Welcome to Tea in England!.I just couldn't have a site named "Victorian Everything" without including Tea!

Afternoon Tea
The name given to the British meal taken mid-afternoon, comprising finger sandwiches, scones cakes and pastries accompanied by tea. The 7th Duchess of Bedford is reputed to have given birth to afternoon tea, early in the 19th century, when she decided to take tea to stave off the pangs of hunger she suffered between lunch and dinner.
As the century progressed, afternoon tea became increasingly elaborate. By the 1880s, ladies were changing into long tea gowns for the occasion and appetites were sharpened by the customary afternoon drive in a carriage.
Tea service had also kept pace with side plates, bread and butter plates, cake stands and every conceivable accompaniment advancing across the drawing room.
By Edwardian times, the smart hour for afternoon tea was five o'clock or later. Etiquette books full of anxious advice appeared, with warnings like 'those who take sugar in their tea are advised to propel the spoon with a minimum of effort and to remove it without fail before raising the cup'.
When friends meet unexpectedly, they exchange news over tea. Afternoon tea is still a graceful event, and brings people together for a brief hour of pleasure and refreshment everyday.

Tea Gardens
The English developed the idea of Tea Gardens. Here ladies and gentlemen took their tea out of doors surrounded by entertainment such as orchestras, hidden arbors, flowered walks, bowling greens, concerts, gambling, or fireworks at night. It was at just such a Tea Garden that Lord Nelson, who defeated Napoleon by sea, met the great love of his life, Emma, later Lady Hamilton. Women were permitted to enter a mixed, public gathering for the first time without social criticism. At the gardens were public, British society mixed here freely for the first time, cutting across lines of class and birth.
Tipping as a response to proper service developed in the Tea Gardens of England. Small, locked wooden boxes were placed on the tables throughout the Garden. Inscribed on each were the letters "T.I.P.S." which stood for the sentence "To Insure Prompt Service". If a guest wished the waiter to hurry (and so insure the tea arrived hot from the often distant kitchen) he dropped a coin into the box on being seated "to insure prompt service". Hence, the custom of tipping servers was created.

Tea Rooms, Tea Courts, and Tea Dances
Beginning in the late 1880's in both America and England, fine hotels began to offer tea service in tea rooms and tea courts. Served in the late afternoon, Victorian ladies (and their gentlemen friends) could meet for tea and conversation. Many of these tea services became the hallmark of the elegance of the hotel, such as the tea services at the Ritz (Boston) and the Plaza (New York).
By 1910 hotels began to host afternoon tea dances as dance craze after dance craze swept the United States and England. Often considered wasteful by older people they provided a place for the new "working girl" to meet men in a city, far from home and family. (Indeed, the editor of Vogue once fired a large number of female secretarial workers for "wasting their time at tea dances").

Tea & Your Health
Tea leaves contain vitamins A, B, C and chlorophyll. Tea is also rich in fluoride which helps fight against tooth decay.
Tea does not contain any calories or sodium and thus aids digestion.
Green tea is especially recommended for expectant mothers because it contains high levels of zinc.
Tired and stressful eyes will be instantly revived with cold tea compress.
Tea does contain caffeine, a mild stimulant, which in moderation helps muscle relaxation, stimulates the heart and imporve circulation. Everyone Make Tea Part Of Your Day!

A Cup Of Tea
When the world is all at odds
And the mind is all at sea
Then cease the useless tedium
And brew a cup of tea.
There is magic in its' fragrance,
There is solace in its' taste;
And the laden moments vanish
Somehow into space.
And the world becomes a lovely thing!
There's beauty as you'll see;
All because you briefly stopped
To brew a cup of tea.

Created and Designed by Anthea
�"Essence Of Victorian" 1999