A real slice of history (Picture: SWNS)

A private letter in which Charles Darwin admits to being an atheist has sold for £125,000.

Charles Darwin is best known for groundbreaking work On The Origin of Species, which set out his theories on evolution and natural selection.

Unsurprisingly, due to the nature of these theories, the British naturalist was dogged by rumous and speculation as to his religious beliefs – of lack of them – however he always shied away from confirming his feelings either way.

Which is why the letter, which has just sold for an astonishing £125,000 at auction in New York, is so fascinating.


That’s £125k worth of letter there (Picture: SWNS)

In it Darwin unequivocally states that he is an atheist, writing: ‘Dear Sir, I am sorry to have to inform you that I do not believe in the Bible as a divine revelation and therefore not in Jesus Christ as the son of God. Yours faithfully Ch. Darwin.’



Darwin penned the note in reply to a letter he received from a young barrister called Francis McDermott, who wrote to the acclaimed naturalist to clarify his views on the matter.

Darwin in 1869 (Picture: by J. Cameron, 1869. — Image by © Bettmann/CORBIS)

In his letter, Francis McDermott wrote: ‘If I am to have pleasure in reading your books I must feel that at the end I shall not have lost my faith in the New Testament. My reason in writing to you therefore is to ask you to give me a Yes or No to the question Do you believe in the New Testament…..’

The letter, which was written in 1880, would have been seen as radical at the time, and thankfully for Darwin, McDermott was true to his word and kept his confession under wraps.

The letter, which was sold at Bonhams in New York on Monday, was estimated to sell for £60,000, but went for over double that.

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