John de Balliol

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Coat of arms of John de Balliol

John de Balliol (also Baliol ) (* before 1208; † before October 27, 1268 ) was an English magnate . Through marriage and inheritance, he rose from being a minor baron to a rich magnate. He donated Balliol College to Oxford .

origin

John de Balliol came from the Anglo-Norman family Balliol . He was the eldest son of Hugh de Balliol . It was probably named after King Johann Ohneland , whom his father served loyally, unlike many other barons in northern England. After his father's death in 1229, Balliol inherited Barnard Castle in County Durham and Bailleul-en-Vimeu in Picardy . These French possessions belonged to the counties of Vimeu and Ponthieu and thus not to the Duchy of Normandy . Therefore, unlike the possessions of most of the English barons, they were not confiscated by France in 1204 when the French king had conquered Normandy in the war with John Ohneland .

Marriage and advancement through his wife's inheritance

Presumably through the mediation of his uncles Ingram and Henry de Balliol , who had possessions in Scotland since about 1200 at the latest, John de Balliol was able to marry Dervorguilla of Galloway in 1233 . She was a potential rich heiress as the third daughter of Alan, Lord of Galloway . In fact, after her father's death in 1234, she inherited a third of Galloway's Scottish rule , mostly the eastern portion of the rule and lands in Cunninghame and Lauderdale . Thomas of Galloway , an illegitimate half-brother of Dervorguilla, tried by force in a rebellion in 1235 to obtain the inheritance. However, he was defeated and handed over to Balliol, who imprisoned him at Barnard Castle. A little later, Dervorguilla became the heir to further extensive estates when, after the early childless death of her uncle John le Scot, Earl of Huntingdon and Chester in 1237, together with her older sister Christina (also Christiana ) inherited his land in England and Scotland. These mainly included lands in east and north-east Scotland as well as in east England. When Christina died childless in 1246, Balliol's wife inherited her share of the Huntingdon inheritance and half of her share of Galloway. After the death of Helen , the widow of John le Scot, her Wittum fell to Dervorguilla. Through these inheritances from his wife, Balliol had risen from a minor crown vassal to a wealthy baron who was able to expand his castles at Barnard and Buittle in Kirkcudbrightshire .

Political and diplomatic activity

Because of this wealth, Balliol gained the attention of King Henry III from the mid-1240s . and as a result increasing political influence. As the first member of the Balliol family, he served from 1248 as sheriff of Cumberland and as commandant of Carlisle Castle . From 1260 to 1264 he served as Sheriff of Nottingham and Derby . In 1251 he played an important role when the English king made him the patron of the young Scottish king Alexander III. and his wife Margarete , a daughter of Heinrich III. explained. However, Balliol had a much smaller role than Robert de Ros, Lord of Wark , and above all, the two could not assert themselves in Scotland against the influential magnate Walter Comyn, Earl of Menteith . The election of Henry , Abbot of Holyrood Abbey , as Bishop of Galloway in 1253 clearly demonstrated Comyn's dominance over Balliol. Although the Lords of Galloway had great influence on the diocese so far, Balliol could not prevent the election of Comyn's candidates. When it was finally reported to the English king that his daughter was not being treated appropriately in Scotland, Henry III accused. 1255 Ros and Balliol said that they had not fulfilled their duties and released them from their role as patrons. In addition, he set Balliol off as sheriff of Cumberland and in command of Carlisle Castle in August 1255. Despite this failure, Balliol did not completely lose the favor of the English king, who finally forgave him in the summer of 1257. As a baron with possessions in Scotland and France, Balliol served several times as the English ambassador in both realms. In the conflict between Henry III. and a nobility opposition from 1258 Balliol belonged to the circle of closer advisors to the king. As a result, parts of his English possessions were declared confiscated in 1263 when the aristocratic opposition was able to temporarily gain government power.

Coat of arms on a building of Balliol College, Oxford, founded by Balliol

Feud with the Bishop of Durham and Balliol College Foundation

Despite his wealth and international connections, Balliol got into an argument with his powerful liege lord and neighbor, Bishop Walter Kirkham of Durham. Balliol was for 5 1 ⁄ 4 Knight’s fee for his possessions in the Wapentage of Sadberge , especially with Long Newton a vassal of the bishops. Sadberge had belonged to the crown estate until the end of the 12th century, before Bishop Hugh de Puiset bought it. As a result, it merged with the rest of the worldly property of the bishops. In 1231 Balliol recognized that his feudal duties, which his ancestors owed the king, now also applied to the bishops. Apparently he was reluctant to fulfill these duties. This led to an argument with Bishop Walter Kirkham, which culminated in a feud. In August 1255, King Balliol and his brothers Eustace and Jocelin accused of having forcibly seized the rights of the Church of Long Newton and of imprisoning four of the bishop's followers at Barnard Castle. Balliol had to release the prisoners, and he was evidently the unnamed baron who, according to a chronicle, was publicly scourged outside the portal of Durham Cathedral . In addition, Balliol made a foundation for students at Oxford University . Until his death, Balliol made donations to a hostel in Oxford, which according to his will received further donations. This hostel later became Balliol College . Balliol died shortly before October 27, 1268.

