The family of Burnett of Leys, with collateral - Electric Scotland

DEESIDE BURNETTS: XIII. SIR THOMAS. 43
with fishings in Dee, Dye, and Feugh, patronage of the archdeaconry of
Krechin or parish of Strachan, within the lordship of Inverugie (by
annexation) and sherirTdom of Kincardine. The lands which he held of
the Crown at his death were : the barony of Leys, with a reddendo of
id. blench ; Muchalls, 20 taxed ward ; Campbell, Craigour, &c., id.
blench ; Tullihaikie, &c., 2os. feu ferme ; Pittenkeirie, 6s. 8d. blench ;
patronage of Banchory, id. blench ; in very, 5 6s. 8d. feus, and Strachan
and Culpersie, 60 taxed ward.
In 1646, a question was raised in Parliament as to whether Canneglerocht
(part of Leys) was in Kincardineshire or Aberdeenshire (Acts of
Parliament of Scotland, I., 518), and soon afterwards the lands of Crathes,
which locally lay in Aberdeenshire, were, by Act of Parliament, annexed
to Kincardineshire, on the ground that the laird of Leys had other lands
and another residence in the Mearns.
When about nineteen years of age, the heir apparent of Leys had, as
has been seen, visited his uncle at Norwich, when both Duncan Burnet
and his wife were greatly attracted by the pure, earnestly devout, gentle,
and the correspondence that
and yet manly, demeanour of their nephew :
followed affords some insight into his early life. Duncan's letters
(see Appendix), though often touching on religious topics, give no
indication that the changes just then going on in the Church polity of
Scotland had any interest for either uncle or nephew.
In 1618-9, the y ear of his father's death, we find Thomas Burnet,
younger of Leys, one of a body of Commissioners named by James
VI., at the instance of Bishop Patrick Forbes, to visit the Universities
of Aberdeen (Fasti Aberd., p. 274). Patrick Forbes of Corse, of a
Presbyterian family, had been a pupil of Andrew Melville for
philosophy at Glasgow, and for theology at St. Andrews. While he
had imbibed his master's love for learning, mature reflexion had led
him to conclusions, both
Presbyterianism
political and theological, opposed to the
of his day. He was made Bishop of Aberdeen in 1618.
Spottiswood describes him as the best Scottish prelate since the days of
Bishop Elphinstone ; and he interested himself almost as much as
Elphinstone in the welfare of King's College, of which, as Bishop,
he was Chancellor. He had been no sooner appointed to his See
than he obtained the Royal Commission alluded to, to enquire into its
condition, in which he was conjoined with Lord Dunfermline, the Earl