Darwin: La evolución de una teoría - BBVA Openmind
Darwin aplicó esa idea a la naturaleza: las criaturas se multiplican y, en una competición por sobrevivir y reproducirse, salen adelante los que ...
un poema que anticipaba la evolución biológica
Lo que Darwin hizo fue construir toda una teoría con esa idea, que flotaba en el ambiente científico desde un siglo antes, cuando Linneo empezó a clasificar las especies por sus semejanzas y le quedó un esquema con muchas ramas que salían de unos pocos troncos. No podía ser casualidad. Al ver esa especie de árbol genealógico parecía que las especies estaban emparentadas y habían evolucionado a partir de antepasados comunes. Aquello inspiró a un tal Erasmus Darwin para escribir <anchor>un poema que anticipaba la evolución biológica</anchor> y, mucho más tarde, su joven nieto Charles lo vio clarísimo tras dar la vuelta al mundo a bordo del Beagle.
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## Contents

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- (Top)

- [1Early life and education](#Early_life_and_education)
- [2Personal life](#Personal_life)Toggle Personal life subsection  - [2.1Freemasonry](#Freemasonry)
- [3Death](#Death)
- [4Writings](#Writings)Toggle Writings subsection  - [4.1Botanical works and the Lichfield Botanical Society](#Botanical_works_and_the_Lichfield_Botanical_Society)
  - [4.2Zoonomia](#Zoonomia)
  - [4.3Poem on evolution](#Poem_on_evolution)
  - [4.4Education of women](#Education_of_women)
- [5Lunar Society](#Lunar_Society)
- [6Other activities](#Other_activities)Toggle Other activities subsection  - [6.1Cosmological speculation](#Cosmological_speculation)
  - [6.2Inventions](#Inventions)
  - [6.3Rocket engine](#Rocket_engine)
- [7Major publications](#Major_publications)
- [8Family tree](#Family_tree)
- [9Commemoration](#Commemoration)
- [10In fiction](#In_fiction)
- [11See also](#See_also)
- [12Notes](#Notes)
- [13References](#References)
- [14Sources](#Sources)Toggle Sources subsection  - [14.1Biographies and criticism](#Biographies_and_criticism)
- [15Further reading](#Further_reading)
- [16External links](#External_links)

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# Erasmus Darwin

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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

English physician (1731–1802)

This article is about Erasmus Darwin, who lived 1731–1802. For his descendants with the same name, see [Erasmus Darwin (disambiguation)](/wiki/Erasmus_Darwin_(disambiguation) "Erasmus Darwin (disambiguation)").

Erasmus Darwin

[FRS](/wiki/Fellow_of_the_Royal_Society "Fellow of the Royal Society")

[![](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/be/Portrait_of_Erasmus_Darwin_by_Joseph_Wright_of_Derby_%281792%29.jpg/220px-Portrait_of_Erasmus_Darwin_by_Joseph_Wright_of_Derby_%281792%29.jpg)](/wiki/File:Portrait_of_Erasmus_Darwin_by_Joseph_Wright_of_Derby_(1792).jpg)

Erasmus Darwin c. 1792–1793, oil painting by [Joseph Wright of Derby](/wiki/Joseph_Wright_of_Derby "Joseph Wright of Derby"), [Derby Museum and Art Gallery](/wiki/Derby_Museum_and_Art_Gallery "Derby Museum and Art Gallery")

Born

Erasmus Robert Darwin

(1731-12-12)12 December 1731

Elston Hall, [Elston](/wiki/Elston "Elston"), [Nottinghamshire](/wiki/Nottinghamshire "Nottinghamshire")

near [Newark-on-Trent](/wiki/Newark-on-Trent "Newark-on-Trent"), England

Died18 April 1802(1802-04-18) (aged 70)

[Breadsall](/wiki/Breadsall "Breadsall"), [Derbyshire](/wiki/Derbyshire "Derbyshire"), England

Resting placeAll Saints Church, BreadsallAlma mater

- [St John's College, Cambridge](/wiki/St_John%27s_College,_Cambridge "St John's College, Cambridge")
- [University of Edinburgh Medical School](/wiki/University_of_Edinburgh_Medical_School "University of Edinburgh Medical School")

Children14Parents

- [Robert Darwin of Elston](/wiki/Robert_Darwin_of_Elston "Robert Darwin of Elston")
- Elizabeth Hill

RelativesSee [Darwin–Wedgwood family](/wiki/Darwin%E2%80%93Wedgwood_family "Darwin–Wedgwood family")

**Erasmus Robert Darwin** [FRS](/wiki/Fellow_of_the_Royal_Society "Fellow of the Royal Society")[\[1\]](#cite_note-Hassler,_1961-1) (12 December 1731 – 18 April 1802) was an English physician. One of the key thinkers of the [Midlands Enlightenment](/wiki/Midlands_Enlightenment "Midlands Enlightenment"), he was also a [natural philosopher](/wiki/Natural_philosophy "Natural philosophy"), [physiologist](/wiki/Physiology "Physiology"), [slave-trade abolitionist](/wiki/Society_for_Effecting_the_Abolition_of_the_Slave_Trade "Society for Effecting the Abolition of the Slave Trade"), inventor, [freemason](/wiki/Freemasonry "Freemasonry"), and poet.

His poems included much [natural history](/wiki/Natural_history "Natural history"), including a statement of [evolution](/wiki/Evolution "Evolution") and the relatedness of all [forms of life](/wiki/Form_of_life "Form of life").

He was a member of the [Darwin–Wedgwood family](/wiki/Darwin%E2%80%93Wedgwood_family "Darwin–Wedgwood family"), which includes his grandsons [Charles Darwin](/wiki/Charles_Darwin "Charles Darwin") and [Francis Galton](/wiki/Francis_Galton "Francis Galton"). Darwin was a founding member of the [Lunar Society of Birmingham](/wiki/Lunar_Society_of_Birmingham "Lunar Society of Birmingham"), a discussion group of pioneering industrialists and natural philosophers.

He turned down an invitation from [George III](/wiki/George_III_of_the_United_Kingdom "George III of the United Kingdom") to become [Physician to the King](/wiki/Physician_to_the_King "Physician to the King").

## Early life and education

\[ [edit](/w/index.php?title=Erasmus_Darwin&action=edit&section=1 "Edit section: Early life and education")\]

[![](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/73/Darwin_cutout.png/170px-Darwin_cutout.png)](/wiki/File:Darwin_cutout.png) Stone-cast bust of Erasmus Darwin, by [W. J. Coffee](/wiki/W._J._Coffee "W. J. Coffee"), c. 1795[![](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/bc/Erasmus_Darwin_House.jpg/220px-Erasmus_Darwin_House.jpg)](/wiki/File:Erasmus_Darwin_House.jpg) [Darwin's House](/wiki/Erasmus_Darwin_House "Erasmus Darwin House") in [Lichfield](/wiki/Lichfield "Lichfield"), now a museum dedicated to his life and work

Darwin was born in 1731 at [Elston Hall](/wiki/Elston "Elston"), Nottinghamshire, near [Newark-on-Trent](/wiki/Newark-on-Trent "Newark-on-Trent"), England, the youngest of seven children of [Robert Darwin of Elston](/wiki/Robert_Darwin_of_Elston "Robert Darwin of Elston") (1682–1754), a lawyer and physician, and his wife Elizabeth Hill (1702–97). The name [Erasmus](/wiki/Erasmus_(disambiguation) "Erasmus (disambiguation)") had been used by a number of his family and derives from his ancestor [Erasmus Earle](/wiki/Erasmus_Earle "Erasmus Earle"), Common Sergent of England under [Oliver Cromwell](/wiki/Oliver_Cromwell "Oliver Cromwell").[\[2\]](#cite_note-2) His siblings were:

- [Robert Waring Darwin of Elston](/wiki/Robert_Waring_Darwin_of_Elston "Robert Waring Darwin of Elston") (17 October 1724 – 4 November 1816)
- Elizabeth Darwin (15 September 1725 – 8 April 1800)
- William Alvey Darwin (3 October 1726 – 7 October 1783)
- Anne Darwin (12 November 1727 – 3 August 1813)
- Susannah Darwin (10 April 1729 – 29 September 1789)
- Rev. John Darwin, [rector](/wiki/Rector_(ecclesiastical) "Rector (ecclesiastical)") of Elston (28 September 1730 – 24 May 1805)

He was educated at Chesterfield Grammar School, then later at [St John's College](/wiki/St_John%27s_College,_Cambridge "St John's College, Cambridge"), [Cambridge](/wiki/University_of_Cambridge "University of Cambridge").[\[3\]](#cite_note-3) He obtained his medical education at the [University of Edinburgh Medical School](/wiki/University_of_Edinburgh_Medical_School "University of Edinburgh Medical School").

Darwin settled in 1756 as a physician at Nottingham, but met with little success and so moved the following year to [Lichfield](/wiki/Lichfield "Lichfield") to try to establish a practice there. A few weeks after his arrival, using a novel course of treatment, he restored the health of a young fisherman whose death seemed inevitable. This ensured his success in the new locale. Darwin was a highly successful physician for more than fifty years in the [Midlands](/wiki/English_Midlands "English Midlands").[\[4\]](#cite_note-Duffin_Moody_Gardner-Thorpe_2013_p._336-4) In 1761, he was elected to the [Royal Society](/wiki/Royal_Society "Royal Society").[\[5\]](#cite_note-5) [George III](/wiki/George_III_of_the_United_Kingdom "George III of the United Kingdom") invited him to be [Royal Physician](/wiki/Physician_to_the_King "Physician to the King"), but Darwin declined.[\[4\]](#cite_note-Duffin_Moody_Gardner-Thorpe_2013_p._336-4)

## Personal life

\[ [edit](/w/index.php?title=Erasmus_Darwin&action=edit&section=2 "Edit section: Personal life")\]

[![](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0a/Erasmus_Darwin%2C_after_Joseph_Wright.jpg/220px-Erasmus_Darwin%2C_after_Joseph_Wright.jpg)](/wiki/File:Erasmus_Darwin,_after_Joseph_Wright.jpg) Portrait of Erasmus Darwin, 1770, by [Joseph Wright of Derby](/wiki/Joseph_Wright_of_Derby "Joseph Wright of Derby")

Darwin married twice and had 14 children, including two illegitimate daughters by an employee, and, possibly, at least one further illegitimate daughter.

