Imatges de pàgina
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c. 5.

where some

use of reli

ritual per

sons.

the chief lords: therefore it is declared in this parliament, that 15 Rich. II. it is manifestly within the compass of the said statute. And moreover it is agreed and assented, that all they that be Mortmain possessed by feoffment, or by other manner to the use of be seised of religious people or other spiritual persons, of lands and tene- lands to the ments, fees, advowsons, or any manner other possessions gious or spiwhatsoever, to amortise them, and whereof the said religious and spiritual persons take the profits, that betwixt this and the feast of St. Michael next coming, they shall cause them to be amortised by the licence of the king and of the lords, or else that they shall sell and aliene them to some other use between this and the said feast, upon pain to be forfeited to the king and to the lords, according to the form of the said statute of religious, as lands purchased by religious people and that from henceforth no such purchase be made, so that such religious or other spiritual persons take thereof, the profits as afore is said, upon pain aforesaid. And that Mortmain to the same statute extend and be observed of all lands, tene- purchase ments, fees, advowsons and other possessions purchased or to gilds, fraterbe purchased to the use of gilds or fraternities. And more- ces, commoover it is assented, because mayors, bailiffs and commons of nalties. cities, boroughs and other towns which have a perpetual commonalty, and others which have offices perpetual, be as perpetual as people of religion, that from henceforth the y shall not purchase to them and to their commons or office, upon pain contained in the said statute De Religiosis. And Mortmain in whereas others be possessed or hereafter shall purchase to taking of their use, and they thereof take the profits, it shall be done lands in use. in like manner as is aforesaid of people of religion (g).

fands to

nities, offi

respect of

23 HENRY VIII. c. 10, A. D. 1531-2.

An Act for Feoffments and Assurances of Lands and Tenements made to the use of any Parish Church, Chapel, or such like.

c. 10.

WHERE by reason of feoffments, fines, recoveries, and 23 H. VIII. other estates and assurances made of trust of manors, lands, tenements and hereditaments, to the use of parish churches, chapels, church-wardens, guilds, fraternities, commonalties, companies or brotherheads erected and made of devotion, or by common assent of the people without any corporation, and also by reason of feoffments, fines, recoveries, wills and other acts made to any uses aforesaid, or to the uses and intents to have obites perpetual or a continual service of a priest for ever, or for three score or four score years, founden of the issues and profits of the manors, lands, tenements and

(g) Ante, pp. 16-18.

c. 10.

23 H. VIII. hereditaments, whereof such feoffments, fines, recoveries, wills and other acts be made, or that the feoffees, conisees, recoverers, or other persons, and their heirs thereof seised, shall take, levy, receive and perceive, or cause or suffer to be taken, levied and perceived, the issues, revenues and profits thereof, and the same to dispose, pay, convert, or otherwise employ or suffer, or cause to be disposed, paid, converted or employed to any such uses, intents or purposes as be above specified, or to any other like uses and intents; there groweth and issueth to the king our sovereign lord, and to other lords and subjects of the realm, the same like losses and inconveniences, and is as much prejudicial to them as doth and is in case where lands be aliened into mortmain :

Assurances of lands to churches.

shall be

void.

II. Be it therefore enacted by the king our sovereign lord, the lords spiritual and temporal, and the commons in this chapels, &c. present parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, that all and every such uses, intents and purposes of what name, nature or quality they shall be called, that shall be devised, covenanted, made, declared, or in anywise ordained after the first day of March, in the three and twentieth year of the reign of our sovereign lord king Henry the Eighth, by any feoffee, recoverer, or conisee, or by any other person or persons to whose use any such feoffee, recoverer, or conisee shall be seised of any manors, lands, tenements, or hereditaments, or of the issues, revenues and profits of them or any of them, shall be utterly void, and of no strength, virtue, nor effect in the law.

Proviso for

III. Provided alway, that it shall be lawful to every person being seised of any manors, lands, tenements or hereditaments to his own proper use, or having feoffees, recoverfor 20 years. ers or conisees to his use, to make, ordain, or devise, or

assurances of lands to such purposes, &c.

