[1663/6/49]*[print] [email] [cite] [preceding] [following]
Our sovereign lord out of his innate goodness and love to this his ancient kingdom, being desirous that now, after so long troubles, a perfect peace is settled within the same, and that all his good subjects might enjoy the happiness and blessings of his government in a full and free act of indemnity, pardon and oblivion did, by his instructions to [John Middleton], earl of Middleton, his last commissioner, before the second session of this parliament, declare his royal pleasure concerning fines to be imposed both as to the crimes for which they were to be allowed, and as to the proportions and this moderate way of fining (which his majesty intended to employ for the relief of his good subjects who had been sufferers) being the only punishment his majesty gave warrant for. And his majesty, being careful to see his royal grace and favour to his people extended as large as he intended it, he commanded the act of pardon and indemnity to be transmitted to his own consideration before his royal consent was given to the same; in obedience whereunto the earl of Middleton, in Summer 1662, dispatched Sir George MacKenzie of Tarbat to his majesty with a letter of credit, he carried two drafts of an act of indemnity, the one excepted only as to fines, the other excepted also as to incapacity from public trust, the last he publicly owned to be the desire of the parliament, and earnestly pressed in name of the parliament the incapacitating of some few of the most guilty not exceeding twelve; to which his majesty at last consented, merely to gratify that which was represented to be the desire of so faithful and loyal a parliament. And having desired to know the truth hereof from his parliament, they, by their unanimous opinion and votes upon 22 July last, declared that they had given no warrant to desire of his majesty that the act of indemnity should carry an exception of incapacitating from public trust, nor any warrant at all to desire in their names his majesty's consent to the incapacitating a few and that, notwithstanding thereof, they had seen the duplicate of an instruction given to the contrary by the earl of Middleton to Sir George MacKenzie, signed and in the presence of the parliament owned by him to be a true copy, bearing that it was much desired by the parliament that some should be excepted from public trust; and it was also declared by the parliament that there was no other ground for incapacitating but that it was his majesty's pleasure to have it so, and that this was the rise of bringing in the act of billeting as the most expedient way of voting the act of incapacitating, by which it appears both his majesty and his parliament were abused as to that exception from public trust. And our sovereign lord, considering that this way of billeting had no colour of warrant from his majesty, and that his royal consent was given to it without his knowledge and very far from his intention, and that in the contrivance and carrying on of the same, sinistrous courses were taken and designs laid for incapacitating the earls [John Lindsay, earl of] Crawford and [John Maitland, earl of] Lauderdale and Sir Robert Moray, persons who, for their eminent loyalty to and great and long sufferings for his majesty, are deservedly in his high esteem, and who for the time had the special approbation of this present parliament for these great employments they had from his majesty as his officers of state and otherwise and that, therefore, he has with much reason declared himself most unsatisfied therewith. Yet he does not attribute the concurrence of his parliament in billeting to anything but to their unparalleled affection to his person and service, and their obsequious compliance to every thing was represented to them to be his majesty's intention, or which might be acceptable to his majesty. And considering the way of billeting to be most pernicious in itself and of a most dangerous consequence as tending to the dishonour of his majesty and his parliament, and to the subversion of all justice and government, it being a way never before that time practised in this kingdom, or in any other place under monarchical government, being so derogatory to his majesty's authority and royal dignity, and so contrary to the honour, freedom and gravity of parliaments, to all former practises and to the rules of common justice, every man, even those of greatest merit, being thereby rendered insecure of their honour, estates, liberties and lives, his majesty's officers of state and those of nearest in relation to him being exposed to infamy and ruin, to be by colour of his authority, without his knowledge, torn from him, and his royal prerogative in the choice of his councillors and servants asserted in this present parliament violated and made contemptible, and all his majesty's good subjects made liable to censures without being accused, heard or legally condemned. In regard of all which, our sovereign lord, with consent and by the special advice of his estates in parliament, does hereby rescind and annul two acts passed in the last session of this parliament on 9 September 1662, the one entitled, act appointing the manner of voting by billets and the other entitled, act concerning persons to be excepted from public trust, together with the clauses relating thereto in the act of indemnity and in the act of fines, and declares the said two acts, with the clauses aforesaid relating thereto, to have been from the beginning, to be now and in all time coming void and null, and ordains the same to be expunged and erased out of the records. Likewise accordingly, the said principal acts being called for and presented in parliament, were publicly erased and destroyed, and the act of indemnity and act for fines, with the records of the minutes of parliament being also called for, the clauses contained therein relating to the excepting of persons from public trust and the voting of it by billets were expunged out of the same, and the clerk register is hereby ordained to take care that, from thenceforth, the act of indemnity and act for fines are extracted and recorded according to these amendments, and that any extracts already given out are void and null as to these clauses thus amended. Likewise our sovereign lord, to evidence his just dislike of so pernicious a course, does, with advice and consent foresaid, discharge all voting by billets for the future. †And forasmuch as the parliament, in obedience to his majesty's commands, did transmit to his majesty the original depositions of those who were examined concerning this whole business, to the end he might declare his further pleasure, his majesty declares that, having taken all that relates to the business of billeting into serious consideration, he will in convenient time make known his further pleasure therein.
