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Charles Darwin: On The Origin of Species

Charles Darwin was an English naturalist born in 1809 who is best known for introducing the scientific theory of evolution by natural selection. His 1859 book On the Origin of Species provided compelling evidence that all species evolve over time from common ancestors through a process where organisms better suited for their environment are more likely to survive and pass on their traits. While his theory was initially rejected, it became widely accepted as the dominant scientific explanation for the diversity of life by the 1870s. Darwin made extensive contributions across biology and geology through his research on topics like evolution, human origins, plant life, and earthworms. He is now recognized as one of the most influential scientists in history.

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188 views

Charles Darwin: On The Origin of Species

Charles Darwin was an English naturalist born in 1809 who is best known for introducing the scientific theory of evolution by natural selection. His 1859 book On the Origin of Species provided compelling evidence that all species evolve over time from common ancestors through a process where organisms better suited for their environment are more likely to survive and pass on their traits. While his theory was initially rejected, it became widely accepted as the dominant scientific explanation for the diversity of life by the 1870s. Darwin made extensive contributions across biology and geology through his research on topics like evolution, human origins, plant life, and earthworms. He is now recognized as one of the most influential scientists in history.

Uploaded by

Josip Mihic
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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For other people named Charles Darwin, see Charles Darwin (disambiguation).

Charles Darwin

Darwin, aged 45 in 1854, by then working towards
publication of On the Origin of Species
Born
Charles Robert Darwin
12 February 1809
The Mount, Shrewsbury,
Shropshire, United Kingdom
Died
19 April 1882 (aged 73)
Down House, Downe, Kent, UK
Residence England
Citizenship British
Nationality British
Fields Natural history, Geology
Institutions
tertiary education:
University of Edinburgh Medical
School (medicine)
University of Cambridge
(ordinary Bachelor of Arts)
professional institution:
Geological Society of London
Academic
advisors
John Stevens Henslow
Adam Sedgwick
Known for
The Voyage of the Beagle
On the Origin of Species
evolution by
natural selection,
common descent
Influences
Alexander von Humboldt
John Herschel
Charles Lyell
Influenced
Joseph Dalton Hooker
Thomas Henry Huxley
George Romanes
Ernst Haeckel
Sir John Lubbock
Notable awards
Royal Medal (1853)
Wollaston Medal (1859)
Copley Medal (1864)
Spouse Emma Darwin (married 1839)
Children 10 children (see list)
Signature

Charles Robert Darwin, FRS (12 February 1809 19 April 1882) was an English naturalist
and geologist,
[1]
best known for his contributions to evolutionary theory.
[I]
He established that
all species of life have descended over time from common ancestors,
[2]
and in a joint
publication with Alfred Russel Wallace introduced his scientific theory that this branching
pattern of evolution resulted from a process that he called natural selection, in which the
struggle for existence has a similar effect to the artificial selection involved in selective
breeding.
[3]

Darwin published his theory of evolution with compelling evidence in his 1859 book On the
Origin of Species, overcoming scientific rejection of earlier concepts of transmutation of
species.
[4][5]
By the 1870s the scientific community and much of the general public had
accepted evolution as a fact. However, many favoured competing explanations and it was not
until the emergence of the modern evolutionary synthesis from the 1930s to the 1950s that a
broad consensus developed in which natural selection was the basic mechanism of
evolution.
[6][7]
In modified form, Darwin's scientific discovery is the unifying theory of the
life sciences, explaining the diversity of life.
[8][9]

Darwin's early interest in nature led him to neglect his medical education at the University of
Edinburgh; instead, he helped to investigate marine invertebrates. Studies at the University of
Cambridge encouraged his passion for natural science.
[10]
His five-year voyage on
HMS Beagle established him as an eminent geologist whose observations and theories
supported Charles Lyell's uniformitarian ideas, and publication of his journal of the voyage
made him famous as a popular author.
[11]

Puzzled by the geographical distribution of wildlife and fossils he collected on the voyage,
Darwin began detailed investigations and in 1838 conceived his theory of natural selection.
[12]

Although he discussed his ideas with several naturalists, he needed time for extensive
research and his geological work had priority.
[13]
He was writing up his theory in 1858 when
Alfred Russel Wallace sent him an essay which described the same idea, prompting
immediate joint publication of both of their theories.
[14]
Darwin's work established
evolutionary descent with modification as the dominant scientific explanation of
diversification in nature.
[6]
In 1871 he examined human evolution and sexual selection in The
Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex, followed by The Expression of the
Emotions in Man and Animals. His research on plants was published in a series of books, and
in his final book, he examined earthworms and their effect on soil.
[15]

Darwin became internationally famous, and his pre-eminence as a scientist was honoured by
burial in Westminster Abbey.
[16]
Darwin has been described as one of the most influential
figures in human history.
[17][18]

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