WHereas the Four and twentieth day of February, in the year of our Lord, One thousand six hundred forty five, the Court of Wards and Liveries, and all Ward-ships, Liveries, Primer-seizins, and Oustrelemaines, and all other Charges incident or arising for, or by reason of Ward-ships, Livery, Primer-seizin, or Oustrele­main; And all Tenures by Homage, and all Fines, Licenses, Seizures, and Pardons for Alienation, and all other Charges incident thereunto, was by the Lords and Commons then assembled in Parliament, taken away; And all Tenures by Knights Service, either of the King or others, or by Knights Service, or Capite, or Soccage in Capite of the King, were turned into free and common Soccage; For the further establishing and confirming the same, Be it Declared and Enacted by His High­ness the Lord Protector, and the Parliament, That the Court of Wards and Liveries, and [Page 2] all Ward-ships, Liveries, Primer-seizins, and Oustrelemaines, and all other Charges incident & arising, for, or by reason of any such Tenure [...], Ward-ship, Livery, Primer-seizin, or Oustrele­maines, be taken away, from the said four and twentieth day of February, One thousand six hun­dred forty five: And that all Homage, Fines, Licences, Seizures, Pardons for Alienation, incident or arising, for or by reason of Wardship, Livery, Primer-seizin, or Oustrelemain, and all other Charges incident thereunto, be likewise taken away, and is hereby adjudged and decla­red to be taken away, from the said four and twentieth day of February, One thousand six hundred forty five: And that all Tenures in Capite, and by Knights service of the late King, or any other person, and all Tenures by Soccage in Chief, be taken away; And all Te­nures are hereby Enacted and Declared to be turned into free and common Soccage, from the said four and twentieth Day of February, one thousand six hundred forty five; and shall be so Construed, Adjudged, and Declared to be for e­ver hereafter turned into free and common Soccage.

Nevertheless, It is hereby Enacted, That all Rents certain and Heriots, due to Mean Lords or other private Persons, shall be paid; And that where any Relief, or Double ancient yearly Rent, upon the death of an Ancestor, was in such Cases formerly due and payable, a Double ancient yearly Rent onely in lieu there­of, shall now be paid upon the death of an An­cestor, as in free and common Soccage; And that the same shall be recovered by the like Re­medy in Law, as Rents and Duties in free and common Soccage.