From the origin of tea drinking culture, the first nation to drink tea in the afternoon should be ancient China, which has always been famous for its tea culture. However, with the development of time, it was the British who developed afternoon tea into an established custom. A popular legend has it that in 1840 an English lady of high society, Lady Anna, Duchess of Bedford, was bored in the afternoon and asked her maid to prepare a small amount of toast, cream and black tea. This simple meal soon became an excellent way for the British aristocracy to spend their afternoons. However, the development of afternoon tea was also influenced by the local culture. In England, which is known for its strict etiquette requirements, afternoon tea gradually generated a variety of etiquette requirements and habits. From the tea culture of origin is concerned, the first afternoon tea at national , should be always to tea culture , known in ancient China . However, with the development of the times, will be developed into an established custom of afternoon tea culture, then it is English.A popular legend that in 1840 a British high society lady: Beide Fu Duchess Anna, in the afternoon due to boredom, so the maid to prepare a small amount of toast , butter and tea . This easy way of eating quickly became a British aristocrat who sent a great way to afternoon time.However, the development of afternoon tea by the local However, the development of afternoon tea by the local culture, in the strict etiquette demands known to the British, tea etiquette gradually produced a wide variety of requirements and habits. society and become an essential social element of the daily. The British drink afternoon tea in a rich and frugal way, from the noble formal tea gathering (tea party), to can not drink tea only eat snacks catering (high tea), can be called afternoon tea. With the development of the times, British women gradually own their own business, some people regard the traditional afternoon tea as an outdated custom, so now not all British people to three or four o'clock in the afternoon will necessarily drink afternoon tea. Nowadays, English afternoon tea is usually served from 3:30 to 4:30 pm. The special black tea for English afternoon tea is Darjeeling black tea and Earl Grey tea from the British colony of India, or Ceylon black tea. It is also customary to drink milk tea with afternoon tea in England. The tea is accompanied by thinly sliced lemons and cans of milk. Over time, flavored teas, which in the early days were not acceptable, became more widely available to the general public. However, the drinking of tea was not the main event, but the tasting of cakes, sandwiches and other treats became the most important part. Formal afternoon tea treats are generally built into a "three-tiered rack": the first tier holds a variety of flavors of sandwiches (tea sandwich), the second tier is the traditional British snack scones (scone), and the third tier is a small cake and fruit tart. This three-tiered rack of treats should be eaten from the bottom up first. In addition to this essential three-layer snacks, some croissants, raisins, caviar and other food will also be put up to cater to the tastes of the guests.