For 3000 years, until 1883, hemp was the world’s largest agricultural crop, from which the majority of fabric, soap, paper, medicines, and oils were produced.
George Washington and Thomas Jefferson both grew hemp. Ben Franklin owned a mill that made hemp paper. The US Declaration of Independence was written on hemp paper. (sometimes I too wear a hemp or a T-shirt…)
The first city in the world to have a population of more than one million was Rome.