[![](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/32/Bras%C3%A3o_de_Erasmus_Darwin.jpg/220px-Bras%C3%A3o_de_Erasmus_Darwin.jpg)](/wiki/File:Bras%C3%A3o_de_Erasmus_Darwin.jpg) Erasmus Darwin's coat of arms. Escutcheon: Argent, on a bend Gules cottised Vert, three escallop shells, Or. Crest: A demi-griffin segreant, Vert, holding in his claws an escallop, Or. Motto: _E conchis omnia_ (All things out of conches/molluscs).

In 1757 he married Mary (Polly) Howard (1740–1770), the daughter of Charles Howard, a Lichfield solicitor.[\[6\]](#cite_note-odnb-6) They had four sons and one daughter, two of whom (a son and a daughter) died in infancy:

- [Charles Darwin](/wiki/Charles_Darwin_(medical_student) "Charles Darwin (medical student)") (1758–1778), uncle of the naturalist
- Erasmus Darwin Jr (1759–1799)
- Elizabeth Darwin (1763, survived 4 months)
- [Robert Waring Darwin](/wiki/Robert_Darwin "Robert Darwin") (1766–1848), father of the naturalist Charles Darwin
- William Alvey Darwin (1767, survived 19 days)

The first Mrs. Darwin died in 1770. A [governess](/wiki/Governess "Governess"), Mary Parker, was hired to look after Robert. By late 1771, employer and employee had become intimately involved and together they had two illegitimate daughters:

- Susanna Parker (1772–1856)
- Mary Parker Jr (1774–1859)

Susanna and Mary Jr later established a [boarding school](/wiki/Boarding_school "Boarding school") for girls. In 1782, Mary Sr (the governess) married Joseph Day (1745–1811), a Birmingham merchant, and moved away.

There was also a rumour that Darwin fathered another child, this time with a married woman. A Lucy Swift gave birth in 1771 to a baby, also named Lucy, who was christened a daughter of her mother and William Swift. It has been suggested that the father was really Darwin.[\[7\]](#cite_note-7) However, it is more likely that this child was the legitimate daughter of Lamech Swift, at that time owner of the [Derby Silk Mill](/wiki/Derby_Silk_Mill "Derby Silk Mill") and his wife Dorothy, who became a friend of the two Parker girls.[\[8\]](#cite_note-Epsilon-8) Lucy Swift, later known as [Lucy Hardcastle](/wiki/Lucy_Hardcastle "Lucy Hardcastle") after her marriage, went on to be known as a botanist and teacher.[\[9\]](#cite_note-Powers&Powers-9)

In 1775, Darwin met Elizabeth Pole, daughter of [Charles Colyear, 2nd Earl of Portmore](/wiki/Charles_Colyear,_2nd_Earl_of_Portmore "Charles Colyear, 2nd Earl of Portmore"), and wife of Colonel Edward Pole (1718–1780); but as she was married, Darwin could only make his feelings known for her through poetry. When Edward Pole died, Darwin married Elizabeth and moved to her home, [Radbourne Hall](/wiki/Radbourne_Hall "Radbourne Hall"), four miles (6.4 km) west of Derby. The hall and village are these days known as [Radbourne](/wiki/Radbourne,_Derbyshire "Radbourne, Derbyshire"). In 1782, they moved to Full Street, Derby. They had four sons, one of whom died in infancy, and three daughters:

- Edward Darwin (1782–1829)
- Frances Ann Violetta Darwin (1783–1874), married [Samuel Tertius Galton](/wiki/Samuel_Tertius_Galton "Samuel Tertius Galton"), was the mother of [Francis Galton](/wiki/Francis_Galton "Francis Galton")
- Emma Georgina Elizabeth Darwin (1784–1818)
- Sir [Francis Sacheverel Darwin](/wiki/Francis_Sacheverel_Darwin "Francis Sacheverel Darwin") (1786–1859)
- Revd. John Darwin (1787–1818), [rector](/wiki/Rector_(ecclesiastical) "Rector (ecclesiastical)") of [All Saints' Church, Elston](/wiki/All_Saints%27_Church,_Elston "All Saints' Church, Elston")
- Henry Darwin (1789–1790), died in infancy
- Harriet Darwin (1790–1825), married Admiral [Thomas James Maling](/wiki/Thomas_James_Maling "Thomas James Maling")

Darwin's personal appearance is described in unflattering detail in his Biographical Memoirs, printed by the _Monthly Magazine_ in 1802. Darwin, the description reads, "was of middle stature, in person gross and corpulent; his features were coarse, and his countenance heavy; if not wholly void of animation, it certainly was by no means expressive. The print of him, from a painting of Mr. Wright, is a good likeness. In his gait and dress he was rather clumsy and slovenly, and frequently walked with his tongue hanging out of his mouth."

### Freemasonry

\[ [edit](/w/index.php?title=Erasmus_Darwin&action=edit&section=3 "Edit section: Freemasonry")\]

Darwin had been a [Freemason](/wiki/Freemason "Freemason") throughout his life, in the Time Immemorial Lodge of Cannongate Kilwinning, No. 2, of Scotland. Later on, Sir [Francis Darwin](/wiki/Francis_Sacheverel_Darwin "Francis Sacheverel Darwin"), one of his sons, was made a Mason in Tyrian Lodge, No. 253, at Derby, in 1807 or 1808. His son [Reginald](/w/index.php?title=Reginald_Darwin&action=edit&redlink=1 "Reginald Darwin (page does not exist)") was made a Mason in Tyrian Lodge in 1804. [Charles Darwin](/wiki/Charles_Darwin "Charles Darwin")'s name does not appear on the rolls of the Lodge but it is very possible that he, like Francis, was a Mason.[\[10\]](#cite_note-10)

## Death

\[ [edit](/w/index.php?title=Erasmus_Darwin&action=edit&section=4 "Edit section: Death")\]

Darwin died suddenly on 18 April 1802, weeks after having moved to [Breadsall Priory](/wiki/Breadsall_Priory "Breadsall Priory"), just north of [Derby](/wiki/Derby "Derby"). The Monthly Magazine of 1802, in its Biographical Memoirs of the Late Dr. Darwin, reports that "during the last few years, Dr. Darwin was much subject to inflammation in his breast and lungs; he had a very serious attack of this disease in the course of the last Spring, from which, after repeated bleedings, by himself and a surgeon, he with great difficulty recovered."

Darwin's death, the Biographical Memoirs continues, "is variously accounted for: it is supposed to have been caused by the cold fit of an inflammatory fever. Dr. Fox, of Derby, considers the disease which occasioned it to have been [angina pectoris](/wiki/Angina_pectoris "Angina pectoris"); but Dr. Garlicke, of the same place, thinks this opinion not sufficiently well founded. Whatever was the disease, it is not improbable, surely, that the fatal event was hastened by the violent fit of passion with which he was seized in the morning."

His body is buried in [All Saints' Church, Breadsall](/wiki/All_Saints%27_Church,_Breadsall "All Saints' Church, Breadsall").

Erasmus Darwin is commemorated on one of the [Moonstones](/wiki/Lunar_Society_Moonstones "Lunar Society Moonstones"), a series of monuments in [Birmingham](/wiki/Birmingham "Birmingham").

## Writings

\[ [edit](/w/index.php?title=Erasmus_Darwin&action=edit&section=5 "Edit section: Writings")\]

### Botanical works and the Lichfield Botanical Society

\[ [edit](/w/index.php?title=Erasmus_Darwin&action=edit&section=6 "Edit section: Botanical works and the Lichfield Botanical Society")\]

[![](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7a/Portrait_detail%2C_Erasmus_Darwin._Stipple_engraving_by_Holl%2C_1803%2C_after_J._Ra_Wellcome_V0006492_%28cropped%29.jpg/220px-Portrait_detail%2C_Erasmus_Darwin._Stipple_engraving_by_Holl%2C_1803%2C_after_J._Ra_Wellcome_V0006492_%28cropped%29.jpg)](/wiki/File:Portrait_detail,_Erasmus_Darwin._Stipple_engraving_by_Holl,_1803,_after_J._Ra_Wellcome_V0006492_(cropped).jpg) Erasmus Darwin in stipple engraving by Holl, 1803, after J. Rawlinson

Darwin formed 'A Botanical Society, at Lichfield' almost always incorrectly named as the Lichfield Botanical Society (despite the name, composed of only three men, Erasmus Darwin, [Sir Brooke Boothby](/wiki/Sir_Brooke_Boothby "Sir Brooke Boothby") and Mr John Jackson, [proctor](/wiki/Proctor "Proctor") of [Lichfield Cathedral](/wiki/Lichfield_Cathedral "Lichfield Cathedral")[\[notes 1\]](#cite_note-11))[\[11\]](#cite_note-FOOTNOTEUglow2002a-12)[\[12\]](#cite_note-FOOTNOTEUglow2002b-13) to translate the works of the Swedish botanist [Carl Linnaeus](/wiki/Carl_Linnaeus "Carl Linnaeus") from Latin into English. This took seven years. The result was two publications: _A System of Vegetables_ between 1783 and 1785, and _The Families of Plants_ in 1787. In these volumes, Darwin coined many of the English names of plants that we use today.[\[13\]](#cite_note-FOOTNOTEGeorge2014-14)

Darwin then wrote _[The Loves of the Plants](/wiki/The_Loves_of_the_Plants "The Loves of the Plants"),_ a long poem, which was a popular rendering of Linnaeus' works. Darwin also wrote _[Economy of Vegetation](/wiki/Economy_of_Vegetation "Economy of Vegetation")_, and together the two were published as _[The Botanic Garden](/wiki/The_Botanic_Garden "The Botanic Garden")_. Among other writers he influenced were [Anna Seward](/wiki/Anna_Seward "Anna Seward") and [Maria Jacson](/wiki/Maria_Jacson "Maria Jacson").

