The Empire of Tea

by Alan Macfarlane, Iris MacFarlane, The Overlook Press

The author traces the fascinating history of this remarkable plant, from its initial uses as an aid to Buddhist meditation in China during the fourth century B.C. through its remarkable explosion of popularity all around the world, becoming a valued commodity that would change world history. 17,500 first printing.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Food, Tea, Food and Drink, Audiobook, World History

308 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

Alan Macfarlane was born in Shillong, India, in 1941 and educated at the Dragon School, Sedbergh School, Oxford and London Universities. He is the author of over twenty books, including The Origins of English Individualism (1978) and Letters to Lily: On How the World Works (2005). He has worked in England, Nepal, Japan and China as both an historian and anthropologist. He was elected to the British Academy in 1986 and is now Emeritus Professor of Anthropology at the University of Cambridge and a Life Fellow of King’s College, Cambridge.

Reviews

[Jen · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm not sure this book deserves a second star, but I'm in a generous mood today, so let's run with it.

Let's start with the good things. The introductory chapter where Iris Macfarlane discusses living on an Assam tea plantation with her husband is simply fascinating--even if she paints herself with a rather saintly brush.

The rest of the book has interesting parts, but is so disorganized that to find them you have to dig. The author goes off on tangents and, I suspect due to the disorganization, is highly repetitive. I also question some of the assertions such as the one repeated ad nauseum that tea is "strength-giving." I don't think I got through a chapter without seeing this driven into my skull. I agree completely that tea brought health, and I'm sure the caffeine did wonders, but "strength-giving?" Were the drinkers healthier? Well, yes, and this can probably be attributed to drinking water that had been boiled first. The author gives no evidence for "strength-giving" or any reason for it to be so, just it was and really it was and did you know it was.

The author also relies heavily on long quotations and excerpts from other sources. The sections are so long and without analysis, I wonder if he was trying to reach a page quota. Although primary sources are interesting, paragraph after paragraph of a British colonial-era apologist borders on the absurd.

I walked away knowing only a little more about tea and I turned the last page with a sense of relief. Rather than this, read A History of the World in Six Glasses; it's a better book with more information and more analysis. Plus you get five more beverages--A BARGAIN!!!

[Bon Tom · Rating 5 out of 5]

Slightly less poetic than those books about tea that primarily deal with zen and ceremonial aspects of it, but still, very interesting if you want to know about history and real grunt work that go into providing you with your favorite beverage. Very well researched. Like always, I'm not the one to complain for receiving far more facts and data than I ever expected.

[William Shep · Rating 1 out of 5]

Unlike a cup of tea, this book does not satisfy. Rather than being a history of tea it is a means for the authors to assuage their guilt as being members of a family that benefited by their former involvement in the tea growing industry and consequent exploitation of tea workers. One must look elsewhere for a detailed history on the origins of tea, with commentary on the various blends and regional tastes.

[Rachel Anne Kieran · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was...interesting. I found myself having a lot of reactions, and thinking about a lot of things.
First off, the premise is interesting - the primary author is a professor at Cambridge (or oxford, I forget), and comes at this from an academic perspective, but his mother, who wrote the first chapter, was the wife of a tea planter in India, and wrote about her personal experiences in the trade, which was an interesting frame. She is clearly something of an iconoclast, which I liked, but also I felt struggled to see the larger issues that we might be thinking and talking about regarding colonialism, paternalism, social justice, etc today. At least in her recollections.
The chapters that follow do give a general overview of the history of tea, but are very focused on tea in India, in general, and without always giving the kind of historical context that is needed to really explain the whole story. So it feels like there is a great deal missing. I can entirely understand that this may be an editorial choice, as a book including all the relevant context would run to thousands of pages, given the essential nature of tea as a part of human history (an argument that I think McFarlane makes well), but it is hard not to see this as somewhat apologetic or defensive of the actions of colonizers, though that does not seem to have been the intent.
In general, a pleasant read, and did direct me to The Book of Tea, which is a meditative JOY. But lacks a lot when compared to the historical impact of A History of the World in 6 Glasses, which I am also reading.

