Description:

262 pages : illustrations (some color) ; 23 cm

Place of Publication:

Edinburgh : Birlinn Limited, 2021.

Summary:

From the Indian Mutiny to the London Blitz, offering a 'nice cup of tea' has been a stock British response to a crisis. But tea itself has a dramatic, and often violent, history. That history is inextricably interwoven with the story of Scotland. Scots were overwhelmingly responsible for the introduction and development of the UK's national drink, and were the foremost pioneers in the development of tea as an international commodity. This book reveals how Darjeeling, Assam, Ceylon and Africa all owe their thriving tea industries to pioneering work by Scottish adventurers and entrepreneurs. It's a dramatic tale. Many of these men jeopardised their lives to lay the foundation of the tea industry. Many Scots made fortunes - but it is a story with a dark side in which racism, the exploitation of native peoples and environmental devastation was the price paid for 'a nice cup of tea'. Les Wilson brings the story right up to date, with a look at the recent development of tea plantations in Scottish hills and glens.--OCLC OLUC.

Contents:

Machine generated contents note: 1. To Drink A Dish Of Tea, Sir?

2. Without Milk, Sugar

Or Tax!

3. Take Things Coolly And Never Lose Your Temper

4. The Days For Gathering Rupees

5. The Place Of Thunderbolts

6. The Master Who Is God

7. A Handful Of Seeds

8. Home For Tea.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 251-254) and index.

Local Notes:

Acquired for the Penn Libraries with assistance from the James Samuel Blank Fund.

ISBN:

9781780276571

1780276575

OCLC:

1138611072

Publisher Number:

99988677100