### Zoonomia

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Darwin's most important scientific work, _[Zoonomia](/wiki/Zoonomia "Zoonomia")_ (1794–1796), contains a system of [pathology](/wiki/Pathology "Pathology") and a chapter on ' [Generation](/wiki/Generation "Generation")'. In the latter, he anticipated some of the views of [Jean-Baptiste Lamarck](/wiki/Jean-Baptiste_Lamarck "Jean-Baptiste Lamarck"), which foreshadowed the modern theory of [evolution](/wiki/Evolution "Evolution"). Erasmus Darwin's works were read and commented on by his grandson [Charles Darwin](/wiki/Charles_Darwin "Charles Darwin") the naturalist. Erasmus Darwin based his theories on [David Hartley](/wiki/David_Hartley_(philosopher) "David Hartley (philosopher)")'s psychological theory of [associationism](/wiki/Associationism "Associationism").[\[14\]](#cite_note-15) The essence of his views is contained in the following passage, which he follows up with the conclusion that one and the same kind of living filament is and has been the cause of all organic life:

> Would it be too bold to imagine, that in the great length of time, since the earth began to exist, perhaps millions of ages before the commencement of the history of mankind, would it be too bold to imagine, that all warm-blooded animals have arisen from one living filament, which THE GREAT FIRST CAUSE endued with animality, with the power of acquiring new parts, attended with new propensities, directed by irritations, sensations, volitions, and associations; and thus possessing the faculty of continuing to improve by its own inherent activity, and of delivering down those improvements by generation to its posterity, world without end![\[15\]](#cite_note-Zoonomia-16)

Erasmus Darwin also anticipated survival of the fittest in _Zoönomia_ mainly when writing about the "three great objects of desire" for every organism: "lust, hunger, and security."[\[15\]](#cite_note-Zoonomia-16) A similar "survival of the fittest" view in _Zoönomia_ is Erasmus' view on how a species "should" propagate itself. Erasmus' idea that "the strongest and most active animal should propagate the species, which should thence become improved".[\[15\]](#cite_note-Zoonomia-16) Today, this is called the theory of [survival of the fittest](/wiki/Survival_of_the_fittest "Survival of the fittest"). His grandson Charles Darwin posited the different and fuller theory of natural selection. Charles' theory was that natural selection is the inheritance of changed genetic characteristics that are better adaptations to the environment; these are not necessarily based in "strength" and "activity", which themselves ironically can lead to the overpopulation that results in natural selection yielding nonsurvivors of genetic traits.

Erasmus Darwin was familiar with the earlier proto-evolutionary thinking of [James Burnett, Lord Monboddo](/wiki/James_Burnett,_Lord_Monboddo "James Burnett, Lord Monboddo"), and cited him in his 1803 work _Temple of Nature._

### Poem on evolution

\[ [edit](/w/index.php?title=Erasmus_Darwin&action=edit&section=8 "Edit section: Poem on evolution")\]

Erasmus Darwin offered the first glimpse of his theory of evolution, obliquely, in a question at the end of a long footnote to his popular poem _The Loves of the Plants_ (1789), which was republished throughout the 1790s in several editions as _[The Botanic Garden](/wiki/The_Botanic_Garden "The Botanic Garden")_. His poetic concept was to anthropomorphise the [stamen](/wiki/Stamen "Stamen") (male) and [pistil](/wiki/Pistil "Pistil") (female) sexual organs, as bride and groom. In this stanza on the flower Curcuma (also Flax and Turmeric) the "youths" are infertile, and he devotes the footnote to other examples of neutered organs in flowers, insect castes, and finally associates this more broadly with many popular and well-known cases of vestigial organs (male nipples, the third and fourth wings of flies, etc.)

> Woo'd with long care, CURCUMA cold and shy
>
> Meets her fond husband with averted eye:
>
> _Four_ beardless youths the obdurate beauty move
>
> With soft attentions of Platonic love.

Darwin's final long poem, _The Temple of Nature_, was published posthumously in 1803. The poem was originally titled _The Origin of Society_. It is considered his best poetic work. It centres on his own conception of [evolution](/wiki/Evolution "Evolution"). The poem traces the progression of life from micro-organisms to civilised society. The poem contains a passage that describes the [struggle for existence](/wiki/Struggle_for_existence "Struggle for existence").[\[16\]](#cite_note-17)

His poetry was admired by [Wordsworth](/wiki/William_Wordsworth "William Wordsworth"), while [Coleridge](/wiki/Samuel_Taylor_Coleridge "Samuel Taylor Coleridge") was intensely critical, writing, "I absolutely nauseate Darwin's poem".[\[12\]](#cite_note-FOOTNOTEUglow2002b-13)
It often made reference to his interests in science; for example botany and [steam engines](/wiki/Steam_engine "Steam engine").

### Education of women

\[ [edit](/w/index.php?title=Erasmus_Darwin&action=edit&section=9 "Edit section: Education of women")\]

The last two leaves of Darwin's _A plan for the conduct of female education in boarding schools_ (1797) contain a book list, an apology for the work, and an advert for "Miss Parkers School".[\[17\]](#cite_note-18)

The school advertised on the last page is the one he set up in [Ashbourne, Derbyshire](/wiki/Ashbourne,_Derbyshire "Ashbourne, Derbyshire"), for his two illegitimate children, Susanna and Mary.

Darwin regretted that a good education had not been generally available to women in Britain in his time, and drew on the ideas of [Locke](/wiki/John_Locke "John Locke"), [Rousseau](/wiki/Rousseau "Rousseau"), and [Genlis](/wiki/St%C3%A9phanie_F%C3%A9licit%C3%A9_du_Crest_de_Saint-Aubin "Stéphanie Félicité du Crest de Saint-Aubin") in organising his thoughts. Addressing the education of middle-class girls, Darwin argued that amorous romance novels were inappropriate and that they should seek simplicity in dress. He contends that young women should be educated in schools, rather than privately at home, and learn appropriate subjects. These subjects include physiognomy, physical exercise, botany, chemistry, mineralogy, and [experimental philosophy](/wiki/Natural_philosophy "Natural philosophy"). They should familiarise themselves with arts and manufactures through visits to sites like [Coalbrookdale](/wiki/Coalbrookdale "Coalbrookdale"), and Wedgwood's potteries; they should learn how to handle money, and study modern languages. Darwin's educational philosophy took the view that men and women should have different capabilities, skills, interests, and spheres of action, where the woman's education was designed to support and serve male accomplishment and financial reward, and to relieve him of daily responsibility for children and the chores of life.[\[18\]](#cite_note-19) In the context of the times, this program may be read as a modernising influence in the sense that the woman was at least to learn about the "man's world", although not be allowed to participate in it. The text was written seven years after [A Vindication of the Rights of Woman](/wiki/A_Vindication_of_the_Rights_of_Woman "A Vindication of the Rights of Woman") by [Mary Wollstonecraft](/wiki/Mary_Wollstonecraft "Mary Wollstonecraft"), which has the central argument that women should be educated in a rational manner to give them the opportunity to contribute to society.

Some women of Darwin's era were receiving more substantial education and participating in the broader world. An example is [Susanna Wright](/wiki/Susanna_Wright "Susanna Wright"), who was raised in Lancashire and became an American colonist associated with the Midlands Enlightenment. It is not known whether Darwin and Wright knew each other, although they definitely knew many people in common. Other women who received substantial education and who participated in the broader world (albeit sometimes anonymously) whom Darwin definitely knew were [Maria Jacson](/wiki/Maria_Jacson "Maria Jacson") and [Anna Seward](/wiki/Anna_Seward "Anna Seward").

## Lunar Society

\[ [edit](/w/index.php?title=Erasmus_Darwin&action=edit&section=10 "Edit section: Lunar Society")\]

These dates indicate the year in which Darwin became friends with these people, who, in turn, became members of the [Lunar Society](/wiki/Lunar_Society_of_Birmingham "Lunar Society of Birmingham"). The Lunar Society existed from 1765 to 1813.

Before 1765:

- [Matthew Boulton](/wiki/Matthew_Boulton "Matthew Boulton"), originally a buckle maker in Birmingham
- [John Whitehurst](/wiki/John_Whitehurst "John Whitehurst") of Derby, maker of clocks and scientific instruments, pioneer of geology

After 1765:

- [Josiah Wedgwood](/wiki/Josiah_Wedgwood "Josiah Wedgwood"), potter 1765
- Dr. [William Small](/wiki/William_Small "William Small"), 1765, man of science, formerly Professor of Natural Philosophy at the [College of William and Mary](/wiki/College_of_William_and_Mary "College of William and Mary"), where [Thomas Jefferson](/wiki/Thomas_Jefferson "Thomas Jefferson") was an appreciative pupil
- [Richard Lovell Edgeworth](/wiki/Richard_Lovell_Edgeworth "Richard Lovell Edgeworth"), 1766, inventor
- [James Watt](/wiki/James_Watt "James Watt"), 1767, improver of steam engine
- [James Keir](/wiki/James_Keir "James Keir"), 1767, pioneer of the chemical industry
- [Thomas Day](/wiki/Thomas_Day_(writer) "Thomas Day (writer)"), 1768, eccentric and author
- Dr. [William Withering](/wiki/William_Withering "William Withering"), 1775, the death of Dr. Small left an opening for a physician in the group.
- [Joseph Priestley](/wiki/Joseph_Priestley "Joseph Priestley"), 1780, experimental chemist and discoverer of many substances.
- [Samuel Galton](/wiki/Samuel_Galton,_Jr. "Samuel Galton, Jr."), 1782, a Quaker gunmaker with a taste for science, took Darwin's place after Darwin moved to Derby.

Darwin also established a lifelong friendship with [Benjamin Franklin](/wiki/Benjamin_Franklin "Benjamin Franklin"), who shared Darwin's support for the American and French revolutions. The Lunar Society was instrumental as an intellectual driving force behind England's [Industrial Revolution](/wiki/Industrial_Revolution "Industrial Revolution").

