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Family
Charles Robert Darwin was born on 12 February 1809 in Shrewsbury, England into a wealthy family. His father Dr. R.W. Darwin was a doctor and his grandfather Dr. Erasmus Darwin a botanist. Coming from a house of scientists, Darwin had the predisposition to become one too. -
Education
In October 1827 he began his studies at Christ's College in Cambridge. His father dreamt about Darwin becoming a medic like himself but he could not stand the sight of blood. Darwin graduated from Cambridge with a bachelor arts in 1831. -
HMS Beagle
In December 1831 Charles Darwin sets out on a voyage around the world on a ship called HMS Beagle, which was recommended to him by his professor John Stevens Henslow. This 5 year long odyssey turned out to be crucial for Darwin’s research and his later career. The voyage gave him lots of opportunity to collect and compare fossils. It also gave him the chance to study hundreds of specimen slightly varying across regions. -
On the Origin of Species
On 24 November 1859 Darwin publishes On the Origin of Species, which is considered to be the basis of the evolution theory. In his book he sums up his ideas on natural selection which he gathered throughout his entire naturalist career. Darwin in his On the Origin of Species (1859) argues, that animals were not “created” and stay unchanged forever but rather they evolved from their predecessors and are still evolving following the rules of natural selection. Only the fittest survive. -
Death
Charles Darwin died on 19 April 1882. He was honoured by the burial in Westminster Abbey.
