James Sinclair of Quendale

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CXIV

Feu Charter, King James v. to Sir James Sinclair, of the islands of Sanday and Stronsay.

Register Great Seal, lib. xxv. No. 200. Printed : 0. L. Records, No. 58.

June 20th, 1535. Edinburgh.

Abstract

Crown charter of feufarm in favour of James Sinclair of Sanda, Knight, and Barbara Stewart, his spouse, granted by King James v. of Scotland. The lands specified are the lands and island [sic] of Sanda and Stronsay, with the holms thereof called Rymtsay, Papay, and Owskare, lying in the lordship and earldom of Orkney. They are to be held of the King, ' as earl and lord of Orkney,' and his successors, by the said James and his spouse, their heirs male ; and failing them, their heirs female ; ' without division of the aforesaid lands,' in feu and heritage for ever. The grantees are to pay 200 merks, in equal portions at Whit-Sunday and Martinmas, in name of feufarm ' for the increase of our rental yearly in all payments in the sum of 50 merks.' Their heirs are to double the said feufarm in the first year of entry, after the custom of feufarm. The grantees and their heirs have also to build and maintain on the foresaid lands and island a sufficient mansion-house. At Edinburgh, 20th June 1535.

Note. — This is the earliest feu charter of lands in Orkney or Shetland. Tradition says that Sir James Sinclair obtained this grant by representing the two islands to be uninhabited holms, but the duties charged show this to be nonsense. It seems pretty certain, however, that King James can scarcely have realised what he was granting, since the island of Sanday contained a considerable amount of odal land belonging to various families, and Stronsay a little, and odal lands were never feued out (except to the owner by his own desire) until they had first been acquired by the Crown or Church. In fact, the charter — as worded — was absolutely ultra vires. .....................................

.......... [Here the deed ends, at the foot of the parchment, and is evidently continued on some missing page.]

Note. — The date of the immediately preceding deed on the same parchment is Edinburgh, Feb. 8th, 1536-7 in the twenty-fourth year of king's reign, so that it is probable this charter is of about the same date. The king who grants it is certainly James v., as the wife of James Irving is here stated to be Helen Lesly. On October 4th, 1566, his wife was Janet Skea (see No. LV.), and he died in October 1567 (No. i.viii.), while James VI. was not proclaimed king till July 1567. It is therefore certainly earlier than December 1542, when James v. died, and is of considerable interest as being the earliest feudal charter of a private Orkney estate (the grant to Sir James Sinclair of Sanday and Stronsay is of a different kind). It is to be noted that it is not a feu of Crown or Church lands, but a confirmation of odal possession. It may be added that despite this apparent feudalisation of their estate, the Irvings continued to partition and redeem it just as before. In this respect it may be contrasted with the Halcro charter of a few years later (No. cxvm.).

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