The members of the Lunar Society, and especially Darwin, [opposed the slave trade](/wiki/Abolitionism "Abolitionism").[\[19\]](#cite_note-SEAST-20) He attacked it in _The Botanic Garden_ (1789–1791), and in _The Loves of Plants_ (1789), _The Economy of Vegetation_ (1791), and the _Phytologia_ (1800).[\[20\]](#cite_note-21)

## Other activities

\[ [edit](/w/index.php?title=Erasmus_Darwin&action=edit&section=11 "Edit section: Other activities")\]

In 1761, Darwin was elected a fellow of the [Royal Society](/wiki/Royal_Society "Royal Society").[\[1\]](#cite_note-Hassler,_1961-1)

In addition to the Lunar Society, Erasmus Darwin belonged to the influential [Derby Philosophical Society](/wiki/Derby_Philosophical_Society "Derby Philosophical Society"), as did his brother-in-law Samuel Fox (see family tree below). He experimented with the use of air and gases to alleviate infections and cancers in patients. A Pneumatic Institution was established at [Clifton](/wiki/Clifton,_Bristol "Clifton, Bristol") in 1799 for clinically testing these ideas. He conducted research into the formation of clouds, on which he published in 1788. He also inspired Robert Weldon's [Somerset Coal Canal](/wiki/Somerset_Coal_Canal "Somerset Coal Canal") [caisson lock](/wiki/Caisson_lock "Caisson lock").

In 1792, Darwin was elected as a member to the [American Philosophical Society](/wiki/American_Philosophical_Society "American Philosophical Society") in [Philadelphia](/wiki/Philadelphia "Philadelphia").[\[21\]](#cite_note-22)

[Percy Bysshe Shelley](/wiki/Percy_Bysshe_Shelley "Percy Bysshe Shelley") specifically mentions Darwin in the first sentence of the 1818 Preface to _[Frankenstein](/wiki/Frankenstein "Frankenstein")_ to support his contention that the creation of life is possible. His wife [Mary Shelley](/wiki/Mary_Shelley "Mary Shelley") in her introduction to the 1831 edition of _[Frankenstein](/wiki/Frankenstein "Frankenstein")_ wrote that she overheard her husband talk about Darwin's experiments with [Lord Byron](/wiki/Lord_Byron "Lord Byron") about unspecified "experiments of Dr. Darwin" that led to the idea for the novel.[\[22\]](#cite_note-23)

### Cosmological speculation

\[ [edit](/w/index.php?title=Erasmus_Darwin&action=edit&section=12 "Edit section: Cosmological speculation")\]

Contemporary literature dates the cosmological theories of the [Big Bang](/wiki/Big_Bang "Big Bang") and [Big Crunch](/wiki/Big_Crunch "Big Crunch") to the 19th and 20th centuries. However, Erasmus Darwin had speculated on these sorts of events in _The Botanic Garden, A Poem in Two Parts: Part 1, The Economy of Vegetation, 1791_:[\[23\]](#cite_note-24)

> Roll on, ye Stars! exult in youthful prime,
>
> Mark with bright curves the printless steps of Time;
>
> Near and more near your beamy cars approach,
>
> And lessening orbs on lessening orbs encroach; —
>
> Flowers of the sky! ye too to age must yield,
>
> Frail as your silken sisters of the field.
>
> Star after star from Heaven's high arch shall rush,
>
> Suns sink on suns, and systems, systems crush,
>
> Headlong, extinct, to one dark centre fall,
>
> And death and night and chaos mingle all:
>
> — Till o'er the wreck, emerging from the storm,
>
> Immortal Nature lifts her changeful form,
>
> Mounts from her funeral pyre on wings of flame,
>
> And soars and shines, another and the same!

### Inventions

\[ [edit](/w/index.php?title=Erasmus_Darwin&action=edit&section=13 "Edit section: Inventions")\]

Darwin was the inventor of several devices, though he did not patent any: he believed this would damage his reputation as a doctor. He encouraged his friends to patent their own modifications of his designs.[\[24\]](#cite_note-FOOTNOTESmith2005-25)

- A horizontal [windmill](/wiki/Windmill "Windmill"), which he designed for [Josiah Wedgwood](/wiki/Josiah_Wedgwood "Josiah Wedgwood") (who would be Charles Darwin's other grandfather, see family tree below).
- A [carriage](/wiki/Carriage "Carriage") that would not tip over (1766).
- A steering mechanism for his [carriage](/wiki/Carriage "Carriage"), known today as the [Ackermann linkage](/wiki/Ackermann_steering_geometry "Ackermann steering geometry"), that would be adopted by cars 130 years later (1759).[\[24\]](#cite_note-FOOTNOTESmith2005-25)
- A speaking machine, which was a mechanical larynx made of wood, silk, and leather and pronounced several sounds so well 'as to deceive all who heard it unseen' (at [Clifton](/wiki/Clifton,_Bristol "Clifton, Bristol") in 1799).[\[25\]](#cite_note-EDH-26)
- A [canal lift](/wiki/Boat_lift "Boat lift") for barges.
- A minute artificial bird.[\[24\]](#cite_note-FOOTNOTESmith2005-25)[\[26\]](#cite_note-27)
- A [copying](/wiki/Copying "Copying") machine (1778).
- A variety of weather monitoring machines.

### Rocket engine

\[ [edit](/w/index.php?title=Erasmus_Darwin&action=edit&section=14 "Edit section: Rocket engine")\]

In notes dating to 1779, Darwin made a sketch of a simple hydrogen-oxygen [rocket engine](/wiki/Rocket_engine "Rocket engine"), with gas tanks connected by plumbing and pumps to an elongated combustion chamber and expansion nozzle, a concept not to be seen again until one century later.[\[27\]](#cite_note-28)[\[28\]](#cite_note-29)

## Major publications

\[ [edit](/w/index.php?title=Erasmus_Darwin&action=edit&section=15 "Edit section: Major publications")\]

- Erasmus Darwin, _A Botanical Society at Lichfield. A System of Vegetables, according to their classes, orders... translated from the 13th edition of Linnaeus' Systema Vegetabiliium_. 2 vols., 1783, Lichfield, J. Jackson, for Leigh and Sotheby, London.
- Erasmus Darwin, _A Botanical Society at Lichfield. The Families of Plants with their natural characters...Translated from the last edition of Linnaeus' Genera Plantarum_. 1787, Lichfield, J. Jackson, for J. Johnson, London.
- Erasmus Darwin, _[The Botanic Garden](/wiki/The_Botanic_Garden "The Botanic Garden"), Part I, The Economy of Vegetation_. 1791 London, J. Johnson.
- Part II, _The Loves of the Plants_. 1789, London, J. Johnson.
- Erasmus Darwin, _[Zoonomia](/wiki/Zoonomia "Zoonomia"); or, The Laws of Organic Life_, 1794, Part I. London, J. Johnson.
- Part I–III. 1796, London, J. Johnson.
- Darwin, Erasmus (1797). [_A plan for the conduct of female education, in boarding schools, private families, and public seminaries. By Erasmus Darwin, M.D. F.R.S. author of Zoonomia, and of The botanic garden; To which are added, Rudiments of taste, in a series of letters from a mother to her daughters_](http://quod.lib.umich.edu/e/evans/N25341.0001.001/1:6?rgn=div1;view=fulltext)(4to, 128 pages). Derby: J. Johnson. Retrieved 5 March 2015. (last two leaves contain a book list, an apology for the work, and an advert for "Miss Parkers School")
- Erasmus Darwin, _Phytologia; or, The Philosophy of Agriculture and Gardening_. 1800, London, J. Johnson.
- Erasmus Darwin, _The Temple of Nature; or, The Origin of Society_. 1803, London, J. Johnson.

## Family tree

\[ [edit](/w/index.php?title=Erasmus_Darwin&action=edit&section=16 "Edit section: Family tree")\]

[![](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7b/Darwin-Wedgwood-Galton_family_tree.png/580px-Darwin-Wedgwood-Galton_family_tree.png)](/wiki/File:Darwin-Wedgwood-Galton_family_tree.png)

## Commemoration

\[ [edit](/w/index.php?title=Erasmus_Darwin&action=edit&section=17 "Edit section: Commemoration")\]

[Erasmus Darwin House](/wiki/Erasmus_Darwin_House "Erasmus Darwin House"), his home in [Lichfield](/wiki/Lichfield "Lichfield"), Staffordshire, is a museum dedicated to him and his life's work. A secondary school at Burntwood, near Lichfield, was renamed [Erasmus Darwin Academy](/wiki/Erasmus_Darwin_Academy "Erasmus Darwin Academy") in 2011.

A science building on the Clifton campus of [Nottingham Trent University](/wiki/Nottingham_Trent_University "Nottingham Trent University") is named after him.[\[29\]](#cite_note-30)

## In fiction

\[ [edit](/w/index.php?title=Erasmus_Darwin&action=edit&section=18 "Edit section: In fiction")\]

- [Charles Sheffield](/wiki/Charles_Sheffield "Charles Sheffield"), an author noted largely for [hard science fiction](/wiki/Hard_science_fiction "Hard science fiction"), wrote a number of stories featuring Darwin in a role similar to that of [Sherlock Holmes](/wiki/Sherlock_Holmes "Sherlock Holmes"). These stories were collected in a book, _The Amazing Dr. Darwin_.
- The forgetting of Erasmus' designs for a rocket is a major plot point in [Stephen Baxter](/wiki/Stephen_Baxter_(author) "Stephen Baxter (author)")'s tale of alternate universes, _Manifold: Origin_.
- Phrases from Darwin's poem _[The Botanic Garden](/wiki/The_Botanic_Garden "The Botanic Garden")_ are used as chapter headings in _The Pornographer of Vienna_ by [Lewis Crofts](/wiki/Lewis_Crofts "Lewis Crofts").
- Darwin appears as a character in [Sergey Lukyanenko](/wiki/Sergey_Lukyanenko "Sergey Lukyanenko")'s novel _[New Watch](/wiki/New_Watch_(novel) "New Watch (novel)")_ as a Dark Other, and a prophet living in [Regent's Park Estate](/wiki/Regent%27s_Park_Estate "Regent's Park Estate").

