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Charles Darwin Born 12 Feb 1809 -19 April 1882
Charles Darwin was born in Shrewsbury, Shropshire. Born into a large Christian family that was well educated, well off, and well connected. He descended from a line of free thinkers, His grandfather for example had an idea that animals could "transmute" into another -
Charles Darwin 12 Feb 1809 -19 April 1882
He went on to attend medical school at Edinburg University. Edinburg, a non-Anglican university embraced science and the radical ideas that took place. A concept that he would hold onto while attending was transmutation. -
Charles Darwin 12 Feb 1809 -19 April 1882
While he did learn much in that environment, he also learned that he has no desire to further pursue medicine and went on to attend Christs College, Cambridge to study divinity and graduated in 1831. -
Charles Darwin 12 Feb 1809 -19 April 1882
But before he could begin his career with the church he was offered an opportunity as a ‘gentleman naturalist’ on a voyage aboard the HMS Beagle. Where he spent the next five years visiting four continents to include the Galapagos Islands. During his time he collected biological and geological samples. -
Charles Darwin 12 Feb 1809 -19 April 1882
He returned home where his theory of natural selection was developed in private. A theory that his religion and the treatment of his grandfather’s ideas made him not published, until he had more information at least. His number of questions growing with each find. -
Charles Darwin 12 Feb 1809 -19 April 1882
The level of urgency to published was raised when he received a letter from Alfred Russel Wallace that he too had come to the same conclusion about evolution through natural selection. That summer Darwin released his theory of evolution and natural selection. Darwin and Wallace’s ideas were presented to Linnean Society, Britain's leading Natural History body. -
Charles Darwin 12 Feb 1809 -19 April 1882
He published ‘On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection’ which lead to much debate between science and religion but became a worldwide best seller. -
Charles Darwin 12 Feb 1809 -19 April 1882
Later he went on to published ‘The Descent of Man’ which face more religion challenging but his ideas did gain acceptance. It was a an idea that came into mind many times during his search for understanding natural selection, but fear of the Anglican status quo and potential consequences for such ideas prevented him from publishing. That was until he finally felt ready to put his theory out there. -
Charles Darwin 12 Feb 1809 -19 April 1882
Darwin dies in the preference of isolation with an exception to those he held close. He was given the ultimate British accolade of burial in Westminster Abbey, London