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Birth
Charles Darwin was born in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England, on the 12th of February 1809, at The Mount (his family's home), the fifth of six children. -
Joined a Boarding school
Charles followed in the footsteps of his brother and joined the Shrewsbury boarding school nearby the family home. Even then he was interested in collecting and natural history. -
Becomes an apprentice
Charles became an apprentice doctor to his father, and helped at his practice over this summer. -
Enrolled in Medical School
Charles joined Edinburgh university with his fathers encouragement. He didn't enjoy it, and slacked off on his studies. -
Changed to Christ's College
Charles left medical studies when he realised he felt sick at the sight of blood, and so his disapointed father enrolled him in Christ's college, hoping he would become a parson, but Charles was really interested in natural history. -
The Beagle sets sail
John Stevens Henslow (A botany professor) taught Charles, and after he graduated with an Arts degree in 1831, John suggested that he should join the Beagle's five year expedition as a naturalist. Charles accepted, and on this date the expedition began. During this expedition he investigated the geology and biology of their locations, and made careful notes on his ideas and observations. -
Period: to
The Beagle's journey
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The Beagle Returns
Due to his detailed geological writings he compiled over his voyage , when the Beagle returned to Cornwall Charles was already well known. Henslow had published some of the writings that Charles had sent him, to boost his students reputation and fame. -
Began to rewrite his journal
Charles began to rewrite his journal of the Beagle's journey. His publisher asked for improbable finishing dates, but Charles agreed anyway. Over the next couple of years he suffered from the stress, and suffered from heart pains and other illness. -
The theory of evolution begins
Charles donated his collection of animal specimens to Zoological Society of London. John Gould informed him that his specimens of Finches from the Galapagos Islands were in fact seperate species. This set Charles thinking, and by March he was writing in his journal, "One species does change into another ... to adapt and alter the race to a changing world", and using the specimens from the Galapagos as examples for this theory. -
Becomes secretary of the Geological Society
Charles accepted the post of secretary of the Geological Society of London, but this added to his stress and illness. By June he was incapable of doing much work, due to severe heart and stomach pains, boils, trembling and other nasty symptoms. The cause was never known. -
A Proposal
Charles proposed to his cousin, Emma Hedgwood, and she accepted. -
The theory is refined
Darwin studied the Malthusian nature theory, and selective breeding used by farmers, and reasoned that there might be 'selective breeding' in nature. He later called this part of his theory Natural Selection. -
Daughter Dies
Charles' daughter Annie fell ill with a similar sickness to His, which led him to believe it may be Hereditary. After a series of symptoms she died. -
Receives a letter
Over the past 20 years, Darwin had been slowly refining his theory. Just a couple of years earlier, his close friend Joseph Hooker urged him to publish a paper, as papers with similar ideas to Darwin's were appearing. Darwin half-heartedly began a paper, but on this date suddenly he realised Hooker's sense of urgency. He received a letter from Alfred Wallace, a biologist, telling him excitedly about a new theory of his, and containing a detailed paper on natural selection. -
Publishes a paper
Charles and Lyell agreed to publish Wallace's letter along with a couple of Darwin's own notes, in a paper 'On the tendency of species to form varieties; and on the perpetuation of varieties of species by natural means of selection.' It didn't make much of a splash in the scientific community, but when he published a refined version of this 'big paper' as a book ('On the Origin of Species') it was sold out the instant it hit shelves. -
Death
Over the past twenty years he had been steadily experimenting and adding data to his theory, including pieces on the pollination of flowers and sexual selection. Charles died at the age of 73, in his home (Down House). After petitioning by colleagues, he was buried in Westminster Abbey, near other scientific greats such as Sir Isaac Newton.