Collateral

assurances

in fraud of the statute shall be void.

cause to be made, ordained, or devised, any of the uses, intents and purposes above specified, in such manner as they might have done before the making of this act, and as if this act had never been made; so that no such uses, intents, or purposes to be so made, ordained, or devised after the said first day of March, be not in any wise made, ordained, devised, or appointed to endure, continue, or abide, by any craft, colour, terms, sentences, clauses, words, or other means, above the term of twenty years next after the first making and beginning of any such uses, intents, or purposes (i).

IV. And it is further enacted, that if any person or persons in defraud of this statute bind or ordain any their heirs or successors, or any other person or persons, that they shall suffer such uses, intents and purposes to endure and con

(i) Ante, p. 19.

c. 10.

tinue, contrary to this act, upon pains or penalties of losses 23 H. VIII. of any other lands, tenements, or hereditaments, or of any other thing or things; or do attempt or devise by any colour, craft or means any thing or things, to make any such uses, intents or purposes, to be declared contrary to the true meaning of this act, to continue or abide for any longer time or season than is above limited for the same; that then every such pain, penalty, craft, colour, and every other thing and things, of what kind, nature, or quality soever it be that shall be so made, ordained, or devised in defraud of this act, shall be utterly void in the law to all intents; and that this statute shall be always interpreted and expounded, as beneficially as may be, to the destruction and utter avoiding of such uses, intents, and purposes therein above remembered, and of all other like uses and intents, otherwise than only after such manner as is afore by this present act provided.

cities and

vise lands,

V. Provided alway, that in such cities and towns corpo- Customs of rate, where by their ancient customs they have good and towns corlawful authorities to devise into mortmain the lands, tene- porate to dements and hereditaments within the same cities or towns saved. corporate, that this act shall not be in any wise prejudicial or hurtful to any such custom.

The act contains a proviso in favour of devises made by Roberte Jannis and John Terry, for the relief of the poor of the city of Norwich, from tolls, taxes, &c.

STATUTE OF CHARITABLE USES, 43 ELIZABETH, c. 4,
A. D. 1601.

An Act to redress the misemployment of Lands, Goods, and
Stocks of Money heretofore given to certain Charitable
Uses.

WHEREAS lands, tenements, rents, annuities, profits, here- 43 Eliz. c. 4. ditaments, goods, chattels, money, and stocks of money have been heretofore given, limited, appointed, and assigned, as well by the queen's most excellent majesty and her most noble progenitors, as by sundry other well-disposed persons; some for relief of aged, impotent and poor people; some for maintenance of sick and maimed soldiers and mariners, schools of learning, free schools and scholars in universities; some for repair of bridges, ports, havens, causeways, churches, sea-banks and highways; some for education and preferment of orphans, some for or towards relief, stock or maintenance for houses of correction, some for marriages of poor maids, some for supportation, aid and help of young tradesmen, handicraftsmen and persons decayed, and others

43 Eliz. c. 4.

Commissioners to inquire of

the gift of

lands and goods to charitable uses.

Four comat the least.

