Colonial Consumption

At the beginning of the Age of Exploration, Spain and Portugal dominated the Columbian exchange. The Columbian Exchange was the trade of fauna, flora, and products that were brought from the new world and integrated with the old and vice versa. Wherever the Columbian exchange touched it was due to Spain or Portugal as it was their explorers who ventured further to reach the spice trades in India and China. The Colombian exchange was a biological consequence of European conquest and exploration. Chocolate was actually the biggest victim of the exchange. It was stolen from Mesoamerica and along with it the status it served in Mesoamerican communities. The Europeans at first were very hesitant to adopt using chocolate as this would have been influenced by the culture of Mesoamericans. Although, Europe was being ravaged by new disease brought over from Asia and the New world. As a result, many ventured to the Americas for a cure to diseases like the plague. Over time, they developed their own techniques which made chocolate more enjoyable and addict able for European tastes basically putting their own twist onto what goes into making the chocolate. Chocolate played an important role which helped shape the Portuguese Empire. Is it intriguing that chocolate was taken from Mesoamericans and assimilated in Portuguese society?  It is ideal to examine its medicinal role in the Portuguese military, religious research of plants, and its status among the nobility. Then, we can discover how chocolate devastated the foundations of a strong hierarchical system in Portugal. 

Before the 18th century there were no positions available for someone to work in of high status related to chocolate. In the 18th century, “royal chocolatiers” were employed by the Portuguese imperial court. Their purpose was to manage the stock of the monarch's cocoa.  These chocolatiers also served medicinal purposes supplying the rich cocoa to troops who were injured in war. There is evidence that by extracting the cocoa butter “it is provided to interned patients for their skin diseases” ( pg 561 Timothy Walker). This product was called medicinal cocoa butter. In order for Portugal to maintain its globally spread empire it needed soldiers who were able to fight for it. As a result, of the medicinal role of chocolate, Portugal is able to nurse wounded soldiers with skin diseases back to health and serve the empire. They also were able to obtain these medicines that were set up by missionaries who learned how to extract the butter cocoa and sell it as a remedy for skin care. 

It was the Jesuits who were looking for medicinal plants that stumbled onto the discovery of cocoa. In the early 15th century cocoa was already considered the most important medicinal plant in South America. The research was done by Jesuit missionaries and the society of Jesus as they excelled in the discovery of medicinal plants and experimenting with the plants to see efficiency. The Jesuits set up harvesting centers along the Amazon River. The reason why the Jesuits were so interested in the medicinal value of cocoa comes from the ancient medicinal understanding discovered in a tomb. The first entry described as the “virtues of cocoa” gave the Jesuits an incentive to explore and study cocoa processes further for health purposes. The medicinal value of chocolate and its expenditures related to extracting the product made chocolate a luxurious good catching the attention of the nobles. 

The nobility of Portugal after a couple centuries took a bigger interest in the wonder of chocolate. When blended with sugar and milk this developed an addicting taste enjoyed by the nobility class. Chocolate like it served a nobility role in Mesoamerican societies found its way into the royal courts of European Nations only being drank by the privileged and those of the highest classes. “Serving chocolate and other members of the royal court was either a jealously guarded right of a prized servant or a special privilege for which favored courtiers competed and intrigued” (pg 565 Walker). Chocolate came out as a commodity of privilege which the rich would use also for favors. Chocolate also caused diplomatic rifts between the Portuguese and the Papacy which is of high religious importance in the Christian World. 

In Conclusion, Chocolate played an important role which helped shape the Portuguese Empire. The chocolate that was taken from Mesoamericans was assimilated into Portuguese society.   The medicinal role in the Portuguese military, religious research of plants, and its status among the nobility caused vast changes throughout Portugal and the rest of Europe followed suit. 

Bibliography: Walker, Timothy. “Cure or Confection?” Chocolate, John Wiley & Sons, Inc, 2009, pp. 561–68, https://doi.org/10.1002/9780470411315.ch41.