-
Birth
Charles Darwin is born at The Mount, Shrewsbury, the fifth child of Robert Waring Darwin, physician, and Susannah Wedgwood. -
Royal Society's Philosophical Club & Linnean Society
Darwin is elected to the Royal Society's Philosophical Club, and to the Linnean Society. -
On the tendency of species to form varieties
After correspondence with Wallace, and advised by Hooker and Lyell, extracts from Darwin's work and a paper by Wallace are presented at the Linnean Society. This work is later published as "On the tendency of species to form varieties" in the Journal of the Proceedings of the Linnean Society. Events moved so fast, that Wallace is not notified of the joint presentation until afterwards, but responds courteously. Natural Means of Selection -
On the Origin of Species
Darwin now moves quickly. He writes a book, stripped of academic references and aimed at the reading public, called On the Origin of Species. The 1250 print run of 1859 is oversubscribed, and Darwin starts corrections for a second edition. On the Origin of Species -
Darwinism
Darwinism begins to dominate the views of the British Association, as Darwin’s chief scientific supporters, Hooker and Huxley, are presidents. -
Death
After a heart attack on Christmas, followed by seizures, Charles Darwin dies, in great suffering, at Down House. He is later buried in Westminster Abbey.