Sir Isaac Bayley Balfour, KBE, FRS, FRSE (31 March 1853 – 30 November 1922) was a Scottish botanist. He was Regius Professor of Botany at the University of Glasgow from 1879 to 1885, Sherardian Professor of Botany at the University of Oxford from 1884 to 1888, and Professor of Botany at the University of Edinburgh from 1888 to 1922.
Early life
He was the son of John Hutton Balfour, also a botanist, and Marion Spottiswood Bayley, and was born at home, 27 Inverleith Row, Edinburgh. His mother was granddaughter of George Husband Baird.
He was the cousin of Sir James Crichton-Browne.
Biography
Balfour was educated at the Edinburgh Academy from 1864 to 1870. At this early stage his interests and abilities were in the biological sciences, which were taught to him by his father. Due to his father's post as Professor of Botany at Edinburgh, the young Balfour was able to visit the Edinburgh Botanical Gardens, not open to the public at the time.
Balfour studied at the University of Edinburgh, from which he graduated with first class honours in 1873, and at the universities in Würzburg and Strasbourg.
In 1874 Balfour participated in an astronomical expedition of 1874 to Rodrigues. Though the stated aim of the mission was to observe Venus, Balfour used the opportunity to investigate the local flora, and on his return, the fieldwork he had carried out permitted him to gain his doctorate.
In 1879, his father resigned the chair at Edinburgh, Glasgow professor Alexander Dickson (1836–1887) was appointed in his place, and the younger Balfour was promoted to the chair of Regius Professor of Botany, Glasgow in Glasgow from 1879 to 1885. He also went on to lead an expedition to Socotra in 1880.
In 1884, he was appointed Sherardian Professor of Botany at the University of Oxford. In the same year he married Agnes Boyd Balloch.
It was, however, after his return to Edinburgh to take up his father's old chair as Professor of Botany from 1888 to 1922 that Balfour left his mark, as he was also appointed 9th Regius Keeper of the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh. His father had greatly enlarged the botanical gardens during his tenure, but Balfour completely transformed them. Having put their finances on a safer footing by transferring them to the crown, Balfour engaged himself in a major reform of the gardens, establishing a proper botanical institute, and largely redeveloping the layout of the gardens to have a proper arboretum, building new laboratories and improving scientific facilities. He was awarded KBE in the 1920 civilian war honours list.
He died at Court Hill, Haslemere in Surrey.
Family
In 1884 he married Agnes Boyd Balloch. Their daughter Isabel Marion Agnes (Senga) Bayley Balfour, married the diplomat Francis Aglen and was mother to Anthony John Aglen.
Specific interests
Balfour's interest in Sino-Himalayan plants also put him in contact with botanist and plant collector Reginald Farrer. Farrer provided valuable information to Balfour and the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh by sending him his plant illustrations together with the field notes, botanical specimens and seeds he had collected.
Honours, qualifications and appointments
1873: Awarded Bachelor of Science degree (BSc) with first class honours, University of Edinburgh 1873–1878: Appointed Lecturer in Botany, Royal Veterinary College, Edinburgh 1875: Awarded Doctor of Science degree (DSc), University of Edinburgh 1877: Awarded Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery degree (MB, ChB), University of Edinburgh 1877: Elected Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh 1879: Appointed Professor of Botany, University of Glasgow 1880–1882, 1904–1906: President of the Botanical Society of Edinburgh 1884: Awarded Master of Arts degree (MA), University of Oxford 1884: Elected Fellow of the Royal Society 1884: Appointed Professor of Botany, University of Oxford 1888: Appointed Professor of Botany, University of Edinburgh 1897: Awarded Victoria Medal of Honour, Royal Horticultural Society 1901: Awarded Doctor of Laws degree (LLD), University of Glasgow 1919: Awarded Linnean Medal of the Linnean Society 1920: Awarded Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (KBE) 1921: Awarded Honorary Doctor of Laws degree (LLD), University of Edinburgh