James Balfour (died 1845)

James Balfour (c. 1775 – 19 April 1845) was a Scottish nabob who became a landowner and politician. The son of a prosperous and influential gentry descent, he became a trader in India. Having made a fortune supplying the Royal Navy, he returned to Scotland to buy several landed estates, including Whittingehame in East Lothian where he built a classical mansion.

Balfour became a Tory Member of Parliament (MP) from 1826 to 1834, but never achieved ministerial office. However, many of his descendants found fame and success, including his grandson Arthur Balfour, who served as prime minister from 1902 to 1905.

At his death, Balfour's estates in Scotland alone were estimated to be worth over £1 million (equivalent to £89.2 million in 2017).

Balfour was born in about 1775. He was the second son of John Balfour (1739–1813), an advocate who owned Balbirnie House, near the town of Glenrothes in Fife. His elder brother Robert Balfour, who inherited Balbirnie, became a Lieutenant-General in the British Army.

His ancestor George Balfour had purchased Balbirnie in the late 16th or early 17th century, and by the late 18th century its land included profitable mines in the Fife Coalfield.

Balfours had fought with Robert the Bruce at the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314, and a pedigree written under the authority of the Lord Lyon King of Arms traced James Balfour's descent in a direct line from King Robert II, son-in-law of Robert the Bruce.

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