Story Highlights
- Historical event
- 30 April 1865
- Robert FitzRoy was a descendant of the King Charles II Stuart through the male line. He later became an admiral, and also was a Governor of New Zealand.
The British Admiral Robert FitzRoy, known as the captain of the Beagle which carried Charles Darwin around the world, died on this day in 1865.
It is interesting to note that FitzRoy`s father was the General Lord Charles FitzRoy, the son of the third Duke of Grafton (the British Prime Minister).
Robert FitzRoy was a descendant of the King Charles II Stuart through the male line (surname Fitzroy actually implied “illegal king`s offspring”).
Robert FitzRoy was at the age of 23 when he became the commander of the Beagle. He started the historical journey with Charles Darwin when he was 26 years old, and very young (he probably became the captain of the ship due to his aristocratic origins).
At the beginning of the trip, Charles Darwin was three and a half years younger than FitzRoy.
Robert FitzRoy made a considerable career after the end of the trip.
He was a member of the British Parliament, and became the governor of New Zealand in 1843. Robert was also an admiral.
He studied meteorology during the rest of his life, and became one of the world’s leading experts in the field of meteorology.
Robert FitzRoy died at the age of 60 in his native England on this day.