## See also

\[ [edit](/w/index.php?title=Erasmus_Darwin&action=edit&section=19 "Edit section: See also")\]

- [Evolutionary ideas of the Renaissance and Enlightenment](/wiki/Evolutionary_ideas_of_the_Renaissance_and_Enlightenment "Evolutionary ideas of the Renaissance and Enlightenment")
- [History of evolutionary thought](/wiki/History_of_evolutionary_thought "History of evolutionary thought")

## Notes

\[ [edit](/w/index.php?title=Erasmus_Darwin&action=edit&section=20 "Edit section: Notes")\]

1. **[^](#cite_ref-11)**fl. 1740s–1790s. Also Bookseller and Printer in Lichfield. When Darwin left Lichfield in 1781, Jackson took over his botanical garden. ( [Desmond 1994](#CITEREFDesmond1994), [Jackson, John p. 377](https://books.google.com/books?id=thmPzIltAV8C&pg=PA377)) ( [Seward 1804](#CITEREFSeward1804), [p. 70](https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_2fQ0AAAAMAAJ/page/n85)) His daughter, Miss Mary A(nn) Jackson of Lichfield ( [Britten & Boulger 1889](#CITEREFBrittenBoulger1889), [p. 180](https://books.google.com/books?id=b9lCAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA180)) (fl. 1830s–1840s), was a botanical illustrator, ( [Desmond 1994](#CITEREFDesmond1994), [Jackson, Mary Ann p. 377](https://books.google.com/books?id=thmPzIltAV8C&pg=PA377)) and author of _Botanical Terms illustrated_ (1842) and _Pictorial Flora_ (1840)

## References

\[ [edit](/w/index.php?title=Erasmus_Darwin&action=edit&section=21 "Edit section: References")\]

01. ^ [_**a**_](#cite_ref-Hassler,_1961_1-0) [_**b**_](#cite_ref-Hassler,_1961_1-1)Hassler, Donald M. (1963). [_Erasmus Darwin_](https://books.google.com/books?id=IqpPAQAAIAAJ). p. 164. Retrieved 18 November 2021.
02. **[^](#cite_ref-2)**Burke's _Landed Gentry_, Darwin _formerly of_ Downe, 1966
03. **[^](#cite_ref-3)**["Darwin, Erasmus (DRWN750E)"](http://venn.lib.cam.ac.uk/cgi-bin/search-2018.pl?sur=&suro=w&fir=&firo=c&cit=&cito=c&c=all&z=all&tex=DRWN750E&sye=&eye=&col=all&maxcount=50). _A Cambridge Alumni Database_. University of Cambridge.
04. ^ [_**a**_](#cite_ref-Duffin_Moody_Gardner-Thorpe_2013_p._336_4-0) [_**b**_](#cite_ref-Duffin_Moody_Gardner-Thorpe_2013_p._336_4-1)Duffin, C.J.; Moody, R.T.J.; Gardner-Thorpe, C. (2013). [_A History of Geology and Medicine_](https://books.google.com/books?id=hGpIAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA336). Geological Society London: Geological Society special publication. Geological Society. p. 336. [ISBN](/wiki/ISBN_(identifier) "ISBN (identifier)") [978-1-86239-356-1](/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-86239-356-1 "Special:BookSources/978-1-86239-356-1"). Retrieved 1 May 2019.
05. **[^](#cite_ref-5)**["Erasmus Darwin \| British Physician & Natural Philosopher \| Britannica"](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Erasmus-Darwin). _www.britannica.com_. Retrieved 7 September 2023.
06. **[^](#cite_ref-odnb_6-0)**"Darwin, Erasmus". _[Oxford Dictionary of National Biography](/wiki/Dictionary_of_National_Biography#Oxford_Dictionary_of_National_Biography "Dictionary of National Biography")_ (online ed.). Oxford University Press. [doi](/wiki/Doi_(identifier) "Doi (identifier)"): [10.1093/ref:odnb/7177](https://doi.org/10.1093%2Fref%3Aodnb%2F7177).(Subscription or [UK public library membership](https://www.oxforddnb.com/help/subscribe#public) required.)
07. **[^](#cite_ref-7)**["Darwin Correspondence Project"](http://www.darwinproject.ac.uk/namedef-2106).
08. **[^](#cite_ref-Epsilon_8-0)**["Lucy Swift (1771–1792) Lucy Hardcastle (1793–1834)"](https://epsilon.ac.uk/view/dcp-data/nameregs/nameregs_2106). _Epsilon - Cambridge University Library's Darwin correspondence project_. Retrieved 7 October 2023.
09. **[^](#cite_ref-Powers&Powers_9-0)**Powers, Jonathan; Powers, Anne M. (2022). [_The rediscover of Lucy Hardcastle - botanist and breadwinner_](http://quandarybooks.com/wpcproduct/the-rediscovery-of-lucy-hardcastle-botanist-and-breadwinner/). Quandary Books. p. 65. [ISBN](/wiki/ISBN_(identifier) "ISBN (identifier)") [978-1-913253-05-9](/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-913253-05-9 "Special:BookSources/978-1-913253-05-9"). Retrieved 7 October 2023.
10. **[^](#cite_ref-10)**["Erasmus Darwin"](https://freemasonry.bcy.ca/biography/darwin_e/darwin_e.html). _Grand Lodge of British Columbia and Yukon_. Retrieved 12 March 2021.
11. **[^](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTEUglow2002a_12-0)**[Uglow 2002a](#CITEREFUglow2002a).
12. ^ [_**a**_](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTEUglow2002b_13-0) [_**b**_](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTEUglow2002b_13-1)[Uglow 2002b](#CITEREFUglow2002b).
13. **[^](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTEGeorge2014_14-0)**[George 2014](#CITEREFGeorge2014).
14. **[^](#cite_ref-15)**Allen, Richard C. 1999. _David Hartley on human nature._ Albany, N.Y.: [SUNY Press](/wiki/SUNY_Press "SUNY Press"). [ISBN](/wiki/ISBN_(identifier) "ISBN (identifier)") [0-7914-4233-0](/wiki/Special:BookSources/0-7914-4233-0 "Special:BookSources/0-7914-4233-0")
15. ^ [_**a**_](#cite_ref-Zoonomia_16-0) [_**b**_](#cite_ref-Zoonomia_16-1) [_**c**_](#cite_ref-Zoonomia_16-2)["Erasmus Darwin, _Zoonomia_: Project Gutenberg text XXXIX.4.8"](http://www.gutenberg.org/files/15707/15707-h/15707-h.htm#sect_XXXIX).
16. **[^](#cite_ref-17)**[Zirkle, Conway](/wiki/Conway_Zirkle "Conway Zirkle") (25 April 1941). "Natural Selection before the 'Origin of Species'". _[Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society](/wiki/Proceedings_of_the_American_Philosophical_Society "Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society")_. **84** (1): 71–123. [ISSN](/wiki/ISSN_(identifier) "ISSN (identifier)") [0003-049X](https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0003-049X). [JSTOR](/wiki/JSTOR_(identifier) "JSTOR (identifier)") [984852](https://www.jstor.org/stable/984852).
17. **[^](#cite_ref-18)**Darwin, Erasmus (1798). [_A plan for the conduct of female education, in boarding schools, private families, and public seminaries_](https://archive.org/details/planforconductof00darwrich). University of California Libraries. Philadelphia: : Printed by John Ormrod, no. 41, Chesnut-Street.
18. **[^](#cite_ref-19)**[DNB](/wiki/Dictionary_of_National_Biography "Dictionary of National Biography") entry for Erasmus Darwin. Oxford.
19. **[^](#cite_ref-SEAST_20-0)**Graves, Joseph L (2003). [_The Emperor's New Clothes: Biological Theories of Race at the Millennium_](https://books.google.com/books?id=TXv7KfkomI8C&pg=PA57). Rutgers University Press. p. 57. [ISBN](/wiki/ISBN_(identifier) "ISBN (identifier)") [978-0-8135-3302-5](/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-8135-3302-5 "Special:BookSources/978-0-8135-3302-5"). Retrieved 18 September 2011.
20. **[^](#cite_ref-21)**Darwin, Erasmus (1800). [_Phytologia, or the philosophy of agriculture and gardening_](https://archive.org/details/b22014597) (1st ed.). London: J. Johnson. p. [77](https://archive.org/details/b22014597/page/77).
21. **[^](#cite_ref-22)**["APS Member History"](https://search.amphilsoc.org/memhist/search?creator=&title=&subject=&subdiv=&mem=&year=1792&year-max=1792&dead=&keyword=&smode=advanced). _search.amphilsoc.org_. Retrieved 5 April 2021.
22. **[^](#cite_ref-23)**Shelley, Mary. ["Introduction" _Frankenstein_ (1831 edition)](http://www.gutenberg.org/files/42324/42324-h/42324-h.htm) Gutenberg

    "Many and long were the conversations between Lord Byron and Shelley, to which I was a devout but nearly silent listener. ... They talked of the experiments of Dr. Darwin, (I speak not of what the Doctor really did, or said that he did, but, as more to my purpose, of what was then spoken of as having been done by him,) who preserved a piece of vermicelli in a glass case, till by some extraordinary means it began to move with voluntary motion." She confused _vermicelli_, pasta, for the actual word Darwin and Shelley used, which was _vorticella_, a miniscule \[sic\] wheel animal. This was a major mistake or flub. As she admitted, everything she knew about science she got from her husband Shelley. \[underlining added\]
23. **[^](#cite_ref-24)**Mackay, Charles, ed. (1896). [_A Thousand and One Gems of English Poetry_](https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.201899). London: Routledge. p. [160](https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.201899/page/n171/mode/2up).
24. ^ [_**a**_](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTESmith2005_25-0) [_**b**_](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTESmith2005_25-1) [_**c**_](#cite_ref-FOOTNOTESmith2005_25-2)[Smith 2005](#CITEREFSmith2005).
25. **[^](#cite_ref-EDH_26-0)**["Project Update: The Speaking Machine"](https://web.archive.org/web/20150324115010/http://www.erasmusdarwin.org/2013/01/project-update-the-speaking-machine/). _Erasmus Darwin House_. 9 January 2013. Archived from the original on 24 March 2015. Retrieved 23 February 2015.`{{cite web}}`: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown ( [link](/wiki/Category:CS1_maint:_bot:_original_URL_status_unknown "Category:CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown"))
26. **[^](#cite_ref-27)**["Erasmus Darwin's Artificial Bird – European Romanticisms in Association"](http://www.euromanticism.org/erasmus-darwins-artificial-bird/). 6 December 2019.
27. **[^](#cite_ref-28)**[Rocket motor. P.82. (photograph of 1779 sketch)](https://www.revolutionaryplayers.org.uk/rocket-motor-p-82/) _revolutionaryplayers.org.uk_, accessed 14 November 2018
28. **[^](#cite_ref-29)**[J.G.Crowther, New Scientist 12 Dec 1963 p.690 Book Reviews including Desmond King-Hele: 'Erasmus Darwin, 1731–1802'](https://books.google.com/books?id=oFEgCLEqOmkC) [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20230507232324/https://books.google.com/books?id=oFEgCLEqOmkC) 7 May 2023 at the [Wayback Machine](/wiki/Wayback_Machine "Wayback Machine") _books.google.com_, accessed 14 November 2018
29. **[^](#cite_ref-30)**["Guided tour of Clifton Campus"](https://www.ntu.ac.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0032/175676/self-guided-tour-map-clifton-campus.pdf)(PDF). _Nottingham Trent University_. September 2017. Retrieved 23 February 2023.

