10 ANNIVERSARY ADDRESS 



burgesses and the burgh ; — " the exercise of merchandise 

 ceased among them to their great hurt, and the ruin 

 and prejudice of the commonweal and liberty of our 

 foresaid burgh." In addition to this, the king's revenue 

 also suffered "no little loss concerning our customs and 

 burgh mails, and the duties owing to us furth of our 

 foresaid burgh." To restore the right and liberties of 

 the burgh, and prosperity to the burgesses, and also to 

 restore the revenue from duties and mails which the 

 king and his progenitors had received from the burgh, 

 the Charter of Novodamus was granted in 1502. These 

 facts are evidence that Lauder had been created a Royal 

 Burgh at a much earlier period, and strongly support 

 the view that it received its charter in the 14th century, 

 and probably from King Robert Bruce. Owing to wars 

 and interference with trade and merchandise during 

 troublous times, Lauder was often impoverished, and this 

 may account for its not being mentioned earlier or more 

 frequently in the " Chamberlain Rolls." We know, at 

 least, that in later times it was for this reason exempted 

 from payment, and from sending a representative to 

 Parliament. 



Neither the original charters nor the Novodamus gave 



anything new to Lauder. These did not 

 Antiquity give to the burgesses and community for 

 of Rights. the first time lands and possessions, and 



rights in an extensive commonty. Lauder 

 appears before us in history, in the 12th century, a 

 strong and vigorous community which possessed arable 

 lands and meadows, and extensive common-lands. From 

 whom they acquired these possessions or how they acquired 

 them cannot now be discovered ; but that they did possess 

 them, before King David gave the " superioiity " of the 

 town and its lands to Hugh De Morville, is a fact. The 

 over-lordship of De Morville did not infringe the rights 

 of the inhabitants or disturb their possession of the lands. 

 In the charter given by Richard De Morville (about 1170) 