[Claire · Rating 3 out of 5]

While the author certainly spent time researching and compiling information, I feel like this book was highly redundant and could have used a better editor. There were also times I felt like the author should have chosen different words (one example comes to mind. The mention of "Eskimo" on page 54-- this book was written in 2004. Can't we do better to avoid using a disparaging word also imposed upon people by colonialists?! )

I did like learning about tea as currency, that was a cool take-away. I of course knew about the colonization of India by the British, but holy hell, the treatment of workers in the tea farms was abhorrent (their rate of pay, working conditions). Not to mention the opium used to pay the Chinese for tea. Simply awful. So, I do credit the author for painting a fuller picture of the history of tea and not just its qualities and benefits.

[Sara J Wyatt · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a tea lover, this was a very readable, informative, and encouraging book! The future of tea seems assured by its positive effects for the billions of tea drinkers out there despite its past fraught with oppression and exploitation. Thanks to Alan and Iris for their personal experiences and thorough investigation into tea. And Alan’s often snarky rhetorical questions and comments, which often made me snort or exclaim, “listen to this…”

[Mohamed Islam · Rating 3 out of 5]

Did not mention about the important episode of how Chinese Tea was brought to India after the Opium War of 1840s when British Empire was afraid of losing supply from China. Did not mention the route of Navigation to Assam from Calcutta. Also did not mention much about the original geographical locations of the Tea Qualis. Still did a good job in describing the condition of Tea Slaves of Assam. Worth reading but not too many will find it engrossing.

[Andrea · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an interesting and readable introduction, but nothing more. Iris, the co-author's, memoirs of growing up in an Indian tea "garden" are more interesting than the rest of the book. I think of books like this as "history lite," interesting anecdotes, major figures, not much analysis of how it fits into larger historical context.

[Jim · Rating 2 out of 5]

Anecdotal, not a serious history

[Necayl Norris · Rating 3 out of 5]

Didn't quite "finish". Got the info I wanted from it.

[Martin Zorde · Rating 4 out of 5]

The thing I would say about this book is that it's an honest historical account however it definitely has a very subjective perspective. This is mainly in reference to the colonialist and imperialist perspective of the people writing the book. there are white supremacist views stated blatantly however it is given with its historical context. If you can get through the first chapter and take it as a historical account then the rest of the book becomes more interesting. This book does have a very pro-british slant (the authors were British so it's not surprising). I think to really get a broader perspective of the tea trade and its effects reading this book with "From the ruins of empire" by Pankaj Mishra will get a better picture of both sides of tea cultivation in Assam (note from the ruins of Empire does not specifically make reference to Assam that I remember but mainly talks about India and British imperialism as a whole). All in all interesting.

[John Benson · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book begins with a chapter by Iris Macfarlane, Alan's mother, who was married to the manager of a tea estate in Assam, India when Alan was young. The chapter tells very little about tea, mainly brings out her life during that time period. Alan, an anthropologist, takes over and tells the history of tea and then concentrates on how England was able to take over the tea trade from China by making industrial-like plantations in Assam, India. The book concentrates on England, China, India and Japan. I found the background information interesting but wish it would include more of the world. The copy I read from Overlook Press was hurt by lack of maps showing these key areas mentioned in the text, un-captioned pictures and very shoddy footnoting. All of these, if done well, would have enhanced the story, but instead the poor editing distracted the reader.

[Nicole · Rating 2 out of 5]

1.5 stars for the book (repetitive, baseless assertions, more repetition).

5 stars for the 25 page foreword "Memoirs of a Memsahib", which is completely unconnected to the rest of the Book. The author's mom describes her time in Assam from the 30ies to the 60ies in such a condensed, lively, dark-humored, British way that, apart from making that part of society at that time and place come to life before your eyes, it just cracks you up.

I'd buy the book for those 25 pages alone.

