He was the son of Sir Christoffel Joseph Brand (1797–1875), speaker of the Cape legislative assembly, and Catharina Fredrica Küchler.

Johannes Brand married in 1851 to Johanna Sibella Zastron, a daughter of the Registrar of Deeds in Cape Town.

[2] As a young Member of the Cape Parliament, he became a keen supporter of John Molteno's "Responsible Government" movement, which advocated greater independence from Britain.

[3] However, finding its principles too moderate, he decided to emigrate to the Orange Free State, in solidarity with its strong republican ideals.

In 1871, Brand was solicited by a large party to become president of the South African Republic (Transvaal), and thus unite the two Boer republics in what would later become part of South Africa; but as the project was hostile to Great Britain he declined to do so, and maintained his constant policy of neutrality towards England, where his merits were recognised in 1882 when he was awarded the Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George.