[1661/1/307]¹

Act rescinding [Archibald] MacDonald of Sanday's forfeiture

Our sovereign lord, taking to consideration that Archibald MacDonald of Sanday was violently put to death at Dunaverty for his faithful and constant adherence to and serving of his majesty's dearest father, of glorious memory, during the late troubles and that [...] MacDonald, his son, did faithfully serve his majesty by joining and concurring in arms with [James Graham], marquis of Montrose for asserting his majesty's just authority and opposing the enemies and invaders thereof, and that the said Archibald MacDonald and [...] MacDonald, his son, were forfeited and at the least dispossessed of their whole estate in the year 164[...] for their good and faithful service done to their dread sovereign, which estate has, ever since the death of the said late Archibald MacDonald who was put to death in the year 16[...], been bruiked and enjoyed by the marquis of Argyll and Alexander MacNaughton of Dunderawe, or others to whom they have made over or set the same, by which and their debarring of Christian Stewart, widow of the said late Archibald MacDonald, from her liferent of so much of the said estate as she stands infeft in, and by debarring of Ronald MacDonald, son to the said [...] MacDonald and grand-son and apparent heir to the said deceased Archibald MacDonald, from the possession of the remainder of the said estate wherein the said Christian is not infeft since their deaths, and thereby have been reduced to great extremities and hardships, and as yet continues so; and his majesty, being sensible thereof and how far it does concern his majesty's honour that all and every such decreet and sentence of forfeiture pronounced by parliament, convention, committee of estates or justice courts, and all acts, interlocutors or others relating thereto preceding the date hereof, are reduced as unwarrantably and illegally pronounced upon most unjust grounds, and that the said Christian Stewart, widow of the said late Archibald MacDonald, and the said Ronald MacDonald, his grand-son and apparent heir, be restored and possessed in the said estate conforming to their respective rights thereof, notwithstanding any such sentence, decreet or interlocutor, as said is; therefore, his majesty, with advice and consent of his estates of parliament, casses, annuls, declares and decrees all and every such sentence or decreet of forfeiture pronounced by parliament, convention, committee of estates or justice court, and all acts, interlocutors and others relating thereto against the said deceased Archibald and [...] MacDonald, or any deed done in prejudice of the said Christian Stewart or Ronald MacDonald preceding the date hereof, to have been from the beginning, to be now and in all time coming null, void and of no strength, force nor effect, as if the same had never been pronounced, and that it shall be lawful to the said Christian Stewart, widow of the said deceased Archibald MacDonald, presently to enter to the peaceable possession of so much of the said estate as she stands infeft in, and that it shall also be lawful to the said Ronald MacDonald to serve himself heir to the said deceased Archibald MacDonald, his grandfather, or to the said [...] MacDonald, his father, or any of his predecessors in the said estate, or any other estate wherein they or any of them died infeft, and to enter presently to the possession of the same, and bruik and enjoy all freedoms, privileges and immunities thereto belonging as if the said sentence or acts had never been pronounced or made, without any stop or gainsaying.