History of the earldoms of Strathern, Monteith, and Airth

B8 HISTORY OF THE EARLDOMS OF
sYventh^Earl B^^t if, as is admitted, the Charter of the
1633^°^^"''"' ^^^^s o^ Craynis was not the Charter by which
the Dignity of Earl of Monteith was created, it
could not possibly be the Charter referred to in
the Patent of 16S3; because the clauses re-
specting precedency prove, indisputably, that
the Charter mentioned in that Patent was the
Charted' hy which the personal Dignity had been
created.
It must again be observed that the Patent of
the Earldom of Airth commences with stating
that the Earldom of Monteith had been granted
to Malise Earl of Monteith and his heirs, and
that William, then Earl of Monteith, was the
heir of line and succession of the said Malise.
It erects the lands of Airth into 2ifree territorial
Earldom, with the Title and Dignity of Earl of
Airth, in favour of the said Earl and his heirSy
annexing thereto the territorial Earldom of
Monteith ; and it then creates the grantee and
his heirs Earls of Airth ; and in the concluding
clause, those grants to the said Earl and his
aforesaid heirs are repeated.
Thus, from the beginning to the end of the
Patent, only one class of heirs, namely, heirs
general or heirs of line, are either mentioned or
contemplated. The Earldom of Monteith was
not merely supposed, but is actually stated, to
have been granted to heirs ; and, though the
grantee was heir male of the body of Malise