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 Britroyals

King John Balliol of Scotland (1292 - 1296)


Name: King John Balliol of Scotland
Father: John Balliol
Mother: Devorguilla of Galloway
House of: Balliol
Born: c. 1240 at Barnard Castle
Ascended to the throne: November 17,1292
Crowned: November 30, 1292 at Scone Abbey, Perthshire
Married: Isabella, daughter of John de Warenne, 1281
Died: 1313/14, in Normandy
Buried at: Church of St Waast, Normandy
Succeeded by: Interregnum 1296 - 1306 then Robert the Bruce

The death of Margaret, Maid of Norway, left no clear successor and the Scottish throne without a monarch for two years. King Edward I of England called a series of meetings of with claimants who included illegitimate offspring of William The Lion and three descendants of David of Huntingdon the younger brother of Malcolm IV – John Balliol, John Hastings and Robert de Bruce (father of Robert The Bruce).

John Balliol was chosen and crowned king at Scone in 1292. However he endured a short but difficult reign caught between the English King and the Scottish nobles who humiliated him. He was called Toom Tabbard (‘Empty Coat’). The Scots took power into their own hands and in 1295 allied with Philip of France. This precipitated a clash with Edward who invaded Scotland in 1296 and stripped John Balliol of his power. John Balliol was forced to abdicate on 10th July 1296 and there followed a 10 year interregnum during which Scotland was ruled remotely by Edward. The Stone of Scone was removed to Westminster where it remained for 700 years until 1996,

John Balliol was imprisoned in the Tower of London but freed in 1299 to go into retirement in Normandy where he died around 1313/14.

Timeline for King John Balliol of Scotland

Year Event
1291Claimants to the Scottish throne met King Edward I of England at Norham on Tweed to resolve succession
1292Edward I of England grants the Scottish throne to John Balliol.
1295Treaty between King John Balliol of Scotland and King Philippe IV of France which promised mutual help against the English - the start of the "Auld Alliance".
1296Edward invades Scotland, defeats the Scots at Dunbar and deposes Balliol. He then takes over the throne of Scotland and removes the Stone of Scone to Westminster.