[1587/7/57]¹

Act in favour of lay persons for redemption of their patronages

²Our sovereign lord, with advice of his three estates in this present parliament, understanding that diverse earls, lords, barons and others of his highness's freeholders, being infeft in their lands and baronies with advocation, donation and right of patronage of benefices, they have transferred certain of their lands and baronies in wadset under reversion, through the which alienations the sa[me] lands and baronies have remained with the persons, receivers thereof, in wadset 100 years and more; in the meantime, certain prelates, abbots or other ecclesiastical persons having right or title clad them with the said benefices and thereby quietly intrudes them in the possession and right thereof, in default of the said patrons who took no regard thereto during the non-redemption of the said wadsets, through which the said just and lawful lay persons of the said benefices have been heavily prejudiced in their rights and presentations of the same in times past; therefore, for remedy thereof, it is statute and ordained by our said sovereign lord, with advice and consent of the said estates, and specially provided by statute of this present parliament, that no possession apprehended by bishops, abbots, priors or other kirkmen of whatsoever parsonages, vicarages, chaplainries, prebendaries or other benefices belonging to the said earls, lords, barons, freeholders or other lay persons, and wherein they are specially infeft by their charters, shall be in any way hurtful or prejudicial to rights and titles of the said lay parsonages after redemption of their lands and wadsets, as well already used in times past as to be used, but that the said lay persons may as freely possess, enjoy and use their said patronages and present qualified persons thereto at all times, likewise as [if] the said kirkmen had never apprehended possession of the same and notwithstanding thereof.