The Bitter History of Chocolate: Sacred to Sweet

In November 1909 a British jury took one hour to decide a famous case, then awarded the winner damages of one farthing, a quarter of a penny. That single coin is chocolate's story in miniature: a sacred drink, a luxury, a candy bar, and a supply chain with a bitter side. How did a bitter ceremonial drink from the ancient Americas become the sweetest product in the world, and who paid for it? In this video we follow chocolate through more than five thousand years: from the first cacao use in the ancient Americas, through the Maya and the Aztecs, the Spanish court and the European chocolate houses, to the inventions that created the modern bar and the long fight over how cocoa is grown. CHAPTERS 0:00 The one-farthing verdict 0:48 Chocolate begins with a tree 2:30 Myths and what we actually know 3:15 The habit spreads across Europe 4:28 Forced labour behind the cup 5:50 The cocoa still had to come from somewhere 7:50 Did the story end there? 9:04 The pattern New food-history stories every week. Subscribe to Bygone Bites so you don't miss the next one. SOURCES AND FURTHER READING Sophie D. Coe and Michael D. Coe, The True History of Chocolate (1996) Lowell J. Satre, Chocolate on Trial (2005) W. G. Clarence-Smith, Cocoa and Chocolate, 1765-1914 (2000) Zarrillo et al., "Domestication of Theobroma cacao in Ecuador", Nature Ecology & Evolution (2018) Powis et al., "Oldest chocolate in the New World", Antiquity (2011) #history #chocolate #foodhistory