History of High Tea - History English Afternoon Tea

High tea is also known as afternoon tea, and has long been known as an elegant way to serve tea. However, most people don’t know that high tea is actually something heavy, especially in Britain. Only in America can you find an offering of high tea where you just drink tea and eat pastries. They are served in delicate china in America instead of a full blown meal.

Usually, this kind of tea is served late in the afternoon, in drawing rooms. However, serving high tea is not as simple as you think. You can drink or serve three different types of tea for a high tea party. The first is called Cream Tea. This is composed of tea with cream, scones, and jam. For those who are in a diet, light tea with sweets and scones are also an option. Lastly, for those of you who want soothing a little heavier, full tea should be served. This is composed of tea, scones, savories, dessert and sweets.

Traditionally, high tea is served at about four to five o’clock in the afternoon. It is not appropriate to stay inside the house after seven o’clock. However, today, you will be able to see those who serve high tea anywhere from three o’clock to five o’clock. The array of tea choices has also become more varied. It’s not unusual to see bread, cake, butter and other appetizers to be served. Savories can also be served. These are sandwiches that have been cut down to bite-sized pieces. Sometimes, they are replaced with certain appetizers. Scones are also a staple in any high tea party. Devonshire and jam are usually used to accompany the scones, but clotted cream also works. Meanwhile, when it comes to pastries, cookies, sweets, shortbread and cakes are all fair game.

Most people are surprised to know that drinking high tea did not originally come from the English. In fact, the English only had two meals a day; one in the morning and one at night. As eating grander meals became fashionable, dinnertime became later and longer. This was probably why there was a need to have high tea. However, you’ll be able to trace the origins of high tea to the seventeenth century. Twenty-two years before afternoon tea arrived in England, people in Paris, France were drinking tea heavily. It was only in the sixteen hundreds when Queen Elizabeth gave the permission to trade with the Far East, India, and Southeast Asia. This gave way to the tea trade a few decades later. In 1662, tea was introduced because of Catherine de Braganza. She was the woman with the largest dowry ever recorded. Her husband, King Charles II, opened up the trade of tea in England through the East India Company. Both tea drinkers, Charles II and his wife helped lay the grounds for high tea drinking.

The tradition of tea drinking in the afternoon has a long, rich history. It lets you enjoy drinking a cup even more.