| Alcohol In The Early Modern Period |
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The Protestant Reformation and rise of aggressive Nation States destroyed the ideal of a universal Church overseeing a Holy Roman Empire . Rationality, individualism, and science heavily impacted the prevalent emotional idealism, communalism, and traditional religion. Nevertheless, was a gift of God and created to be used in moderation for pleasure, enjoyment and health; Drunkenness was viewed as a Sin . From this period through at least the beginning of the Eighteenth Century , attitudes toward drinking were characterized by a continued recognition of the positive nature of moderate consumption and an increased concern over the negative effects of drunkenness. The latter, which was generally viewed as arising out of the increased self-indulgence of the time, was seen as a threat to Spiritual Salvation and societal well being. Intoxication was also inconsistent with the emerging emphasis on rational mastery of self and world and on work and efficiency. In spite of the ideal of moderation, consumption of alcohol was often high. In the Sixteenth Century , alcohol beverage consumption reached 100 liters per person per year in Valladolid, Spain , and Polish Peasants consumed up to three Liters of Beer per day. In Coventry, England , the average amount of beer and Ale consumed was about 17 pints per person per week, compared to about three pints today; nationwide, consumption was about one pint per day per capita. Swedish beer consumption may have been 40 times higher than in modem Sweden . English sailors received a ration of a Gallon of beer per day, while soldiers received two-thirds of a gallon. In Denmark , the usual consumption of beer appears to have been a gallon per day for adult laborers and sailors. However, the production and distribution of Spirits spread slowly. Spirit drinking was still largely for Medicinal purposes throughout most of the sixteenth century. It has been said of distilled alcohol that "the sixteenth century created it; the seventeenth century consolidated it; the eighteenth popularized it." A beverage that clearly made its debut during the seventeenth century was sparkling Champagne . The credit for that development goes primarily to Dom Perignon , the wine-master in a French Abbey . Around 1668, he used strong bottles, invented a more efficient cork (and one that could contain the effervescence in those strong bottles), and began developing the technique of blending the contents. However, another century would pass before problems, especially bursting bottles, would be solved and sparkling champagne would become popular. The original Grain spirit, Whiskey , appears to have first been distilled in Ireland , where it is spelled "whisky." While its specific origins are unknown there is evidence that by the sixteenth century it was widely consumed in some parts of Scotland . It was also during the seventeenth century that Franciscus Sylvius (or Franz De La Boe ), a professor of medicine at the University of Leyden , distilled spirits from grain. Distilled spirit was generally flavored with Juniper berries. The resulting beverage was known as junever, the Dutch word for "juniper." The French changed the name to genievre, which the English changed to "geneva" and then modified to "gin." Originally used for medicinal purposes, the use of Gin as a social drink did not grow rapidly at first. However, in 1690, England passed "An Act for the Encouraging of the Distillation of Brandy and Spirits from Corn" and within four years the annual production of distilled spirits, most of which was gin, reached nearly one million gallons . The seventeenth century also saw the was established in the colonies on what is now Staten Island in New York state, cultivation of Hops began in Massachusetts , and both brewing and distilling were legislatively encouraged in Maryland . Rum is produced by distilling fermented Molasses , which is the residue left after sugar has been made from sugar cane. Although it was introduced to the world, and presumably invented, by the first European settlers in the West Indies , no one knows when it was first produced or by what individual. But by 1657, a rum distillery was operating in Boston . It was highly successful and within a generation the manufacture of rum would become colonial New England 's largest and most prosperous industry. The dawn of the eighteenth century saw the British Parliament pass legislation designed to encourage the use of grain for distilling spirits. In 1685, consumption of gin had been slightly over one-half million gallons but by 1714 it stood at two million gallons. In 1727, official (declared and taxed) production reached five million gallons; six years later the London area alone produced eleven million gallons of gin. The English government actively promoted gin production to utilize surplus grain and to raise revenue. Encouraged by public policy, very cheap spirits flooded the market at a time when there was little stigma attached to drunkenness and when the growing urban poor in London sought relief from the newfound insecurities and harsh realities of urban life. Thus developed the so-called Gin Epidemic. While the negative effects of that phenomenon may have been exaggerated, Parliament passed legislation in 1736 to discourage consumption by prohibiting the sale of gin in quantities of less than two gallons and raising the tax on it dramatically. However, the peak in consumption was reached seven years later, when the nation of six and one-half million people drank over 18 million gallons of gin. And most was consumed by the small minority of the population then living in London and other cities; people in the countryside largely consumed beer, ale and Cider . After its dramatic peak, gin consumption rapidly declined. From 18 million gallons in 1743, it dropped to just over seven million gallons in 1751 and to less than two million by 1758, and generally declined to the end of the century. A number of factors appear to have converged to discourage consumption of gin. These include the production of higher quality beer of lower price, rising corn prices and taxes which eroded the price advantage of gin, a temporary ban on distilling, an increasing criticism of drunkenness, a newer standard of behavior that criticized coarseness and excess, increased Tea and Coffee consumption, an increase in Piety and increasing Industrialization with a consequent emphasis on Sobriety and labor efficiency. While drunkenness was still an accepted part of life in the eighteenth century, the Nineteenth Century would bring a change in attitudes as a result of increasing industrialization and the need for a reliable and punctual work force. Self-discipline was needed in place of self-expression, and task orientation had to replace relaxed conviviality. Drunkenness would come to be defined as a threat to industrial efficiency and growth. Problems commonly associated with industrialization and rapid urbanization were also attributed to alcohol. Thus, problems such as urban crime, poverty and high infant Mortality rates were blamed on alcohol, although "it is likely that gross overcrowding and unemployment had much to do with these problems." Over time, more and more personal, social and religious/moral problems would be blamed on alcohol. And not only would it be enough to prevent drunkenness; any consumption of alcohol would come to be seen as unacceptable. Groups that began by promoting the moderate use of alcohol instead of its abuse- would ultimately form Temperance Movement s and press for the complete and total Prohibition of the production and distribution of beverage alcohol. Unfortunately, this would not eliminate social problems but would compound the situation by creating additional problemswherever it was implemented. SOURCE Based on maerials in [http://www2.potsdam.edu/hansondj/Controversies/1114796842.html History of Alcohol and Drinking in the World], which provides additional information and complete references. |
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