The Role of Coffee and Coffeehouses in Europe

What implications did the growing popularity of coffee consumption have for societies across the early modern world?

With the rise in consumption that took place in early modern Europe, there were distinct changes in society, and the rise in coffee consumption in particular had large social, political, and economic impacts across Europe.

There is much debate as to when a consumer society really developed. Prior to 1982, it was very much believed to have occurred after the industrial revolution, as an almost revolution itself, but Birth of a Consumer Society puts forward that the growth in consumption happened earlier than that. It was believed to be more gradual, as societal values began to change, people had more disposable income, and expansion and growing trade networks led to a fascination with exotic goods, creating a market for imitations as well. This interest in exotic goods saw the introduction of two beverages: tea and coffee.

Socially, the introduction of coffee into Europe had massive impacts, just as it had in the Ottoman Empire previously. Coffee provided new ways to socialise, for both genders, possibly creating more specifically gendered spaces in which it was acceptable to socialise. The introduction of coffee houses, typically a male space, provided a space for socialisation outside of the workplace and church. In this, a space was provided for intellectual discussion, and became a place where people from varying classes could socialise, and gave people access to new knowledge and ideas that was previously only available to the elites. This exchange of knowledge was such that, in London, coffee houses were often referred to as ‘penny universities’. The impact this had was huge. Not only was the access to knowledge revolutionary, but the opportunities the coffee house provided for collaboration led to the development of some of the most influential companies and organisations, such as the East India Company and the London Stock Exchange. On the other hand, coffee encouraged women to socialise more at home, and there was a rise in popularity of new goods to make said coffee, as is evidenced in inventories. This increased socialisation in the home also encouraged other purchases that were more aesthetically focused, such as paintings, tables, chairs, and the desire to make the house into a home as well as to display your wealth to those around you, which was a relatively new phenomenon.

German philosopher Jurgen Habermas has put forward that in the 18th century, coffee houses contributed to the establishing of a public sphere, and with that, broader discussions regarding people’s place in society and politics. It was in coffee houses that the Ottomans feared political uprisings would take place, as people were free to converse without authorities, religious or otherwise, present, resulting in bans from 1544 onwards. This new public sphere and free discussion made for a public who had opinions on how the country was run. The latter half early modern period in Europe was defined by revolution, bringing society from one where monarchs and nobles ruled, to one where members of the public had access to knowledge, and a platform to voice opinions.

Possibly one of the largest impacts that coffee had on Europe was in regard to the economy and trade. The rapid uptake in consumption of this beverage was widespread and provided great economic rewards to those who traded it. Not only did people profit from the sale of coffee itself, but as previously mentioned, there was now a whole market created for new technologies to make coffee, and eventually tea. From the large coffee pots in coffee houses, to the small stovetop coffee pots in homes, the porcelain cups, and saucers to drink from, and the replicas, the exotic beverage industry became immensely profitable. In mainland Europe, this maintained to be the case well into the 19th and 20th century, meanwhile in Britain, tea became the beverage of choice, most likely because of the considerable higher import taxes imposed on coffee in comparison to tea. In France, however, the coffeehouse developed to be a café, which was then a blend of a tavern and a coffeehouse, increasing profits immensely by combining caffeine and alcohol, two addictive substances that has become immensely popular across Europe.

It is not coincidence, as many have pointed out, that such rapid social changes began to take place once people start consuming large amounts of caffeine. Nor is it coincidence that increased opportunity for socialisation caused rapid change either.

Ultimately, the introduction of coffee into European society had great, irreversible impacts. Not only did it diminish the gap between the upper and lower classes by allowing for a freer exchange of information and more opportunity for socialisation, but it also greatly increased people’s involvement and interest in current affairs. Coffee also enhanced the rate at which Europe became a consumer society as not only did it see an unprecedented spike in sales and popularity, but it also made possible a separate industry for coffee making technologies and provided a template for the introduction of tea, which became immensely popular in Britain post 1720, and also tobacco as another addictive substance. From its introduction, coffee changed the way that people socialised and the structure of the economy, and since then, we have not gone back.