A Coffee-Fuelled Revolution!

 

Explore how the arrival of coffee in London in the mid-1600s triggered an age of sobriety that laid the foundations for a truly spectacular economic, scientific and artistic growth period. The stock exchange, insurance industry and auctioneering, all burst into life in 17th-century coffeehouses facilitating the dramatic expansion of Britain’s network of global trade.

 

Coffeehouses favoured by political, medical and scientific men cemented the foundations of some of our greatest societies. Meanwhile, Covent Garden coffeehouses made a huge contribution to literature, theatre and formed the basis for still thriving institutions such as The Royal Society of Arts and charities such as the RSPCA.

 

In this talk we will roll back the centuries and hear tales of the personalities and atmosphere in these vibrant places which even a Royal petition failed to close down. From the Grecian where Sir Isaac Newton once dissected a dolphin to the fabulous Folly on the River Thames where normal rules of decorum were suspended!