BALIOL, the name of a family which played an important part in the
history of Scotland. The founder of the family in England was a Norman
baron, Guy or Guido de Baliol, who held the fiefs of Bailleul,
Dampierre, Harcourt and Vinoy in Normandy. Coming to England with
William the Conqueror, he received lands in the north of England from
William II., and his son, or grandson, Bernard or Barnard de Baliol,
built a fortress in Durham called Castle Barnard, around which the town
of Barnard Castle grew. The first burgesses probably obtained their
privileges from him. Bernard fought for King Stephen during the civil
war, was present at the battle of the Standard in August 1138, and was
taken prisoner at the battle of Lincoln in February 1141. The date of
his death is uncertain. Dugdale only believes in the existence of one
Bernard de Baliol, but it seems more probable that the Bernard de Baliol
referred to after 1167 was a son of the elder Bernard, and not the same
individual. If so the younger Bernard was one of the northern barons who
raised the siege of Alnwick, and took William the Lion, king of
Scotland, prisoner in July 1174. He also confirmed the privileges
granted by his father to the burgesses of Barnard Castle, and was
succeeded by his son Eustace. Practically nothing is known of Eustace,
or of his son Hugh who succeeded about 1215. Hugh's son and successor,
John de Baliol, who increased his wealth and position by a marriage with
Dervorguila (d. 1290), daughter of Alan, earl of Galloway, is said to
have possessed thirty knights' fees in England and one half of the lands
in Galloway. He was one of the regents of Scotland during the minority
of Alexander III., but in 1255 was deprived of this office and his lands
forfeited for treason. He then appeared in England fighting for Henry
III. against Simon de Montfort, and was taken prisoner at the battle of
Lewes in 1264. About 1263 he established several scholarships at Oxford,
and after his death in 1269 his widow founded the college which bears
the name of the family. He left four sons, three of whom died without
issue, and in 1278 his lands came to his son, John de Baliol, who was
king of Scotland from 1292 to 1296, and who died in Normandy in 1315.
John's eldest son by his marriage with Isabel, daughter of John de
Warenne, earl of Surrey, was Edward de Baliol who shared his father's
captivity in England in 1296. Subsequently crossing over to France, he
appears to have lived mainly on his lands in Normandy until 1324, when
he was invited to England by King Edward II., who hoped to bring him
forward as a candidate for the Scottish crown. A favourable opportunity,
however, did not arise until after the death of King Robert the Bruce in
1329, when Edward III. had succeeded his father on the English throne.
Although Edward did not give Baliol any active assistance, the claimant
placed himself at the head of some disinherited Scottish nobles, raised
a small army and sailed from Ravenspur. Landing at Kinghorn in Fifeshire
in August 1332, he gained a complete victory over the Scots under
Donald, earl of Mar, at Dupplin Moor, took Perth, and on the 24th of
September was crowned king of Scotland at Scone. He then acknowledged
Edward III. as his superior, but soon afterwards was defeated at Annan
(where his brother, Henry de Baliol, was slain) and compelled to fly to
England. Regaining his kingdom after the defeat of the Scots at Halidon
Hill in July 1333, Baliol surrendered the whole of the district formerly
known as Lothian to Edward, and did homage for Scotland to the English
king. His party, however, was weakened by disunion, and he won no
serious support in Scotland. Entirely dependent on Edward, he again
sought refuge in England, and took a very slight part in the war waged
on his behalf. He returned to Scotland after the defeat of King David
II. at Neville's Cross in 1346. After making an absolute surrender of
Scotland to Edward III. in 1356 at Roxburgh in return for a pension,
Edward de Baliol died at Wheatley near Doncaster in 1367.
Continued on page two.
This article is from the 1911 edition of an
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