Charles Lyell: biography of this influential British geologist.

A summary of the life and scientific contributions of Charles Lyell.

Charles Lyell was a British geologist, lawyer and paleontologist, and is considered one of the founders of modern geology and stratigraphy, the study of the layers of the Earth's surface.

Despite studying law and practicing for a time as a lawyer, he ended up opting for the field of natural sciences, geology, his true passion. In this way, he made many trips to different places in Europe and North America to verify and write his different theories and works.

In this brief biography of Charles Lyell we will mention the most relevant events and facts in the life of this scientist, as well as his studies, theories and contributions he made to Geology.

Brief biography of Charles Lyell

Charles Lyell was born on November 14, 1797 in Kinnordy, now known as Angus, Scotland.. He had nine siblings, being the eldest, and grew up in England. His parents were Frances Smith and Charles Lyell, who was a botanist.

From an early age he showed an interest in science and biology, as he liked to collect insects; during his childhood he was a pupil at various private schools.

University years

At the age of 19, Lyell began his education by attending different classes, among them Geology classes taught by the geologist William Buckland. Finally, once he finished his bachelor's degree, he decided to study law. In 1821 he obtained his first degree, graduating in law and thus becoming a member of the bar in 1825.

Although he chose a career in law, he always liked science, in particular natural history, so he in 1816 he attended classes at Exeter College, Oxford, and was a student of the geologist and paleontologist W. Buckland.. Attending these classes together with the many geological excursions and the fact of belonging to different scientific associations was decisive to continue increasing and reaffirming his interest and preference for the study of Geology.

After enrolling at Lincoln's Inn, considered one of the most prestigious professional bodies of judges and lawyers in the world, he joined the Linnean Geological Society in 1819, one of the world's leading scientific societies.one of the leading scientific societies in the study of taxonomy, a science that attempts to classify organisms by taking into account the traits they have in common.

It was only three years after his debut as a member of the Geological Society, in 1822, that he was able to present his first scientific paper.

In order to continue learning and acquiring knowledge, he made a journey in which he met Georges Curvier, a French naturalist and paleontologist, and Alexander von Humboldt, a German explorer, naturalist and geologist.who was a German explorer, naturalist and geologist. After his stay in France, he decided to undertake a trip focused on geology in his homeland, Scotland, with his professor William Buckland.

Professional life

It was in 1827 when he finally decided to leave his job as a lawyer and devote himself fully to Geology, becoming a member of the Royal Society.. In this period he began to develop what would be his most important novel, based on the publication made by James Hutton (geologist, physician, chemist and naturalist) on how the Earth was formed, but providing a different point of view and a more enlightening presentation.

Regarding his private life, married Mary Horner in 1832, who was an English conchyliologist and geologist.. In this way, his knowledge in geology also allowed him to collaborate in the scientific research of her husband, having more involvement than the recognition that was given to him.

Her travels in Europe did not cease, and between 1828 and 1829 she revisited France with the also Scottish geologist Roderick Murchison, and traveled through Italy together with the British philosopher, theologian and scientist William Whewell, whose studies carried out together allowed them to to name three geological times (concepts that made it possible to classify different rocks): the Eocene, the Miocene and the Pliocene..

It was also with the realization of these trips that he was able to find evidence that pointed and supported that the geology of the Earth was due to natural causes.

In relation to the three geologic times to which he gave his name, Hyell also is considered one of the founders of stratigraphy, which studies the different layers of the Earth's surface. which studies the different layers of the Earth's surface. Thus, he studied the ancient marine strata of Europe to classify the different existing strata.

Main scientific contributions

Between 1830 and 1833 he published what would be his most outstanding and important work, "Principles of Geology".divided into three volumes. As mentioned above, for the writing of this work he took into account the contributions made by J. Hutton in his uniformitarian thesis developed in his book "Theory of the Earth". Hutton believed that the process of development of the planet had been much slower than it was presented in the theory of catastrophism, which, on the contrary, presented the constitution of the Earth as a much faster process caused by great catastrophes.

In his work "Principles of Geology," the author refers to the gradualist current that presents and tries to explain the Biological and geological modifications using the successive processes of extinction and creation.. In this work, Lyell carried out a work of synthesis and used his own observations that he had made during his travels to give more strength and support to the contributions and affirmations that he presented in it.

This renowned publication by Lyell is made up of three dimensions. First, that of actualismwhere an attempt is made to explain facts and events of the past by taking into account the same causes that are present today.

Secondly, uniformismwhere, also contrary to the theory of catastrophism, it is affirmed that the geological phenomena of the past are uniform without any catastrophic phenomena occurring.

And finally, dynamic equilibriumAs already mentioned, it was pointed out that the changes in the Earth were produced by cycles, turns, of periods of creation and destruction, thus it is believed that the geological periods are equal.

Such was the importance of his first work in the field of geology that it was considered the most influential in this field in the nineteenth century, obtaining a high number of sales and publishing several editions of it. It was so important that even Charles Darwin himself used it as inspiration for his well-known book "The Origin of Species". In Spain it was published in 1847, translated into Spanish by the geologist Joaquín Ezquerra del Bayo.

One of the dimensions of the work "Principles of Geology" was based on the Theory of dynamic equilibrium, in this the author makes the distinction between two processes that constituted the shape of the Earth (geological morphogenesis) by means of mutual compensation of one and the other.On the one hand, there would be aqueous phenomena (such as erosion and sedimentation) and on the other hand, igneous phenomena (such as volcanic and seismic activity).

Similarly, Charles Lyell believed that in the history of the Earth the movements of the continents had generated climatic changes, thus affecting the survival and therefore the extinction of some species.

In 1838 the author published his second book, entitled "The Elements of Geology", also selling several editions of the book.also selling different editions of it.

Then, in 1845 and 1849 he published two books in which he explained his travels in North America, specifically in the United States and Canada.

Later, in 1863 he published his work entitled "The Geological Evidence of the Antiquity of Man". In it he did not show a clear acceptance of Darwin's theory of evolution, and it was not until two years later, in 1865, with the publication of a new edition of "The Principles of Geology", when he showed his support for the theory presented by Darwin.

It is also worth mentioning that throughout his career he received multiple awards, such as the Royal Medal, and was a member of various institutions. Likewise, in 1848 he was named sir, knight and in 1864 baron in England. In addition, in recognition and in his memory, a lunar crater and a crater on Mars are named after his surname.

Charles Lyell died in London on February 22, 1875.