Tea at Trianon: A Proper Afternoon Tea

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Friday, September 20, 2019

A Proper Afternoon Tea

From Victoria Trading Company:

It is important to use proper etiquette when attending afternoon tea.

After sitting down, place your purse on your lap or behind you against the chair back.

Unfold your napkin and carefully place it upon your lap.

If you must leave the table, temporarily, place the napkin on the chair.

Never blot or wipe your lipstick with a linen or cloth napkin or use it as a handkerchief!

Sugar is placed in your teacup first, then thinly sliced lemon.

If you like to have milk in your tea, add it after the tea is poured. Never use milk and lemon together.

Hold the handle of the teacup using your thumb and your first one or two fingers.

Never put your pinkie out whilst drinking. That is deemed rude.

Do not loop your fingers through the teacup handle or cradle the side or bottom of the cup with your hands.

A guest should look into the teacup when drinking, never over it.

When stirring your tea, be careful not to clink your spoon against the cup.

Gently swish the spoon back and forth without touching the sides of the cup.

When through stirring, remove the spoon and place it on the saucer behind the tea cup and to the right of the handle.

Of course, never take a drink of your tea without removing the spoon first, and please never, ever sip from the spoon.

(Read more.)