Act, 28 December 1693, Edinburgh

Att Edinburgh the Fourteinth day of Februarij J^aj vj^c nyntie three years

A1693/2/24

A1693/2/24¹

Proclamation

Proclamation for preventing and regulating abuses by souldiers

The following proclamatione being read votted and approven wes signed and ordered to be recorded whereof the tenor followes William and Mary by the Grace of God King and Queen of Great Brittain France and Ireland defenders of the faith To […] macers of privie Councill messengers at armes our shirreffs in that pairt Conjunctllie and severallie speciallie constitute Greeting Forasmuch as by diverse Lawes and acts of parliament made by our Royall predicessors all free quartering of souldiers in transient and Locall quarters and all Localities for furnishing or Carrying corne straw hay or grass to souldiers horses is expressly prohibited and discharged And by one establishment under our Royall hand There being measures Laid doun and fonds appropriat for the exact and punctuall payment of the standing forces and garisones within this our ancient Kingdome And a Commissar appoynted for makeing due and regular provisions of corne straw and grass for the horses and dragoons presently under our pay and in our service within this our ancient Kingdome by readie money or otherwayes as he can best bargaine with any of our Leedges for there corne straw and grass whereby the abuses heretofore done and Comitted upon any of our Leedges By the Illegall exacting Locality or free quarter may be remeeded and prevented And all mans meat and horse meat furnished to any officers or souldiers in our service within this our ancient Kingdome duely payed and wee considering how necessarie it is that all our good subjects should know by whom And in what maner they are to be payed for all provisiones of Corne straw and grass for horses and meat and drink to be furnished to our officers and souldiers by them or any of them And that all officers and souldiers within this our said ancient Kingdome may governe and regulate themselves and the troops under there Command accordingly as they will be ansuerable wee with advyce and Consent of the Lords of our privie Councill Requyre and Command the Commissary Generall appoynted and receaved by the Lords of our Theasury To make due and tymous provisiones of oatts straw and Grass for all horse and dragoons at present under our pay and in our service within this our ancient Kingdome in there respective transient and Locall quarters And that the same may be the more orderly and effectually done wee requyre and Command all our officers who command the saids troops to give tymely notice to the said Commissary of there remove all to and from Locall quarters And of the rout appoynted for there March in transient quarters That provisiones may be readie accordingly And in case any pairtyes be called to march upon sudden Commands which may not be fitt to Impairt to the Comissary Then wee with advyce forsaid strictly Charge and requyre the Commanders of the severall pairties to buy with readie money the oats straw and Grass necessarie for there horses as any other of our Leedges is in use to doe And what he shall deburse or expend thereon wee hereby requyre and Command our said Commissarie to refound and repay the same And wee with advyce of our privie Councill doe hereby expressly requyre and Command our Commissarie Generall by himself or fitt persones Imployed and Intrusted by him to attend at the magazines which shall be provyded for our troops at there respective quarters tuo houres each day viz Betuixt ten and tuelve in the forenoon at least, To attend the tuo houres aboenamaed upon one or moe of the dayes of each week such as shall be particularly agreed upon betuixt the Commissarie and the officers To the effect The provisiones may be given out be the Commissary and receaved be the officers or souldiers tymously and without dissorder or Confusione And hereby all officers and souldiers are peremptorly prohibited and discharged to offer any Injurie or abuse to our said Commissarie or his deputs as they will be ansuerable at there highest perrill And Sicklyke wee with advyce forsaid peremptorly requyre and Command the officer Commanding in cheiff in any place of Locall or transient quarters To see the haill meat and drink furnished to the souldiers and officers under his Command by the Landlords of there quarters exactly and Compleatly payed at the ordinary rates of the Countrey And in case there shall be any exaction or discharge of free quarters extorted or abatements exacted below the ordinary rates. or any other abuse committed wee with advyce forsaid requyre and Command the Comanding officer there for the tyme To make payment be readie money for the wholl² souldiers and officers on the place in there Locall quarters once every week at the fardest and transient quarters befor removeall If they stay a shorter tyme then a week under the pain of Casheering and breaking the said Commanding officer upon complaint of his transgressing the premisses To be made by the pairty Injured to our privie Councill or to the Shirreff or his deputts Bailzies of Regality or his deputs stewart of the stewartry or his deputs or any tuo Commissioners of Supplee of the bounds and shyre where the saids abuses and Injuries are done and committed whom or aither of whom wee with advyce forsaid Requyre and Comand to receave the saids complaints and transmitt the same to the Clerks of our privie Councill within ten dayes after any such Complaints shall be made to them under the paine of being Lyable to repair the pairty Injured themselves And which Complaints wee with advyce forsaid appoynt to be persued by our advocat and sollicitor upon the publict charge And in case any private pairty shall think fitt to persue the same themselves wee hereby Comand the expenses that shall be Laid out by them in prosecutione thereof to be