Robert FitzRoy – The Friends of Charles Darwin

13-Jan-1833: The day HMS Beagle nearly sank

HMS Beagle

Charles Darwin’s closest brush with death during the Beagle voyage came on Sunday 13th January 1833, near that most infamous of nautical perils, Cape Horn.

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Robert FitzRoy

Robert FitzRoy

Robert FitzRoy’s name will forever be associated with Charles Darwin’s. But he deserves to be remembered for his own many achievements.

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The Dickens Connection

Dickens, FitzRoy and how a tragic loss at sea spurred efforts to forecast storms.

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Book review: ‘Fossils, Finches and Fuegians’ by Richard Keynes

Charles Darwin's Adventures and Discoveries on the Beagle, 1832-1836

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185 years ago today...

On 22nd May, 1826, His Majesty's Ship 'Beagle' set sail from Plymouth on a surveying voyage to South America.

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The Darwin bicentennial oak, 11 years on
Eleven years ago today, I planted the Darwin Bicentennial Oak in my garden.
An embarrassment of Richards
In which my head appears on a spike (six times).
Hello, Serbia!
I am delighted to announce that the Friends of Charles Darwin have their first member from Serbia.
The Darwin bicentennial oak, 10 years on
Ten years ago today, I planted the Darwin Bicentennial Oak in my garden.
Hello, Azerbaijan!
I am delighted to announce that the Friends of Charles Darwin have their first member from Azerbaijan.

03-Dec-1831: Darwin’s first night aboard HMS Beagle
Darwin records his experimentations with a hammock.
29-Jan-1839: Charles Darwin marries Emma Wedgwood
On 29th January 1839, after a short courtship and engagement, Charles Darwin married his cousin Emma Wedgwood at St Peter's Church, Maer, Staffordshire.
14-May-1856: Darwin starts writing his ‘big species book’
On 14 May 1856, Charles Darwin recorded in his journal that, on the advice of his friend Charles Lyell, after almost 20 years exploring the subject, he had finally begun writing a ‘sketch’ of his ideas on species.
If humans evolved from monkeys, how come there are still monkeys?
This is a question frequently posed by creationists—and quite often by perfectly rational people…
13-Jan-1833: The day HMS Beagle nearly sank
Charles Darwin’s closest brush with death during the Beagle voyage came on Sunday 13th January 1833, near that most infamous of nautical perils, Cape Horn.