Thomas Henry Huxley
English biologist and anatomist (1825–1895); "Darwin's Bulldog"; coined the word agnosticism.
At a glance
Main ideas
Evolution, argued in public, Agnosticism, Humans and apes …
See all 4Books to start with
Evidence as to Man's Place in Nature, Lay Sermons, Addresses and Reviews, Science and Culture, and Other Essays …
See all 4Connections
Charles Darwin, Herbert Spencer and Evolution and Ethics
See all 3
Also on this page: Key facts · Links · Sources · Related pages
- Huxley was an English biologist and anthropologist who specialised in comparative anatomy.
- He is known as "Darwin's Bulldog" for his public advocacy of Darwin's theory of evolution.
- He was largely self-taught, with two years of formal schooling.
- He concluded that birds evolved from small carnivorous dinosaurs.
- He coined the term agnosticism in 1869 and worked to build scientific education in Britain.
Why it matters
- His defence of evolution, including the 1860 Oxford debate with Samuel Wilberforce, was a key moment in its wider acceptance; his 1893 lecture Evolution and Ethics shaped how Darwin was read in China.
Key facts
- Born
- 4 May 1825, Ealing, Middlesex1
- Died
- 29 Jun 1895, Eastbourne, of a heart attack1
- HMS Rattlesnake
- Assistant surgeon on a survey voyage to New Guinea and Australia from 18461
- Royal Society
- Fellow 1851, Royal Medal 1852; president from 1883 to 18851
- Royal School of Mines
- Professor of natural history from 1854; retired 18851
- Honours
- Copley Medal 1888; Darwin Medal 1894; Privy Councillor 18921
Main ideas
-
Evolution, argued in public1
He backed Darwin in print and in debate from 1859, though agnostic about natural selection.
-
Agnosticism1
Claims should be framed by what is knowable and what is not.
-
Humans and apes1
He worked on the relationship between humans and the other apes, and debated Richard Owen on it.
-
Ethics is human-made1
"Of moral purpose I see not a trace in nature. That is an article of exclusively human manufacture."
Books to start with
The line under a date fills as it gets older: empty when new, full at 2 years.
-
Evidence as to Man's Place in Nature1
-
Lay Sermons, Addresses and Reviews1
-
Science and Culture, and Other Essays1
-
Evolution and Ethics and Other Essays1
Collects his 1893 Romanes Lecture.
Connections
Links
Sources
Last checked against its sources today
Is something on this page wrong or out of date? Tell us
The line under a date fills as time passes: empty when new, then one equal share each for a day, a week, a month and a year. For episodes and other items it is full at 2 years; for "last checked", at a year. A striped line means the date is known only to the month or year.