repayed and reimbursed to them be the Lords of our Theasury alswell as the expenses to be Laid out by our sollicitor all which are to be retained and deduced by the saids Lords of our Theasury out of the officers pay against whom the said complaint is made and verifyed And in case any Inferior officer in transient or Locall quarters shall transgress any of the premisses wee hereby requyre and Command the Commanding officer upon Complaint made to him and proven instantly to pay the compleaner what shall be due to him And if the persone compleaned on be ane uncommissionat officer The Said Commander is instantly to break and Casheer him And If he be a Commissionat officer who shall so transgress wee with advyce forsaid Requyre the said Comanding officer to suspend him in the mean tyme And Imediatly represent the same to our privie Councill That they may give orders for breaking and Casheering the officer transgressing provydeing the complaints for not payment of Locall quarters or committing any of the abuses forsaid therein be made to the said Comanding officer within eight dayes after a weeks quarter are resting or any other abuses Committed And in transient quarters befor the parties removeall with certificatione If payment be not Craved or Complaints made within the tyme forsaid The Comanding officer shall be free Butt prejudice to the Land Lords and others to seek there payment and reparatione from the persones debitors therein or Committers thereof By all other Legall means And it shall be sufficient evidence That the Commanding officer hes been Compleaned to, and requyred to make payment of provisiones furnished to souldiers, men and horses under his comand or abuses committed by them If the same be made to him In presence of a magistrat within burgh, a Justice of peace or tuo witnesses And wee with advyce forsaid doe declare That no discharges shall be sufficient for exonering the souldiers and officers and Instructing the payment of there quarters unles they be subscryved by the maister of the ground or his chamberland or the officer of the ground befor tuo witnesses or a magistrat within burgh And for preventing of a Comon abuse done and Comitted upon our Leedges by souldiers and officers in there marches pressing and seizing upon horses for there oune privat use and service wee with advyce forsaid doe strictly prohibite and discharge all pressing or seizing upon horses by any officer or souldier for there oune particular and private service under the paine of a moneths pay to be retained (upon complaint to be made and Instructed as aforsaid) of the officer who commands And where horses are necessary for carrying of artillery amunitione, or provisione or any other use of the army in the touns or in the Countrey That the same be Imployed and made use of By order of the Comander of the pairty and of the magistrates of burghes Joyntly If the³ horses be furnished within burgh And by the said Commander and any one of the Commissioners of supplie within the shyre where the horses are furnished and made use of in Landward And wee with advyce forsaid conforme to the third act parliament J^aj vj^c Eightie one ordaine that there be payed for each day that the saids horses shall travill three shillings scotts for each tuo myles to the man and horse And each day that they doe not travill six shillings scotts to the man And also much for the horse The man being obleidged to provyde himself and the horse which shall be payed be the magistrates of the burgh If the horses be taken within a toune And if in the countrey by the Collector of the supplie in the shyre who are to be repayed thereof or to have the same allowed to them be the receaver generall And that the horses necessarie to be made use of and Imployed for the service and use of our forces above exprest may be the more regularly and⁴ equallie proportioned and provyded wee with advyce forsaid requyre and Command the magistrates within burgh and Commissioners of Supplee and Justices of peace in Landward to cause provyde from tyme to tyme a Competent number of horses within there respective bounds for the service of our forces and the uses forsaid as they will be ansuerable at there perrill And wee with advyce forsaid prohibite and discharge any souldier or officer to seize upon or press any horses without the Concourse of the persones abovenamed or to detaine them longer then on dayes march at fardest But to restore and give back the saids horses Imployed in maner forsaid in good case under the pain of a moneths pay to be retained in maner forsaid off the officer who shall be found to contraveene the premisses Besydes the payment of the pryce of the horse to the furnisher As the same shall be Instructed befor the bailzies within burgh Shirreffs stewarts bailzies of regalityes or deputts or Justices of peace in the Countrey And to the end our Royall pleasure in the premisses may be made publict and knowen Our Will is and wee charge yow strictly and Command That Incontinent thir our Letters seen ye pass to the mercat croce of Edinburgh and all other mercat crosses of the heid burghes of this Kingdome alswell of Royalty as of regality and stewartry and other places needfull And there In our name and authority By open proclamatione make publicatione of the premisses And Sicklyke that all our forces alswell as our Leedges may have notice hereof, wee doe requyre and Command these presents to be publictly read at the heid of every troop and Company of our standing forces that none may pretend Ignorance Given under our signet at Edinburgh the Fourteenth day of Februarij and of our reigne the Fourth year J^aj vj^c nyntie three years sic subscribitur Tweeddale cancel: Hamilton P: Melvill Privy Seall Linlithgow Strathmore Lothiane Leven Breadalbane Tarbatt Raith Cardross Carmichaell James Stewart Adam Cockburne William Anstruther Frances Montgomerie Ludovick Grant John Maxwell