[1599/7/1]¹

Procedure: commission regarding the coin

Commission regarding the coin

Forasmuch as his majesty's most necessary and urgent affairs which presently occurs requires some present supply to be made to his highness, and seeing the coin is one of the special points belonging to the crown and the profit that may be had by the same is appropriated by all princes within their realms and dominions to their own particular uses; and it has been seen by experience that princes, upon necessity of wars and other weighty affairs, have at all times raised and heightened the prices of the coin, and as the occasion of the same was taken away, they reduced the value and rebated the same to the first moderate prices, suffering none of their subjects to have any great loss thereby; and his highness ever above all things preferring the welfare of his good and loving subjects, and in no way being of that mind or intention that with purchasing a small gain to himself they should be in any manner greatly damnified but that the means might be found as well as to supply the present necessity as that the same might be with the least hurt possible to the lieges; and our sovereign lord, being most willing that these matters should in no way be precipitated or hastily and tumultuously handled but rather with good advice and mature deliberation concluded, has therefore, with advice of the estates, given and granted full power and commission to the ordinary lords of his highness's privy council, or so many of them as may be most conveniently assembled at the day appointed, adjoining to them James [Drummond], commendator of Inchaffray, Patrick [Leslie], commendator of Lindores, William [Melville], commendator of Tongland, Sir James Scrimgeour of Dudhope, knight, Duncan Campbell of Glenorchy, Patrick Hepburn of Luffness, knights, John Touris of Inverleith, Master George Lauder of the Bass, Henry Nisbet, Ninian MacMorran and George Heriot, burgesses of Edinburgh, John Traill, burgess of Dundee, Oliver Young, burgess of Perth, and Duncan Balfour, citizen in St Andrews, to meet within the burgh of Edinburgh on 4 September next to come, and there advise, conclude and determine how the heightening of the said coin to £3 the ounce of silver of 11 denier fine and gold so proportionally may be with some profit to his highness and with small hurt and loss to the lieges; and if they find the same may be done in any measure to effectuate both the one and the other, with full power to them to conclude relating thereto in what form and print the new coin shall be struck and all other things that shall be requisite for that purpose, only retaining the fines of the gold and silver that the same was of before; which conclusion shall be of as great strength, force and effect as if the same was concluded in this present convention; and if the same be found in no way to rebound to his majesty's profit and yet shall be a great hurt to the lieges, with power to the said commissioners to refuse all overtures to be presented to them relating thereto and to reason, advise and find out some other best means how his highness's affairs may be supplied with the least hurt, grief and detriment to the lieges, and to conclude relating thereto, which shall be of as great strength and effect as if it was concluded in this present convention; and likewise that they receive whatever overture shall be presented by his majesty's treasurer, comptroller or collector for furthering and advancing of his highness's profit, and to conclude thereupon as the same shall be found reasonable.