## Sources

\[ [edit](/w/index.php?title=Erasmus_Darwin&action=edit&section=22 "Edit section: Sources")\]

- Britten, J; Boulger, GS (1889). ["Biographical Index of British and Irish Botanists"](https://books.google.com/books?id=b9lCAAAAYAAJ). _Journal of Botany, British and Foreign_. **27**. Retrieved 7 March 2015.
- Carter, Philip (Spring 2013). ["Shapers of the West Midlands Enlightenment"](https://web.archive.org/web/20150403141654/http://historywm.com/wp-content/uploads/Philip_Carter.pdf)(PDF). _West Midlands History Issue 1_. pp. 13–16. Archived from [the original](http://historywm.com/wp-content/uploads/Philip_Carter.pdf)(PDF) on 3 April 2015. Retrieved 12 March 2015.
- Desmond, Ray (1994) \[1977\]. [_Dictionary of British and Irish botanists and horticulturalists : including plant collectors, flower painters and garden designers_](https://books.google.com/books?id=thmPzIltAV8C) (2 ed.). London: Taylor & Francis. [ISBN](/wiki/ISBN_(identifier) "ISBN (identifier)") [978-0-85066-843-8](/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-85066-843-8 "Special:BookSources/978-0-85066-843-8"). Retrieved 28 February 2015.
- [Fara, Patricia](/wiki/Patricia_Fara "Patricia Fara") (2003). [_Sex, Botany and Empire: The Story of Carl Linnaeus and Joseph Banks_](https://books.google.com/books?id=TtmhBQAAQBAJ). Cambridge: Icon Books. [ISBN](/wiki/ISBN_(identifier) "ISBN (identifier)") [978-1-84046-444-3](/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-84046-444-3 "Special:BookSources/978-1-84046-444-3"). Retrieved 22 February 2015.
- [George, Sam](/wiki/Samantha_George "Samantha George") (June 2005). "'Not Strictly Proper for a Female Pen': Eighteenth-Century Poetry and the Sexuality of Botany". _Comparative Critical Studies_. **2** (2): 191–210. [doi](/wiki/Doi_(identifier) "Doi (identifier)"): [10.3366/ccs.2005.2.2.191](https://doi.org/10.3366%2Fccs.2005.2.2.191).
- Linné, Carl von (1785) \[1774\]. [_Systema vegetabilium (13th edition of Systema Naturae)_](https://archive.org/details/systemofvegeta01linn) \[ _A System of Vegetables 2 vols. 1783–1785_\]. Lichfield: [Lichfield Botanical Society](/wiki/Lichfield_Botanical_Society "Lichfield Botanical Society"). Retrieved 24 February 2015.
- Schofield, R. E. (1963). [_The Lunar Society, A Social History of Provincial Science and Industry in Eighteenth Century England_](https://books.google.com/books?id=wDMeAAAAIAAJ). Oxford: Clarendon Press. [ISBN](/wiki/ISBN_(identifier) "ISBN (identifier)") [978-0-19-858118-5](/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-19-858118-5 "Special:BookSources/978-0-19-858118-5"). Retrieved 3 March 2015.
- [Uglow, Jenny](/wiki/Jenny_Uglow "Jenny Uglow") (2002a). [_The lunar men: five friends whose curiosity changed the world_](https://books.google.com/books?id=CYSGOQAACAAJ). New York: Farrar, Straus & Giroux. [ISBN](/wiki/ISBN_(identifier) "ISBN (identifier)") [978-0-374-19440-6](/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-374-19440-6 "Special:BookSources/978-0-374-19440-6"). Retrieved 12 March 2015.

### Biographies and criticism

\[ [edit](/w/index.php?title=Erasmus_Darwin&action=edit&section=23 "Edit section: Biographies and criticism")\]

- [Fara, Patricia](/wiki/Patricia_Fara "Patricia Fara") (2012). [_Erasmus Darwin : sex, science, and serendipity_](https://books.google.com/books?id=fV5YB9M2cGIC). Oxford: Oxford University Press. [ISBN](/wiki/ISBN_(identifier) "ISBN (identifier)") [978-0-19-958266-2](/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-19-958266-2 "Special:BookSources/978-0-19-958266-2"). Retrieved 12 March 2015.
- [George, Sam](/wiki/Samantha_George "Samantha George") (30 January 2014). "Carl Linnaeus, Erasmus Darwin and Anna Seward: Botanical Poetry and Female Education". _Science & Education_. **23** (3): 673–694. [Bibcode](/wiki/Bibcode_(identifier) "Bibcode (identifier)"): [2014Sc&Ed..23..673G](https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2014Sc&Ed..23..673G). [doi](/wiki/Doi_(identifier) "Doi (identifier)"): [10.1007/s11191-014-9677-y](https://doi.org/10.1007%2Fs11191-014-9677-y). [S2CID](/wiki/S2CID_(identifier) "S2CID (identifier)") [142994653](https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:142994653).
- King-Hele, Desmond. 1963. _Doctor Darwin_. Scribner's, N.Y.
- King-Hele, Desmond. 1977. _Doctor of Revolution: the life and genius of Erasmus Darwin_. Faber, London.
- King-Hele, Desmond. 1999. _Erasmus Darwin: a life of unequalled achievement_ Giles de la Mare Publishers.
- King-Hele, Desmond (ed) 2002. _Charles Darwin's 'The Life of Erasmus Darwin'_ Cambridge University Press.
- Krause, Ernst 1879. _Erasmus Darwin, with a preliminary notice by Charles Darwin_. Murray, London.
- Pearson, Hesketh. 1930. _Doctor Darwin_. Dent, London.
- Porter, Roy, 1989. 'Erasmus Darwin: doctor of evolution?' in 'History, Humanity and Evolution: Essays for John C. Greene, ed. James R. Moore.
- Priestman, Martin (2014). [_The Poetry of Erasmus Darwin: Enlightened Spaces, Romantic Times_](https://books.google.com/books?id=_v2AAgAAQBAJ). Ashgate. [ISBN](/wiki/ISBN_(identifier) "ISBN (identifier)") [978-1-4724-1956-9](/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-4724-1956-9 "Special:BookSources/978-1-4724-1956-9"). Retrieved 12 March 2015.
- [Seward, Anna](/wiki/Anna_Seward "Anna Seward") (1804). [_Memoirs of the Life of Dr. Darwin: Chiefly During His Residence in Lichfield: With Anecdotes of His Friends, and Criticisms on His Writing_](https://books.google.com/books?id=2fQ0AAAAMAAJ). Philadelphia: W.M. Poyntell. Retrieved 24 February 2015.
- Smith, Christopher (2005). [_The Genius of Erasmus Darwin_](https://books.google.com/books?id=Epyc1v7SrAcC). Ashgate Publishing. p. 416. [ISBN](/wiki/ISBN_(identifier) "ISBN (identifier)") [978-0-7546-3671-7](/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-7546-3671-7 "Special:BookSources/978-0-7546-3671-7"). Retrieved 12 March 2015.
- [Uglow, Jenny](/wiki/Jenny_Uglow "Jenny Uglow") (21 September 2002b). ["Sexing the plants"](https://www.theguardian.com/books/2002/sep/21/featuresreviews.guardianreview30). _The Guardian_. Retrieved 12 March 2015.

## Further reading

\[ [edit](/w/index.php?title=Erasmus_Darwin&action=edit&section=24 "Edit section: Further reading")\]

- Darwin, Erasmus. (1794–96). _[Zoonomia](/wiki/Zoonomia "Zoonomia")_. J. Johnson (reissued by [Cambridge University Press](/wiki/Cambridge_University_Press "Cambridge University Press"), 2009; [ISBN](/wiki/ISBN_(identifier) "ISBN (identifier)") [978-1-108-00549-4](/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-1-108-00549-4 "Special:BookSources/978-1-108-00549-4"))
- King-Hele, Desmond, ed. (2007). [_The collected letters of Erasmus Darwin_](https://books.google.com/books?id=NA4DUxL5_YQC). Cambridge: Cambridge Univ. Press. [ISBN](/wiki/ISBN_(identifier) "ISBN (identifier)") [978-0-521-82156-8](/wiki/Special:BookSources/978-0-521-82156-8 "Special:BookSources/978-0-521-82156-8"). Retrieved 7 March 2015.

