History
“A fool you know, is a man who never tried an experiment in his life”
Erasmus Darwin was one of the greatest polymaths of the 18th C. It has been said that no one since has ever rivalled him for achievements in such a wide range of fields.
Born at Elston Hall, near Newark, Nottinghamshire, on 12th December 1731, Darwin was the youngest of four sons who became one of the foremost physicians of his time; indeed King George III asked him to be his personal physician but Erasmus declined, preferring to stay where he had settled in Lichfield, Staffordshire. He is responsible for the enlargement of the original house and its noble Palladian frontage on Beacon Street. With his ability to make friends Erasmus soon built up a vast network of associates, men and women like himself who independently became known as the leading social and philosophical lights of their time. With contacts like Matthew Boulton, Josiah Wedgwood, and James Watt he set up the Lunar Society which became the main intellectual powerhouse of the Industrial Revolution in England.
Among Darwin’s many talents was his extraordinary scientific insight in physics, chemistry, geology, meteorology and all aspects of biology. His theories of biological evolution by means of natural selection were vilified by the church, and were handed down from father to son and to grandson; but it was left to his grandson, Charles, to prove biological evolution. Towards the end of his life he gained recognition as the leading English poet of his day.