Biddle was born to a wealthy old Quaker family on December 24, 1745, in Philadelphia, Province of Pennsylvania in what was then British America.

[2] As a youth, Biddle was a schoolmate and close friend of Mathias Aspden and Founding Father Benjamin Rush.

He volunteered in the Quaker Light Infantry and, in 1778, he served under his brother, Commodore Nicholas Biddle, aboard the USS Randolph.

[9] The Biddle family had a summer home outside of Philadelphia that was furnished sumptuously with English furniture and paintings.

[8] Together, they were the parents of ten children, including:[10][11] Biddle died on April 4, 1821, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.