Season 2 Episode 1: Hot Coffee

 This is the first episode for Season 2 of Discovering Darwin. We have titled this season Darwin the Adventurer because we plan to explore in detail the Voyage of the Beagle, Darwin's five year around-the-world survey in which he collected the specimens and made the observations that ultimately led him to develop his theory of evolution and write On the Origin of Species.

In this episode we introduce the three major characters involved in the famous voyage- Captain Robert Fitzroy, Charles Darwin and the ship the HMS Beagle.

HMS Beagle in the Galapagos (painted by John Chancellor)

Josh introduced us to Pringle Stokes, the original captain of the Beagle during its maiden voyage (1826-1830) to South America on a survey voyage to map the Straits of Magellan at the tip of South America. However the HSM Beagle, a Cherokee class brig-sloop which were often derogatorily referred to as "coffin brigs", was a difficult ship to control in the severe winds, strong currents, high seas, and rogue icebergs that were typically encountered around Cape Horn. Josh explained how Pringle Stokes commits suicide on the ship in 1828 and Robert Fitzroy is assigned to captain the ship after Stokes demise.

Robert Fitzroy - photo by Hemus, Charles 1849?-1925
[Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

We talked about the contingencies of history and how some tierra del fuegian children became the nexus for Fitzroy, Darwin and the HMS Beagle.  We will dedicate a later episode to the depressing tale of Jemmy Buttons, York Minister and Fuegia Basket, kidnapped tierra del fuegians who rejected their roles as Christian missionaries for England and forever haunted Robert Fitzroy and many others back in England.

Drawings by Robert Fitzroy

Because of Robert Fitzroy's short temper and willingness to lash out to those crew members he felt were wanting he was given the nickname "Hot Coffee" by the crew.  A meticulous man and data collector, Fitzroy would often retrace his sailing path to confirm his charts and maps, a level of meticulousness that would exasperate his crew and Darwin.

Fitzroy's iterative approach to sailing. Map from https://www.britannica.com/topic/Beagle-ship

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The opening and closing theme to Discovering Darwin is "May" by Jared C. Balogh. 

Interlude music is Rite of Passage by Kevin MacLeod