The officer who was now at the head of the Cape government was destined to exercise a greater influence upon the future of South Africa than any of his predecessors had done. He was a son of Adriaan van der Stel, commander for the honourable East India Company of the island of Mauritius. Born there on the 14th of November 1639, Simon van der Stel when very young was sent to the fatherland, and received a liberal education in the best schools of Holland. Connected by marriage with an ancient and influential family of Amsterdam, he had hitherto maintained the character of a highly respectable burgher, though the situation which he held in the service of the East India Company brought him in but a very limited income, and he had inherited little or nothing. He was poor, and so when an opportunity of improving his fortune was offered to him he gladly accepted it.

In person Simon van der Stel was small, with a dark complexion, but open cheerful countenance. His habits were refined, and as far as his means would permit he surrounded himself with objects of taste. His courtesy and exceeding hospitality to strangers are dwelt upon by more than one visitor to the Cape, as is also his fondness for telling marvellous tales of his adventures and creating merriment at his own expense. Witty, good natured, and polite, he was also shrewd and possessed of a very large amount of plain common sense.