Download Charles Darwin - Carlow National School

By Peter Emma and Radinka
 Charles Darwin was born in February 1809 in Mount
Shrewsbury UK
 He was educated in Shrewsbury School then sent to
Edinburg University to study medicine. Two years later
in 1827, he was beginning a degree in divinity (study of
religion) at Cambridge.
 Charles Darwin had five siblings Erasmus Darwin
Emily Darwin, Susan Darwin, Caroline Darwin
Marianne Darwin
 Charles was the youngest in the family
 His parents were Susannah Wedgwood and Robert
Darwin, his father was a wealthy physician.
 Charles Darwin was most famous for coming up with
the theory of evolution
 The theory of evolution states that all animals came
from one sole group of creatures.
 Evolution works by natural selection.
 Darwin came up with the theory of Natural selection
 Natural selection means that all animals evolved to suit
their surroundings.
 For example early peacocks did not have colourful tail
feathers but a genetic mutation allowed some peacocks to
develop colourful feathers , female peacocks were more
likely to be attracted to males with colourful feathers and
so all the less attractive peacocks died out leaving only the
ones with colourful tail feathers
 Mammal as we know them today have been around
since the Jurassic period. Roughly 145 million years
these primitive mammals were shrew like creatures.
 Their ancestors were roaming the earth over 250
million years ago. They were mammal like reptiles.
 Darwin believed that man evolved from apes.
 Through millions of years of evolution man learned to
use tools and walk upright.
 The first apes to resemble man were Australopithecus
theses apes were short and walked upright the most
famous skeleton is “Lucy”
In 1831 Charles Darwin set off for a massive expedition.
He set off from Plymouth UK.
His mission was to study exotic animals in their natural
habitat.
He was famous for going to the Galapagos islands and
documenting hundreds of new animal and plant
species .
 The HMS beagle expedition was meant to last 2 years
but lasted 5.
Darwin’s idea that men evolve from apes did not go
down well with the church of England.
His theory also question his own Christianity.
But most of the scientific community back him.
The church tried to mock him.
 Charles Darwin married his first cousin Emma
Wedgwood.
 They had ten children but sadly three died when they
were young.
 Charles Darwin died April 19th 1882 of a heart attack at
the age of 73.
 Emma Wedgwood then died October 7th 1896.

By Peter , Emma and Radinka