When
the name Charles Darwin is mentioned, wherever you are in the world, it is
invariably in the context of nature and especially on the evolution of the species. In his work, On the Origin of
Species by Means of Natural Selection, he was perhaps the first big-name
scientist to clearly challenge the biblical account of creation.
Charles Darwin
But
the idea of evolution, that plants and animals had changed and developed in the
course of time, was not new. Even in classical Greece such an idea existed and
geological discoveries in the 19th century gave rise to considerable
scientific speculation. What Darwin did was to provide an acceptable
explanation of how such development could take place. This was his theory of
natural selection, that all living things reproduce themselves with slight
variations to adapt to a changing environment.
But
behind a great mind which was in the right place at the right time, there is
often another great character, or several, who manage to remain less acclaimed or even anonymous,
depending upon whose history books one prefers to read. Alexander Von Humboldt,
for example, is perhaps the best known of these and, if you were to read Andrea Wulf’s The Invention of Nature, in which she
describes Humboldt as “The Lost Hero of Science”, you might be forgiven in
thinking that perhaps Mr Darwin was, in fact, behind the times.
The Invention of Nature, by Andrea Wulf
In
fairness, Charles Darwin was a huge admirer of Humboldt and, having read so
much of the Prussian’s writings, how disappointed he was in January 1832 when he
and his expedition were prevented by the local authorities from exploring the
island of Tenerife, from seeking out the amazing Dragon Tree in the Orotava
Valley and from climbing the great Mt Teide volcano.
Mount Teide through the retama and flixweed in Spring
The famous Dragon Tree (Dracaena draco) at Icod de los Vinos
HMS
Beagle anchored in the Bay of Santa Cruz on 6th January but, before
anyone could be rowed ashore, a little pale-faced man, as described by Darwin,
informed them that the Beagle was to be placed in quarantine for twelve days because
of a suspected outbreak of cholera in England. HMS Beagle sailed on her way,
catching los Alisios, the north
easterly trade winds, towards the Cape Verde Islands.
Painting by Conrad Martens of the Beagle at anchor whilst surveying Tierra del Fuego
One
of Spain’s own great adventurers and travellers had also been discovering the
wonders of nature before Charles Darwin, and perhaps never received the
attention he deserved. This often happens when a great nation or empire is in
decline, as Spain’s was in the early 19th century. His name was Felix de
Azara. He was a soldier, mathematician and engineer by profession. However, he was a
marvellous naturalist at heart and has numerous species named after him, like Azara’s
Night Monkey (Aotus azarae).
Azara´s Night Monkey at Cristalino Jungle Lodge, Matto Grosso, Brazil
He is also believed to have had a considerable, if unrecognised, influence on Darwin’s philosophy. Whilst Azara played out his role as a military defender of the Spanish Empire he still found time to make amateur notes on the virgin ecosystems of the South American continent.
Azara's illustration of his "Tamandua noir", a species of anteater
He illustrated over five hundred birds and fifty mammals in a military exact manner but, what caught Darwin’s eye were Azara’s ideas about evolution which appeared in his later manuscripts. Azara´s findings were published in England
and France but not in Spain, possibly due to greater religious pressures.
Sculpture of Felix de Azara by Eduard Alentorn (Barcelona's Martorell Museum)
Felix
de Azara was more than a just naturalist. Indeed his adventures in the name of
the King of Spain would make a thrilling movie. It all began in 1781 when he
was ordered to set sail for Montevideo on a secret mission. He was a reputed
engineer and loyal to King Carlos III when he was commissioned to draw up the
borders between the Spanish and Portuguese South American territories, as
agreed under the 1777 Treaty of Ildefonso. In this task he covered a surface as
big as Western Europe from the Andes to the Atlantic coast, from Patagonia to the
dense forests of Brazil and the Bolivian hills.
It was evident, perhaps as scientists like Humboldt, Azara and Darwin began to understand that everything in nature appeared to be connected somehow, that the Spaniard had also, by accident, become a pioneering anthropologist. He identified forty different tribes or nations, as he preferred to call them,
and studied their customs. Running against the tide of European colonial
methods Azara is possibly one of the earliest Europeans to have shown concern
for the manner in which different peoples in remote parts of the world were
being cultured by advanced
civilisations. Some movements today, in their absurd quest to annihilate history
as a remedy for our sins, are asking Europeans to apologise for what Felix de
Azara already recognised over two hundred years ago.
“What a pity to see such beautiful and strong
nations extinguished by our intervention. What I find most sad is that there
appears to be no remedy”.
It is no wonder his views were kept quiet in
those days, but it is no surprise also that relatively new "nationalisms" are using these very understandable feelings to stir up nationalist sentiment today. On this side of the Atlantic, the Canary Islands were a stepping-stone for early American exploration and exploitation, and the islands' own indigenous nations or kingdoms, the Guanche people, were, as Azara would say, "cultured" and to a great extent, extinguished. It is since the Canary Islands were given the chance to have their autonomous governments, and have been governed by semi-nationalist coalitions, that interest in the Guanche heritage has become much more than just anthropological and, rightly so, helped Canary Islanders today to feel very proud of their indigenous background.
Azara,
Darwin’s Spanish connection, returned to Spain in 1801. In what is an early
example of man’s continuing need to progress, even if it involves evident destruction
of the environment and of the species, he discovered that many of the reports and
birds he had sent back to Spain had vanished in mysterious circumstances.
Nevertheless he continued to serve Spain as a soldier, especially against the
French, whose culture, incidentally, he greatly admired.
(Certain images have been reproduced from internet with no personal financial gain intended.)
By John Reid Young
Author of books "A SHARK IN THE BATH AND OTHER STORIES" and "THE SKIPPING VERGER AND OTHER TALES", collections of his short stories set in Tenerife and the Canary Islands.
