1744-1797

John Gabriel Stedman was the first child of a commissioned officer in the Scots Brigade, Robert Stedman, and his noble dutch wife, Antoinetta Christina van Ceulen. He spent most of his childhood in Holland with his parents but spent some time with his Father's brother in Scotland. Stedman described his childhood as being chock-full of misadventures and abrasive encounters of every description. His years in Surinam were characterized by his experiences, attitudes and personal relationships from his childhood. Early feelings of torment brought upon by authority figures, mainly those feelings towards his uncle, were revisited in his adulthood, which is seen as he served under a Colonel Fourgeoud. His volatile reaction to the personal injustices committed by the unsympathetic figures was also well developed long before the outbursts and impulsive acts of destructive rage that pepper his Surinam Narrative.