Wodan1 t1_jeerie0 wrote on March 31, 2023 at 2:14 PM

Reply to comment by wanking_to_got in TIL In the West the largest meal of the day has historically been eaten at midday. It was not until Napoleon's empire there was the "abominable habit of dining as late as seven in the evening" as British travelers reported. The British adopted later dinners by 1850 from changes in work schedules. by jamescookenotthatone

Not necessarily. People would take food with them into the fields and snack.

The main reason why people ate their main meal at midday was simply because they wanted to be able to see what they were eating. Artificial methods of light before the invention of lightbulbs were luxuries that most people couldn't afford so it made more practical sense to eat a proper meal at midday when there was the maximum amount of natural light.

During the industrial revolution, things changed as artificial lighting became more readily available, as things such as coal and candle wax became cheaper for the working classes to use on a regular basis.

hydrospanner t1_jeflimj wrote on March 31, 2023 at 5:30 PM

Seems like a little of both makes the most sense.

Long factory shifts and employers discouraging long breaks from productive work coinciding with a greater ability to cook and eat at home in the evening.