Some Biographical Facts
Image 9 (Emma Wedgwood)
- *February 12, 1809 in Shrewsbury, England
- his mother died when he was 8 years old
- his father Robert Darwin was worried about his son's preferences in life as Charles was rather a rebel
- Robert Darwin wanted his son to follow a medial career since this was a family tradition
- the young Darwin was sent to the University of Edinburgh in Scotland in 1825 to study medicine but it turned out that he did not like it
- studying in Edinburgh, Darwin started to develop some deeper interest in Biology which is why he started watching birds and writing down his observations in a notebook
- in April 1827 Darwin finally dropped out of medical school by which his father was not delighted
- in December 1827 Darwin started to study Theology at Christ's College at Cambridge University but, AGAIN, he did not take his studies very seriously but rather spent his time collecting beetles and other organisms
- Darwin became more and more interested in the study of natural history and developed doubts about his religious studies
- however, Darwin finished his theological studies but still never ended up becoming a clergyman
- in April 1831 Darwin started to visit Geology classes which he liked a lot; he was part of a geological field trip to Wales which had a deep impact on him
- the same year Darwin got the offer to join the HMS Beagle as a naturalist which took off in December 1831
- the time on the HMS Beagle had a vital impact on Darwin as a person as well as a naturalist
- when the Beagle returned in 1836, Darwin started to work with all the crates of species he had collected during the voyage
- Darwin became well-known among scientists in England as he had made important discoveries
- in January 1839 Darwin married his first cousin Emma Wedgwood
- being married, Darwin purchased a house for the young couple to live in: It was called Down House and was located
- Darwin kept on researching all of the following years to find evidence and proof his idea of Natural Selection
- After many years of struggling, Darwin published "Origin of Species" in November 1859
- Darwin died on April 19, 1882
