John Hutton Balfour (15 September 1808 – 11 February 1884) was a Scottish

botanist Botany, also called plant science, is the branch of natural science and biology studying plants, especially Plant anatomy, their anatomy, Plant taxonomy, taxonomy, and Plant ecology, ecology. A botanist or plant scientist is a scientist who s ...

. Balfour became a Professor of

Botany Botany, also called plant science, is the branch of natural science and biology studying plants, especially Plant anatomy, their anatomy, Plant taxonomy, taxonomy, and Plant ecology, ecology. A botanist or plant scientist is a scientist who s ...

, first at the

University of Glasgow The University of Glasgow (abbreviated as ''Glas.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals; ) is a Public university, public research university in Glasgow, Scotland. Founded by papal bull in , it is the List of oldest universities in continuous ...

in 1841, moving to the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh (, ; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the City of Edinburgh Council, town council under th ...

and also becoming the 7th

Regius Keeper of the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh The Royal status of the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh (RBGE) is intrinsically linked to the issue of a Royal Warrant to the first Intendant of the Gardens in 1699. Since that date, the appointment of each new Director of RBGE has required the as ...

and Her Majesty's Botanist in 1845. He held these posts until his retirement in 1879. He was nicknamed Woody Fibre.

Early life

He was the son of Andrew Balfour, an Army Surgeon who had returned to

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

to set up a printing and publishing business. Balfour was educated at the Royal High School in Edinburgh and then studied at

St Andrews University The University of St Andrews (, ; abbreviated as St And in post-nominals) is a public university in St Andrews, Scotland. It is the oldest of the four ancient universities of Scotland and, following the universities of Oxford and Cambridge, t ...

and the

, graduating with degrees of M.A. and then M.D., the latter in 1832. In Edinburgh, he became a notable member of the

Plinian Society The Plinian Society was a club at the University of Edinburgh for students interested in natural history. It was founded in 1823. Several of its members went on to have prominent careers, most notably Charles Darwin who announced his first scient ...

, where he encountered the

phrenologist Phrenology is a pseudoscience that involves the measurement of bumps on the skull to predict mental traits. It is based on the concept that the brain is the organ of the mind, and that certain brain areas have localized, specific functions or ...

William A.F. Browne and entered the vigorous debates concerning natural history and theology. His original intention had been to seek ordination in the

Church of Scotland The Church of Scotland (CoS; ; ) is a Presbyterian denomination of Christianity that holds the status of the national church in Scotland. It is one of the country's largest, having 245,000 members in 2024 and 259,200 members in 2023. While mem ...

but instead he started medical practice in Edinburgh in 1834 after studying abroad. In 1834 Balfour was elected a member of the

Harveian Society of Edinburgh The Harveian Society of Edinburgh was founded in April 1782 by Andrew Duncan (physician, born 1744), Andrew Duncan. The Society holds an annual Festival in honour of the life and works of William Harvey, the physician who first correctly des ...

and served as President in 1852. He was elected a Fellow of the

Royal Society of Edinburgh The Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE) is Scotland's national academy of science and letters. It is a registered charity that operates on a wholly independent and non-partisan basis and provides public benefit throughout Scotland. It was establis ...

in January 1835, aged only 26. He was one of their longest serving members. He was General Secretary 1860–1879 and Vice President 1881-3.

Botany

With an interest in botany, Balfour was prominent in the foundation of both the

Botanical Society of Edinburgh Botany, also called plant science, is the branch of natural science and biology studying plants, especially their anatomy, taxonomy, and ecology. A botanist or plant scientist is a scientist who specialises in this field. "Plant" and "botany ...

in 1836 (serving as President in 1845–46) and the Edinburgh Botanical Club in 1838. In 1841 he began giving lectures in Edinburgh's extramural school on botany with some success. In 1842 he was appointed Professor of Botany at the

. In 1845, Balfour transferred to take the chair of Botany at the

, a position he held until 1879. He was also nominated keeper of the Royal Botanic Garden in Edinburgh and Her Majesty's Botanist. These appointments followed a protracted political struggle in which Balfour triumphed over his distinguished opponent,

Joseph Dalton Hooker Sir Joseph Dalton Hooker (30 June 1817 – 10 December 1911) was a British botanist and explorer in the 19th century. He was a founder of geographical botany and Charles Darwin's closest friend. For 20 years he served as director of the Ro ...

, a close associate of

Charles Darwin Charles Robert Darwin ( ; 12 February 1809 – 19 April 1882) was an English Natural history#Before 1900, naturalist, geologist, and biologist, widely known for his contributions to evolutionary biology. His proposition that all speci ...

. In 1846 he was elected a member of the

Aesculapian Club The Aesculapian Club of Edinburgh is one of the oldest medical dining clubs in the world. It was founded in April 1773 by Dr. Andrew Duncan. Membership of the club is limited to 11 Fellows of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh and ...

. Balfour served for many years as dean of the faculty of medicine in the

and he was an enormously successful teacher of botany, lacing his scientific lectures with theological asides, as he remained profoundly wedded to

natural theology Natural theology is a type of theology that seeks to provide arguments for theological topics, such as the existence of a deity, based on human reason. It is distinguished from revealed theology, which is based on supernatural sources such as ...

. In January 1862, he corresponded with Charles Darwin on botanical matters, recollecting their evenings together at the

with his brother-in-law William A.F. Browne. He also corresponded with the extraordinary and irascible botanist

Hewett Cottrell Watson Hewett Cottrell Watson (9 May 1804 – 27 July 1881) was a phrenologist, botanist and theory of evolution, evolutionary theorist. He was born in Firbeck, near Rotherham, Yorkshire, and died at Thames Ditton, Surrey. Biography Watson was the eld ...

