[1641/8/333]*[print] [email] [cite] [preceding] [following]
Our sovereign lord, with consent of the estates of this present parliament, considering that there was a late supplication given in to the late general assembly held at Edinburgh at the instance of Sir Alexander Carnegie of Balnamoon, for himself and in name and on behalf of his tenants of his lands of Careston and Pitforkie, heritably pertaining to him, making mention that whereas the said Sir Alexander, taking Christianly to his consideration the ignorance of his tenants, and seriously considering and pondering with himself, finding the case, cause and occasion thereof to proceed from the distance of their dwelling to their parish kirk of Brechin, therefore, for the glory of God and benefit of his said tenants, he has built a kirk upon his own expenses in a fit and commodious place for all the inhabitants of the said lands of Careston and Pitforkie, which has so been acknowledged by the late synodal assembly of the sheriffdom of Forfar held at Dundee in April 1639, as Master Andrew Wood, moderator of the said synod, with diverse others, will testify, and that by consent of the ministers of Brechin it was thought expedient that the said lands of Careston and Pitforkie should be disjoined from the said parish of Brechin and erected in a separate and distinct parish by itself, and therefore desired the said late general assembly to dismember the said lands of Careston and Pitforkie, with their whole pertinents and pendicles, from the said parish kirk and parish of Brechin, and to erect the same in a separate parish by itself to be served there in communion, baptism, marriage, preaching, catechising, burial and other necessaries as pertains to a parish and parish kirk by itself, for God's glory and ease and happiness of the said Sir Alexander and his tenants of the said lands. Which supplication being openly read in presence of the said assembly and found by them to be reasonable, notwithstanding that Master Laurence Skinner, minister at Navar, for himself and in name and on behalf of Patrick Maule of Panmure, to whom the whole lands within the said parish pertains in property and superiority respectively, compeared and gave in reasons wherefore the said lands should not be dismembered from the said kirk and parish, as also that notwithstanding that Robert Dempster, commissioner of Brechin, in name of the said burgh and parish of Brechin, gave in a supplication to the said assembly for staying of the dismembering of the said lands from the said parish and parish kirk of Brechin. And after the said parties were heard upon their reasons and supplication, the said assembly granted the desire of the said Sir Alexander Carnegie's bill and supplication, and referred the same to this present parliament without prejudice either to the said Master Laurence Skinner, minister at the said kirk of Navar, or his successors, to the said Laird of Panmure, or to the town of Brechin of their civil rights and rights to the teinds according to the protestations made by them at the giving in of the rights above-written, and without prejudice to the said Sir Alexander Carnegie, according to his protestation, who protested against the said protestations, and also that the same might in no way be prejudicial to what security he had, or was to have, of his teinds before the judges ordinary according to the law, as an extract of an act of the said assembly of the date 13 August 1639 at more length bears. And his majesty and estates of parliament, finding the desire of the said supplication and act foresaid of the said assembly not only to be reasonable but also expedient for the great well and ease of the said Sir Alexander and his tenants of his lands foresaid in repairing to the kirk of God and divine service, and for baptising, marriage, burial and receiving of the communion, therefore have dismembered and, by this act, dismember the said lands of Careston and Pitforkie, with their whole pertinents and pendicles and whole inhabitants of the same, from the said kirk and parish of Brechin and have erected and, by this act, erect the same in a separate parish by itself, and appoint and ordain the inhabitants of the said lands, with the pertinents, to repair to the said new kirk built by the said Sir Alexander upon the said lands of Careston, called and to be called in all time coming the kirk of Careston, as their parish church in all time thereafter for divine service, receiving of the sacraments and to use the kirkyard thereof for burial of their dead†, according to the foresaid act of the general assembly in all points, and without prejudice of the said parties henceforth of their protestations and rights respectively specified in the said act of the general assembly, and in manner according to the said act.