[Jbondandrews · Rating 2 out of 5]

I think I give this two and a half stars. It seems Alan MacFarlane's parents were on opposite sides with regards to the local population, his mother tried to do a white saviour act while his father wanted to leave things as they were. The Assamese would have preferred to keep the British on not realising that they caused a lot of problems and left chaos behind.
For being a drink with so many health benefits it doesn't seem to be encouraged to be drunk more.

[FARSHAD · Rating 2 out of 5]

The second chapter is a rather autobriographical sketch of Iris growing up on the tea plantation. I would have lost nothing had I not read it. The other chapters were also a bit of hit and miss. A lot was devoted to Assam and sometimes it read more like a history book on British empire rather than the tea empire. The last chapter made a good summary. Look for another book on this topic. This is kind of messy and all over the place.

[Tyler N · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was fine. The first person account by his mother as a British wife to a tea manager was fascinating. The hypothesis that boiling water for steeping tea heavily contributed to the eradication of waterborne illness in impoverished countries is worth contemplating. And I learned a couple interesting facts, such as Indians didn’t drink tea until the British large scale commercialization of it. But overall, it was disorganized and a slog to read at times.

[Sally · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is more than a history of the cultivation of tea. The author also theorizes that tea has had a major role in the prevention of disease, especially those associated with contaminated water. He has a convincing argument. Unfortunately, the history of tea also includes the destruction of forests and exploitation of people in tea growing regions of the world.

[Husam Abdullatif · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first chapter was disappointing.... i started this book to read about the history of tea but the first chapter was a personal memoir. Anyway after that the books bloomed into a lovely recount of the history and story of tea and all its benefits.

[Theut · Rating 3 out of 5]

Un po' di confusione, non sempre risulta chiaro il motivo per cui questo libro è stato scritto (libro storico? testimonianza?) nè la struttura, mancante, della narrazione aiuta la lettura. Tre stelle perché la parte introduttiva, Ricordi di una "memsahib", è decisamente interessante.

[Ruby · Rating 3 out of 5]

The best part of this book was the format. I love unusually sized books. It's adorable and had good pictures. Leaving in my bookbox.

[Paula · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting survey of tea and the tea business from the perspective of the wife and son of an Assam tea plantation manager.

[Ivan · Rating 1 out of 5]

I rarely abandon books halfway through.

[Hannah · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting deep dive into the tea industry in Assam. A little rambly in the last couple chapters, but otherwise pretty good.

[Sean · Rating 2 out of 5]

More about the treatment of workers on tea plantations in Assam than the history of tea. Read “The History of of Tea” by Laura Martin instead.

[Madeleine M · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good overview of the global history of tea, though each part of the story could easily be turned into a book of its own. Macfarlane's theory that the antibacterial properties of tea itself (not just that fact that the water used to make it must be boiled) allowed urban agglomeration and technological development is interesting and not something I've seen mentioned anywhere else. He devotes the most attention to the horrifying system of British-run tea plantations in Assam - that's not surprising, since he was born there in the forties. His mother Iris's opening chapter, Memoirs of a Memsahib, describes twenty years of isolation, insulation and boredom. She didn't really start to look around her until her children were off at boarding school, and the next ten years were spent on ineffectual attempts at minor reforms until she finally lost her mind and had to be carried out on a stretcher. Toward the end, Alan includes responses he got during interviews with modern Indian tea managers - the people who inherited the system when the British left. Quoting them at length allows the reader to read between the lines when they declare that the British were mostly tough but fair, and that the plantation workers were and continue to be better off than their fellow Assamese.

[Toni · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good info but there was something off putting about the presentation of the history by this author.

