Sir Walter Raleigh is widely credited with bringing tobacco to England upon his return from Virginia on July 27, 1586. Along with tobacco, he carried back potatoes and maize from Roanoke Island, in what is now known as present-day Virginia. One entertaining story from the period describes how Raleigh's servant, witnessing his master puffing on a pipe for the very first time, panicked — convinced the man was on fire — and promptly threw water over him to extinguish the imagined blaze. Beyond this colorful episode, several historical accounts also claim that Raleigh, who enjoyed a favored position with Queen Elizabeth, managed to convince the queen herself to sample tobacco from the clay pipe.
The First Taste of Tobacco
Long before tobacco reached European shores, the native peoples of Mesoamerica and South America had already been using it for millennia. According to archaeological records, tobacco consumption in America stretches back more than 12,000 years, placing it among the oldest known psychoactive substances in human history!
Though Raleigh's contribution to popularizing tobacco in England was enormously influential, he wasn't actually the first to bring the plant across the Atlantic. That distinction belongs to John Hawkins, whose introduction of tobacco to England was recorded in William Harrison's English Chronology in 1573. Still, Raleigh's role proved pivotal, and the impact he had on tobacco's spread throughout the country can hardly be overstated.
The Rise of Tobacco
Tobacco quickly won admirers thanks to the air of sophistication it carried and the mild buzzing sensation produced by its high nicotine content. Consumers embraced it in multiple forms — smoking, chewing, or snuffing — and its popularity only grew from there. It also emerged as a major trade commodity, with Glasgow merchants who dealt in New World tobacco accumulating considerable wealth through the business.
Even centuries after Sir Walter first introduced it to England, tobacco products continue to find eager consumers. That said, growing awareness of the harmful effects linked to tobacco abuse has fueled numerous anti-tobacco campaigns around the world. With increasing sanctions being imposed by various countries, tobacco use will likely see a steady decline in the years ahead.