The Legacy of the ‘Edinburgh Lamarckians’

The penultimate chapter looks at the longer-term impact of the efflorescence of evolutionary speculation in early-nineteenth-century Edinburgh on later generations of natural historians. First it examines the evangelical reaction against progressive models of the history of life and its role in the eclipse of the ‘Edinburgh Lamarckians.’ Next it examines to the evolutionary theory proposed by Robert Chambers in his anonymously published Vestiges of the Natural History of Creation (1844) to assess its possible debt to the Edinburgh transformists of the 1820s and 1830s. Finally it turns to the important question of the possible influence of the ‘Edinburgh Lamarckians’ on Charles Darwin during his time as a medical student in Edinburgh in the years 1825 to 1827, during which period he rubbed shoulders with many of the key proponents of evolutionary ideas in the city.

Introduction

The introduction sets the scene by exploring the role of Edinburgh as a centre for the development and propagation of pre-Darwinian evolutionary theories. It gives essential background on natural history in the Scottish capital in early nineteenth century and the history of evolutionary thought and outlines the aims and objectives of the book. In addition, it explores some of the historiographical issues raised by earlier historians of science who have discussed the role of Edinburgh in the development of evolutionary thought in Great Britain.

Conclusion

In this final chapter the various threads of the argument for the importance of Edinburgh as a centre for the elaboration and transmission of evolutionary theories in the early nineteenth century are drawn together. It argues for the importance of Edinburgh as a conduit for the transmission of evolutionary ideas into Great Britain, where they would influence both the development and the reception of Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution by means of natural selection.

Edinburgh and Paris

Paris was the most important centre for evolutionary speculations in Europe in the early nineteenth century. Two of its most influential evolutionary thinkers, Jean-Baptiste Lamarck and Étienne Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire both worked there in the city’s Museum of Natural History. This chapter explores the impact of these French thinkers’ theories in Edinburgh and the close connections that existed between natural history circles in the two cities. It was common for students and graduates of the medical school of the University of Edinburgh to spend time studying in Paris, where they imbibed many of the exciting new ideas being discussed there. Two of the key figures discussed in this book, Robert Grant and Robert Knox, had both spent time in Paris and were deeply influenced by the theories they encountered there. The chapter also examines the impact of the key writings of Lamarck and Geoffroy in Edinburgh.

Geology and Evolution

The dominant school of geology in Edinburgh in the early nineteenth century was that of the followers of the German mineralogist Abraham Gottlob Werner. His most important disciple in the English-speaking world was Edinburgh’s professor of natural history, Robert Jameson. The Wernerians believed that the history of the earth was fundamentally directional; they believed the earth started out as a ball of hot fluid from which the different rocks that now form the crust of the planet gradually precipitated out over geological time. It is argued in this chapter that this directional model of the geological history of the earth was peculiarly compatible with a progressive model of the history of life on earth. The changes in the physical condition of the earth over geological time were seen by some Wernerian geologists as driving the evolution of life.

Natural History in Edinburgh, 1779–1832

This chapter focuses in on Edinburgh’s natural history circles in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. First it examines the chair of natural history at the University and the work of its two incumbents during this period, John Walker and Robert Jameson, before turning to natural history in the extra-mural anatomy schools. These were the site of some of the boldest thinkers on evolutionary themes in early nineteenth-century Britain. Edinburgh was also the home of a number of important natural history societies in this period, for example, the Plinian and Wernerian Natural History Societies. These served as lively forums for the discussion of the latest developments and theories. This chapter will explore the nature and role of these societies, before finally turning the spotlight on the scientific and natural history journals published in the city, such as the Edinburgh Philosophical Journal and the Edinburgh Journal of Science.

Edinburgh’s University and Medical Schools in the Early Nineteenth Century

Edinburgh and its ancient university provided an important context for the reception of pre-Darwinian evolutionary theories. Much more socially and intellectually inclusive than the contemporary English universities, the open and tolerant atmosphere of the University of Edinburgh provided an atmosphere in which exciting new speculations on the natural world and man’s place in it could be debated and discussed by both professors and students. Outside the University, Edinburgh’s extra-mural anatomy schools were home to some of the most innovative thinkers in early nineteenth-century comparative anatomy, such as Robert Knox and Robert Grant. This chapter explores these institutions which played such a vital role in creating an atmosphere in which radical new ideas about the natural world could flourish.