Evolution's captain : the tragic fate of Robert Fitzroy, the man who sailed Charles Darwin around the world

A biography of Robert Fitzroy (1805-1865). Joining the navy at the age of 12, Fitzroy became a skilled hydrographer and was given command of the Beagle in 1828. This book concentrates on the two voyages undertaken by Fitzroy on the Beagle and their impact on him, particularly in the light of his later suicide. Fitzroy returned from his first voyage to survey the southern coastlines of South America with four Feugian captives with the intention of educating them in Christian values. He returned to South America on the second voyage (1831-1836) with the three surviving Feugians, this time also accompanied by Charles Darwin. On their return to England, Fitzroy, a devout Christian, became increasingly estranged from Darwin as their views on evolutionary theory diverged. Fitzroy was also a Member of Parliament and briefly Governor of New Zealand before his assignment to the new Meteorological Office within the Marine Department of the Board of Trade. Establishing the fundamental techniques of weather observation and early coastal weather stations, his work went largely unrecognised and his daily forecasts were often ridiculed. He died after committing suicide in 1865.