Edward Balliol was a claimant to the Scottish throne (1314–1356). With English help, he briefly ruled the country from 1332 to 1336.

Life

He was the eldest son of John Balliol, erstwhile King of the Scots, and Isabella de Warenne

Isabella de Warenne

Isabella de Warenne was Baroness of Bywell by her marriage to John Balliol; there is however doubt that she lived to become his Queen consort when he succeeded to the Scottish throne.- Family :...

, daughter of John de Warenne, 6th Earl of Surrey and Alice de Lusignan. Alice was daughter of Hugh X de Lusignan and Isabella of Angoulême

Isabella of Angoulême

Isabella of Angoulême was queen consort of England as the second wife of King John from 1200 until John's death in 1216. They had five children by the king including his heir, later Henry III...

, widow of John, King of England.

The death of King Robert I

Robert I of Scotland

Robert I , popularly known as Robert the Bruce , was King of Scots from March 25, 1306, until his death in 1329.His paternal ancestors were of Scoto-Norman heritage , and...

 weakened Scotland considerably, since his son and successor David II

David II of Scotland

David II was King of Scots from 7 June 1329 until his death.-Early life:...

 was still a child and the two most able lieutenants, the Black Douglas

James Douglas, Lord of Douglas

Sir James Douglas , , was a Scottish soldier and knight who fought in the Scottish Wars of Independence.-Early life:...

 and Thomas Randolph, 1st Earl of Moray, both died shortly afterwards.

Taking advantage of this, Edward Balliol, backed by Edward III of England

Edward III of England

Edward III was King of England from 1327 until his death and is noted for his military success. Restoring royal authority after the disastrous reign of his father, Edward II, Edward III went on to transform the Kingdom of England into one of the most formidable military powers in Europe...

, defeated the Regent, the Earl of Mar, at the Battle of Dupplin Moor

Battle of Dupplin Moor

The Battle of Dupplin Moor was fought between supporters of the infant David II, the son of Robert the Bruce, and rebels supporting the Balliol claim in 1332. It was a significant battle of the Second War of Scottish Independence.-Background:...

 in Perthshire

Perthshire

Perthshire, officially the County of Perth , is a registration county in central Scotland. It extends from Strathmore in the east, to the Pass of Drumochter in the north, Rannoch Moor and Ben Lui in the west, and Aberfoyle in the south...

. He was crowned at Scone in September 1332, but three months later he was forced to flee half-naked back to England, following a surprise attack by nobles loyal to David II at the Battle of Annan

Battle of Annan

The Battle of Annan, known in the sources as the Camisade of Annan took place on December 16, 1332. It took place at Annan, Dumfries and Galloway in Scotland. In it the Bruce loyalist supporters of King David II of Scotland surprised Edward Balliol and his supporters while they were in bed, and...

.

On his retreat from Scotland, Balliol sought refuge with the Clifford family

Baron de Clifford

Baron de Clifford is a title in the Peerage of England. It was created in 1299 for Robert de Clifford. The title was created by writ, which means that it can descend through both male and female lines. The de Clifford family settled in England after the Norman conquest and were a notable family in...

, land owners in Westmorland

Westmorland

Westmorland is an area of North West England and one of the 39 historic counties of England. It formed an administrative county from 1889 to 1974, after which the entirety of the county was absorbed into the new county of Cumbria.-Early history:...

, and stayed in their castles at Appleby

Appleby Castle

Appleby Castle is in the town of Appleby, Cumbria overlooking the River Eden . It consists of a 12th-century castle keep which is known as Caesar's tower, and a mansion house. These, together with their associated buildings, are set in a courtyard surrounded by curtain walls...

, Brougham

Brougham Castle

Brougham Castle is a medieval building about south-east of Penrith, Cumbria, England. It is a Scheduled Monument and open to the public. Founded by Robert de Vieuxpont in the early 13th century on the site of a Roman fort, it sits near the confluence of the rivers Eamont and Lowther...

, Brough

Brough Castle

Brough Castle is a ruined castle in the village of Brough, Cumbria , England. It is currently administered by English Heritage. The Castle consists of a large mound, on which there is an extensive range of buildings, with a circular corner tower, and the remnants of an older four storey...

, and Pendragon

Pendragon Castle

Pendragon Castle is a ruin located in Mallerstang dale, Cumbria, close to the hamlet of Outhgill, at It stands in an atmospheric spot, above a bend in the river Eden, overlooked by Wild Boar Fell to the south-west and Mallerstang Edge to the east.-Legend:...

.

He was restored by the English in 1333, following the Battle of Halidon Hill

Battle of Halidon Hill

The Battle of Halidon Hill was fought during the Second War of Scottish Independence. Scottish forces under Sir Archibald Douglas were heavily defeated on unfavourable terrain while trying to relieve Berwick-upon-Tweed.-The Disinherited:...

. Balliol then ceded the whole of the district formerly known as Lothian

Lothian

Lothian forms a traditional region of Scotland, lying between the southern shore of the Firth of Forth and the Lammermuir Hills....

 to Edward and paid homage to him as liege lord. With no serious support in Scotland, he was deposed again in 1334, and restored again in 1335, and finally deposed in 1336 by those loyal to David II. All realistic hopes of Edward's restoration where lost when David II returned from France in June 1341.

He returned to Scotland after the defeat of David II at Battle of Neville's Cross

Battle of Neville's Cross

The Battle of Neville's Cross took place to the west of Durham, England on 17 October 1346.-Background:In 1346, England was embroiled in the Hundred Years' War with France. In order to divert his enemy Philip VI of France appealed to David II of Scotland to attack the English from the north in...

 in 1346, raising an insurrection in Galloway

Dumfries and Galloway

Dumfries and Galloway is one of 32 unitary council areas of Scotland. It was one of the nine administrative 'regions' of mainland Scotland created in 1975 by the Local Government etc. Act 1973...

, and speedily penetrated to the central parts of the kingdom. However, he gained no permanent footing.

On 20 January 1356, Balliol surrendered his claim to the Scottish throne to Edward III in exchange for an English pension. He spent the rest of his life living in obscurity. He died in 1367, at Wheatley, Doncaster

Doncaster

Doncaster is a town in South Yorkshire, England, and the principal settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Doncaster. The town is about from Sheffield and is popularly referred to as "Donny"...

, Yorkshire

Yorkshire

Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...

, England. The location of his grave is unknown.

Ancestry

Secondary

• Paterson, R. C. Edward Balliol, in Military History, April, 2003.
• Ramsay, J. H., Edward Balliol's Scottish Campaign in 1347, in English Historical Review, vol. 25 1910.
• Reid, R. C., Edward de Balliol, in Transactions of the Dumfriesshire and Galloway Antiquarian and Natural History Society, vol. 35 1956-7.
• Webster, B., Scotland without a King, 1329-1341, in Medieval Scotland, Crown, Lordship and Community, ed A. Grant and K. J. Stringer, 1993.