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Is The Great British Pub (Really|Actually|Truly} That Great Or Even Actually British

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Is The Great British Pub (Really|Actually|Truly} That Great Or Even Actually British

By: Rebecca Davies

Residents and tourists to Great Britain as well as vast numbers of people across the globe have drunk a pint of beer, glass of wine or other refreshment in a ‘pub’; perhaps also eating a pub meal and the dubious experience of being entertained by a pub singer and yet, a great many people are not aware of just how the tradition of pubs, inns and ale houses flourished. British pubs of today have of course changed a great deal since ‘Ye Olde Fighting Cocks’ (according to the Guinness Book of Records, the oldest pub in England) in St Albans, Hertfordshire opened its doors way back in the 11th century.

The British have been beer drinkers for much longer than there have been pubs serving ale. Ever since the Bronze Age, the inhabitants of what was to become the United Kingdom, have been consuming ales but it was the Romans that brought with them the idea of doing it in a social setting. With the creation of many more roads throughout Britain, the Romans also built places where thirsty travellers could take a drink and halt from their journeys. These early inns of Roman times in Britain were called ‘tabernae’. Once the Romans deserted Britain, the Brits decided to sustain and develop this tradition of social drinking and the Anglo-Saxons set about the creation of alehouses.

Alehouses are the long distant ancestors of the British pubs we understand them currently and were usually established in people’s homes. Today’s beer-serving barmaid was, in the days of the alehouse, an Anglo-Saxon ‘Alewife’. The Alewives would let travellers and locals know they had ales to buy by hanging a green bush on a pole outside their homes when the brew was ready to serve.

Alehouses evolved to become meeting places where locals, passing traders and travellers would gather pretty much as we do today in our modern day pubs; to share stories, exchange gossip and no doubt, debate the issues of the times that affected them. Like ducks to water and moths to a flame, the British took to social drinking with a real passion. By 965, the proliferation of alehouses was such that King Edgar decreed that villages were only allowed to have one alehouse in each one.

As the development of alehouses to meeting houses to pubs continued during times where travel became more commonplace, accommodation became a a factor. During the early part of the Middle Ages, travellers would pause at monasteries when they needed overnight accommodation however there now seemed to be a growing interest in stopping at the alehouses; where a refreshing ale could be enjoyed before a more comfortable bed perhaps than offered by the monks? Overnight accommodation and meeting houses combined to become ‘inns’ and it was in 1446 that the ‘Hostellers of London’ were granted guild status before going on to become the ‘Worshipful Company of Innholders’ in 1514.

Throughout the UK and Europe, it is generally considered that when a venue sells ales, beers and other beverages alongside the offer of overnight accommodation, it becomes an inn rather than a tavern, alehouse or pub. Of course the world of pubs looks very different today and there is an abundance of choice beyond the inns, pubs and alehouses. Today’s thirsty traveller can select from a host of drinking establishments offering everything from the intimate ambience of a wine bar to the excitement and atmosphere of sports pubs and bars where live sporting events play out on large TV's to hoards of revellers, who share the spirit, the camaraderie and the drink along with the match of the day.

So in answer to the question: Is the ‘Great British Pub’... really that great or even British? Then the answers would be ‘yes’ to its greatness and although ‘no’ to its conception, it is clear that the Romans only seeded an idea that the British came to perfect in their own, particular way. Long may the great British pub thrive.

Article Source: http://articles.tiptopweb.info

My name is Rebecca, I am currently located in York and work in the leisure and promotion sector specialising in advertising. I am currently compiling a list of Pubs to Lease for a booklet. My favourite hobby is rambling and I love to travel, especially to Norway one of my favourite destinations.

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