Descendants and inheritance

With his wife Dervorguilla, Balliol had at least four sons and four daughters:

  • Hugh de Balliol († 1271) ⚭ Agnes de Valence
  • Alan de Balliol († before 1278)
  • Alexander de Balliol († 1278) ⚭ Aliénor de Genoure
  • John Balliol ⚭ Isabel de Warenne

The names of Balliol's four daughters are not known with certainty, their names were likely Margaret , Cecily , Ada and Eleanor . As a wealthy magnate, Balliol was able to marry off several of his children to children from leading aristocratic families. His eldest son Hugh married a daughter of the Earl of Pembroke , and his third son Alexander married a relative of Queen Eleanor . Of his daughters, Margaret probably married into the Moulton family from Cumberland; Cecily married John de Burgh, a grandson of Justiciars Hubert de Burgh ; Ada married the Anglo-Scottish nobleman William de Lindsay , heir to Kendal in Westmorland and Lamberton in Berwickshire, and Eleanor married the Scottish nobleman John Comyn, Lord of Badenoch . Balliol's fourth son John was supposed to be a clergyman first, but after his three older brothers all died without surviving descendants, he became heir to the family estates in 1278.

After Balliol's death, his widow Dervorguilla supported the expansion of his foundation in Oxford. In his memory she founded Sweetheart Abbey in Galloway in 1273 , where his bones were reburied. Until her death in 1290, she is said to have carried Balliol's embalmed heart in an ivory box, which was then interred with her in Sweetheart Abbey.

literature

  • Geoffrey Stell: The Balliol family and the Great Cause of 1291–2 . In: Keith John Stringer (ed.): Essays on the nobility of medieval Scotland . John Donald, Edinburgh 1985, ISBN 0-85976-113-4 , pp. 150-165.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Geoffrey Stell: The Balliol Family and the great Cause of 1291-2 . In: KJ Stringer (Ed.): Essays on the Nobility of Medieval Scotland , John Donald Publishers, Edinburgh 1985, ISBN 0-85976-113-4 , p. 154.
  2. ^ Geoffrey Stell: The Balliol Family and the Great Cause of 1291-2 . In: KJ Stringer (Ed.): Essays on the Nobility of Medieval Scotland , John Donald Publishers, Edinburgh 1985, ISBN 0-85976-113-4 , p. 156.
  3. ^ Geoffrey Stell: The Balliol Family and the great Cause of 1291-2 . In: KJ Stringer (Ed.): Essays on the Nobility of Medieval Scotland , John Donald Publishers, Edinburgh 1985, ISBN 0-85976-113-4 , p. 155.
  4. ^ Alan Young: The political Role of Walter Comyn, Earl of Menteith, during the minority of Alexander III of Scotland. In: KJ Stringer (Ed.): Essays on the Nobility of Medieval Scotland , John Donald Publishers, Edinburgh 1985, ISBN 0-85976-113-4 , p. 139.
  5. ^ Alan Young: The political Role of Walter Comyn, Earl of Menteith, during the minority of Alexander III of Scotland. In: KJ Stringer (Ed.): Essays on the Nobility of Medieval Scotland , John Donald Publishers, Edinburgh 1985, ISBN 0-85976-113-4 , p. 137.
  6. ↑ Michael Brown: The wars of Scotland, 1214-1371 . Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh 2004, ISBN 0-7486-1237-8 , p. 48.
  7. ^ Archibald AM Duncan: Scotland. The Making of the Kingdom (The Edinburgh History of Scotland; Vol. I ). Oliver & Boyd, Edinburgh 1975. ISBN 0-05-00203-7-4 , p. 570.
  8. ^ Geoffrey Stell: The Balliol Family and the great Cause of 1291-2 . In: KJ Stringer (Ed.): Essays on the Nobility of Medieval Scotland , John Donald Publishers, Edinburgh 1985, ISBN 0-85976-113-4 , p. 158.
  9. ^ Michael Prestwich: Edward I. University of California Press, Berkeley 1988, ISBN 0-520-06266-3 , p. 371.
personal data
SURNAME De Balliol, John
ALTERNATIVE NAMES De Baliol, John
BRIEF DESCRIPTION English magnate
DATE OF BIRTH before 1208
DATE OF DEATH before October 27, 1268