When Darwin returned to Shrewsbury, a letter from Captain Robert FitzRoy offered him a position as gentlemen companion on board of the ship "Beagle". - Charles Darwin. Eight Reasons Darwin Almost Didn’t Board the HMS Beagle ... Henslow wrote that the trip would be for two years (in truth it lasted five).
Darwin wanted to be a doctor but had hemophobia, otherwise known as the fear of blood. When Charles Darwin agreed to join Captain Robert Fitzroy aboard the HMS Beagle on a voyage to the Galapagos Islands, he was a young, lost soul.
He'd failed in his studies at medical school, being more drawn to the collection of rare beetles and examination of geological oddities. While traveling, instead of dining with the crew, he would find animals such as armadillos, iguanas, and land tortoises which he would eat for dinner.
Robert FitzRoy was the captain of HMS Beagle. As soon as the euphoria at the idea of traveling around the entire globe faded, what remained was Darwin’s physician father, and a water bucket of reality. Charles Darwin, in full Charles Robert Darwin, (born February 12, 1809, Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England—died April 19, 1882, Downe, Kent), English naturalist whose scientific theory of evolution by natural selection became the foundation of modern evolutionary studies. With the prospect of becoming an MD behind him, the journey was Darwin's chance to embrace adventure and …
He needed Dr. Darwin’s approval, yes, but he also needed his money. Darwin almost didn't get the job as the ship's naturalist because FitzRoy didn't like Darwin's nose! Robert Darwin was a giant of a man, the largest man whom Charles Darwin had ever seen, weighing in at three hundred and thirty six pounds for a six foot two frame.