[1592/4/202]¹

Act in favour of [William Stewart], commendator of Pittenweem

²Our sovereign lord, with advice of the estates of this present parliament, after due consideration had by them of the good, true and faithful service done to his majesty by his trusty councillor William Stewart, commendator of Pittenweem, as well within this realm as outwith the same in foreign nations, tending to the profit and commodity of this whole realm and lieges thereof, and great sums of money, cost and expenses sustained by him therein, therefore his majesty and estates find expedient and consent that it shall be permissible to his highness to wadset and alienate to the said commendator, his heirs and assignees whatsoever, all and whole the temporal lands, lordships, baronies, castles, towers, fortalices, mills, multures, woods, fishings, tenants, tenancies and service of free tenants, parts, pendicles and pertinents whatsoever pertaining and belonging, or which pertained and belonged at any time before to the priory of Pittenweem; and to make and deliver to the said William and his foresaids such charters and infeftments as he pleases to devise for his security thereof, redeemable always and under reversion to be made and granted by the said commendator, his heirs and assignees, to his highness and his successors, containing the sum of 8,000 merks money of this realm; and that notwithstanding the said act of parliament made regarding the annexation of kirk lands to the crown through which, and with all other laws, acts and constitutions that may in any way derogate the said infeftment and disposition to be given and granted to the said commendator and his foresaids, his highness, with advice foresaid, dispenses and promises for him and his successors in the first word never to impinge the same in judgement, nor outwith in time coming; with special provision that this present act of parliament and infeftments to be made to the said commendator by virtue thereof be in no way extended nor prejudicial to the feuars, other vassals and tenants of the said priory and lordship of Pittenweem, who have already obtained their lands and infeftments held immediately of our sovereign lord, or who please hereafter to obtain and hold any of their lands of the king's majesty as their immediate lord and superior by virtue of the act of annexation of all temporal lands of benefices to his highness's crown, and notwithstanding the provision above-written made in favour of the said vassals. It shall be permissible to the said commendator and his foresaids to enter and receive as many of the said vassals, their heirs, assignees and successors as willingly please to receive their lands, tenements, annualrents and infeftments thereof held of him and his foresaids, to whom our said sovereign lord, with advice of the said estates, gives, grants and conveys, by this ratification and by the tenor of the said charter to be made hereupon, heritably during the time of the said wadset full power and commission to receive and enter as many of the said vassals, their heirs, assignees and successors as shall please willingly to enter by him and his foresaids, which vassals so entered by the said commendator shall be held and astricted to pay to him and his foresaids their reasonable compositions for the same from time to time as the occasion of their entries shall require. The which infeftments of the entering of the foresaid vassals, our sovereign lord and estates foresaid decree and declare by the tenor hereof and charter to follow hereupon to be as valuable, effectual and sufficient in all respects to the said vassals of the said whole priory and their foresaids for holding, enjoying and possessing of the lands, tenements, annualrents and others therein to be contained perpetually in all time coming as if the said infeftments had been made and granted to the said commendator and his predecessors before the foresaid act of annexation, or by our said sovereign lord, or his highness's successors under the great seal at any time since the foresaid act. Which infeftment our said sovereign lord, with advice of the said estates, now as if the same were already passed and completed to the said commendator and his foresaids and then as now, ratifies, approves and, for his highness and his successors, perpetually confirms; concerning which, his highness, with advice foresaid, notwithstanding the said act of annexation, by this ratification dispenses for ever.