[1663/6/50]*[print] [email] [cite] [preceding] [following]
Our sovereign lord, considering the great difficulties which often the ministers of the Gospel do meet with in the due payment of their rents and stipends, so as they are sometimes forced to use legal execution by poinding, and in so doing are necessitated to carry the goods poinded to be apprised at the market cross of the head burgh of the shire, stewartry, bailiary or regality, many miles distant from the place where the goods are poinded, to the great prejudice of the party and of the goods also; therefore his majesty, with advice and consent of the estates of parliament, declares that it shall be sufficient to the ministers foresaid, in poinding, apprising and distrenzieing the goods of the persons deficient in payment of their rents and stipends, to comprise the said goods by honest sworn men upon the ground of the lands and place where the goods are, which shall be as sufficient as the same were done at the said market crosses. And because, notwithstanding of diverse acts of parliament made before, diverse ministers are not yet sufficiently provided with manses and glebes, and others do not get their manses free at their entry; therefore, our sovereign lord, with advice foresaid, statutes and ordains that, where competent manses are not already built, the heritors of the parish, at the sight of the bishop of the diocese or such ministers as he shall appoint, with two or three of the most knowing and discreet men of the parish, build competent manses to their minister, the expenses thereof not exceeding £1,000 and not being beneath 500 merks, and where competent manses are already built, ordains the heritors of the parish to relieve the minister and his executors of all costs, charges and expenses for repairing of the foresaid manses, declaring hereby that the manses being once built and repaired and the building or repairing satisfied and paid by the heritors in manner foresaid, the said manses shall thereafter be upheld by the incumbent ministers during their possession, and by the heritors in time of vacancy out of the readiest of the vacant stipend. In like manner, ordains that every minister have fuel, foggage, fail and divot, according to the act of parliament made in 1593. As also, that every minister (except such ministers of royal burghs who have no right to glebes) have grass for one horse and two cows over and above their glebe, to be designed out of kirklands and with relief according to the former acts of parliament standing in force; and if there are no kirklands lying near the minister's manse out of which the grass for one horse and two cows may be designed, or otherwise if the said kirklands are arable land, in either of these cases ordains the heritors to pay to the minister and his successors yearly the sum of £20 Scots for the said grass for one horse and two cows, the heritors always being relieved according to the law standing off other heritors of kirklands in the said parish; and because several kirks have no glebes as yet designed to them, it is hereby specially provided that in all designations of glebes that incorporate acres in village or town where the heritor has houses and gardens, the same shall not be designed, he always giving other lands nearest to the kirk. And his majesty, with advice foresaid, for special causes and considerations, declares that this present act as to the manses is to have force as if the same had been made and dated 14 March 1649.
