Captain Charles Barrington Balfour JP, DL, CB (20 February 1862 – 31 August 1921) was a

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

officer who became a

Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...

politician. He sat in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. ...

from 1900 to 1907. He was a

first cousin Most generally, in the lineal kinship system used in the English-speaking world, a cousin is a type of familial relationship in which two relatives are two or more familial generations away from their most recent common ancestor. Commonly, " ...

Arthur Balfour Arthur James Balfour, 1st Earl of Balfour, (, ; 25 July 184819 March 1930), also known as Lord Balfour, was a British Conservative Party (UK), Conservative statesman who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1902 to 1905. As F ...

, who served as

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

from 1902 to 1905.

Early life

Balfour was the son of Charles Balfour, son of James Balfour, and his wife Adelaide (died 1862), daughter and 8th child of the 6th Viscount Barrington. His father died when he was 10 years old, and Charles succeeded to his estates:

Balgonie Castle Balgonie Castle is located on the south bank of the River Leven, Fife, River Leven near Milton of Balgonie, east of Glenrothes, Fife, Scotland. The castle keep dates from the 14th century, and the remaining structures were added piecemeal unti ...

in Fife and "Newton Don" a country house near Kelso in

Roxburghshire Roxburghshire or the County of Roxburgh ( gd, Siorrachd Rosbroig) is a historic county and registration county in the Southern Uplands of Scotland. It borders Dumfriesshire to the west, Selkirkshire and Midlothian to the north-west, and Berw ...

. He was educated at

Eton College Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, C ...

and then at the

Royal Military College, Sandhurst The Royal Military College (RMC), founded in 1801 and established in 1802 at Great Marlow and High Wycombe in Buckinghamshire, England, but moved in October 1812 to Sandhurst, Berkshire, was a British Army military academy for training infantry a ...

, afterwards being commissioned as a lieutenant in the

Scots Guards The Scots Guards (SG) is one of the five Foot Guards regiments of the British Army. Its origins are as the personal bodyguard of King Charles I of England and Scotland. Its lineage can be traced back to 1642, although it was only placed on the ...

in 1881. He served in the Anglo-Egyptian War of 1882, and was present at the

battle of Tel-El-Kebir The Battle of Tel El Kebir (often spelled Tel-El-Kebir) was fought on 13 September 1882 at Tell El Kebir in Egypt, 110 km north-north-east of Cairo. An entrenched Egyptian force under the command of Ahmed ʻUrabi was defeated by a British ...

, for which received a medal with a clasp. In 1890 he was promoted to captain and joined the 2nd Volunteer Battalion of the

King's Own Scottish Borderers The King's Own Scottish Borderers (KOSBs) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the Scottish Division. On 28 March 2006 the regiment was amalgamated with the Royal Scots, the Royal Highland Fusiliers (Princess Margaret's Own ...

from 1891 to 1895, and later served as a captain in the

Royal Guards Reserve Regiment The Royal Guards Reserve Regiment was a reserve formation of the Household Brigade in existence from 1900 to 1901. History and strength Due to the manpower needs of the Second Boer War, several Royal Reserve Regiments were formed from veteran s ...

. He was appointed to the

Reserve Reserve or reserves may refer to: Places * Reserve, Kansas, a US city * Reserve, Louisiana, a census-designated place in St. John the Baptist Parish * Reserve, Montana, a census-designated place in Sheridan County * Reserve, New Mexico, a US vi ...

on 17 January 1900, and attached to the 25th Regimental district at

Berwick-upon-Tweed Berwick-upon-Tweed (), sometimes known as Berwick-on-Tweed or simply Berwick, is a town and civil parish in Northumberland, England, south of the Anglo-Scottish border, and the northernmost town in England. The 2011 United Kingdom census recor ...

Later life

Balfour was a councillor on Berwickshire County Council, a

Justice of the Peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

for Berwickshire, and a Deputy Lieutenant of Berwickshire. He stood for

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

five times before he won a seat. He was unsuccessful in

at the 1885 general election, in

Berwickshire Berwickshire ( gd, Siorrachd Bhearaig) is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area in south-eastern Scotland, on the English border. Berwickshire County Council existed from 1890 until 1975, when the area became part of th ...

at the

1892 Events January–March * January 1 – Ellis Island begins accommodating immigrants to the United States. * February 1 - The historic Enterprise Bar and Grill was established in Rico, Colorado. * February 27 – Rudolf Diesel applies for ...

and 1895 general elections, and the Southport by-election in 1899. At the 1900 general election he was elected unopposed as the

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

(MP) for the Hornsey division of Middlesex. He was re-elected in

1906 Events January–February * January 12 – Persian Constitutional Revolution: A nationalistic coalition of merchants, religious leaders and intellectuals in Persia forces the shah Mozaffar ad-Din Shah Qajar to grant a constitution, ...

