The Life Of Charles Darwin

Charles Darwin was a serious scientist, who was from Shrewsbury (England). He was a pioneer in understanding how species came to be on this planet. He revolutionized how scientists think today.

Early Life

He was born to  Robert Darwin -doctor- and Sukey Wedgewood - who inherited a pottery business. He had five siblings, they all lived very comfortably in a huge house called 'The Mount' in Shrewsbury. As a young boy, his favourite hobby was collecting things such as: shells, wax seals, coins and minerals. #

Sadly, Charles's mother died when he was around eight years old. His sister tried their best to teach him at home, but he was miserable ,since he wanted to be outside collecting. Shortly after he turned nine, he was sent off to boarding school just down the road. 

School Life

In 1818, Charles started attending the school just down the road. He found it really boring. He was not enamoured by the Latin and ancient Greek lessons. Without top marks it was near impossible for him to get into university with his grades, so he left school at the age of 16.

Worried for his son, Robert Darwin decided that Charles would become a doctor, so he sent the dropout to Edinburgh University. In short, Charles hated it there. Two years later he quit and moved to Cambridge university to  become a clergy-man. He loved it, because during this time, he was able to focus on bug collecting. It was Charles's love of collecting bugs that would lead him to the opportunity of a life-time! 

Voyages

This rare opportunity came in the form of a letter that arrived after he got back from a fossil hunting trip in wales. The letter was requesting for Charles to accompany Naval Captain Robert Fitz-Roy, on a voyage around the world before stopping to survey the south American coast.  

A vessel called HMS Beagle, set sail on the 27th of December 1931. though it was small, Charles took his roll very seriously and filled notebooks with detailed descriptions of people plants and animals. when ever they docked Charles would hire guides and horsed so they could explore on land, he sent crates of dead animals back to Cambridge to be examined. On the way back to England, they stopped at the Galapagos. At first, the island surrounded by hot, black rocks, stubby, smelly shrubs and black, sandy beaches didn't draw him in, but after seeing the exotic animals and plants he was hooked. Charles spent five weeks exploring the islands before he came home to England.

Discoveries

When Charles finally returned home,  he set about putting his ideas into a theory. He wrote to experts around the world hoping to get extra information about the different species.  one of the most influential books out of hundreds was Thomas Malthus's  'An Essay On The Principle Of Population'. It made him realize that only the fittest survive, thus animals had to change and adapt to the world around them. From here he formed a second theory, that every other animal was descended from another.

In 1839, Charles wrote a book about 'Beagle' discoveries ( later called 'The Voyage Of The Beagle') after it was published, it became the world's best-selling travel guide. In 1845, a new version hinted about his theory of evolution: the process of gradual selection to change certain characteristics (natural selection). 

conclusion

In conclusion, Charles Darwin is one of the most famous scientists in history. His theory of evolution and natural selection revolutionized how we think today. He led the way for critical discoveries in the word of science. His theory of evolution is known as one of the several mechanisms by which animals evolve. This is the reason why he will forever will be remembered as one of history's greatest scientists.

written by one of the people behind the vedra_krimon account.