John Balfour (Orkney MP)

John Balfour (6 November 1750 – 15 October 1842)[1] was a Scottish politician and a civil servant in the East India Company with connections to the Orcadian island of Shapinsay.

[3] Having made a fortune in India, John Balfour married the widow of a Colonel Mackennan, who along with other British expatriates, had lent money to the Rajah of Tanjore, who then refused to repay the loans.

[3] Balfour was elected Member of Parliament for Orkney and Shetland on 28 July 1790.

[1] He used his new political connections to put pressure on the British Government who eventually engineered compensation for the lenders to the Rajah, so providing his wife with a "substantial benefit".

[3] He commenced the building of Balfour Castle on the island on the site of an older structure.