CHARLES DARWIN BORN IN SHREWSBURY

Charles Robert Darwin (1809 – 1882) was born at The Mount, Shrewsbury, England on 12 February 1809. The fifth child of local doctor Robert and his wife Susannah (née Wedgwood), the young Charles was doted on by three elder sisters.

Just before his tenth birthday, Charles was sent to board at nearby Shrewsbury School. He did the minimum work required and saved his energy for beetle-collecting and shooting. He later recalled his father’s admonishment: “you care for nothing but shooting, dogs and rat-catching; and you will be a disgrace to yourself and all your family”.

Despite enrolling to study medicine at Edinburgh University, Darwin remained unengaged. Even lectures in geology made him resolve “never…in any way to study the science”.