Few books have played such a large role in history as Charles Darwin’s On the Origin of Species, except perhaps the Bible and the Koran. Published on November 24, 1859, Darwin’s book discussed such new ideas as natural selection, the survival of the fittest and of course, the natural evolutionary progression of homo sapiens. This non religious version of reality sparked a controversy that the world had never known.

Darwin’s research for the book had taken place on the HMS Beagle years before. As he traveled to the Galapagos Islands and other exotic places, he made observations on the nature of environment and the effect of climate on the development of species. He had a theory that animals were not merely created by an invisible being but they progressed along a very long line of evolution. Their “origins” were in the prehistoric world. Pure heresy of course.

That may be why it took Darwin several years before he spoke and wrote publicly on his theory of evolution. The first edition consisted of only 1, 250 copies. A second printing took place in December adding an additional 3,000 copies as well as a German translation to the controversy.

For forward thinking Victorians, Darwin’s book was the must have item of the year. Those who embraced the humanist enlightenment sentiments of the previous century felt compelled to explore such new “scientific” ideas. Science was on the rise in the mid to late 19^th century and the scientific method found favor among academics.

There was talk of a knighthood for Darwin before the church interposed. Darwin’s peers reacted in one of two ways: in favor or against the concept that man was descended from apes. Less than a year after the book was published, the term “Darwinism” was coined.

This was the era of tea rooms and private clubs, public libraries and the graduation of public space into a permanent part of society. Many people didn’t quite understand the concept as it was still so new, but it didn’t stop them from trying. The book was read and debated, sparked both cries of heresy and cries of progress. Darwin had changed human perception forever, cast doubt into tightly fixed views. Pulled a Copernicus if you will.

If you were alive in 1859, you had heard of Darwin’s book on the natural order of things. And of course, if you are alive today, You’ve probably heard of it too. Charles Darwin’s theories have enjoyed over a century of debate and study. Despite the fossil record, the work of anthropologists and the logical nature of the idea, many still refuse to accept Darwin’s theories. Because of this, there seems no let up in the debate or argument that started over 140 years ago. Sometimes a book is more than a book. Sometimes it’s the start of an historical movement.

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The plague took the lives of million of Europeans from the 14^th until the 17^th century. In England, its destruction stayed mainly in the south of England concentrating around the poor quarters of London. But for one small village in England’s rural north, the plague would be devastating and historic. The case of the small village of Eyam in Derbyshire is famed throughout England and serves in the modern age of an example of the importance of self quarantine in the face of deadly disease.

It all began with the decision of the village tailor, George Viccars to purchase a box of fabric from a London dealer and bring it to Eyam to make clothes for the locals. Viccars didn’t know the box was full of fleas carrying the bubonic plague. Three days later he was dead.

The village knew plague when they saw it and drastic action was taken to ensure it didn’t spread outside of the village. The village went into self induced quarantine under the guidance of the retired vicar and the serving vicar. They asked the villagers to make this sacrifice to save the lives of everyone else. The villages made the difficult moral decision and complied.

The next few months were hard, families, men, women and children became sick and died. One woman lost her husband and six children within the space of a single week. The village lived with the disease throughout September and October of 1665, minimizing contact with each other, receiving provisions from neighboring villages who left food for them at the town boundaries and holding all public ceremonies outside to minimize the spread of the illness.

During that time, the small village of Eyam with a population of approximately 700 people lost 260 of its inhabitants to the plague. The plague affected 76 different families and wiped out a few of them forever. Many households had only a single survivor who lived to tell the tale of those terrible months.

Many people did survive and they recorded the histories and passings of their neighbors on the front of their home and these records still exist. All the villagers learned how to bury their neighbors, friends and family members. It was a time unimaginable for most of us today as these simple country folk showed a spirit of community almost gone in these modern times.

Today, Eyam pays homage to those that lost their lives in 1665 with a plague museum as well as plaques on the house of the victims. The cemetery still keeps their bones and the locals still hold testament to their title of England’s “plague village.” They may have not realized it at the time but those few deaths became famed throughout England, making their way into every child’s schoolbook and taught as an example of ill fate.

