[A1573/1/14]* [print] [email] [cite] [preceding] [following]
Forasmuch as the jewels, household stuff, ammunition and moveable goods whatsoever, sometime pertaining to [Mary], the queen, our sovereign lord's mother, and now pertaining to his majesty since his highness's coronation, are dispersed and fallen in the hands of diverse subjects of this realm and others which have the same, and daily sell and convey or have sold and conveyed thereupon to their private uses, greatly to the damage and prejudice of his highness, that therefore it may be found expedient and convenient by the three estates and whole body of this present parliament that [James Douglas, earl of Morton], my lord regent's grace, cause pursue the possessors, resetters, sellers and intromitters with the said jewels, household stuff, ammunition and moveable goods, now pertaining to our sovereign lord, as said is, and recovering and collecting of the same again to his highness's use and behalf, declaring and decreeing that my lord regent grace's acquittal thereupon shall be a sufficient discharge and warrant for deliverance of the said jewels, household stuff, ammunition and moveables presently and in all time coming.†
[A1573/1/15]*[print] [email] [cite] [preceding] [following]
Because this act and ordinance is generally extended to all deeds since our sovereign lord's coronation, as also the same is extended to all persons who at any time before this time have assisted to the contrary authority, albeit, by act of parliament held at Stirling in September 1571, Archibald [Campbell], earl of Argyll, Hugh [Montgomery], earl of Eglinton, Gilbert [Kennedy], earl of Cassilis, Robert [Boyd], lord Boyd and a certain space thereafter John [Maxwell], lord Maxwell and John [Maxwell], lord Herries acknowledged our sovereign lord's authority and were received in favour; therefore, that it be provided in the act now to be made that the same be in no manner of way derogative or prejudicial to the said appointment, taken with the said noblemen and every one of them for themselves, their friends, kinsmen, servants, assisters and partakers of before, but that the same remain in the own strength and force, ratifying and approving the same by this act. And further, that notwithstanding the said act now to be made, or any other law or constitution in the contrary, it may be provided and statute that the said noblemen, their friends, kinsmen, servants, assisters and partakers shall never be called, arrested, troubled or pursued, criminally or civilly, for any fact or deed committed by them, or any of them,† assistance given by them to any of our sovereign lord's enemies,† either against our sovereign lord's authority or any other particular person, through their assistance in the common cause of maintenance of the contrary authority or anything depending thereon at any time before their acknowledging of our sovereign lord's authority, but that they, their heirs and successors shall be free, exonerated and acquitted of all action and claim, criminal or civil, which in any manner of way may be competent to our said sovereign lord or his subjects against the said persons; and to discharge the lords of session, the justice and all other judges in common form, †and that conforming to their remissions and appointment made thereupon.†
[A1573/1/16]*[print] [email] [cite] [preceding] [following]
Forasmuch as the time of the late trouble, moved by the declared traitors and conspirators against our sovereign lord's authority within and about the burgh of Edinburgh, a great number of the inhabitants thereof, not able to resist the said rebels, were compelled to leave their houses and withdraw themselves to Leith, where they truly, by all their power, served our sovereign lord, his regents and lieutenants in defence of his grace's just authority, not without the hazard of their lives and spending of a great portion of their substance; for the which cause, not only was there deadly hatred borne against their persons, but for further spite against a number of the said inhabitants of Edinburgh for the earnest affection which they bore in our sovereign lord's service, and to affray other good subjects and simple men through the novelty of their desperate doing, to compel them to furnish the said rebels with money for fear of greater inconvenience, to the bearing forth of their mischievous enterprises and treasonable attempts, they burned, demolished and cast down to the ground diverse lodgings, lands and tenements within the said burgh and suburbs thereof, pertaining to the inhabitants of the same good subjects to our sovereign lord, after they had made prey, robbed and plundered all their inside moveables and plenishing, being within the same. For remedy of the which heavy hurt and damage, and to the effect that no fear of the loss of goods or destruction of houses and tenements shall move the said good subjects to yield to tyranny or by private or public consent to supply the treasonable attempts of the said declared traitors in time coming, and albeit also [John Erskine, earl of Mar], my lord regent's grace who last deceased, with advice of his secret council, by their act and ordinance conveyed the whole escheats of the said rebels, inhabitants, to them who sustained the said damage, and that they now are content to receive only recompense for their hurt, that it may be statute and ordained in this present parliament that all houses, lands and tenements ruined, cast down, destroyed or deteriorated within the freedom and liberty of the said burgh, and others in the suburbs thereof, pertaining to whatsoever inhabitant of the same, who lived at the true obedience and service of our said sovereign lord during the time of the said troubles, shall be repaired and recompensed by the lands, tenements, annualrents and other heritages lying within the freedom of the said burgh and pertaining to the persons, inhabitants of the said burgh, which fortified, furnished, supplied, assisted the said rebels and conspirators and took part with them in their said treasonable attempts and destructions; and to the intent and purpose aforesaid, that it be ordained by act of parliament that all and sundry lands, tenements, annualrents and other heritages lying within the said burgh of Edinburgh, pertaining to the said rebels, their assisters, furnishers and partakers, being inhabitants of the said burgh as said is, shall be taxed and stented by the provost and bailies of the said burgh, and so many of the council thereof, or other persons as shall be thought expedient by them, to be changed and altered at their pleasure, for recompense of the said damage and hurt sustained by the demolition and deterioration aforesaid, giving, granting and committing to the said provost and bailies, and others to be deputed by them as said is, full power and jurisdiction in the premises, and to weigh the degrees and qualities of the said persons, assisters, furnishers and partakers according to their abilities and degrees of their fault; and to appoint to the persons, sustainers of the said damages, the manner of the satisfaction thereof, and giving them power to put the same to due execution in all points by appraisal of the lands of the said other persons or otherwise translation of their rights thereof as shall be thought by them most expedient in most ample form. Moreover, that partly in consideration that the said inhabitants of the said burgh who have, by danger of their lives and spending of the greatest part of their substance, willingly continued in our sovereign lord's service, be in no way frustrated of the recompense and reparation of their said damages by any engine or stratagem, and namely if partly by intervening persons the said committers of the destruction aforesaid have obtained or hereafter shall obtain the gifts of their escheats of their said lands or remissions to them for all crimes committed thereupon, this said ordinance may be of no effect. Therefore, it will please [James Douglas, earl of Morton], my lord regent's grace, by advice of the three estates of parliament, to decree and ordain that the said reparation and compensation, in manner as is before expressed, shall have due execution, notwithstanding any sentence of forfeiture passed against any of the said persons, any gift of escheat, infeftment of their lands following thereupon, remission or any other composition or finance made or to be made concerning their said lands, which in this case, and in regard of the said reparation, shall be declared from the beginning to have been and in time coming to be of no value, force nor effect. And to the effect that, without all excuse and subterfuge, this said ordinance may be put into further execution, that it will please my lord regent's grace and estates aforesaid to privilege the said persons damnified concerning the said reparation of the said lands in manner aforesaid, before all other creditors, who, by reason of any action, real or personal, gift of escheat or infeftment succeeding thereupon, may have any action against the said persons, destroyers or assisters to the said destruction, in manner aforesaid.
†21 January 1573
The article agreed conforming to the act of the secret council and the modification to be made by William [Ruthven], lord Ruthven, John [Lyon], lord Glamis, Robert [Boyd], lord Boyd, Patrick [Lindsay], lord Lindsay [of the Byres], Master Michael Chisholm and William Little, bailie of Edinburgh, or any three of them, being equal in number, and the sums to be modified to be employed for the reparation of the buildings which are destroyed, and this article to be not otherwise but according to the act.