Edward Balliol, son of John, was born in 1282. After baptism he was lifted from the font by Edward I, and named after the king, who became his godfather.
The boy next appears in 1293, when ‘Edward, son of the King of Scotland’ was among these present at a Pentecost feast for Prince Edward of Caernarfon, the future Edward II. Edward Balliol’s (henceforth Edward B) regular presence at the English court may indicate his father was trying to distance him from faction quarrels in Scotland. Two later Scottish chroniclers, Walter Bower and John of Fordun, claim Edward B was present at his father’s surrender to King Edward in 1296
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Following his father’s desposition, Edward B remained with Prince Edward, along with the sons of the earls of Mar and Strathearn. On 12 September 1297, only a day after the battle of Stirling Bridge, he was transferred to the Tower of London.
He was held there for two years, but in light custody: he had a valet, Walter de Frene, a yeoman of Prince Edward. Edward B also received payments, such as 113 shillings 5 pence to buy saddles, bridles and other pieces of kit.
After 1299 he was released into the custody of his grandfather, John de Warenne. Edward B spent the next decade as part of the royal household. Without going into too much detail, he was passed about between Prince Edward and his brothers, Thomas and Edmund.
From 1301 he was perceived as neither a prisoner or a threat. Edward I put him on a daily wage of 6 shillings 8 pence a day; most imprisoned Scottish knights got just 4 pence a day, so this was reasonable treatment. In March 1303 he was allowed the use of the king’s houses at Woodstock, and to take deer in the forest.
The king may have contemplated restoring Edward B – not his father, notably – to the Balliol lands in England. Since 1296 these had been held by the crown, and in 1306-7 were granted to Guy de Beauchamp, Earl of Warwick. This grant stated that if Edward I or his heirs wished to restore them to Edward B, Warwick would be compensated with lands elsewhere. However the new king, Edward II, was not inclined to fulfil Edward B’s hopes.
Overall, Edward B seems to have been kept hanging around as useful leverage, if and when the Plantagenet cause went tits up in Scotland (which it did, obviously). Until then, he lived the life of a gentleman pensioner.