[1663/6/51]*[print] [email] [cite] [preceding] [following]
Our sovereign lord, with advice and consent of his estates of parliament, ratifies and approves a signature superscribed by his majesty in favour of Doctor Alexander Colville, professor of divinity in the university of St Andrews, his heirs and assignees mentioned in the foresaid signature, of the lands of Lurg Kincardine, seventeen acres, teinds and others therein specified, of the date at Whitehall, 15 August 1661, wherein he is designed Mr Alexander Colville, with the charter and infeftments therein related and charter to follow thereupon, with the precept and sasine to follow upon the same signature and charter, together also with all other charters, infeftments, sasines and other rights and securities made to the said Doctor Alexander Colville, or any of his predecessors and authors of the lands, teinds and others particularly and generally above-mentioned expressed in the foresaid signature, and to be expressed in the charter, precept and sasine to follow thereupon, in the whole heads, articles, clauses, conditions and circumstances contained in the said signature, and to be contained in the said charter, precept and sasine to follow thereupon, after the form and tenor thereof, and wills and grants that this present ratification of the foresaid signature, charter, infeftment and other rights, specially and generally above-expressed, shall be as valid and effectual as if the same and whole tenor thereof were at length, and word for word, inserted in this ratification and ratified expressly, notwithstanding that the same are not expressly inserted herein; with the which his majesty, with consent foresaid, for himself and his successors, dispenses for ever. And further, his majesty, understanding that his majesty's deceased royal grandfather, of happy and blessed memory, in consideration of the many good and faithful services done to him by the said Doctor Alexander Colville's deceased grandfather, was pleased to except the foresaid lands of Lurg Kincardine, seventeen acres of land and others foresaid, from the general annexation of all the kirklands within this kingdom to the crown, and thereafter conveyed the same lands, acres and others to the said Doctor Alexander Colville's deceased father, and his heirs which were since then also conveyed by his majesty's deceased royal father, of eternal memory, to the said Doctor Alexander Colville by his infeftment under the great seal in the year 1642; in respect whereof in the year 1644 the same lands were of new dissolved, and in the late acts anent the vassals of kirklands in the year 1647 and 1649, the same are expressly excepted in favour of the said Doctor Colville and his heirs, and albeit these acts are repealed and annulled, yet the cause remains. And his majesty and estates of parliament, considering that the said Doctor Alexander Colville has, in all the late troubles and confusions, behaved himself faithfully and affectionately to his majesty and to the benefit, peace and happiness of this kingdom, therefore his majesty, with advice and consent of his estates of parliament, has dissolved and, by this act, dissolves all and sundry the lands, teinds and others particularly and generally above-mentioned from his majesty's crown and from all acts of annexation, and especially from the act of annexation in the year 1633; with the which and anent all general laws whatsoever made and to be made in the contrary, his majesty, with consent foresaid, has dispensed and hereby dispenses for ever. To the effect the same lands, teinds and others particularly and generally above rehearsed may be conveyed to the said Doctor Alexander Colville, his heirs and successors and, in testimony thereof, his majesty, with consent foresaid, does give and convey to the said Doctor Alexander Colville, and his above-specified heritably and irredeemably, the lands, teinds and others particularly and generally above-expressed, with tenants, tenantries and service of free tenants thereof, to be held of his majesty and his successors in blench and feu ferm respectively for payment of the blench and feu duty mentioned in the foresaid signature and infeftments whereupon the same is founded, and recommends to his majesty's treasurer principal and depute and remaining lords of exchequer to pass the foresaid signature, or a new signature if need be, with this declaration and restriction: that the foresaid signature, infeftment to follow thereupon and this present act of parliament so far as the same concerns the lands and others now pertaining to [Alexander Bruce], earl of Kincardine, shall be restricted only to the feu duties thereof so that, by virtue of the said Doctor Alexander Colville's right above-specified, he and his successors shall have the irredeemable right of the said feu duties in all time coming, and the said earl of Kincardine, his heirs and successors shall hold their part of the same lands and others foresaid of his majesty, without prejudice of the said Doctor Alexander Colville and his above-specified's right of the feu duties of the same, and of their right and full benefit of their said rights in so far as concerns the remaining lands of Lurg Kincardine and others mentioned in the foresaid signature, and to be mentioned in the infeftment to follow thereupon, in addition to the lands and others belonging to the said earl of Kincardine, with this declaration: that it shall be in the option of the feuar of the said remaining lands, either to hold the same of his majesty or the said Doctor Colville, his heirs and successors, without prejudice of his and his foresaids irredeemable right of the said feu duties of their lands.
[1663/6/52]*[print] [email] [cite] [preceding] [following]
The king's majesty, considering how necessary it is for his majesty's honour, for the authority of parliament and the advancement of his majesty's service that the close of this parliament (which his majesty has commanded to be dissolved at this time) be attended with all the solemnities usual in such cases; does therefore, with advice and consent of his estates in parliament, ordain and command all archbishops and bishops, all noblemen, and commissioners from shires and burghs to be ready with their horses and foot-mantles, and the nobility with their robes, to attend his majesty's commissioner to and from the parliament house the last day of the parliament, certifying such as shall, without leave of his majesty's commissioner, be absent and not attend, as said is, they shall be liable to such censure and punishment as his majesty and council shall think fit to inflict upon them, as contemners of his royal authority, and commands besides that the commissioners from shires and burghs are to forfeit and lose the allowances due to them for their attendance.