[1592/4/22]¹

Act in favour of the inhabitants of Edinburgh who had contracts or obligations of the persons forfeited

²Our sovereign lord and estates of parliament, for the good and thankful service done to him by the provost, bailies and community of the burgh of Edinburgh, and esteeming the same now worthy to be remembered to the effect that they and their successors may the better continue their affection in his highness's service, his majesty and estates of this present parliament have declared, decreed and ordained and, by the tenor hereof, declare, decree and ordain for his highness and his successors that the process of fencement and doom of forfeiture led and given in this present parliament against the persons who are convicted of treason and lese-majesty against his highness for the crimes committed by them contained in the process and dooms of forfeiture respectively led against them, shall no way be hurtful to any of the burgesses or inhabitants of the said burgh of Edinburgh in any lands or annualrents alienated to them by any of the persons now forfeited, or their predecessors under reversion, but that they, their heirs and successors shall possess the lands or annualrents until the redemption thereof, and that our sovereign lord and his successors and others who shall happen to obtain infeftment of the said lands by the said forfeiture are and shall be astricted and obliged to infeft the said persons, having the said wadsets of new after the form and tenor of their former infeftments and contracts; and that they shall stand in their said rights of the wadsets foresaid, similarly and in the same manner as if the alienators had never been forfeited, providing always that this act be not prejudicial to the act made in favour of George [Keith], earl Marischal etc., bearing that whosoever shall obtain the escheat of forfeiture of Master John Colville, sometime of Strathurdie, his lands, rooms and possessions, shall be obliged to make the said earl and Master James Wardlaw, his cessioner and assignee, payment of the sum of 3,156 merks money for the cause therein specified, as the same at more length purports; providing also that the said inhabitants of Edinburgh holding of any of the said persons forfeited or having them bound by contract or obligation to make infeft or pay annualrent, compone with his highness's treasurer for their new infeftments, presentations or confirmations between now and 1 August next, otherwise the benefit granted to them by the said act of parliament to be ineffectual to them thereafter.