Eyam was just one small village of the hundreds affected by the bubonic plague but its history provides a glimpse into the lives of its survivors and victims, making the epidemic more than just statistics of people who live long ago but a testament of human endurance and the belief in the sacrifice of a few to save the lives of many.

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Few educators in history have made such a profound effect on the shape of the future as John Locke. His practical, down to earth approach on education and his belief in the folly in the practice of divine kinship did much to shape the course of the Enlightenment period and the basis of modern European thought.

Locke was born in 1632 into an upper middle class family in England and studied medicine at Oxford. Early on Locke found himself disagreeing with professors who insisted on teaching the ancient Greek philosophers. He was more interested in newer theories and had a penchant for the works of Rene Descartes. Through his friendship with the mechanical philosopher Robert Boyle and the famed scientific rebel Isaac Newton, Locke found logic in the new theories floating around in the late 17^th century.

Soon after graduating from college, Locke came under the employ of the Earl of Shaftsbury and assisted him in a number of non medical matters including the administration of his estate, various business matters and also acted as his political advisor. The earl enjoyed Locke’s unique (for the time) views on the freedom of religion, the unbelief in absolutism and the desire for a democratic governing body for the country.

In 1682, Locke’s anti royal sentiments resulted in his banishment to Holland. It was in exile that Locke penned his influential work “An Essay Concerning Human Understanding.” In 1688, the Glorious Revolution in which William of Orange overthrew the current English king, James II. This meant Locke could return to his homeland without fear of persecution or prosecution and so he did.

In 1690, Locke published his two treaties on government which were considered influential works in the revolutions of the 18^th century, namely America and France. Locke argued that revolution against tyranny was acceptable to bring legitimate rule to a nation. He also explained his thoughts on education which involved learning from experience not just because we exist.

During the 1690s Locke worked for the new British government in a number of positions including commissioner of plantations and trade. He continued with his theoretical writings, publishing on religion, government, ethics and education.

Locke retired to the country to live with friends and passed away in 1704, long before many of his works would influence the birth of a democratic America and the overthrow of royal power in France. But without Locke’s suggesting divine kingship as wrong and the rights of the citizens as the main work of any government, those two revolutions may have taken very different forms. His work on education would underlie the public school system in Britain and his thoughts on theology helped others find their own path to religious freedom. Locke was one of many that created the bedrock for the Enlightenment period.

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The son of an English revolutionary, William Penn was a central figure in the early days of America and laid the basis for religious freedom in the country. Born October 14, 1644, Penn came to the New World in his 50s after a lifetime of public service and a comfortable domestic life.

Unlike many notable early Americans, Penn came from a wealthy and politically influential family and had a great interest in the puritan religion. He did not adhere to commonly held beliefs of his fellow Englishmen, getting kicked out of Oxford University an institution backed by the Church of England. His marriage to a Quaker woman in 1672 completed his spiritual transition.

In his position as a lawyer, Penn advocated against the injustices faced by followers of the Quaker faith successfully winning a number of cases. It culminated with his part in establishing jury trials and the toleration of religion in New Jersey. Penn is best remembered for his “holy experiment” and the establishment of Pennsylvania as both a capitalist and spiritual adventure.

Most of the land for Penn’s colony was successfully negotiated away from the Native Americans without violence in the 17^th century. Pennsylvania claimed the equality and religious freedom of all the inhabitants both native and landed. The colony was operated as part democracy part dictatorship with Penn expecting his suggestions to be followed by the elected officials.

Penn’s public life was full of conflict from challenges to his authority, laws and loyalties to his insurmountable debts. He spent a few years in prison because of his allegiance to King James II and because of his economic troubles. Penn didn’t move permanently to Pennsylvania until after the English revolution in 1699.

After moving to the colonies, Penn focused on mending ties with both the natives and among the religious communities of settlers. There were a number of spiritual differences that had arisen among the Quakers and Penn took on the role of mediator and peacemaker.

From 1701 to 1776, Penn’s charter that determined Pennsylvania would be the only state that had a legislature of representatives as its governmental body. After a troubled but privileged life consisting of two marriages, a political career hampered by dissent and a changing perspective on faith, Penn fell ill in 1712 with a stroke and finally passed away back in England in 1718.

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