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Why was drinking coffee in Turkey punishable by death?
Sultan Murad IV, a ruler of the Ottoman Empire, would not have been a fan of Starbucks. Under his rule, the consumption of coffee was a capital offense. The sultan was so intent on eradicating coffee that he would disguise himself as a commoner and stalk the streets of Istanbul with a hundred-pound broadsword.
Was drinking coffee punishable by death?
Murad’s war on coffee began in earnest in the 1630s. He made it illegal to operate a coffee house or to be seen drinking coffee in public. The punishment for disobedience was death.
Did people drink coffee in the Great Depression?
If we flash forward to the Great Depression of the 1930s, we see that coffee remained an important piece of American life. Whether unemployed, or having lost a lot of money, many were stretched so thin that they simply could not afford extras such as coffee, even at just five cents.
Why did the Ottomans ban coffee?
Purist Muslims wanted it banned because of its stimulating nature and because it was an innovation. The chief religious authority among the Ottomans during the reign of Süleyman and his successor, Şeyhülislam Ebussuud issued a fatwa, or decree, against drinking coffee.
Is coffee banned anywhere?
Coffee is not illegal to drink in any country right now. But, in the past, there have been numerous bans on coffee in several countries like Italy, Sweden, Prussia, Mecca, and Turkey. In most cases, the ban was a result of political and social events and not because of the nature of coffee or the caffeine within.