Darwin’s theory

1. Charles Darwin was born in a small town in England in 1809. He was the fifth child of parents Robert Waring Darwin and Susannah Wedgwood. Darwin’s early life was quite ordinary. He passed his Bachelor of Arts degree in the year 1831. It was in Christ’s College where he met two influential people – Adam Sedgwick and John Stevens Henslow.

2. Henslow eventually advised Darwin to travel with him in the Beagle, which was a survey (исследовательский) ship that was about to undertake a journey around the world for a period of five years. During the course of his trip, Darwin collected samples of various natural specimens including fossils (ископаемые), plants, and birds.

3. In 1836, Darwin returned to England and started to solve the riddles of his observations and understand how species evolve. He then proposed a theory of evolution by the process of natural selection after getting influenced by the ideas of Malthus. According to him, the animals and plant species that are best suited to their surroundings will survive and reproduce easily. They will then pass on the characteristics that helped them survive to their offspring. Gradually, the species change over time.

4. In 1838, Darwin married Emma Wedgewood. They moved to Down House in 1842 along with their children. This is about the time when he developed the theory of evolution through natural selection more fully. However, it took around 15 years to finalize his manuscript. In 1859, Darwin published his book ‘On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection’. Charles Darwin died in 1882 and was buried in Westminster Abbey.