{{for, the Illinois politician and banker, Thomas S. Ridgway Thomas Ridgway was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

trader who specialised in the import and sale of

tea Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by pouring hot or boiling water over cured or fresh leaves of ''Camellia sinensis'', an evergreen shrub native to East Asia which probably originated in the borderlands of southwestern China and north ...

during the early 19th century.

Tea business

His first shop was in the Bull Ring area of

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...

; this went bankrupt, and he moved to

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. The new business, The Tea Establishment (Ridgway and Company) of King William Street, London, imported tea,

coffee Coffee is a drink prepared from roasted coffee beans. Darkly colored, bitter, and slightly acidic, coffee has a stimulant, stimulating effect on humans, primarily due to its caffeine content. It is the most popular hot drink in the world. S ...

and

spices A spice is a seed, fruit, root, Bark (botany), bark, or other plant substance primarily used for flavoring or coloring food. Spices are distinguished from herbs, which are the leaves, flowers, or stems of plants used for flavoring or as a garni ...

, later specialising in tea. Its success enabled Ridgway to repay his creditors. A Ridgway representative was among importers who met at the London Tavern in March 1851 to condemn the high price and the adulteration of coffee sold to "the lower class of consumer". Ridgways became one of the first companies to sell tea hygienically pre-packed as a measure against adulteration. In 1876

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 21 ...

requested a blend for her personal use. In 1886 the House of Ridgway received a Royal Warrant for its development, and ''Her Majesty's Tea Blend'' (now called ''Her Majesty's Blend'') is still sold today by

Typhoo Tea Typhoo (sometimes stylized as Ty•Phoo) is a brand of tea in the United Kingdom. It was launched in 1903 by John Sumner Jr. of Birmingham, England. History In 1863, William Sumner published ''A Popular Treatise on Tea'' as a by-product ...

. In 1998

Premier Brands Premier Foods plc is a British food manufacturer headquartered in St Albans, Hertfordshire. The group owns many well-known brands, including Mr Kipling, Ambrosia, Bird's Custard, Angel Delight, Homepride cooking sauces, Lyons, Sharwood's, Loyd ...

relaunched the Ridgways brand, stressing the continuing Royal Warrant and a commitment to

Fairtrade A fair trade certification is a product certification within the market-based movement fair trade. The most widely used fair trade certification is FLO International's, the International Fairtrade Certification Mark, used in Europe, Africa, As ...

ethical standards.

References

*''The Tea Establishment'', display advertisement

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...

Saturday, 15 December 1849 *''The adulteration of coffee'',

Tuesday, 11 March 1851

External links

History
- archived ridgways.co.uk page

- Premier Brands USA

Fairtrade
commentary on Ridgways relaunch Tea houses of the United Kingdom