RECORD: Darwin, C. R. 1965. [Letter to Charles Renard: Imperial Society of Naturalists of Moscow, 1870]. In Stecher, Robert M., and Klavins, Jams V., Charles Darwin and the Moscow Society of Naturalists. Journal of the History of Medicine. 20: 157-61.
REVISION HISTORY: Darwin was elected: "1870 Societas Caesarea Naturae Curiosorum (Société Imperiale des Naturalistes), Moscow, Russia. Honorary Member." (Paul van Helvert & John van Wyhe, Darwin: A Companion, 2021)
NOTE: See record in the Freeman Bibliographical Database, enter its Identifier here. The letter with important editorial notes is published in Correspondence vol. 18, pp. 142-3.
[page] 157
[…]
Down / Beckenham / Kent / May 28 70
Sir,
I beg leave to thank you for your very courteous letter of May 20th2 in which you announced to me that the Imperial Society of Naturalists of Moscow has conferred on me the distinguished honour of electing me an Honorary Member. This morning I received your Diploma. I hope that you will express on my part to the Society how deeply I feel gratified by this honour. In accordance with your suggestion I have directed my publisher to forward to your Society the last edition of my Origin of Species and my Journal of Researches during the Voyage of the Beagle.
With my Sincere Thanks / I have the honor to remain,
Sir, / Your most obedient Servant
Charles Darwin
[…]
2 The original communication carries the date "le 8/20 Mai 1870," representing both the Julian and Gregorian calendars (Russia used the Julian calendar until 1917.) Darwin's reply was written 20 days after the Russian letter instead of 8 days as might first have been thought.
Citation: John van Wyhe, ed. 2002-. The Complete Work of Charles Darwin Online. (http://darwin-online.org.uk/)
File last updated 25 September, 2022