missioners

for relief or redemption of prisoners or captives, and for aid or ease of any poor inhabitants concerning payments of fifteens, setting out of soldiers and other taxes (j); which lands, tenements, rents, annuities, profits, hereditaments, goods, chattels, money and stocks of money, nevertheless, have not been employed according to the charitable intent of the givers and founders thereof, by reason of frauds, breaches of trust and negligence in those that should pay, deliver, and employ the same: For redress and remedy whereof, be it enacted by authority of this present parliament, that it shall and may be lawful to and for the lord chancellor or keeper of the great seal of England for the time being, and for the chancellor of the duchy of Lancaster for the time being for lands within the county palatine of Lancaster, from time to time, to award commissions under the great seal of England or the seal of the county palatine, as the case shall require, into all or any part or parts of this realm respectively, according to their several jurisdictions as aforesaid, to the bishop of every several diocese and his chancellor, (in case there shall be any bishop of that diocese at the time of awarding of the same commissions,) and to other persons of good and sound behaviour, authorising them thereby, or any four or more of them, to inquire as well by the oaths of twelve lawful men or more of the county (k), as by all other good and lawful ways and means, of all and singular such gifts, limitations, assignments and appointments aforesaid, and of the abuses, breaches of trusts, negligences, misemployments, not employing, concealing, defrauding, misconverting or misgovernment of any lands, tenements, rents, annuities, profits, hereditaments, goods, chattels, money or stocks of money heretofore given, limited, appointed or assigned, or which hereafter shall be given, limited, appointed, or assigned, to or for any the charitable and godly uses before The inquiry. rehearsed: and after the said commissioners or any four or more of them (upon calling the parties interested in any such lands, tenements, rents, annuities, profits, hereditaments, goods, chattels, money, and stocks of money) shall make inquiry by the oaths of twelve men or more of the said county (whereunto the said parties interested shall and may have and take their lawful challenge and challenges), and upon such inquiry, hearing and examining thereof, set down such orders, judgments and decrees as the said lands, tene

The commissioners' orders.

(j) Ante, pp. 58-82.

(k) A commission of charitable uses, directed to commissioners to inquire by the jury of a particular borough in a county, was held good, as the chancellor was not

obliged to issue such commission for entire counties alone. Bailiff of Ilchester v. Bendishe, West's Rep. temp. Hardw. 184; S. C. 2 Eq. Abr. 200.

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43 Eliz.

c. 4.

missioners'

ments, rents, annuities, profits, goods, chattels, money, and stocks of money may be duly and faithfully employed to and for such of the charitable uses and intents before rehearsed respectively, for which they were given, limited, assigned, or appointed by the donors and founders thereof: which orders, The comjudgments, and decrees, not being contrary or repugnant to orders shall the orders, statutes, or decrees of the donors or founders, be executed. shall by the authority of this present parliament stand firm and good, according to the tenor and purport thereof, and shall be executed accordingly, until the same shall be undone or altered by the lord chancellor of England or lord The comkeeper of the great seal of England, or the chancellor of the orders county palatine of Lancaster, respectively, within their altered. several jurisdictions, upon complaint by any party grieved to

be made to them.

missioners'

halls, in

Cambridge,

Winchester,

II. Provided always, that neither this act nor anything Colleges, therein contained, shall in anywise extend to any lands, Oxford or tenements, rents, annuities, profits, goods, chattels, money, Cambri or stocks of money given, limited, appointed, or assigned, or ster, Eaton, which shall be given, limited, appointed, or assigned, to any cathedral college, hall, or house of learning within the universities of churches. Oxford or Cambridge, or to the colleges of Westminster, Eaton, or Winchester, or any of them, or to any cathedral or collegiate church within this realm.

1 Lev. 284.

corporate,

school.

III. And provided also, that neither this act nor anything City, town therein shall extend to any city, to town corporate, or to any college, hosthe lands or tenements given to the uses aforesaid, within pital, freeany such city or town corporate, where there is a special governor or governors appointed to govern or direct such lands, tenements, or things disposed to any the uses aforesaid, neither to any college, hospital, or free school which have special visitors, or governors or overseers appointed them by their founders (g).

IV. Provided also, and be it enacted by the authority afore- Ordinary's said, that neither this act nor anything therein contained, jurisdiction. shall be any way prejudicial or hurtful to the jurisdiction or power of the ordinary, but that he may lawfully in every cause execute and perform the same as though this act had

never been had or made.

None shall be commis

sioner or

hath any

V. Provided also, and be it enacted, that no person or persons that hath or shall have any of the said lands, tenements, rents, annuities, profits, hereditaments, goods, chat- juror which tels, money, or stocks of money in his hands or possession, part of the or doth or shall pretend title thereunto, shall be named a goods in commissioner or a juror for any the causes aforesaid, or being question named, shall execute or serve in the same.

(g) Ante, p. 292-296.

lands or

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