## External links

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- [Erasmus Darwin House, Lichfield](http://www.erasmusdarwin.org/)
- [Works by Erasmus Darwin](https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/author/3099) at [Project Gutenberg](/wiki/Project_Gutenberg "Project Gutenberg")
- [Works by or about Erasmus Darwin](https://archive.org/search.php?query=%28%28subject%3A%22Darwin%2C%20Erasmus%22%20OR%20subject%3A%22Erasmus%20Darwin%22%20OR%20creator%3A%22Darwin%2C%20Erasmus%22%20OR%20creator%3A%22Erasmus%20Darwin%22%20OR%20creator%3A%22Darwin%2C%20E%2E%22%20OR%20title%3A%22Erasmus%20Darwin%22%20OR%20description%3A%22Darwin%2C%20Erasmus%22%20OR%20description%3A%22Erasmus%20Darwin%22%29%20OR%20%28%221731-1802%22%20AND%20Darwin%29%29%20AND%20%28-mediatype:software%29) at the [Internet Archive](/wiki/Internet_Archive "Internet Archive")
- [Works by Erasmus Darwin](https://librivox.org/author/13657) at [LibriVox](/wiki/LibriVox "LibriVox") (public domain audiobooks) ![](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/21/Speaker_Icon.svg/15px-Speaker_Icon.svg.png)
- [Revolutionary Players website](https://web.archive.org/web/20060308154827/http://www.revolutionaryplayers.org.uk/home.stm)
- ["Preface and 'a preliminary notice'" by Charles Darwin](https://web.archive.org/web/20050306082045/http://pages.britishlibrary.net/charles.darwin3/erasmus.html) in Ernst Krause, _Erasmus Darwin_ (1879)
- [Letter from Erasmus Darwin to Dr. William Withering at Mount Holyoke College](http://asteria.fivecolleges.edu/findaids/mountholyoke/mshm003_main.html) [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20150602083233/http://asteria.fivecolleges.edu/findaids/mountholyoke/mshm003_main.html) 2 June 2015 at the [Wayback Machine](/wiki/Wayback_Machine "Wayback Machine")

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[Joseph Wright](/wiki/Joseph_Wright_of_Derby "Joseph Wright of Derby")

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- _[Richard Arkwright](/wiki/Richard_Arkwright "Richard Arkwright")_
- _[Grotto in the Gulf of Salerno](/wiki/Grotto_in_the_Gulf_of_Salerno "Grotto in the Gulf of Salerno")_
- _[A Philosopher Lecturing on the Orrery](/wiki/A_Philosopher_Lecturing_on_the_Orrery "A Philosopher Lecturing on the Orrery")_
- _[Indian Widow](/wiki/Indian_Widow "Indian Widow")_
- _[Romeo and Juliet: the Tomb Scene](/wiki/Romeo_and_Juliet:_the_Tomb_Scene "Romeo and Juliet: the Tomb Scene")_
- _[Miravan Breaking Open the Tomb of his Ancestors](/wiki/Miravan_Breaking_Open_the_Tomb_of_his_Ancestors "Miravan Breaking Open the Tomb of his Ancestors")_
- _[The Alchemist Discovering Phosphorus](/wiki/The_Alchemist_Discovering_Phosphorus "The Alchemist Discovering Phosphorus")_
- _[Virgil's Tomb](/wiki/Virgil%27s_Tomb_(Joseph_Wright_paintings) "Virgil's Tomb (Joseph Wright paintings)")_
- _[The Blacksmith's Shop](/wiki/The_Blacksmith%27s_Shop "The Blacksmith's Shop")_
- _[The Earthstopper](/wiki/The_Earthstopper "The Earthstopper")_
- _[A Philosopher by Lamplight](/wiki/A_Philosopher_by_Lamplight "A Philosopher by Lamplight")_
- _[Samuel Ward](/wiki/Samuel_Ward_(taster) "Samuel Ward (taster)")_
- _[The Captive](/wiki/The_Captive_(painting) "The Captive (painting)")_
- _[The Captive King](/wiki/The_Captive_King "The Captive King")_
- _[Dovedale](/wiki/Dovedale_by_Moonlight "Dovedale by Moonlight")_
- [_Thomas Borrow_ and _Ann Borrow_](/wiki/Thomas_Borrow_and_Ann_Borrow "Thomas Borrow and Ann Borrow")
- _[Vesuvius in Eruption](/wiki/Vesuvius_in_Eruption_(Wright_painting) "Vesuvius in Eruption (Wright painting)")_

Porcelain

- [Chelsea porcelain factory](/wiki/Chelsea_porcelain_factory "Chelsea porcelain factory")
- [Derby Porcelain](/wiki/Derby_Porcelain "Derby Porcelain")
- [Royal Crown Derby](/wiki/Royal_Crown_Derby "Royal Crown Derby")
- [Pinxton Porcelain](/wiki/Pinxton_Porcelain "Pinxton Porcelain")
- [André Planché](/wiki/Andrew_Planche "Andrew Planche")
- [William Billingsley](/wiki/William_Billingsley_(artist) "William Billingsley (artist)")
- [William Duesbury](/wiki/William_Duesbury "William Duesbury")

Ancient Britain

- [Creswellian culture](/wiki/Creswellian_culture "Creswellian culture")
- [Derventio](/wiki/Derventio_(Little_Chester) "Derventio (Little Chester)")
- [Strutt's Park Roman fort](/wiki/Strutt%27s_Park_Roman_fort "Strutt's Park Roman fort")
- [Derby Racecourse Roman settlement](/wiki/Derby_Racecourse_Roman_settlement "Derby Racecourse Roman settlement")
- [Hanson Log Boat](/wiki/Hanson_Log_Boat "Hanson Log Boat")
- [Great Heathen Army](/wiki/Great_Heathen_Army "Great Heathen Army")
- [Heath Wood barrow cemetery](/wiki/Heath_Wood_barrow_cemetery "Heath Wood barrow cemetery")
- [Codnor Castle](/wiki/Codnor_Castle "Codnor Castle")
- [Duffield Castle](/wiki/Duffield_Castle,_Derbyshire "Duffield Castle, Derbyshire")
- [Icknield St.](/wiki/Icknield_Street "Icknield Street")
- [The Street](/wiki/The_Street_(Derbyshire) "The Street (Derbyshire)")
- [The Long Lane](/wiki/The_Long_Lane_(Derbyshire) "The Long Lane (Derbyshire)")

Science and engineering

- _[Atlas Coelestis](/wiki/Atlas_Coelestis "Atlas Coelestis")_
- [Benjamin Vulliamy](/wiki/Benjamin_Vulliamy "Benjamin Vulliamy")
- [Whitehurst & Son sundial](/wiki/Whitehurst_%26_Son_sundial_(1812) "Whitehurst & Son sundial (1812)")

Related

Organisations

- [Andrew Handyside & Co.](/wiki/Andrew_Handyside_and_Company "Andrew Handyside and Company")
- [British Rail Research Division](/wiki/British_Rail_Research_Division "British Rail Research Division")
- [Derby Philosophical Society](/wiki/Derby_Philosophical_Society "Derby Philosophical Society")
- [Derby Exhibition (1839)](/wiki/Derby_Exhibition_(1839) "Derby Exhibition (1839)")

People

- [Alkmund](/wiki/Alkmund_of_Derby "Alkmund of Derby")
- [P. P. Burdett](/wiki/Peter_Perez_Burdett "Peter Perez Burdett")
- [D'Ewes Coke](/wiki/D%27Ewes_Coke "D'Ewes Coke")
- Erasmus Darwin
- [6th Duke of Devonshire](/wiki/William_Cavendish,_6th_Duke_of_Devonshire "William Cavendish, 6th Duke of Devonshire")
- [James Ferguson](/wiki/James_Ferguson_(Scottish_astronomer) "James Ferguson (Scottish astronomer)")
- [Arthur Keily](/wiki/Arthur_Keily "Arthur Keily")
- [R. K. Freeman](/wiki/Richard_Knill_Freeman "Richard Knill Freeman")
- [Alfred E. Goodey](/wiki/Alfred_E._Goodey "Alfred E. Goodey")
- [Sir George Harpur Crewe](/wiki/George_Harpur_Crewe "George Harpur Crewe")
- [Llewellynn Jewitt](/wiki/Llewellynn_Jewitt "Llewellynn Jewitt")
- [John Lombe](/wiki/John_Lombe "John Lombe")
- [William Mundy](/wiki/William_Mundy_(MP) "William Mundy (MP)")
- [Joseph Pickford](/wiki/Joseph_Pickford "Joseph Pickford")
- [5th Earl Ferrers](/wiki/Washington_Shirley,_5th_Earl_Ferrers "Washington Shirley, 5th Earl Ferrers")
- [George Sorocold](/wiki/George_Sorocold "George Sorocold")
- [Joseph Strutt](/wiki/Joseph_Strutt_(philanthropist) "Joseph Strutt (philanthropist)")
- [Charles Sylvester](/wiki/Charles_Sylvester "Charles Sylvester")

- **[Derby Silk Mill](/wiki/Derby_Silk_Mill "Derby Silk Mill") ( [Lombe's Mill](/wiki/Lombe%27s_Mill "Lombe's Mill"))**
- **[Pickford's House Museum](/wiki/Pickford%27s_House_Museum "Pickford's House Museum")**
- **[Central Library](/wiki/Derby_Central_Library "Derby Central Library")**

- [v](/wiki/Template:Charles_Darwin "Template:Charles Darwin")
- [t](/wiki/Template_talk:Charles_Darwin "Template talk:Charles Darwin")
- [e](/wiki/Special:EditPage/Template:Charles_Darwin "Special:EditPage/Template:Charles Darwin")

[Charles Darwin](/wiki/Charles_Darwin "Charles Darwin")

Life

- [Darwin–Wedgwood family](/wiki/Darwin%E2%80%93Wedgwood_family "Darwin–Wedgwood family")
  - Erasmus Darwin
  - [Josiah Wedgwood](/wiki/Josiah_Wedgwood "Josiah Wedgwood")
- [Education](/wiki/Charles_Darwin%27s_education "Charles Darwin's education")
- [Voyage on HMS _Beagle_](/wiki/Second_voyage_of_HMS_Beagle "Second voyage of HMS Beagle")
- [Inception of theory](/wiki/Inception_of_Darwin%27s_theory "Inception of Darwin's theory")
- [Development of theory](/wiki/Development_of_Darwin%27s_theory "Development of Darwin's theory")
- [Publication of theory](/wiki/Publication_of_Darwin%27s_theory "Publication of Darwin's theory")
- [Reactions to _On the Origin of Species_](/wiki/Reactions_to_On_the_Origin_of_Species "Reactions to On the Origin of Species")
- [_Orchids_ to _Variation_](/wiki/Darwin_from_Orchids_to_Variation "Darwin from Orchids to Variation")
- [_Descent of Man_ to _Emotions_](/wiki/Darwin_from_Descent_of_Man_to_Emotions "Darwin from Descent of Man to Emotions")
- [_Insectivorous Plants_ to _Worms_](/wiki/Darwin_from_Insectivorous_Plants_to_Worms "Darwin from Insectivorous Plants to Worms")
- [Religious views](/wiki/Religious_views_of_Charles_Darwin "Religious views of Charles Darwin")
- [Health](/wiki/Health_of_Charles_Darwin "Health of Charles Darwin")
- [Women](/wiki/Darwin_and_women "Darwin and women")
- [Portraits of Darwin](/wiki/Portraits_of_Charles_Darwin "Portraits of Charles Darwin") ( [caricatures](/wiki/Caricatures_of_Charles_Darwin_and_his_evolutionary_theory_in_19th-century_England "Caricatures of Charles Darwin and his evolutionary theory in 19th-century England"))