, but resigned his seat on 28 May 1907 by becoming

Steward of the Manor of Northstead The office of Crown Steward and Bailiff of the Manor of Northstead functions as a procedural device to allow a member of Parliament (MP) to resign from the House of Commons of the United Kingdom. As members of the House of Commons are forbidden ...

. Balfour was appointed as

Lord Lieutenant of Berwickshire This is a list of people who have served as His Majesty's Lord-Lieutenant for the County of Berwick. List of officeholders * Alexander, Earl of Home 17 March 1794 – 20 October 1841 * James, Earl of Lauderdale 2 November 1841 – 22 August 186 ...

on 31 May 1917. In the

King's Birthday Honours The Birthday Honours, in some Commonwealth realms, mark the reigning British monarch's official birthday by granting various individuals appointment into national or dynastic orders or the award of decorations and medals. The honours are present ...

in June 1919, he was made a

Companion of the Order of the Bath Companion may refer to: Relationships Currently * Any of several interpersonal relationships such as friend or acquaintance * A domestic partner, akin to a spouse * Sober companion, an addiction treatment coach * Companion (caregiving), a caregive ...

for services in connection with the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

in his capacity as president and chairman of the Berwickshire

Territorial Force The Territorial Force was a part-time volunteer component of the British Army, created in 1908 to augment British land forces without resorting to conscription. The new organisation consolidated the 19th-century Volunteer Force and yeomanry i ...

Association. Balfour was also a director of

Barclays Bank Barclays () is a British multinational universal bank, headquartered in London, England. Barclays operates as two divisions, Barclays UK and Barclays International, supported by a service company, Barclays Execution Services. Barclays traces ...

and of the

Scottish Widows Scottish Widows is a life insurance and pensions company located in Edinburgh, Scotland, and is a subsidiary of Lloyds Banking Group. Its product range includes life assurance and pensions. The company has been providing financial services to the ...

fund. He was elected a Fellow of the

Royal Botanic Society The Royal Botanic Society was a learned society founded in 1839 by James de Carle Sowerby under a royal charter to the Duke of Norfolk and others. Its purpose was to promote "botany in all its branches, and its applications." Soon after it was es ...

in November 1902. He died on 31 August 1921. A memorial to his memory was erected in Kelso in 1925 to a design by Sir

Robert Lorimer Sir Robert Stodart Lorimer, KBE (4 November 1864 – 13 September 1929) was a prolific Scottish architect and furniture designer noted for his sensitive restorations of historic houses and castles, for new work in Scots Baronial and Gothi ...

Family

In 1888, Balfour married Lady Helena McDonnell, known as "Nina", daughter of

Alexander MacDonnell, 5th Earl of Antrim Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Al ...

. They had four sons, the eldest being Charles James Balfour (b.1889), who became a captain in the

, and (in 1917) married the Hon. Aurea Vera Baring, daughter of

Francis Baring, 5th Baron Ashburton Francis Denzil Edward Baring, 5th Baron Ashburton, DL (20 July 1866 – 27 March 1938), was a British peer and politician. Early life Baring was the son of Alexander Baring, 4th Baron Ashburton, a Member of Parliament for Thetford, and Leonora ...

. Another son,

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second ...

, was imprisoned in Germany at Ruhleben, a racecourse on the outskirts of Berlin, for the duration of the First World War. He had been studying at a university in Germany at the outbreak of the war and was immediately interned there. On repatriation, he joined the Foreign Office and became a career diplomat, and was knighted in 1954. He was posted in Moscow, Madrid, Buenos Aires and Washington, as well as serving in other countries. He died in 1983. His memoir, ''Not Too Correct an Aureole: the Recollections of a Diplomat'', was published posthumously.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Balfour, Charles Barrington 1862 births 1921 deaths Companions of the Order of the Bath Lord-Lieutenants of Berwickshire Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies UK MPs 1900–1906 UK MPs 1906–1910 Scots Guards officers British Army personnel of the Anglo-Egyptian War People educated at Eton College Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst Councillors in Scotland

Charles Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English language, English and French language, French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic, Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''*k ...