''The Life and Letters of Charles Darwin'' is a book published in 1887 edited by Francis Darwin about his father

Charles Darwin Charles Robert Darwin ( ; 12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English naturalist, geologist, and biologist, widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology. His proposition that all species of life have descended ...

. It contains a selection of 87 letters from the

correspondence of Charles Darwin The British naturalist Charles Darwin corresponded with his extended family and with an extraordinarily wide range of people from all over the world. The letters, over 15,000 in all, provide many insights on issues ranging from the origins of ...

, an autobiographical chapter written by Charles Darwin for his family, and an essay by

Thomas Huxley Thomas Henry Huxley (4 May 1825 – 29 June 1895) was an English biologist and anthropologist specialising in comparative anatomy. He has become known as "Darwin's Bulldog" for his advocacy of Charles Darwin's theory of evolution. The stor ...

"On the reception of the 'Origin of Species'". It was published by Darwin's publisher John Murray. The autobiographical chapter had begun as recollections, written for his own amusement and for his descendants, initially as 121 pages written between May and August, 1876, and expanded during the remaining six years of his life. It was edited by Francis to remove references to his father's views on religion. These were later reinstated and published as '' The Autobiography of Charles Darwin'' in 1958 by Charles's granddaughter (and Francis's niece) Nora Barlow. The book was the first real biography of Charles Darwin, excepting obituaries, and thus the foundation of the Darwin Industry. Further volumes of letters followed - '' More Letters of Charles Darwin'' in 1903. Charles's wife

Emma Darwin Emma Darwin (; 2 May 1808 – 2 October 1896) was an English woman who was the wife and first cousin of Charles Darwin. They were married on 29 January 1839 and were the parents of ten children, seven of whom survived to adulthood. Early lif ...

's correspondence was published by Charles and Emma's daughter (Frank's sister)

Henrietta Litchfield Henrietta Emma Litchfield (née Darwin; 25 September 1843 – 17 December 1927) was a daughter of Charles Darwin and his wife Emma Wedgwood. Henrietta was born at Down House, Downe, Kent, in 1843. She was Darwin's third daughter and the eldest da ...

in 1905/1915 as '' Emma Darwin: A Century of Family Letters''. The book received extensive reviews in ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' (f ...

'' and ''

The Manchester Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'' The book was later described by ''

'' as "one of the best biographies ever written" and "In the selection and arrangement of the material he rancis Darwinwas chiefly guided by a wish to portray his father's personal character, and he succeeded in a remarkable degree in giving a true picture of the man and the student, the methods of Darwin's work and the gradual development of his opinions."The Times, Monday, Sep 21, 1925; pg. 14; Issue 44072; col D

Correspondents

Letters to and/or from the following 27 men and one woman are included: * Louis Agassiz * H. W. Bates * H. G. Bronn *

Alphonse Pyramus de Candolle Alphonse Louis Pierre Pyramus (or Pyrame) de Candolle (28 October 18064 April 1893) was a French-Swiss botanist, the son of the Swiss botanist Augustin Pyramus de Candolle. Biography De Candolle, son of Augustin Pyramus de Candolle, first devot ...

* W. B. Carpenter *

(wife and cousin) *

Erasmus Alvey Darwin Erasmus Alvey Darwin (29 December 1804 – 26 August 1881), nicknamed ''Eras'' or ''Ras'', was the older brother of Charles Darwin, born five years earlier. They were brought up at the family home, The Mount House, Shrewsbury, Shropshire, Eng ...

(brother) * Thomas Davidson *

William Darwin Fox The Reverend William Darwin Fox (23 April 1805 – 8 April 1880) was an English clergyman, naturalist, and a second cousin of Charles Darwin. Early life Fox was born in 1805 and initially raised at Thurleston Grange near Elvaston, Derbys ...

(cousin) *

Hugh Falconer Hugh Falconer MD FRS (29 February 1808 – 31 January 1865) was a Scottish geologist, botanist, palaeontologist, and paleoanthropologist. He studied the flora, fauna, and geology of India, Assam,Burma,and most of the Mediterranean islands a ...

* Asa Gray * J. S. Henslow *

Joseph Dalton Hooker Sir Joseph Dalton Hooker (30 June 1817 – 10 December 1911) was a British botanist and explorer in the 19th century. He was a founder of geographical botany and Charles Darwin's closest friend. For twenty years he served as director of ...

Sir Henry Holland, 1st Baronet Sir Henry Holland, 1st Baronet, FRS (27 October 1788 – 27 October 1873) was a British physician and travel writer. Early life Born in Knutsford, Cheshire, Holland was the son of the physician Peter Holland (1766–1853) and his wife Mary ...

(cousin) *

Thomas Henry Huxley Thomas Henry Huxley (4 May 1825 – 29 June 1895) was an English biologist and anthropologist specialising in comparative anatomy. He has become known as "Darwin's Bulldog" for his advocacy of Charles Darwin's theory of evolution. The stori ...

Leonard Jenyns Leonard Jenyns (25 May 1800 – 1 September 1893) was an English clergyman, author and naturalist. He was forced to take on the name Leonard Blomefield to receive an inheritance. He is chiefly remembered for his detailed phenology observations ...

* Charles Kingsley * Charles Lyell *

John Lubbock, 1st Baron Avebury John Lubbock, 1st Baron Avebury, 4th Baronet, (30 April 183428 May 1913), known as Sir John Lubbock, 4th Baronet from 1865 until 1900, was an English banker, Liberal politician, philanthropist, scientist and polymath. Lubbock worked in his fa ...

* Maxwell Masters * John Murray II *

Joseph Prestwich Sir Joseph Prestwich, FRS (12 March 1812 – 23 June 1896) was a British geologist and businessman, known as an expert on the Tertiary Period and for having confirmed the findings of Boucher de Perthes of ancient flint tools in the Somme vall ...

* Rev. J. M. Rodwell * Adam Sedgwick *

Herbert Spencer Herbert Spencer (27 April 1820 – 8 December 1903) was an English philosopher, psychologist, biologist, anthropologist, and sociologist famous for his hypothesis of social Darwinism. Spencer originated the expression " survival of the fi ...

* Alfred Russel Wallace * Frederick Watkins * H. C. Watson

References

External links

* http://darwin-online.org.uk/EditorialIntroductions/Freeman_LifeandLettersandAutobiography.html {{DEFAULTSORT:Life and Letters of Charles Darwin, The 1887 non-fiction books John Murray (publishing house) books Books about Charles Darwin Correspondences