Here For The History - Why do British people love tea?

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How and when did tea arrive in the UK? Alice Loxton and Ben Henderson take a look at the mythological origins, the role of a Portuguese princess and even going to war for a cuppa.

We’ll start our journey with the first appearance of tea in England in the 1600s and its popularisation in the English royal court thanks to the Portuguese princess, Catherine of Braganza who married King Charles II.

The story takes a dark turn as the British East India Company seeks to break China’s monopoly on tea production leading to the Opium Wars and corporate espionage.

Finally, how tea fuelled Britain’s industrial revolution.

Key Sources:
A Social History of Tea - Jane Pettigrew
A journey to the tea countries of China - Robert Fortune
Dinner with Dickens - Penn Vogler

Published on Thursday, 18th June 2026.

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