John Keats · Charles Darwin Were John Keats and Charles Darwin alive at the same time? Yes. John Keats and Charles Darwin were alive at the same time for 12 years, from 1809 to 1821. John Keats was 13 when Charles Darwin was born.Charles Darwin was 12 when John Keats died, aged 25. John KeatsEnglish Romantic poetBorn 31 October 1795 · died 23 February 1821, aged 25Charles DarwinEnglish naturalist and biologistBorn 12 February 1809 · died 19 April 1882, aged 73 Johann Wolfgang von GoetheNapoleonJohn KeatsCharles DarwinAbraham LincolnKarl MarxVladimir LeninAlbert Einstein John Keats and Charles Darwin in bold, with some of their best-known contemporaries. Drag across to see the age each reached in any year. Faded ends mark uncertain dates.