On the Origin of Species Darwin's ideas with those of Lamarck and Goethe while still reflecting the spirit of "Naturphilosophie". Their ambitious programme to reconstruct the evolutionary history of life was joined by Huxley and supported by discoveries in palaeontology. Haeckel used embryology extensively in his recapitulation theory, which embodied a progressive, almost linear model of evolution. Darwin was cautious about such histories, and had already noted that von Baer's laws of embryology supported his idea of complex branching. Asa Gray promoted and defended "Origin" against those American naturalists with an idealist approach, notably Louis Agassiz who viewed every species as a distinct fixed unit
Reactions to On the Origin of Species to showing you the varieties of those species, or of any of those phenomena that would aid one in getting at that mystery of mysteries, the origin of species, our space does not permit; but surely there ought to be a space somewhere, and, if not in the British Museum, where is it to be obtained?" Huxley's April review in the "Westminster Review" included the first mention of the term "Darwinism" in the question, "What if the orbit of Darwinism should be a little too circular?" Darwin thought it a "brilliant review." Overflowing the narrow bounds of purely scientific circles,