[1681/7/157]¹

Ratification in favour of Sir David Balfour of Forret

Our sovereign lord, with advice and consent of the estates of parliament, has ratified and approved and, by this act, ratifies and approves a charter granted by our sovereign lord the king's majesty to and in favour of Sir David Balfour of Forret, knight, one of the senators of the college of justice, in liferent, and of Mr Michael Balfour, his eldest lawful son, and the male heirs lawfully to be procreated of his body, which failing of Mr James Balfour, advocate, his second lawful son, and his male heirs lawfully to be procreated of his body, which failing in favour of the other male heirs, heirs of tailzie, provision, successors and assignees therein mentioned, of all and whole the lands of Easter and Wester Forret, with their several manor places, houses, biggings, yards, orchards, dovecots, woods, parks, tofts, crofts, parts, pendicles and whole pertinents thereof; the lands and town of Logie, otherwise the cot-town of Forret, with the mill, mill-lands, multures and sequels thereof, with commonty and common pasturage, free ish and entry thereto, ingress and regress in the commonty of Lucklawhill, and all other places used and wont, with annexes, connexes, parts, pendicles and pertinents of the said whole lands of Forret; and also, all and whole the lands of Torforret, with houses, biggings and pertinents of the same, all lying within the sheriffdom of Fife, all of old united in a free barony, called the barony of Forret, conforming to a charter, under his majesty's great seal of his ancient kingdom of Scotland, of the date 3 September 1616; and likewise, all and whole the town and lands of Pitlessie, as well sunny as shadow half thereof, with the corn mill and waulk-mill of the same, mill-lands, multures, sucken and sequels of the same, mill and astricted multures of the lands of Bunzion, houses, biggings, tofts, crofts, parts, pendicles and pertinents of the same, lying within the sheriffdom of Fife and parish of Cults; together with the common pasturage and winning of fuel, fail and divot in Edensmuir and Monksmoss, together with two hundred fodders² of lime rubble to be carried by the said Sir David, or his tenants and others in his name, from the lime kilns upon the hill of Pitlessie, for the use of the said respective lands yearly, in all time coming (if there is so much lime burnt upon the said hill, and if not so many fodders of the said two hundred as can be had) under and with the provisions, conditions and reservations at length therein mentioned and set down, upon the said Sir David's own resignation; containing a novodamus or new gift of the same lands by his majesty and an erection and union of the foresaid whole lands, and others above-written with the pertinents, in a free barony to be called, in all time coming, the barony of Forret, and the manor place of Forret to be the principal messuage thereof; and also containing erection of the town of Pitlessie in a free burgh of barony to be called, in all time coming, the burgh of barony of Forret, and has given and granted to the said Sir David, and his foresaids, all and whatsoever privileges, liberties and immunities pertaining or that may be known to pertain to any burgh of barony within this kingdom, with power to them to appoint bailies, sit and hold courts, build and have a tolbooth within the said burgh, a market cross and a weekly market upon Wednesday, with two free fairs yearly, the one to be held upon 10 May and the other upon 16 September, and to uplift the whole customs of the said burgh markets and fairs, with bloodwits and casualties, and to do all other things belonging to a burgh of barony within the said kingdom, and containing a dispensation for taking of sasine at the manor place of Forret, to be sufficient for all the said lands and others foresaid and also the said burgh of barony; and likewise, containing a change of the holding of the said lands of Easter and Wester Forret, cot-town of Forret and Torforret, and pertinents thereof, from a former taxed ward to a lesser taxed ward, containing lesser duties upon his majesty's consideration that the tax duties contained in a former charter granted by his majesty to the said Sir David Balfour, at Whitehall, 9 June 1673, were great and were put on by his commissioners of exchequer, conforming to his majesty's commission granted to them, therefore his majesty was graciously pleased, of his special favour to the said Sir David, to grant him such ease in the tax as his majesty had sometime been pleased to grant to others, and his majesty of his certain knowledge has of new taxed the said lands, conforming to the old retour duties of the same, and conforming to his majesty's letter directed thereon, the which new tax duties are specially set down in the said charter, and also bearing the town and lands of Pitlessie, mills, mill-lands, multures, pasturage and pertinents thereof, to be held also taxed ward, conforming to an old tax, and also his majesty, by the said charter, grants liberty to the heirs, from time to time, to obtain themselves served and retoured, infeft and seised in all and sundry the foresaid lands and others above-written with the pertinents, notwithstanding of their minority, with which and with the judges and clerk and others the persons of inquest to be upon the said services and the notaries and givers of the sasine, his majesty has dispensed; and also, bearing the said burgh of barony, privileges thereof, weekly market and yearly fairs above-written to be held blench, for payment of 2d Scots money yearly at Whitsunday [May/June] if it is asked only, as the said charter granted by his majesty at Windsor Castle, 12 July 1681 last by past, under his majesty's great seal, in itself more at length purports; together with the precept of sasine therein contained and instrument of sasine following or to follow thereupon, in all and sundry heads, clauses, points, circumstances and conditions of the same, dispensing with the generality hereof, and not inserting of the said charter, precept and instrument of sasine at length herein, and admitting the same to be as valid and sufficient, in all respects and conditions, as if the said charter, precept and instrument of sasine were particularly set down word for word and engrossed herein, and with all other objections and imperfections if any be.