[Writings](/wiki/Charles_Darwin_bibliography "Charles Darwin bibliography")

- _[Extracts from Letters to Henslow](/wiki/Extracts_from_Letters_to_Henslow "Extracts from Letters to Henslow")_ (1835)
- _[The Voyage of the Beagle](/wiki/The_Voyage_of_the_Beagle "The Voyage of the Beagle")_ (1839)
- _[The Structure and Distribution of Coral Reefs](/wiki/The_Structure_and_Distribution_of_Coral_Reefs "The Structure and Distribution of Coral Reefs")_ (1842)
- _[Zoology of the Voyage of H.M.S. Beagle](/wiki/Zoology_of_the_Voyage_of_H.M.S._Beagle "Zoology of the Voyage of H.M.S. Beagle")_ (1838–1843)
- _[Geological Observations on the Volcanic Islands](/wiki/Geological_Observations_on_the_Volcanic_Islands "Geological Observations on the Volcanic Islands")_ (1844)
- _[Geological Observations on South America](/wiki/Geological_Observations_on_South_America "Geological Observations on South America")_ (1846)
- " [On the Tendency of Species to form Varieties](/wiki/On_the_Tendency_of_Species_to_form_Varieties;_and_on_the_Perpetuation_of_Varieties_and_Species_by_Natural_Means_of_Selection "On the Tendency of Species to form Varieties; and on the Perpetuation of Varieties and Species by Natural Means of Selection")" (1858)
- _[On the Origin of Species](/wiki/On_the_Origin_of_Species "On the Origin of Species")_ (1859)
- _[Fertilisation of Orchids](/wiki/Fertilisation_of_Orchids "Fertilisation of Orchids")_ (1862)
- _[The Variation of Animals and Plants Under Domestication](/wiki/The_Variation_of_Animals_and_Plants_Under_Domestication "The Variation of Animals and Plants Under Domestication")_ (1868)

  - _[Natural Selection](/wiki/Natural_Selection_(manuscript) "Natural Selection (manuscript)")_
- _[The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex](/wiki/The_Descent_of_Man,_and_Selection_in_Relation_to_Sex "The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to Sex")_ (1871)
- _[The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals](/wiki/The_Expression_of_the_Emotions_in_Man_and_Animals "The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals")_ (1872)
- _[Insectivorous Plants](/wiki/Insectivorous_Plants_(book) "Insectivorous Plants (book)")_ (1875)
- _[On the Movements and Habits of Climbing Plants](/wiki/On_the_Movements_and_Habits_of_Climbing_Plants "On the Movements and Habits of Climbing Plants")_ (1875)
- _[The Effects of Cross and Self Fertilisation in the Vegetable Kingdom](/wiki/The_Effects_of_Cross_and_Self_Fertilisation_in_the_Vegetable_Kingdom "The Effects of Cross and Self Fertilisation in the Vegetable Kingdom")_ (1876)
- _[The Different Forms of Flowers on Plants of the Same Species](/wiki/The_Different_Forms_of_Flowers_on_Plants_of_the_Same_Species "The Different Forms of Flowers on Plants of the Same Species")_ (1877)
- _[The Power of Movement in Plants](/wiki/The_Power_of_Movement_in_Plants "The Power of Movement in Plants")_ (1880)
- _[The Formation of Vegetable Mould Through the Action of Worms](/wiki/The_Formation_of_Vegetable_Mould_Through_the_Action_of_Worms "The Formation of Vegetable Mould Through the Action of Worms")_ (1881)
- _[The Autobiography of Charles Darwin](/wiki/The_Autobiography_of_Charles_Darwin "The Autobiography of Charles Darwin")_ (1887)
- [Correspondence](/wiki/Correspondence_of_Charles_Darwin "Correspondence of Charles Darwin")
  - _[The Life and Letters of Charles Darwin](/wiki/The_Life_and_Letters_of_Charles_Darwin "The Life and Letters of Charles Darwin")_, 1887
  - _[More Letters of Charles Darwin](/wiki/More_Letters_of_Charles_Darwin "More Letters of Charles Darwin")_, 1903
- [List of described taxa](/wiki/List_of_taxa_described_by_Charles_Darwin "List of taxa described by Charles Darwin")

Related

- [Eugenics](/wiki/Eugenics "Eugenics")
- [Dysgenics](/wiki/Dysgenics "Dysgenics")
- [_Vestiges of the Natural History of Creation_](/wiki/Vestiges_of_the_Natural_History_of_Creation#Influence_and_effects "Vestiges of the Natural History of Creation")
- _[The Genetical Theory of Natural Selection](/wiki/The_Genetical_Theory_of_Natural_Selection "The Genetical Theory of Natural Selection")_ (1930)
- [History of evolutionary thought](/wiki/History_of_evolutionary_thought "History of evolutionary thought")
- [Pangenesis](/wiki/Pangenesis "Pangenesis")
- [Darwin Industry](/wiki/Darwin_Industry "Darwin Industry")
- [Commemoration](/wiki/Commemoration_of_Charles_Darwin "Commemoration of Charles Darwin")
  - [things named for Darwin](/wiki/List_of_things_named_after_Charles_Darwin "List of things named after Charles Darwin")
- [Darwinism](/wiki/Darwinism "Darwinism")
  - [Neural](/wiki/Neural_Darwinism "Neural Darwinism")
  - [Quantum](/wiki/Quantum_Darwinism "Quantum Darwinism")
  - [Social](/wiki/Social_Darwinism "Social Darwinism")
  - [Universal](/wiki/Universal_Darwinism "Universal Darwinism")
  - [Alternatives to](/wiki/Alternatives_to_Darwinian_evolution "Alternatives to Darwinian evolution")
  - [Eclipse of](/wiki/The_eclipse_of_Darwinism "The eclipse of Darwinism")
- [HMS _Beagle_](/wiki/HMS_Beagle "HMS Beagle")
- [Darwin Medal](/wiki/Darwin_Medal "Darwin Medal")
- [Darwin Awards](/wiki/Darwin_Awards "Darwin Awards")
- [Huxley family](/wiki/Huxley_family "Huxley family")

[Authority control databases](/wiki/Help:Authority_control "Help:Authority control")[![Edit this at Wikidata](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/8/8a/OOjs_UI_icon_edit-ltr-progressive.svg/10px-OOjs_UI_icon_edit-ltr-progressive.svg.png)](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q234050#identifiers "Edit this at Wikidata")

International

- [ISNI](https://isni.org/isni/0000000083390630)
- [VIAF](https://viaf.org/viaf/7419078)
- [FAST](http://id.worldcat.org/fast/12942/)
- [WorldCat](https://id.oclc.org/worldcat/entity/E39PBJhmFyF3bwkTpQTqGrckjC)

National

- [Germany](https://d-nb.info/gnd/118671049)
- [United States](https://id.loc.gov/authorities/n50037924)
- [France](https://catalogue.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/cb120977765)
- [BnF data](https://data.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/cb120977765)
- [Japan](https://id.ndl.go.jp/auth/ndlna/00620558)
- [Italy](https://opac.sbn.it/nome/PAVV075854)
- [Australia](https://nla.gov.au/anbd.aut-an35033441)
- [Czech Republic](https://aleph.nkp.cz/F/?func=find-c&local_base=aut&ccl_term=ica=nlk20000083979&CON_LNG=ENG)
- [Spain](http://catalogo.bne.es/uhtbin/authoritybrowse.cgi?action=display&authority_id=XX1301780)
- [Portugal](http://id.bnportugal.gov.pt/aut/catbnp/168556)
- [Netherlands](http://data.bibliotheken.nl/id/thes/p068936656)
- [Norway](https://authority.bibsys.no/authority/rest/authorities/html/90247878)
- [Latvia](https://kopkatalogs.lv/F?func=direct&local_base=lnc10&doc_number=000141684&P_CON_LNG=ENG)
- [Sweden](https://libris.kb.se/53hkkghp2m1nn01)
- [Poland](https://dbn.bn.org.pl/descriptor-details/9810665555505606)
- [Vatican](https://wikidata-externalid-url.toolforge.org/?p=8034&url_prefix=https://opac.vatlib.it/auth/detail/&id=495/194077)
- [Israel](http://olduli.nli.org.il/F/?func=find-b&local_base=NLX10&find_code=UID&request=987007260279405171)
- [Belgium](https://opac.kbr.be/LIBRARY/doc/AUTHORITY/14091623)

Academics

- [CiNii](https://ci.nii.ac.jp/author/DA01010032?l=en)

Artists

- [ULAN](https://www.getty.edu/vow/ULANFullDisplay?find=&role=&nation=&subjectid=500355025)

People

- [Trove](https://trove.nla.gov.au/people/806019)
- [Deutsche Biographie](https://www.deutsche-biographie.de/pnd118671049.html?language=en)

Other

- [IdRef](https://www.idref.fr/029327687)
- [SNAC](https://snaccooperative.org/ark:/99166/w6xg9rsv)
- [RISM](https://rism.online/people/30031559)

Retrieved from " [https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Erasmus\_Darwin&oldid=1241303624](https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Erasmus_Darwin&oldid=1241303624)"

[Categories](/wiki/Help:Category "Help:Category"):

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- [Fellows of the Royal Society](/wiki/Category:Fellows_of_the_Royal_Society "Category:Fellows of the Royal Society")
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- [1731 births](/wiki/Category:1731_births "Category:1731 births")
- [1802 deaths](/wiki/Category:1802_deaths "Category:1802 deaths")
- [Alumni of St John's College, Cambridge](/wiki/Category:Alumni_of_St_John%27s_College,_Cambridge "Category:Alumni of St John's College, Cambridge")
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- [Paintings by Joseph Wright of Derby](/wiki/Category:Paintings_by_Joseph_Wright_of_Derby "Category:Paintings by Joseph Wright of Derby")
- [18th-century English medical doctors](/wiki/Category:18th-century_English_medical_doctors "Category:18th-century English medical doctors")
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- [English poets](/wiki/Category:English_poets "Category:English poets")
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Hidden categories:

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