[1579/10/47]¹

Ratification of our sovereign lord's revocation of fees and pensions

The king's majesty, with advice and consent of the three estates of this present parliament, ratifies, approves, confirms and allows the act of revocation made by his highness, with advice of the lords of his secret council, at Stirling on 10 August 1579, of all gifts, fees and dispositions out of his majesty's property, casualty, thirds of benefices or collectoryin pension or freely discharged, given by his highness, with advice of his regents for the time, or by himself since the acceptance of the government in his own person; and also, by the tenor hereof, revokes the said gifts, fees and dispositions so that the same revocation may be of full strength, force and effect in time coming, after the date hereof, with the exceptions specified therein, of the which revocations and exceptions the tenor follows:

At the castle of Stirling, 10 August 1579, the king's majesty and lords of his highness's secret council, considering the present estate of his highness's property and casualty, so far hurt and diminished through the dispositions thereof in pensions and otherwise that neither can the charges of the expenses of his highness's houses nor others, the necessary affairs of his estate and crown, be sustained in time coming (albeit the occasion of the charges and expenses daily increases) without some present help and good provision; as also calling to mind how the thirds of benefices within this realm were first assumed and taken up for the sustentation of the ministry and to support the prince to maintain and set forward the common affairs of the country, and thereafter by act of parliament it was provided that the whole thirds of the whole benefices within this realm should be first paid to the ministers of the evangel and their successors, providing always that the collectors of the said ministers should make yearly account in the exchequer of their intromission, so that the ministers, being first paid of their stipends pertaining to every one of them, the rest and surplus should be employed to our sovereign lord's use; which order continued until certain abuses and corruptions being considered and espied in the collectors for the time, upon the suit of the said ministers, certain assignations were made to them of their livings and stipends in the place most close and commodious to their residence, it being always meant and intended that when God should raise up more qualified persons and godly ministers they should be planted in the places found most convenient for them and competent and sufficient livings and stipends modified, appointed and assigned to them, and whatever should be assigned in the said stipends, that the collector general of the surplus should utterly desist from further craving intromission or taking up of the same of any terms after the said assignation; and albeit the surplus of the said thirds over the ordinary assignations of the stipends of the ministry, contained in the yearly book of modification, ought to serve for the stipends of such qualified persons as God shall raise up from time to time, worthy to be admitted in the function of the ministry, and to support the prince, to maintain and set forward the public affairs of the country, nevertheless, through the inopportune suit of sundry persons more respecting their own particular profit than either the sustenance of the ministry or the honourable estate of his majesty or the commonwealth of the realm, his majesty, by advice of his regents in his minority, and partly by himself since he accepted the government of his realm in his own person, has been moved to make disposition of the said surplus in pension or to discharge and give the same free to some persons, through which there remains little or nothing to be conveyed, either to be modified, appointed and assigned in livings and stipends to such qualified persons as God shall raise up hereafter fit to enter in the function of the ministry, or to supply the public and needful affairs of his highness's estate; which being diligently and with good deliberation advised upon by his majesty and the lords of his privy council, it is found by them that the said surplus of the said thirds of benefices being assumed and taken in his majesty's hands for the causes and affairs before specified, and also his highness's property for the honourable sustaining of his house and train ought not, nor might not, be conveyed and given otherwise except applied to the same use and effects that they were dedicated to at the beginning, neither ought his highness's casualties, on which the ordinary charges of his estate otherwise ought to be sustained, be conveyed at the inopportune suit of all askers, but his highness's commodity made thereof and such discretion had in the disposition as his majesty might conveniently live on his own. And therefore his highness, by advice of his said council, revokes, rescinds, abrogates, annuls and discharges all the said gifts, fees and dispositions out of his said property, casualty, thirds of benefices and collectory in pension or freely discharged as said is given by his highness, with advice of his regents for the time, or by himself since the acceptance of the government in his own person, declaring and decreeing the same to be null and of no value, force nor effect in time coming, and ordains the comptroller, treasurer and collector general of the said surplus to ask, crave, receive, intromit and take up his whole property, casualty and surplus to the use and effect written before of the crop and year of 1579 and in time coming, without respect of any gift of pension, fee or free discharge of any part of the said property, casualty or collectory in time past preceding the date hereof, and that they answer and obey none but upon new warrant, direction and commandment to be obtained hereafter; and that letters be directed to officers of arms, sheriffs in that part, to make publication and intimation hereof by open proclamation at the market crosses of the head burghs of this realm and other places needful, that none pretend ignorance of the same, inhibiting all and sundry his highness's lieges that none of them take upon hand to answer, obey or make payment of any manner of pensions given out of the said property, casualty or collectory or any part thereof to any person or persons claiming the same by any gift in pension, fee or freely discharged as said is, but to answer the said comptroller, treasurer and general collector and his deputes thereof, notwithstanding any gifts, decreets or letters obtained thereupon in time past. Excepting and reserving always out of his majesty's revocation his highness's gift or discharge made to his dearest and only great-uncle Robert [Stewart], earl of Lennox, lord Darnley, of the surplus of the thirds of the priory of St Andrews and bishopric of Caithness, more than the sustenance of the ministry serving at the kirks thereof; as also the gift of pension and assignation thereof out of his property and third of the archbishopric of St Andrews made by his majesty and ratified in his last parliament to his right trusty cousin Annabella [Murray], countess of Mar, guardian of his highness's person and spokesperson in his infancy; and likewise the gift of pension made out of the third of the abbey of Scone to his well beloved daily servant Master James Haliburton, provost of Dundee, which his highness declares not to fall or to be comprehended under his said revocation, but wills that the same gifts, pensions and discharges shall stand in full effect and force in time coming after the form and tenor thereof, and now in this present parliament ratifies and approves the same as of before, the said revocation or any other thing contained therein notwithstanding.