[1609/4/24]*[print] [email] [cite] [preceding] [following]
Our sovereign lord, for the good, faithful and most acceptable services evidently done at diverse times to his highness's honour by his right trusty cousin and familiar councillor George, earl of Dunbar, lord Home of Berwick etc., in the administration of justice by repressing and punishment of notorious proud malefactors within the bounds of the late borders of both the realms, according to his majesty's warrant and commission directed and given relating thereto, whereby great peace and tranquillity has ensued to the evident well of his majesty's crown and royal estate and to the common wealth of all his highness's good subjects of the whole realm of Great Britain, therefore his majesty, after God's advice, mature deliberation, consent, decreet and approbation of the whole estates of his grace's kingdom of Scotland convened in parliament, upon their certain knowledge and competent sure experience of the premises, ordains a charter of confirmation to be made under his majesty's great seal in the main form ratifying, approving and for his highness and his successors perpetually confirming, likewise by this ratification, for his majesty and his successors, with advice and deliberation foresaid, and also with express consent of George [Gledstanes], archbishop of St Andrews, personally compearing in parliament, ratifies, approves and perpetually confirms a charter of pure alienation and new disposition therein mentioned, containing precept of sasines made and granted by the said George, archbishop of St Andrews, with consent and assent of the chapter of the metropolitan kirk thereof, to the said George, earl of Dunbar, his heirs and assignees heritably, of all and whole the lands of Broxmouth, with mansion, manor place, houses, orchards, yards, dovecots, mills, greens, links, parts, pendicles and all their pertinents lying in the parish of Dunbar within the sheriffdom of Edinburgh and constabulary of Haddington, bounded at length in the said infeftment, to be held of the said Archbishop of St Andrews and his successors in free blench for yearly payment of 20s usual Scots money at two usual terms in the year, Whitsunday [May/June] and Martinmas [11 November] in winter, by equal portions, in name of annualrent blench ferm only, as the same dated 21 December 1608 bears, and the instrument of sasine passed upon the said charter and all other titles and rights and securities whatsoever following and depending on the same in all and sundry points, clauses, articles and conditions whatsoever therein expressed, holding them all and every one of them as herein specially word by word engrossed. Moreover, his majesty, with consent, decreet and approbation foresaid, gifts, grants and conveys to the said George, earl of Dunbar, his heirs and assignees all right, title, interest, claim, petitioner and possessor, both property and possession, which his highness, his predecessors and successors ever had or may have to the said lands of Broxmouth, with all their pertinents or any part of the same by reason of ward, relief, non-entries, escheat, forfeiture, recognition, purpresture, disclamation, reduction of infeftments, alienation of the whole or most part, changing and alteration of the holding which his majesty has done and ratified of his royal power and princely authority or for any other cause, action or occasion passed, renouncing and transferring the same, with all action and instance thereof, to and in favour of the said earl, his heirs and assignees for ever, with an agreement not to petition etc., with supplement of all faults etc., promising in the word of a prince, for his majesty and his successors, never to move action, litigation, question nor quarrel against them relating thereto. And his majesty and estates foresaid declare this act shall be a sufficient warrant to the keepers of his highness's signet, seals and registers for completing the said confirmation to the said Earl of Dunbar. Given at the manor of Greenwich, 11 [June 1609], and at Edinburgh, 24 June 1609.