, an early phrenologist, evolutionist and advocate of the differential development of the human

cerebral hemispheres The vertebrate cerebrum (brain) is formed by two cerebral hemispheres that are separated by a groove, the longitudinal fissure. The brain can thus be described as being divided into left and right cerebral hemispheres. Each of these hemispheres ...

. Under Balfour's care the Royal Botanic Garden was enlarged and improved and a

palm Palm most commonly refers to: * Palm of the hand, the central region of the front of the hand * Palm plants, of family Arecaceae ** List of Arecaceae genera **Palm oil * Several other plants known as "palm" Palm or Palms may also refer to: Music ...

-house,

arboretum An arboretum (: arboreta) is a botanical collection composed exclusively of trees and shrubs of a variety of species. Originally mostly created as a section in a larger garden or park for specimens of mostly non-local species, many modern arbor ...

, and teaching accommodation were built. His publications include botanical text-books such as ''Manual of Botany'' (1848), ''Class Book of Botany'' (1852), ''Outlines of Botany'' (1854), ''Elements of Botany for Schools'' (1869), ''Botanist's Companion'' (1860), ''Introduction to Palaeontological Botany'' (1872), and ''The Plants of Scripture''. He also contributed to the article on botany in the 8th edition of ''

Encyclopædia Britannica The is a general knowledge, general-knowledge English-language encyclopaedia. It has been published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. since 1768, although the company has changed ownership seven times. The 2010 version of the 15th edition, ...

''. Balfour retired from his academic post in 1879. His son, Sir

Isaac Bayley Balfour Sir Isaac Bayley Balfour, Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire, KBE, Fellow of the Royal Society, FRS, Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, FRSE (31 March 1853 – 30 November 1922) was a Scottish botanist. He was Regius Prof ...

(1853–1922), became a distinguished botanist in his own right, serving as Sherardian Professor of Botany at

Oxford University The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the second-oldest continuously operating u ...

from 1884 to 1888, before returning to his father's old Chair at Edinburgh. California's foxtail pine is named ''

Pinus balfouriana ''Pinus balfouriana'', the foxtail pine, is a rare high-elevation pine that is endemic to California, United States. It is closely related to the Great Basin bristlecone pine, Great Basin and Rocky Mountain bristlecone pines, in the subsection '' ...

'' Balf. after him.

Later life

From 1877 he lived in

Inverleith House Inverleith House is a historic house, now within the Royal Botanic Garden, in the suburb of Inverleith, in Edinburgh, Scotland. History Inverleith House was designed in 1773 by David Henderson and built for James Rocheid in 1774. In about 182 ...

within the then newly extended Royal Botanic Gardens, Edinburgh in his role there as Regius Keeper. He died in

and was buried in

Warriston Cemetery Warriston Cemetery is a cemetery in List of graveyards and cemeteries in Edinburgh, Edinburgh. It lies in Warriston, one of the northern suburbs of Edinburgh, Scotland. It was built by the then newly-formed Edinburgh Cemetery Company, and o ...

with his wife Marion Spottiswood Balfour. The grave lies on the north side of the main upper east-west path, towards its western end.

Family

He married Marion Spottiswood Bayley (1828–1879) on 8 August 1848. Their children were Ada Marion Spottiswood Balfour (1850–1918), Cpt. Andrew Francis Balfour RN (1851–1906),

(1853–1922), Madeline Drummond Balfour (1854–1912), John Hutton Balfour Jr (1856–1919), George Goldie Balfour (1858–1914), Margaret Eliza Balfour (1860–1932) and Harriet Penuel Balfour (1863–1942). Balfour's sister, Magdelene Balfour, married William A. F. Browne (1805–1885), the

and asylum reformer. Balfour was uncle to Sir Andrew Balfour specialist in tropical medicine who was the first Director of the

London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine The London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) is a public research university in Bloomsbury, central London, and a member institution of the University of London that specialises in public health and tropical medicine. The institu ...

in 1923 and was a close friend of

Sir Patrick Manson Sir Patrick Manson (3 October 1844 – 9 April 1922) was a Scottish physician who made important discoveries in parasitology, and was a founder of the field of tropical medicine. He graduated from the University of Aberdeen with degrees in Ma ...

, founder of the School. According to Sir Andrew Balfour in a speech he made to the London Royal Free Hospital, School of Medicine for Women in 1928, John Hutton Balfour was often referred as 'Woody Fibre'. His great-great-granddaughter is actress

Tilda Swinton Katherine Matilda Swinton (born 5 November 1960) is a British actress. She is known for playing eccentric and enigmatic characters, often working with auteurs. Her accolades include an Academy Award, two BAFTA Awards, and a Volpi Cup, in addit ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Balfour, John Hutton 1808 births 1884 deaths British bryologists Scottish scholars and academics Scottish surgeons Fellows of the Linnean Society of London Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh Fellows of the Royal Society Academics of the University of Edinburgh Academics of the University of Glasgow Alumni of the University of St Andrews Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Scientists from Edinburgh People educated at the Royal High School, Edinburgh Burials at Warriston Cemetery 19th-century Scottish medical doctors 19th-century Scottish botanists John Hutton Office bearers of the Harveian Society of Edinburgh Members of the Harveian Society of Edinburgh