The Rise of the Coffeehouse: The Origins and Years of Coffeehouses in the Early Modern Period
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850 BCE
Kaldi and the Creation of Coffee
The origins of the coffee bean dates back to a legend of goats in Ethiopia. The story goes that Kaldi, an Ethiopian goatherd, noticed his goats "dancing" or acting energetically after eating certain berries from a tree. It is said that he shared these beans with a monk and the creation of coffee was born.
It is important to note that there are two dates recorded for this event: 700 AD. and 850 CE. Ultimately it was before 1000 AD. -
1475
Kiva Han
In the early 1400s, Ottoman Turks introduce coffee to Constantinople, also known today as Istanbul, Turkey. The first coffee shop opened in 1475 called Kiva Han. As coffee became popular within the Ottoman Empire, coffeehouses would become places of socialization and education for men, as they were not allowed to discuss global issues within mosques. However, bans and laws against coffee began to take place in the mid-1600s as religious and political matters began arising. -
The First Coffeehouse in England
Coffee made its way to England and the first coffeehouse was opened in Oxford in either 1650 or 1651 by a Lebanese Jewish entrepreneur named Jacob. According to The Life and Times of Anthony Wood, Antiquary, of Oxford, 1632-1695: 1632-1663, he wrote in a diary entry "this year Jacob the Jew opened a coffey house at the Angel in the parish of S. Peter, in the East Oxon". In current times, The Grand Café is now resides on top of the original site of the first coffeehouse in England. -
The Ban of Newspapers
In 1688, King James II banned the distribution of newspapers in coffeehouses. The exception was the London Gazette which was printed by authority. He believed that this print was harmful to the state and wanted to control the media surrounding political decisions in England. Censorship was not uncommon to early modern Europe as the state and church worked to control the print. For example, in France, new books had to be authorized by the royal chancellory. -
The Rise of the Spectator
The Spectator was a popular newsletter that arose to fame for its notoriety in the coffeehouse public sphere. It began in 1711 and was founded by Joseph Addison and Sir Richard Steele. It was a daily periodical that consisted of commentary, news, advertisements, poems, etc. It was most known for its essays that expressed views on society during the 18th century. The ideas and literature in these newsletters were received well by intellectuals and were good conversation starters in coffeehouses. -
The Decline of Coffeehouses
As the 1750s approached, so began a new era of obtaining information that didn't involve frequenting coffeehouses. Instead, cheaply printed news press, became popular and people began to find the perks of reading such politics, gossip, and entertainment from other places such as their homes. Coffeehouse culture began to change drastically as they soon evolved into private and exclusive clubs. Other forms of entertainment soon took priority such as theatres and other forms of leisure.