History and uses of hemp - The Hempcrete Topic: Designing and Building with Hemp-lime - page 6

A history of hemp
The common hemp plant, Cannabis sativa, is one of the earliest recorded domestically
grown plants, with evidence of its cultivation by humans since Neolithic times. Hemp is
found across the world, and has a long history of widespread use for a range of important
products: hemp seeds for oils and resin, food, fuel, medicines and cosmetics; hemp fibre
for hard-wearing clothing, rope and tough fabrics such as sailcloth (the word canvas de-
rives from cannabis: literally - originally - 'a fabric made from hemp'), and as a pulp from
which to make paper.
It is thought that the plant originated in China, and that its cultivation gradually spread
westwards through India and into the Middle East, Africa and the Mediterranean, where it
formed an essential part of the livelihood and culture of each people who grew it. Surviv-
ing writings from the Egyptian, Greek and Roman records show how important the hemp
plant was to the lifestyle, trade and expansion of these great civilizations.
The cultivation of hemp in Europe continued throughout modern history, with evidence
that its use in Britain, introduced by the Romans, continued thereafter, with the Saxons
incorporating it into their medical treatments. Later kings of England promoted the cultiv-
ation of hemp, not only for its everyday uses for linen and rope but also for the vital part
it played in the military supremacy of Britain as an island nation: Henry VIII passed a law
making it compulsory for farmers to grow hemp, such was its importance to the defence
of the realm through its use for sailcloth and rigging. Later still, the hemp plant played a
not-insignificant part in Napoleon Bonaparte's downfall, since his ill-fated incursion into
Russia had as its aim the destruction of Russian hemp plantations. Russia had been sup-
plying the English with hemp, and thus equipping the navy of Napoleon's enemy. 2
The importance of hemp in British and Irish society throughout the ages is reflected in
place names across the land - for example, Hemel Hempstead in the south of England
(meaning literally 'place of hemp' or 'hemp pasture'), and Cwm Cywarch in Snowdonia
(which translates as 'the steep-walled mountain basin in which hemp is grown'). Street
names such as Hemp Mill Walk in Loggerheads in Staffordshire speak for themselves, and
Hemp Street in Belfast is at the centre of the area which, until the beginning of the twen-
tieth century, housed the thriving industry around the manufacture of hemp rope and sail-
cloth for the city's important shipbuilding trade.
The long tradition of hemp growing and processing in Britain can still be seen in the sur-
viving architecture of the hemp and flax industries. Up until the arrival of cheap imported