General Nisbet Balfour (1743, Dunbog—10 October 1823, Dunbog) was a British soldier in the American Revolutionary War and later a Scottish Member of Parliament (MP) in the British Parliament.

Nisbet Balfour
Member of Parliament
for Wigtown Burghs
In office
1790–1796
Member of Parliament
for Arundel
In office
1897–1802
Personal details
Born1743 (1743)
Died(1823-10-10)10 October 1823 (Aged 79–80)
Military service
AllegianceGreat Britain
Unit
Commands
Battles/wars

He was born in Dunbog, in the county of Fife, Scotland in 1743. Joining the 4th Regiment of Foot as ensign in 1761, he rose to become one of Cornwallis' most trusted officers during the American Revolution. He fought and was severely injured in the Battle of Bunker Hill (Breed's Hill) and also participated in battles in Elizabethtown, Brandywine, and Germantown, and was made Lieutenant-Colonel (of the 23rd Regiment of Foot) in 1778. He accompanied Cornwallis to Charleston where he was sometimes commandant.[1] He was promoted to major general in 1793, Colonel of both the 93rd Foot (1793) (an earlier regiment than the Sutherland Highlanders raised in 1799) and the 39th Foot in 1794 and served in the war with France.

He was elected to Parliament in 1790 as the MP for Wigtown Burghs, sitting until 1796 and again in 1797 for Arundel, sitting until 1802.

He died in October 1823 in Dunbog, Scotland.

Family

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Descendants and kin include the Stewarts of St Fort, Fife, Scotland, as well as John Stewart of Urrard, son of Robert Stewart of Fincastle and the Athol Stewarts. Elizabeth Mure of Rowallan. Reference is made in the 1842, 1853, and 1863 editions of Sir Bernard Burke's[2] A Genealogical and Heraldic Dictionary of the Landed Gentry of Great Britain, Volume 2. In the 1863 edition on page 1437 mentions one William Campbell and states that he assumed the additional surnames of Stewart and Balfour to conform with the terms of the will of his maternal uncle, Lieut. General Nisbet Balfour.

References

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  1. ^ Chesney, Alexander; Siebert, Wilbur Henry (1921). Journal of Alexander Chesney: a South Carolina Loyalist. Retrieved 25 April 2010.
  2. ^ Burke, Bernard (1863). A Genealogical and Heraldic Dictionary of the Landed Gentry of Great Britain, Volume 2, 1863 edition, page 1437. Retrieved 25 April 2010.
Parliament of Great Britain
Preceded by Member of Parliament for Wigtown Burghs
1790–1796
Succeeded by
Preceded by Member of Parliament for Arundel
1797–1800
Succeeded by
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by
Parliament of Great Britain
Member of Parliament for Arundel
18011802
Succeeded by
Military offices
Preceded by Colonel of 39th (Dorsetshire) Regiment of Foot
1794–1823
Succeeded by