Robert Adrian Stedman was born at Tiverton on 3 Oct 1789. His family came from Ernieside, co.Kinross. Described in the Bengal Army List as a Count of the Holy Roman Empire. He was the son of John Gabriel Stedman whose father was a lieutenant-colonel in the Scots Brigade in the Dutch Service. His mother was John’s second wife, Adriana Wiertz van Coehoorn, granddaughter of Baron Menno van Coehoorn the famous military engineer. Robert was baptised at the Protestant Dissenters Chapel, Tiverton on 29 Oct 1789.
Stedman arrived in India in 1809, was a cadet at Barasat, and posted as a cornet to the 7th BNC in February 1813. He served in the Nepal War of 1814-15 and the Third Maharatta War of 1817-18, at Dhamoni, Mandla, Multai and Harna. He was promoted to lieutenant on 1 Sep 1818 and appointed Interpreter and QM on 4 Dec 1820. In 1822-23 he was in operations against the Bhils and was on the Shekhawat expedition. On 1 May 1834 he was promoted Captain and then to major on 13 April 1837. He was a lieutenant-colonel on 10 Mar 1841 and served in the Army of Reserve for Afghanistan from Oct 1842 until Jan 1843. He was transferred to the 1st BLC on 20 Mar 1844 and served in the First Sikh War at Aliwal where he distinguished himself, and the Second Sikh War at Multan. He was awarded CB on 27 June 1846.
He was married in Meerut on 11 Oct 1821 to Anne Hennessy. They had three daughters, Henrietta 1824 - 1890, Annette b.1827, Louisa 1828 - 1912. Lieutenant-Colonel Stedman died at sea on board the ‘Haddington’, between Calcutta and Madras, on 12 April 1849. A monument to his memory was erected at Cawnpore. Anne Stedman died on 14 May 1875.
There is an account of the life of John Gabriel Stedman at https://www.wikiwand.com/en/John_Gabriel_Stedman
