Sir John de Balliol Knight

  Information about this person:

• Web Reference: John I de Balliol from Wikipedia.
John de Balliol was born before 1208 to Hugh de Balliol, Lord of Balliol and of Barnard Castle and Gainford (c. 1177\endash February 2, 1229) and Cecilia de Fontaines, daughter of Aleure, lord of Fontaines and Longpré-les-Corps-Saints. In 1233, Lord John married Dervorguilla of Galloway and Scotland, who was the daughter of Alan, Lord of Galloway and Margaret of Huntingdon.

• Web Reference: John, 5th Baron de Balliol.
John Balliol was born in about 1205. He was the son of Hugh de Balliol, 4th Baron de Balliol and Lord of Barnard Castle, and Cecilia de Fontaines, daughter of Aleure, Lord of Fontaines and Longpré-les-Corps-Saints. The family estates were based around Barnard Castle near Durham in England.

• Background Information. ¹²⁵⁶
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 (q.v.), who was king of Scotland from 1292 to 1296, and who died in Normandy in 1315.

~Cartularium Abbathiae de Whiteby, pp. 54-55

John married Devorguilla of Galloway, daughter of Alan Lord of Galloway Constable of Scotland and Margaret of Huntingdon. (Devorguilla of Galloway was born in 1215 in Galloway, Perth, Scotland, died on 28 Jan 1290 in Kemston, Bedfordshire, England and was buried in Sweethear Abbey, Dumfriesshire, Scotland.)