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Charles Darwin Birth
Charles Darwin was born on 12 February 1809 in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England to Robert and Susannah Darwin. -
On the Origin of Species - The beginning
After presenting his theories to Cambridge, where the clerics declared transmutation, or evolution, as heresy. Darwin began filling notebooks with his findings and theories. With other naturalists opting for a non-religious stance on flora and fauna, they began to match the thoughts of Darwin, who lost his faith with the death of his daughter, Annie in 1851. In 1854, his question of what caused genetic deviation was answered. Using the analogy of the decision of labour, he theorized that...(con) -
On the Origin of Species continued
...competition for food and other resources caused these special variants. Darwin began experimenting with seeds and salt water. He also began experimenting with pidgeon breeding. He selected fancy pigeons for reproduction in order to attempt to bring back the rock dove, denoting this artificial selection. In April 1856, Darwin began his work on a triple volume book titled "Natural Selection". He designed his work to provide creationists with an overflow of facts. (Cont) -
On the Origin of Species part 3
As he aged, Darwin's theory changed. In the 1830s Darwin speculated that fauna remained perfectly adapted to their environment, until it changed. In 1856, he now assessed that each new variant was imperfect, and that perpetual struggle for dominance was the rule. By 18 June 1858, Darwin had finished approximately 250,000 words of his work. On that day, he received a letter from Alfred Russell Wallace in Indonesia. Wallace had speculated much the same as Darwin. In order to not lose...(cont) -
On the Origin of Species part 4
...priority, Darwin had two friends read his and Wallace's work at the Linnean Society on July 1, 1858. As his son had recently passed from scarlet fever, Darwin missed the reading. On 22 November 1858, his work titled "On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life" was sold. The London newspapers began coming to the conclusion that Darwin avoided. That human beings evolved from apes, and that there was no afterlife. (Cont) -
On the Origin of Species part 5
Avoiding any confrontation, Darwin asked Thomas Henry Huxley to debate with others on the subject. Huxley went on to write three reviews to Darwin's work, highlighting and defending human evolution. In Down House, Darwin continued working on his theory, working through the sixth edition of his book. Though his theory was challenged, Darwin used British orchids to prove his point. He surmised that cross pollination from insects made for better, stronger flowers. -
Charles Darwin Death
Charles Darwin died in 1882 of a heart attack in Downe, Kent, England. Adrian J. Desmond; "Charles Darwin British Naturalist"; Encyclopedia Britannica; 8 Feb 19; Web; 24 Feb 19; https://www.britannica.com/biography/Charles-Darwin
