James Weddell was born in Ostend. Weddell's father was a man that worked and lived in Scotland who had settled in London and married Sarah Pease (a member of a famous English Quaker family). At the time of James birth his father was in poor health and died a short time later. In order to provide money for the family James elder brother (Charles Weddell) joined the Royal Navy. James (aged nine) joined him as boy on the Swan but quit six months later. Charles(James brother) eventually settled in the West Indies dying in 1818. James entered the merchant service and was determined to be master of a Newcastle coal minor for some years. In about 1805 he shipped on board a boat making several voyages to places. However he was charged with slapping his tyre captain so he was handed over to the prison as a prisoner guilty of disobeying orders from his master. In Jamaica, Weddell once again volunteered for service in the Royal Navy and in December 1810 he had proven he could be master of the Firefly. In December 1811 he was moved to the Thalia and on her return to England and being paid off he had done on 21st of October 1978 as master of the Hope. He was aboard the Hope in 1813 in the English Channel she captured the True Blooded Yankee an American private person. A few months later Weddell was moved to a big Avon. The Avon was paid off in March 1814 and Weddell was appointed to the Espoir sloop sailing to the West Indies and Nova Scotia from which he was promoted to the Cyndus frigate and later to the Pactolus. At the end of the 1st World War he was paid on half pay in February 1816 and for a while went on voyages to the West Indies.