[Andrew · Rating 2 out of 5]

A confused book with a confused narrative. The division of labor is between a mother and her daughter. The authors both say that they wanted to write this book for different reasons. Although they each present their own introduction chapter, the purpose of the book remains unclear. They both want to reflect on the crop that made their earlier life experiences on Assamese plantations possible: tea. While the authors say they want to get closer to the lives of the Assamese tea pickers and plantation workers, the book is preoccupied with several other stories: the geopolitics of Assam, tea's health benefits, the cultural history of tea around the world, and the functioning and life of British colonialists in India. Chapters jump around all of these themes and rarely in any logical order. The final two chapters read like rehashes or left-overs of earlier chapters.
The authors refuse to get as close to the Assamese as they claim they want to. In one chapter they cite an anthropologist that spent time with the pickers, but then express that that book is too harsh. They then interview retired Indian plantation owners, clearly in another class from the workers, who reiterate the fairness of the prior colonial and post-colonial British planters.
Ultimately, I enjoyed the book only when it was specific about Assam and using colonial records and primary accounts. The writings on China and Japan were halfhearted and out of place, and the descriptions of the health benefits of tea were not always in proper context: that is, older accounts can be used to illuminate the prevailing ideas about tea's benefits in a certain period, but should not be used as scientific claims about the quality of tea.
Like many books in the "micro history" genre the authors overstate the role of tea in history. It did not cause the industrial revolution or even boost it as much as they claim. As Sidney Mintz has shown in a much better book, the sweetened tea the British drank did bring cheap calories, but this was of course from the sugar not the tea. Also hot boiled water without an added infusion is not "unpleasant" as the authors claim, this is clearly a cultural prejudice of the authors. I recommend reading smaller and more limited, but better focused accounts of the history of tea, such as Sarah Rose's "For All of the Tea in China." The history of tea is simply to vast and complex in all of its cultural, social, economic, and political aspects to be told in one book: it is better illustrated in compelling vignettes.

[Ray Campbell · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've read "A History of the World In 6 Glasses", "Salt" and other sketches through the experience of a seemingly trite item. This book is in that category, was not as generalized. The book begins with the story of Iris MacFarlane who lived on a tea plantation and worked at mid-twentieth century to improve education for Tea workers in Siam. The book is then taken by Iris' son Alan who writes a solid, straight forward history of the British tea industry from the 17th century to present.

The British Crown chartered the East India Company opened trade with China in the first years of the 18th century. The discovery of tea and subsequent import from China had a huge impact. The author explains that since it sterilized water, provided calories and a boost in attention among workers, tea fueled the British industrial revolution! The story goes on to show how tea was the reason for the conquest of China, the Opium wars and the shaping of the far East by the British in the 18th and 19th century. Since it was this period and the actions taken on behalf of tea that shaped western interaction with Asia, could it be tea that caused the issues that has the US at war in Afghanistan? The author does not suggest this, but he does show the fact that would support this.

I enjoyed this, but it didn't warrant 4 or 5 stars because I think I was familiar with much of this history. Never the less, well written and enjoyable. If the US "runs of Dunkin'", Britain and the Empire not only runs on tea, it exists to no small extent, because of tea! Check it out.

[Jude · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was very interesting at first, I was looking for a book with informations about the complexisty of this beverage and all its implications of health, life, etc. The first part was absolutely amazing and I learned a lot of things. But then, it becomes less interesting, with a huge part about historical and economical challenges regarding tea, lobor conditions, etc. These chapters are quite long with many quotes and sometimes I had the feeling that the authors were claiming things without any proof and if I trusted them, I would think that without tea, soldiers could have never won the war, and that we would all have cancer, and so many other hard to believe affirmations. Fortunately, the very last part is more specifically about research on the benefits of tea and the long bibliography at the end gives enough informations for whoever is interested to know more. So it was interesting for sure but very long at some point, I would have liked it better in a shorter version.

[Kristina · Rating 3 out of 5]

If half stars were available, I would be rating this book as 2.5. The book starts with a personal anecdote about a British woman who lived on a tea plantation. Frankly, this story was the best part of the book.

The balance of the book details much of the history of tea in Eurasia. Although there are some interesting facts and personal journals cited, the book rambled and would have been immensely improved with a good editing.

The author tried to balance the perspectives of the tea managers and their workers, but like anything fueled by so much emotion, it feels lopsided.

Since many of the original machines are still in operation, it would have been interesting to have some photos and/or diagrams.

One last note, correlated events are not necessarily causal. Many conclusions were reached that were overly simplified.