Tea is often thought of as being a quintessentially British drink, and it is so for almost 350 years. But in fact the history of tea goes much further back.
The story of tea begins in China, where tea containers have been found in tombs dating from the Han dynasty (206 BC - 220 AD), and during the rule of the Tang dynasty (618-906 AD) tea became the national drink of China. During the late eighth century Chinese writer Lu Yu even wrote the book dedicated to tea. Shortly after this tea was first introduced to Japan, by Japanese Buddhist monks who had traveled to China to study.

In the latter half of the sixteenth century there are the first brief mentions of tea as a drink among Europeans. These are mostly from Portuguese who were living in the East as traders and missionaries. But it was Dutch who had established a trading post on the island of Java by the turn of the century, and in 1606 the first consignment of tea was shipped from China to Holland. Tea soon became a fashionable drink among the Dutch, and from there spread to other countries in continental western Europe, but because of its high price it remained a drink for the wealthy.

Since 1600, the British East India Company had a monopoly on importing goods from outside Europe, and it is likely that sailors on these ships brought tea home as gifts. But the first dated reference to tea in this country is from an advert in a London newspaper from September 1658. It announced that 'China Drink, called by the Chinese, Tcha' was on sale at a coffee house in Sweeting's Rents in the City. Marriage of Charles II to Catherine of Braganza became a turning point in the history of tea in Britain. She was a Portuguese princess, and a tea addict, and it was her love of the drink that established tea as a fashionable beverage first at court, and then among the wealthy classes as a whole.

In 1834 ended East India Company's monopoly on trade with China, and the era of the tea clippers started. Individual merchants and sea captains with their own ships raced to bring home the tea and make the most money, using fast new clippers which had sleek lines, tall masts and huge sails. In particular there was competition between British and American merchants, leading to the famous clipper races of the 1860s. Since then tea had become firmly established as part of the British way of life.

And what about you? Do you fancy tea? Or do you prefer coffee? Tell us about your tea preferences - and don't forget your 5 o'clock tea!