Earl of Balcarres

The title Earl of Balcarres was created in the Peerage of Scotland in 1651 for Alexander Lindsay, 2nd Lord Balcarres. The title has descended since in the Lindsay family.

In January 1808, the ancient Earldom of Crawford, held by members of another branch of the Lindsay family, became dormant because no-one could prove a claim to the title. Then, in 1843, James Lindsay, 7th Earl of Balcarres put forward his claim, based on the research of his eldest son Alexander; in 1848, the House of Lords allowed it. It was held that the seventh Earl's father, the sixth Earl, was the lawful successor to the earldom of Crawford (though he did not claim it); therefore, the sixth Earl of Balcarres was posthumously declared the twenty-third Earl of Crawford, and his son, the seventh Earl of Balcarres, became the twenty-fourth Earl of Crawford. Thereafter, the two earldoms have remained united.

Lords Balcarres (1633)

• David Lindsay, 1st Lord Balcarres (1587–1642)
• Alexander Lindsay, 2nd Lord Balcarres (1618–1659), created Earl of Balcarres in 1651

Earls of Balcarres (1651)

• Alexander Lindsay, 1st Earl of Balcarres (1618–1659)
• Charles Lindsay, 2nd Earl of Balcarres (1650–1662)
• Colin Lindsay, 3rd Earl of Balcarres (1652–1722)
• Alexander Lindsay, 4th Earl of Balcarres (d. 1736)
• James Lindsay, 5th Earl of Balcarres (1691–1768)
• Alexander Lindsay, 6th Earl of Balcarres (1752–1825), posthumously declared 23rd Earl of Crawford (unclaimed) in 1848.
• James Lindsay, 7th Earl of Balcarres (1783–1869), declared 24th Earl of Crawford in 1848

See Earl of Crawford for the remaining Earls of Balcarres

References

• Leigh Rayment's Peerage Pages
• Earls of Balcarres

Bibliography

• Barker, Nicolas (1978) Bibliotheca Lindesiana: the Lives and Collections of Alexander William, 25th Earl of Crawford and 8th Earl of Balcarres, and James Ludovic, 26th Earl of Crawford and 9th Earl of Balcarres. London: for Presentation to the Roxburghe Club, and published by Bernard Quaritch