1. Charles Robert Darwin (12 February 1809 – 19
April 1882) was an English naturalist who showed that all
species of life have come from common ancestors, and
proposed that this branching pattern called evolution
resulted from a process (that he) called natural selection.
Natural selection: survival to species that are best adapted to the
environment.
He published his theory his 1859 book On the Origin of Species. The public
did accept that evolution was fact during his lifetime. It was not until after his
death that natural selection became the official basis for evolution.
The voyage of the Beagle
Darwin was away on the Beagle for five years. The ship made many stops
along the way including, Brazil where Darwin was delighted by the tropical
forest but detested the sight of slavery.
In the Galápagos Islands, Darwin found evidence for natural selection,
different beak sizes of mockingbirds spread across different islands, even
though they were from the same species.
Darwin’s opinion
Darwin did not share the racism common at that time: Darwin was strongly
against slavery, against "ranking the so-called races of man as distinct
species", and against ill-treatment of native people.
He valued European civilisation and saw colonisation as spreading its
benefits, with the sad but inevitable effect of extermination of savage peoples
who did not become civilised.
Darwin’s life
Darwin’s wife was also his cousin Emma Wedgwood. His theory showed that
marrying someone so close in his family line might have a terrible effect on
any children he had – causing hereditary disease.
He scrawled rambling thoughts about career and prospects on two scraps of
paper, one with columns headed "Marry" and "Not Marry". Advantages
included "constant companion and a friend in old age ... better than a dog
anyhow", against points such as "less money for books" and "terrible loss of
time." Having decided in favour, he chose to marry his cousin, Emma
Wedgwood.
Darwin had ten children in total. Two who died in infancy.