Burton-On-Trent. By the end of the 19th century, Burton-on-Trent (28 miles north-east of Birmingham) was to become “the brewing capital of Britain,” and its beers were highly prized and much-copied. The brewing origins of this Staffordshire town can be traced to the Benedictine Abbey, founded by a Thane of Mercia, one Wulfric Spot, in 1004. In those days, the affairs of Burton were largely controlled by the abbots and their officials. There is some dispute as to the actual date of the foundation of the monastery, as the relevant extant document was not signed or dated. As a result, the town of Burton-on-Trent celebrated one thousand years of brewing history in 2002. According to Sir Walter Scott’s Ivanhoe, the Abbey at Burton, in the time of Richard Coeur-de-Lion (Lionheart, who reigned 1189-1199), had acquired a lofty reputation for its ale. The earliest historical reference to such eminence for Burton ale comes from a ditty of 1295:

The Abbot of Burton brewed good ale,

On Fridays when they fasted,

But the Abbot of Burton never tasted his own

As long as his neighbor’s lasted.

Also in 1295 there occur some of the first references to the Abbey brewhouse, although there is no documentation of volumes brewed or people employed. It seems as though brewing must have been pretty well confined to households and the ecclesiastic establishments, for in a document of 1319, which itemized the rental of properties in Burton, the population was given as 1,800 souls, not one of whom was engaged in the trade of brewing! Even in those days, the numerous wells in and around Burton, were recognized as being “special” for brewing purposes. The suitability of Burton water for brewing lies in its extreme hardness, particularly in terms of calcium and magnesium sulfates. These so-called gypseous waters promote protein coagulation during boiling, allow high hop-rate usage, and promote yeast growth; the result being the clear, sparkling ale for which Burton became famous.

On the dissolution of the Abbey in 1540, an inventory was made of the brewhouse equipment, and mention was made of large malting house in the Market Place. As was the pattern at the time, brewing migrated to become the province of the pub–brewer, and, in 1604, there were 46 of these serving a population of around 1,500. By the end of the 16th century, beer from Burton’s breweries was attaining many plaudits, and it seems as though considerable quantities were being carried out of the town, even reaching London, where, certainly by the 1620s, it was sold as “Darbie [Derby] Ale” and held in very high esteem. Even so, throughout most of the 17th century, brewing remained subordinate to cloth-making and allied trades.

By the mid-18th century, Burton’s brewing industry had expanded, but was restricted by limited markets and generally poor transport connections; at this time, each of London’s major breweries produced more beer than all of Burton’s added together!

Daniel Defoe, in his Tour Through the Whole of Great Britain of 1724–1726, remarked: “At Lichfield, the ale is incomparable, as it is all over this county of Stafford. Burton is the most famous town for it … the best character you can give to ale in London is calling it Burton Ale, and that they brew, in London, some that goes by that denomination.”

A crucial turning point in Burton’s brewing industry was a Lord Paget-inspired Act of Parliament of 1699, “The Trent Navigation Act,” which permitted opening up of the river. This put the town at the head of one of Britain’s largest navigation systems and in direct contact with major ports, such as Hull and Gainsborough (in those days), from where the Baltic ports could be reached. Communications were even better after the Burton section of the Trent and Mersey Canal was opened in 1770, and this brought increased prosperity to the town, which, by the end of the century was a bustling town of some 6,000 people.

The rate of growth slowed during the first 40 years of the 19th century (mainly due to a downturn in Baltic trade). Population in 1831 was still under 7,000, but, during the following half-century there was massive industrial and urban growth (population 46,000 by 1891). This was almost entirely due to expansion of the brewing industry, and, during the last half of the 19th century, there were generally 20–30 breweries in the town, with Bass & Co., and Allsopp’s accounting for over 50% of total output.

As with much of the British brewing industry, there has been a major contraction in Burton, with the disappearance of many notable names.

In the past, the town has engendered literary interest, as is shown by these lines from A.E. Housman’s A Shropshire Lad:

Say, for what were hop-yards meant,

Or why was Burton built on Trent?

And it is also mentioned in important historical documents, such as those relating to the imprisonment of Mary, Queen of Scots in Tutbury Castle in 1584, where we are told that she was supplied with “beer from Burton, some three myles off.”