Table of Contents
When did sugar become popular in Europe?
Although sugar arrived in Europe around 1100, it was not widely used until the 16th century. Until then it was reserved for rich people, who used it both to sweeten food and as a medicine.
What was sugar used for in the 1700s?
Sugar wasn’t just a luxury commodity. It served as the chief form of currency on Barbados (slaves and servants were paid for in pounds of sugar) and fuelled British colonization in the Caribbean. Colonial Barbados was at the centre of the sugar trade going back to the mid-17th century and was known as the Sugar Island.
Who first made sugar?
8,000: Sugar is native to, and first cultivated in, New Guinea. Initially, people chew on the reeds to enjoy the sweetness. 2,000 years later, sugar cane makes its way (by ship) to the Phillipines and India. Sugar is first refined in India: the first description of a sugar mill is found in an Indian text from 100 A.D.
How did sugar become a commodity?
Sugar became the top colonial commodity. It was at the root of the ‘triangular trade’, where European shipowners exchanged trinkets for African men, who were then sold as slaves in America. The ships then returned to Europe with products from the colonies, including precious sugar.
When did sugar first appear in history?
Sugar was only discovered by western Europeans as a result of the Crusades in the 11th century AD and the first sugar was recorded in England in 1069. The subsequent centuries saw a major expansion of western European trade with the East, including the importation of sugar.
When was sugar first used in England?
The presence of sugar was first acknowledged in England in the 12th century, where it was treated predominantly as a spice and a medicine. In this early period, sugar came from numerous sources in the Middle East, India, Egypt and beyond.
Why is sugar called Chini?
Sugar made from sugarcane is an Indian invention, made around 800 BC, but it was generally of the coarse, brown sugar variety, or just plain guhr. It was this fine sugar which would have then come from Kublai Khan’s court to India, and thus been called “chini”.
Why did sugar become popular?
The heightened demand and production of sugar came about to a large extent due to a great change in the eating habits of many Europeans. For example, they began consuming jams, candy, tea, coffee, cocoa, processed foods, and other sweet victuals in much greater amounts.
Why was sugar so valuable in the 18th and 19th century?
Slavery made sugar cheaper, and the cheaper it grew the more central it became to the British diet. Its use had two large boosts. When tea and coffee, both naturally bitter, became popular in the 18th century, sugar was their indispensable sweetener.