Skip to main content
PBS logo
 
 

Search - For All the Tea in China: How England Stole the World's Favorite Drink and Changed History

For All the Tea in China: How England Stole the World's Favorite Drink and Changed History
For All the Tea in China How England Stole the World's Favorite Drink and Changed History
Author: Sarah Rose
A dramatic historical narrative of the man who stole the secret of tea from China — In 1848, the British East India Company, having lost its monopoly on the tea trade, engaged Robert Fortune, a Scottish gardener, botanist, and plant hunter, to make a clandestine trip into the interior of China-territory forbidden to foreigners-to steal th...  more »
ISBN-13: 9780143118749
ISBN-10: 0143118749
Publication Date: 2/22/2011
Pages: 272
Rating:
  • Currently 4.4/5 Stars.
 5

4.4 stars, based on 5 ratings
Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics)
Book Type: Paperback
Other Versions: Hardcover, Audio CD
Members Wishing: 15
Reviews: Member | Amazon | Write a Review
Read All 1 Book Reviews of "For All the Tea in China How England Stole the Worlds Favorite Drink and Changed History"

Please Log in to Rate these Book Reviews

reviewed For All the Tea in China: How England Stole the World's Favorite Drink and Changed History on + 39 more book reviews
"For All the Tea in China" reminded me of the "The Orchid Thief," but it went so much farther, fitting the theft of tea-growing secrets from China into a whole social, anthropological, political and industrial context that staggers the mind. In 1848, when the British East India Co. hired Robert Fortune, a botanist and plant hunter, to travel to China to steal tea seedlings and seeds, with the hope of growing tea in India, it set off a domino effect that ranged from monetary gain and scientific knowledge to improving the health of the British people and the speed of sailing ships. This is a fascinating look at a part of history that covers a short number of years, but changed the world.


Genres: