To T. H. Huxley 8 March [1859]
Summary
Sends THH questions about "serial homologies" and "vegetative repetition" in Mollusca and Radiata.
Abstract volume [Origin] nearly completed.
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | Thomas Henry Huxley |
Date: | 8 Mar [1859] |
Classmark: | Imperial College of Science, Technology, and Medicine Archives (Huxley 5: 61) |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-2425 |
Matches: 7 hits
- … To T. H. Huxley 8 March [1859] …
- … H. Huxley, [9–12 March 1859] . …
- … Archives (Huxley 5: 61) Charles Robert Darwin Down 8 Mar [1859] Thomas Henry Huxley …
- … of favoured races in the struggle for life. By Charles Darwin. London: John Murray. 1859. …
- … recorded having finished it on 19 March 1859 (‘Journal’; Appendix II). The enclosure was …
- … See letter from T. H. Huxley, [9–12 March 1859] . Richard Owen discussed the ‘law of …
- … on p. 641. See letter from T. H. Huxley, [9–12 March 1859] . See letter from T. …
To John Murray 24 November [1859]
Summary
CD is astonished at sale of Origin [to booksellers].
Arranges to start new edition immediately. Cannot change much [while at Ilkley Wells], nor work rapidly because of health. Relieved that JM has no cause to repent of publishing Origin.
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | John Murray |
Date: | 24 Nov [1859] |
Classmark: | National Library of Scotland (John Murray Archive) (Ms.42152 ff.70–71) |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-2549 |
Matches: 9 hits
- … To John Murray 24 November [1859] …
- … Murray Archive) (Ms.42152 ff.70–71) Charles Robert Darwin Ilkley 24 Nov [1859] John Murray …
- … letter to John Murray, 15 October [1859] , in which CD stated his intention to buy 70 …
- … has not been found, but see the letter to T. H. Huxley, 24 [November 1859] and n. 1. …
- … written at Shrewsbury late in November 1859, Emma Darwin told William Erasmus Darwin (DAR …
- … listed among its stock in Athenæum , 3 December 1859, p. 724. CD presumably refers to his …
- … formations. See letter to Charles Lyell, 20 September [1859] , and preceding letter. …
- … See letter to John Murray, 14 November [1859] . See …
- … of favoured races in the struggle for life. By Charles Darwin. London: John Murray. 1859. …
To G. V. Reed 26 September [1859]
Summary
Encloses draft in payment for tutoring of sons Francis and Leonard, with thanks for all GVR’s assistance.
Will send his servant for Arum plant.
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | George Varenne Reed |
Date: | 26 Sept [1859] |
Classmark: | Buckinghamshire Record Office (D 22/39/3) |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-2495 |
Matches: 4 hits
- … CD continued to pay him for tutorials in 1860. See letter to G. V. Reed, 1 July [1859] . …
- … To G. V. Reed 26 September [1859] …
- … Record Office (D 22/39/3) Charles Robert Darwin Down 26 Sept [1859] George Varenne Reed …
- … 2, below). An entry dated 26 September 1859 in CD’s Account book (Down House MS) indicates …
To Charles Lyell 20 October [1859]
Summary
Comments on CL’s letters.
Discusses foreign animals naturalised in Australia and elsewhere.
Affirms man’s capacity to survive in Eocene climate.
Comments on American types.
Denies necessity for "continued intervention of creative power".
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | Charles Lyell, 1st baronet |
Date: | 20 Oct [1859] |
Classmark: | American Philosophical Society (Mss.B.D25.173) |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-2507 |
Matches: 7 hits
- … To Charles Lyell 20 October [1859] …
- … Mss.B.D25.173) Charles Robert Darwin Ilkley 20 Oct [1859] Charles Lyell, 1st baronet …
- … of favoured races in the struggle for life. By Charles Darwin. London: John Murray. 1859. …
- … See the letter from Charles Lyell, 4 October 1859 , and the letter to …
- … Charles Lyell, 11 October [1859] . See also Origin , pp. 379–80. …
- … see letter to Charles Lyell, 11 October [1859] ). See letter from Charles Lyell to T. …
- … H. Huxley, 17 June 1859 . CD still intended to publish his ‘big book’ on species ( Natural …
To Edward Cresy 26 [December 1843 – April 1846 or September 1855 – October 1860?]
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | Edward Cresy, Jr |
Date: | 26 [Dec 1843 - Apr 1846 or Sept 1855 - Oct 1860] |
Classmark: | DAR 143: 311 |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-13787 |
Matches: 12 hits
- … 26 July 1858 26 Aug 1858 26 Sept 1858 26 Oct 1858 26 Nov 1858 26 Dec 1858 26 Jan 1859 26 …
- … Feb 1859 26 …
- … Mar 1859 26 …
- … Apr 1859 26 …
- … May 1859 26 …
- … June 1859 26 …
- … July 1859 26 …
- … Aug 1859 26 …
- … Sept 1859 26 …
- … Oct 1859 26 …
- … Nov 1859 26 …
- … Dec 1859 26 Jan 1860 26 Feb 1860 26 Mar 1860 26 Apr 1860 26 May 1860 26 June 1860 26 July …
To John Phillips 11 November [1859]
Summary
Sends Origin to JP. Says it is as yet only an abstract. Fears JP will "fulminate anathemas" against it. Asks him to read it all straight through, otherwise it will be unintelligible.
Is not so foolish as to expect to convert anyone. CD remembers how many long years his own conversion took. Hooker "has completely given up species as immutable creatures".
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | John Phillips |
Date: | 11 Nov [1859] |
Classmark: | Oxford University Museum of Natural History Archive Collections (John Phillips collection)) |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-2521 |
Matches: 8 hits
- … To John Phillips 11 November [1859] …
- … collection)) Charles Robert Darwin Ilkley Down letterhead 11 Nov [1859] John Phillips …
- … of favoured races in the struggle for life. By Charles Darwin. London: John Murray. 1859. …
- … was president of the Geological Society in 1859 and had been instrumental earlier in the …
- … s award of the Wollaston Medal to CD (see letters to John Phillips , 21 January [1859] and …
- … 8 February [1859] ). He was the senior geologist at Oxford University following William …
- … I fear, hostile’ (see the second letter to T. H. Huxley, 25 November [1859] ). See …
- … letter to John Phillips, 26 November [1859] . Phillips discussed Origin in his anniversary …
From H. C. Watson 30 November [1859]
Author: | Hewett Cottrell Watson |
Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Date: | 30 Nov [1859] |
Classmark: | DAR 181: 37 |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-2562 |
Matches: 8 hits
- … From H. C. Watson 30 November [1859] …
- … DAR 181: 37 Hewett Cottrell Watson Thames Ditton 30 Nov [1859] Charles Robert Darwin …
- … By Charles Darwin. London: John Murray. 1859. Watson, Hewett Cottrell. 1845. On the theory …
- … a second edition at the end of November 1859 (‘Journal’; Appendix II). The fourth volume …
- … Gardeners’ Chronicle and Agricultural Gazette , 12 November 1859, pp. 911–12. See letter …
- … from J. D. Hooker, [21 November 1859] , and letter to J. …
- … D. Hooker, [22 November 1859] . See also letter to J. …
- … D. Hooker, [26 May 1859] , n. 5, for CD’s comments on Watson’s work. CD cited Watson’s …
To J. D. Hooker 18 [May 1859]
Summary
Too ill to examine proofs of JDH’s Flora Tasmaniae [The botany of the Antarctic voyage, pt III].
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | Joseph Dalton Hooker |
Date: | 18 [May 1859] |
Classmark: | DAR 115: 16 |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-2463 |
Matches: 5 hits
- … To J. D. Hooker 18 [May 1859] …
- … DAR 115: 16 Charles Robert Darwin Down 18 [May 1859] Joseph Dalton Hooker …
- … hydropathic establishment from 21 to 28 May 1859 (‘Journal’; Appendix II). CD’s journal …
- … records that he actually left for Moor Park on 21 May 1859 (‘Journal’; Appendix II). …
- … CD refers to the proofs of Hooker 1859 , which he was reading as they became ready. …
To Charles Lyell [10 December 1859]
Summary
Discuss CL’s suggestions for revisions to the chapter on the geological record [Origin, ch. 9].
Henry Holland’s reaction to the book.
Comments on CL’s work on flint tools of early men.
Describes at length a conversation with Owen concerning Origin. Notes "that at bottom he goes immense way with us", but emphasises Owen’s unfriendly manner. Remarks that Owen accepted a relationship between bears and whales. "By Jove I believe he thinks a sort of Bear was the grandpapa of Whales!"
Has heard Herschel considered his book "the law of higgledy-piggledy".
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | Charles Lyell, 1st baronet |
Date: | [10 Dec 1859] |
Classmark: | American Philosophical Society (Mss.B.D25.184) |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-2575 |
Matches: 11 hits
- … To Charles Lyell [10 December 1859] …
- … Mss.B.D25.184) Charles Robert Darwin Down [10 Dec 1859] Charles Lyell, 1st baronet …
- … letter to Charles Lyell, 25 [November 1859] ). CD sent a copy of Origin to John Frederick …
- … William Herschel in November ( letter to J. F. W. Herschel, 11 November [1859] ). …
- … By Charles Darwin. London: John Murray. 1859. [Owen, Richard. ] 1860b. [Review of Origin & …
- … CD’s visit to Lyell in London on 8 December 1859 en route to Down from Ilkley (‘Journal’; …
- … See letter from Henry Holland, 10 December [1859] . CD refers to Lyell’s recent study of …
- … the antiquity of man. During a visit in July 1859 to sites in Amiens and Liège, Lyell …
- … probably discussed this work when they met on 8 December 1859. CD had sent Richard Owen …
- … of Origin ( letter to Richard Owen, 11 November [1859] ). Owen’s position on transmutation …
- … letter from Richard Owen,12 November 1859) . Owen’s relationship with Thomas Henry Huxley …
To J. D. Hooker 5 [March 1859]
Summary
Will read JDH’s printers’ slips on variation.
CD has been so ill, he wonders whether he will get his book done, though so nearly completed.
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | Joseph Dalton Hooker |
Date: | 5 [Mar 1859] |
Classmark: | DAR 115: 6 |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-2424 |
Matches: 8 hits
- … To J. D. Hooker 5 [March 1859] …
- … DAR 115: 6 Charles Robert Darwin Down 5 [Mar 1859] Joseph Dalton Hooker …
- … See letter to J. D. Hooker, 2 March [1859] . CD …
- … refers to the proof-sheets of Hooker 1859 . CD had asked Hooker to comment on the …
- … see letter to J. D. Hooker, 2 March [1859] ). Asa Gray had read a paper on the plants of …
- … at the American Academy of Arts and Sciences on 14 December 1858 and 11 January 1859. …
- … The paper was published later in 1859 ( A. Gray 1858–9 ). Gray had established that some …
- … Read 14 December 1858 and 11 January 1859. ] Memoirs of the American Academy of Arts and …
To W. E. Darwin 3 June [1859]
Summary
Reports events at Down.
Is busy with proofs [of Origin];
is anxious to hear how WED does in his examinations.
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | William Erasmus Darwin |
Date: | 3 June [1859] |
Classmark: | DAR 210.6: 45 |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-2467 |
Matches: 8 hits
- … To W. E. Darwin 3 June [1859] …
- … DAR 210.6: 45 Charles Robert Darwin Down 3 June [1859] William Erasmus Darwin …
- … 1, letter to J. S. Henslow, 18 July 1833 ). See letter to W. E. Darwin, 7 July [1859] . …
- … s Weekly Intelligencer , [before 25 June 1859]. The purchase of the new horse for £ …
- … in CD’s Account book (Down House MS) on28 May 1859. Samuel Jones was employed by CD as a …
- … vicar of Mitcham, Surrey, died on 15 May 1859. He had been William’s tutor before he …
- … Emily Catherine Darwin left Down on 2 June 1859 ( Emma Darwin’s diary). See letter to W. …
- … E. Darwin, [5 May 1859] , for William’s plans for his summer vacation. Gamlingay, near …
To J. D. Hooker 15 October [1859]
Summary
Book finished some two weeks.
Feeling much better at Ilkley.
Lyell thinks favourably of book but "staggered" at lengths to which CD goes.
Which continental botanists should receive presentation copies?
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | Joseph Dalton Hooker |
Date: | 15 Oct [1859] |
Classmark: | DAR 115: 23 |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-2504 |
Matches: 8 hits
- … To J. D. Hooker 15 October [1859] …
- … DAR 115: 23 Charles Robert Darwin Ilkley 15 Oct [1859] Joseph Dalton Hooker …
- … of favoured races in the struggle for life. By Charles Darwin. London: John Murray. 1859. …
- … Hooker 1859 . See letter to W. …
- … E. Darwin, [14 October 1859] . CD recorded that …
- … Finished proofs’ of Origin on 1 October 1859 (‘Journal’; Correspondence vol. 7, Appendix …
- … s letters has been found. See letter from Charles Lyell, 3 October 1859 . CD had asked …
- … letter to Charles Lyell, 25 September [1859] , for Lyell’s opinion of his discussion of …
To John Murray [3 November 1859]
Summary
Infinitely pleased and proud of the appearance of his "child" [Origin, 1st ed.]. Thinks JM has been overgenerous in paying for his corrections. Offers to divide cost and regrets sending such badly composed copy.
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | John Murray |
Date: | [3 Nov 1859] |
Classmark: | National Library of Scotland (John Murray Archive) (Ms.42152 f.49) |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-2514 |
Matches: 8 hits
- … To John Murray [3 November 1859] …
- … John Murray Archive) (Ms.42152 f.49) Charles Robert Darwin Ilkley [3 Nov 1859] John Murray …
- … of favoured races in the struggle for life. By Charles Darwin. London: John Murray. 1859. …
- … Dated by the relationship to the letter from John Murray, 2 November 1859 . See …
- … letter from John Murray, 2 November 1859 . This sum had been cited by Murray as the amount …
- … see letter from John Murray, 2 November 1859 ). Murray’s accounts do not, however, list …
- … see letter to John Murray, 15 October [1859] ); his presentation list comprised 94 …
- … do not record any payment to Murray during 1859 that might relate to presentation copies. …
To J. D. Hooker 25 [December 1859]
Summary
CD will not write to L. Descaisne to defend his priority over C. V. Naudin.
Feels success of theory depends on acceptance and application by good and well-known workers, like JDH, Huxley, and Lyell.
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | Joseph Dalton Hooker |
Date: | 25 [Dec 1859] |
Classmark: | DAR 115: 31 |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-2602 |
Matches: 10 hits
- … To J. D. Hooker 25 [December 1859] …
- … DAR 115: 31 Charles Robert Darwin Down 25 [Dec 1859] Joseph Dalton Hooker …
- … Victor Naudin ( Naudin 1852 ). See letters to J. D. Hooker, 21 [December 1859] and23 [ …
- … The letter has not been found, but see the letter to Charles Lyell, 22 [December 1859] . …
- … of favoured races in the struggle for life. By Charles Darwin. London: John Murray. 1859. …
- … December 1859]. Hooker had, earlier in the year, read the manuscript copy of CD’s two …
- … see letter to J. D. Hooker, 11 March [1859] ). In 1856, he had read CD’s previous chapter …
- … vol. 4). CD received a copy of Hooker 1859 on 22 December (see letter to J. …
- … D. Hooker, 23 [December 1859] ). He refers to cutting open the pages of the volume so that …
- … the meeting of the club on 22 December 1859 (see Bonney 1919 , p. 147); the minutes of …
From J. D. Hooker [21 November 1859]
Summary
JDH’s congratulations on Origin.
Lyell believes S. P. Woodward wrote review in Athenæum.
Lyell’s and Huxley’s positive responses.
JDH has only plunged into a few chapters.
Author: | Joseph Dalton Hooker |
Addressee: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Date: | [21 Nov 1859] |
Classmark: | DAR 100: 135–6 |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-2539 |
Matches: 7 hits
- … From J. D. Hooker [21 November 1859] …
- … DAR 100: 135–6 Joseph Dalton Hooker Athenaeum Club [21 Nov 1859] Charles Robert Darwin …
- … By Charles Darwin. London: John Murray. 1859. Watson, Hewett Cottrell. 1847–59. Cybele …
- … the letter to J. D. Hooker, [20 November 1859] . CD had asked Hooker whether he knew who …
- … see letter to J. D. Hooker, [20 November 1859] , n. 2). John Lindley was the editor of …
- … Gardeners’ Chronicle and Agricultural Gazette , 12 November 1859, pp. 911–12. See letter …
- … to J. D. Hooker, [20 November 1859] . Thomas Henry Huxley delivered an evening lecture ‘ …
To John William Lubbock 28 [June 1856 – January 1865?]
Summary
Regrets he cannot accept dinner invitation.
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | John William Lubbock, 3d baronet |
Date: | 28 [June 1856 - Jan 1865] |
Classmark: | The Royal Society (LUB: D26) |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-1880 |
Matches: 12 hits
- … 28 July 1858 28 Aug 1858 28 Sept 1858 28 Oct 1858 28 Nov 1858 28 Dec 1858 28 Jan 1859 28 …
- … Feb 1859 28 …
- … Mar 1859 28 …
- … Apr 1859 28 …
- … May 1859 28 …
- … June 1859 28 …
- … July 1859 28 …
- … Aug 1859 28 …
- … Sept 1859 28 …
- … Oct 1859 28 …
- … Nov 1859 28 …
- … Dec 1859 28 Jan 1860 28 Feb 1860 28 Mar 1860 28 Apr 1860 28 May 1860 28 June 1860 28 July …
To John Lubbock [19 November 1859]
Summary
Has told John Murray to send copy of the Origin. There are "many valid and weighty arguments against my notions".
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | John Lubbock, 4th baronet and 1st Baron Avebury |
Date: | [19 Nov 1859] |
Classmark: | DAR 263: 16 (EH 88206465) |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-2527 |
Matches: 7 hits
- … To John Lubbock [19 November 1859] …
- … Charles Robert Darwin Ilkley [19 Nov 1859] John Lubbock, 4th baronet and 1st Baron Avebury …
- … John Lubbock was a partner in the firm. See letter to John Lubbock, 17 December [1859] . …
- … of favoured races in the struggle for life. By Charles Darwin. London: John Murray. 1859. …
- … that the letter was written after 11 November 1859, the day copies were distributed. The …
- … Down and for the Down Friendly Club (see letters to John Lubbock , 14 December [1859] and …
- … 17 December [1859] ). The banking company of Lubbock, Forster & Co. had its headquarters …
To Mary Butler 11 September [1859]
Summary
Inquires about the chances of meeting her when he goes to Ilkley for a cure.
Author: | Charles Robert Darwin |
Addressee: | Mary Butler |
Date: | 11 Sept [1859] |
Classmark: | American Philosophical Society (Mss.B.D25.168) |
Letter no: | DCP-LETT-2489 |
Matches: 6 hits
- … To Mary Butler 11 September [1859] …
- … Society (Mss.B.D25.168) Charles Robert Darwin Down 11 Sept [1859] Mary Butler …
- … 1915) 2: 172). At the end of October 1859, Emma Darwin wrote to William Erasmus Darwin : ‘ …
- … Yorkshire. He intended to go in October 1859 (‘Journal’; Appendix II). CD had met Mary …
- … See letter to Mary Butler,20 February [1859] . Mary Butler did visit Ilkley (see n. …
- … left for Ilkley, Yorkshire, on 2 October 1859 (‘Journal’; Appendix II). At first he stayed …
[Crawfurd, John.] 1859. [Review of Origin.] Examiner, 3 December 1859, pp. 772–3.
Le Conte, John Lawrence. 1859. The Coleoptera of Kansas and Eastern New Mexico. Smithsonian Contributions to Knowledge 11 (1859): Article 6.
letter | (2121) |
people | (485) |
bibliography | (160) |
Darwin, C. R. | (1266) |
Hooker, J. D. | (91) |
Gray, Asa | (34) |
Lyell, Charles | (26) |
Murray, John (b) | (22) |
Darwin, C. R. | (803) |
Hooker, J. D. | (208) |
Carus, J. V. | (98) |
Lyell, Charles | (92) |
Murray, John (b) | (70) |
Darwin, C. R. | (2069) |
Hooker, J. D. | (299) |
Lyell, Charles | (118) |
Carus, J. V. | (110) |
Gray, Asa | (94) |
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1838 | (2) |
1839 | (1) |
1842 | (5) |
1843 | (8) |
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1881 | (39) |
1882 | (4) |
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The writing of "Origin"
Summary
From a quiet rural existence at Down in Kent, filled with steady work on his ‘big book’ on the transmutation of species, Darwin was jolted into action in 1858 by the arrival of an unexpected letter (no longer extant) from Alfred Russel Wallace outlining a…
Matches: 21 hits
- … hopes.— (letter to Charles Lyell, 25 [November 1859] ) The year 1858 opened with …
- … the writing of this ‘abstract’ continued until March 1859; the resulting volume was published in …
- … instinct the previous March. By the middle of March 1859, Darwin had finished the last …
- … upon Lyell for advice (letter to Charles Lyell, 28 March [1859] ). Lyell suggested the firm of …
- … plan of his book (see letter from Elwin to Murray, 3 May 1859 , and letter to John Murray, 6 …
- … the forthcoming book (letter to Charles Lyell, 30 March [1859] ). Darwin next considered calling …
- … and varieties’ (letters to Charles Lyell, 28 March [1859] , and to John Murray, 10 September …
- … Appendix II). Twice in 1858 and three times in 1859 he had gone to Moor Park in Surrey for a week’s …
- … than when I came’ (letter to W. D. Fox, [16 November 1859] ). It was during his stay at Ilkley …
- … rag is worth anything?’ (letter to T. H. Huxley, 2 June [1859] ). But as critical letters began …
- … of induction’ (letter from Adam Sedgwick, 24 November 1859 ). Equally painful was the news that …
- … (letter to Charles Lyell, [10 December 1859] ). To each of his critics, Darwin replied by resting …
- … to me to do.’ (letter to Adam Sedgwick, 26 November [1859] ). Even his strongest …
- … of Darwin’s theory (see letter to J. D. Hooker, 6 May 1859 ). Among the older scientists, only …
- … the origin of mankind. As he wrote to Darwin on 3 October 1859 , ‘the case of Man and his Races …
- … to their mercies’ (letter to J. D. Hooker, [22 November 1859] ). Late in December, to Darwin’s …
- … were the man.’ (letter to T. H. Huxley, 28 December [1859] ). Huxley admitted his authorship to …
- … without good cause.’ (letter to John Murray, 2 December [1859] ). At Murray’s trade sale …
- … had made’ (letter from Charles Kingsley, 18 November 1859 ). This and the two references to the …
- … try to make out truth’ (letter to W. D. Fox, 24 [March 1859] ). Yet he desperately wanted people …
- … on our side.—’ (letter to J. D. Hooker, 14 December [1859] ). …
![](https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/sites/default/files/styles/sidebar_teaser/public/WALLACE-A-R-01-01832.jpg?itok=wD-CGTEN)
Darwin in letters, 1858-1859: Origin
Summary
The years 1858 and 1859 were, without doubt, the most momentous of Darwin’s life. From a quiet rural existence filled with steady work on his ‘big book’ on species, he was jolted into action by the arrival of an unexpected letter from Alfred Russel Wallace…
Matches: 25 hits
- … The years 1858 and 1859 were, without doubt, the most momentous of Darwin’s life. From a quiet …
- … and prompted the composition and publication, in November 1859, of Darwin’s major treatise On the …
- … exceeded my wildest hopes By the end of 1859, Darwin’s work was being discussed in …
- … ‘When I was in spirits’, he told Lyell at the end of 1859, ‘I sometimes fancied that my book w d …
- … hopes.—’ ( letter to Charles Lyell, 25 [November 1859] ). This transformation in Darwin’s personal …
- … the writing of this ‘abstract’ continued until March 1859; the resulting volume was published in …
- … Botanic Gardens at Kew (see Appendix VII). The year 1859 began auspiciously with Darwin …
- … 1854) ( Quarterly Journal of the Geological Society 15 (1859): xxv). One of the most …
- … theory. As he wrote in his introductory essay (Hooker 1859, p. ii): 'In the present Essay I …
- … to test such a theory. His essay, published in December 1859, was the first serious study of the …
- … the other’s ideas (see letters to J. D. Hooker, 2 March [1859] , 11 March [1859] , and 7 …
- … upon Lyell for advice ( letter to Charles Lyell, 28 March [1859] ). Lyell suggested the firm of …
- … plan of his book (see letter from Elwin to Murray, 3 May 1859 , and letter to John Murray, 6 …
- … the forthcoming book ( letter to Charles Lyell, 30 March [1859] ). Darwin next considered calling …
- … and varieties’ (letters to Charles Lyell, 28 March [1859] , and to John Murray, 10 September …
- … Appendix II). Twice in 1858 and three times in 1859 he had gone to Moor Park in Surrey for a week’s …
- … than when I came’ ( letter to W. D. Fox, [16 November 1859] ). It was during his stay at Ilkley …
- … rag is worth anything?’ ( letter to T. H. Huxley, 2 June [1859] ). But as critical letters began …
- … of induction’ ( letter from Adam Sedgwick, 24 November 1859 ). Equally painful was the news that …
- … ( letter to Charles Lyell, [10 December 1859] ). To each of his critics, Darwin replied by resting …
- … to me to do.’ ( letter to Adam Sedgwick, 26 November [1859] ). Even his strongest …
- … of Darwin’s theory ( see letter to J. D. Hooker, 6 May 1859 ). Among the older scientists, only …
- … the origin of mankind. As he wrote to Darwin on 3 October 1859, ‘the case of Man and his Races & …
- … to their mercies’ ( letter to J. D. Hooker, [22 November 1859] ). Late in December, to Darwin’s …
- … were the man.’ ( letter to T. H. Huxley, 28 December [1859] ). Huxley admitted his authorship to …
![](https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/sites/default/files/styles/sidebar_teaser/public/Origin-Spines.jpg?itok=UD6G5Fxs)
Rewriting Origin - the later editions
Summary
For such an iconic work, the text of Origin was far from static. It was a living thing that Darwin continued to shape for the rest of his life, refining his ‘one long argument’ through a further five English editions. Many of his changes were made in…
![](https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/sites/default/files/styles/sidebar_teaser/public/HUXLEY-T-H-01-02486.jpg?itok=M7FKrX6M)
Controversy
Summary
The best-known controversies over Darwinian theory took place in public or in printed reviews. Many of these were highly polemical, presenting an over-simplified picture of the disputes. Letters, however, show that the responses to Darwin were extremely…
Matches: 6 hits
- … Letter 2525 — Darwin, C. R. to Sedgwick, Adam, 11 Nov 1859 Darwin writes to Sedgwick to tell …
- … Letter 2548 — Sedgwick, Adam to Darwin, C. R., 24 Nov 1859 Adam Sedgwick thanks Darwin for …
- … Letter 2555 — Darwin, C. R. to Sedgwick, Adam, 26 Nov [1859] Darwin says Sedgwick could not …
- … Letter 2526 — Owen, Richard to Darwin, C. R., 12 Nov 1859 Owen says to Darwin he will welcome …
- … Letter 2575 — Darwin, C. R. to Lyell, Charles, [10 Dec 1859] Darwin discusses with King' …
- … Letter 2580 — Darwin, C. R. to Owen, Richard, 13 Dec [1859] Darwin responds to Owen’s remarks …
![](https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/sites/default/files/styles/sidebar_teaser/public/Origin-Spines.jpg?itok=UD6G5Fxs)
On the Origin of Species
Summary
From a quiet rural existence at Down in Kent, filled with steady work on his ‘big book’ on the transmutation of species, Darwin was jolted into action in 1858 by the arrival of an unexpected letter (no longer extant) from Alfred Russel Wallace outlining a…
![](https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/sites/default/files/styles/sidebar_teaser/public/GALTON-F-01-01797.jpg?itok=AHryf-R0)
Francis Galton
Summary
Galton was a naturalist, statistician, and evolutionary theorist. He was a second cousin of Darwin’s, having descended from his grandfather, Erasmus. Born in Birmingham in 1822, Galton studied medicine at King’s College, London, and also read mathematics…
Matches: 1 hits
- … into an entirely new province of knowledge’ ( 9 December 1859 ). He soon became interested in …
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Darwin and Fatherhood
Summary
Charles Darwin married Emma Wedgwood in 1839 and over the next seventeen years the couple had ten children. It is often assumed that Darwin was an exceptional Victorian father. But how extraordinary was he? The Correspondence Project allows an unusually…
Matches: 3 hits
Women as a scientific audience
Summary
Target audience? | Female readership | Reading Variation Darwin's letters, in particular those exchanged with his editors and publisher, reveal a lot about his intended audience. Regardless of whether or not women were deliberately targeted as a…
![](https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/sites/default/files/styles/sidebar_teaser/public/LUBBOCK-J-01-03026.jpg?itok=kqbZMWnA)
John Lubbock
Summary
John Lubbock was eight years old when the Darwins moved into the neighbouring property of Down House, Down, Kent; the total of one hundred and seventy surviving letters he went on to exchange with Darwin is a large number considering that the two men lived…
Matches: 1 hits
- … or against me. ( to John Lubbock, 14 December [1859] ) When Origin was …
Dramatisation script
Summary
Re: Design – Adaptation of the Correspondence of Charles Darwin, Asa Gray and others… by Craig Baxter – as performed 25 March 2007
Darwin on race and gender
Summary
Darwin’s views on race and gender are intertwined, and mingled also with those of class. In Descent of man, he tried to explain the origin of human races, and many of the differences between the sexes, with a single theory: sexual selection. Sexual…
Matches: 1 hits
- … 11 April 1833 Letter to C. R. Lyell, 11 October [1859] Letter to Charles …
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The Lyell–Lubbock dispute
Summary
In May 1865 a dispute arose between John Lubbock and Charles Lyell when Lubbock, in his book Prehistoric times, accused Lyell of plagiarism. The dispute caused great dismay among many of their mutual scientific friends, some of whom took immediate action…
Matches: 10 hits
- … but his views were generally derided. 1 In 1859, Lyell visited several sites in …
- … that these were indeed implements of early humans (C. Lyell 1859). In September 1860 he visited …
- … in French, earlier reports written in Danish (Morlot 1859, Forchhammer et al. 1851–5); Lubbock …
- … for their work in the Brixham cave explorations of 1858 and 1859. 5 Another controversy arose …
- … its appearance in print; first in French, dated Berne, Sept. 1859, in the ‘Mémoires de la Société …
- … zoologist M. Claparède had also conversed with me in 1859 on the researches of the best Danish …
- … gave me an abstract for my use, in a letter dated December 1859. He referred me chiefly to ‘Oversigt …
- … and Edinburgh: Williams & Norgate. Lyell, Charles. 1859. On the occurrence of works of …
- … vols. London: John Murray. Morlot, Charles Adolphe. 1859. Etudes géologico-archéologiques en …
- … struggle for life . By Charles Darwin. London: John Murray. 1859. Owen, Richard. 1863. Ape …
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Instinct and the Evolution of Mind
Summary
Sources|Discussion Questions|Experiment Slave-making ants For Darwin, slave-making ants were a powerful example of the force of instinct. He used the case of the ant Formica sanguinea in the On the Origin of Species to show how instinct operates—how…
Matches: 3 hits
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Darwin & Glen Roy
Summary
Although Darwin was best known for his geological work in South America and other remote Beagle destinations, he made one noteworthy attempt to explain a puzzling feature of British geology. In 1838, two years after returning from the voyage, he travelled…
Matches: 1 hits
- … [after September 20 1847] To A.C. Ramsay, 1 July [1859] From Thomas Jamieson, …
Women’s scientific participation
Summary
Observers | Fieldwork | Experimentation | Editors and critics | Assistants Darwin’s correspondence helps bring to light a community of women who participated, often actively and routinely, in the nineteenth-century scientific community. Here is a…
Matches: 4 hits
- … Letter 2447 - Darwin to Murray, J., [5 April 1859] Darwin asks his publisher, John …
- … Letter 2461 - Darwin to Hooker, J. D., [11 May 1859] Darwin expresses anxiety over …
- … Letter 2475 - Darwin to Hooker, J. D., [2 July 1859] Darwin returns the manuscript of …
- … Letter 2501 - Lyell, C. to Darwin, [3 October 1859] Lyell offers praise and …
![](https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/sites/default/files/styles/sidebar_teaser/public/Origin%20cover_1859.jpg?itok=mepzZDKH)
Origin
Summary
Darwin’s most famous work, Origin, had an inauspicious beginning. It grew out of his wish to establish priority for the species theory he had spent over twenty years researching. Darwin never intended to write Origin, and had resisted suggestions in 1856…
Matches: 8 hits
- … across tropics ’. When Hooker’s essay was published in 1859, it was one of the first publications …
- … as by far the most capable judge in Europe. ’ By April 1859, he was able to tell Wallace that ‘ …
- … Abstract ’ would not be finished until around April 1859. But this was an optimistic estimate. …
- … of favoured races” ’, he told Lyell. On 31 March 1859, Darwin wrote to Murray describing his work …
- … the work of correcting proofs continued over the summer of 1859, Darwin had to take the water cure …
- … never shirked a difficulty’, he told Lyell on 20 September 1859, ‘ I am foolishly anxious for your …
- … of Science meeting held in Aberdeen from 14 to 21 September 1859. Darwin was confident that in time …
- … and negative, to his work flowed in. By early December 1859, he admitted that he needed to ‘ think …
Religion
Summary
Design|Personal Belief|Beauty|The Church Perhaps the most notorious realm of controversy over evolution in Darwin's day was religion. The same can be said of the evolution controversy today; however the nature of the disputes and the manner in…
Darwin in public and private
Summary
Extracts from Darwin's published works, in particular Descent of man, and selected letters, explore Darwin's views on the operation of sexual selection in humans, and both his publicly and privately expressed views on its practical implications…
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Darwin’s reading notebooks
Summary
In April 1838, Darwin began recording the titles of books he had read and the books he wished to read in Notebook C (Notebooks, pp. 319–28). In 1839, these lists were copied and continued in separate notebooks. The first of these reading notebooks (DAR 119…
Matches: 18 hits
- … Hooker has it.— Very important Hookers letter Jan. 1859 Yules Ava [Yule 1858] (Innes) Hairy …
- … The Dog in health & Disease by Stonehenge—Longman 1859 [Stonehenge 1859].— on Toy–Dogs …
- … [Combe 1828] Macclintocks Arctic Voyage [Macclintock 1859] [DAR *128: 153] …
- … [G. Bennett 1860] Read 114 Village Bells [Manning] 1859] } Fanny The Woman in White …
- … Republic [Motley 1855] [DAR 128: 24] 1859 Pagets Lectures on Pathology …
- … 1803] (nothing) [DAR 128: 25] 1859 Feb. 28 Olmstead S. States [Olmsted …
- … Mast [R. H. Dana [1840] (good) Bertrams [Trollope 1859] & Adam Bede [Eliot 1859] …
- … (many novels) Dec: Dana to Cuba & back [R. H. Dana 1859] —— Cruize in Japanese …
- … on Maladies of Silk-worm [Quatrefages de Bréau 1859] Owen Lecture on Classification [R. Owen …
- … March. 8 Houdins the conjurer Life [Robert-Houdin [1859] 19 MacClintocks Narrative …
- … Gesellschaft für die gesammten Naturwissenschaften . In 1859 he was the coauthor, with E. Desor, …
- … des progrès de la géologie de 1834 à 1845(–1859) . 8 vols. Paris. [Vol. 1 (1847) in Darwin …
- … at sea . New York. [Other eds.] 128: 25 ——. 1859. To Cuba and back. A vacation voyage …
- … Eliot, George, pseud . (Marian Evans Cross). 1859. Adam Bede . 3 vols. Edinburgh. [Other …
- … (1849): 381–420. [Separately printed in 2 vols. (Paris, 1859) in Darwin Library.] *128: 177 …
- … 119: 16a Hodson, William Stephen Raikes. 1859. Twelve years of a soldier’s life in …
- … 1–46. 119: 9b [Jenkin, Henrietta Camilla]. 1859. Cousin Stella; or, conflict . 3 …
- … Library.] 119: 9a Macclintock, Francis Leopold. 1859. The voyage of the “Fox” in …
![](https://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/sites/default/files/styles/sidebar_teaser/public/MURRAY-J-01-03463.jpg?itok=abNwvBRw)
John Murray
Summary
Darwin's most famous book On the origin of species by means of natural selection (Origin) was published on 22 November 1859. The publisher was John Murray, who specialised in non-fiction, particularly politics, travel and science, and had published…
Matches: 4 hits
- … natural selection (Origin) was published on 22 November 1859. The publisher was John Murray, who …
- … cousin and business partner, the earliest letters date from 1859, the year of the publication of …
- … you may not repent of having undertaken it’ (15 October [1859] Letter 2506 ). Murray decided on a …
- … & proud at the appearance of my child’ ([3 November 1859] Letter 2514 ). In the event, all …