Darwin’s theory of natural selection was finally published (and sold-out) in November 1859. The idea had been in his head, and a talking point of others, for years before. We’re still talking about it today.

Here’s a clip from a BBC documentary called Legacy about the impact of Darwin’s ideas:

The Guardian newspaper has a great page devoted to Darwin, including key excerpts from ‘On the Origin of Species…‘ and an article by Richard Dawkins.

You can download the full text of the first edition in pdf format from the University of New South Wales, or read it online at Talk Origins.