acquintances = acquittances (a written receipt)
Thanks for that, 'acquaintances' makes sense here. I wonder who they were?
Matt
Matt, I can assure you that the word means acquittances not acquaintances. Wherever a testator is talking about sufficient discharge to the administrator(s) of their estate following the payment of a legacy, what is in question is the nature of the receipt to be given.
Any legacy in a will imposes a legal obligation on the administrator(s).
In this case, the legacy is to grandchildren. Probably they are legal minors.
He is saying that a written receipt from the grandchildrens' parents discharges the administrator from their obligation.
That is, if someone later says, "Where's my three pounds from grandad's will?", the administrator just waves the receipt given by the parent and says, "Your legacy has been paid and under the terms of the will I am entirely discharged".
The full passage is below:
...And alsoe I will their parents acquintances
for their said sev(er)all Legacies shallbee my Executor & executrix hereafter named Sufficient
discharge
Hiya
My apologies, I missread what you had put and mistyped it in my note lol!. I've typed the Will up today and with the exception of a few odd words here and there (mostly at the end of the lines) and a surname or two, I've managed to get it all written down.
I haven't heard of this kind of receipt before and I've never come across the term 'acquittances' before.
I'm putting together a tree based on this Will and I believe that her grandchildren were minors at the time.
I'm guessing that this allows the parents to invest the money for the child in question and means that they can say what is done with it. That would allow the administrators to claim they were "entirely discharged". I could be wrong there of course. However it does sound like it allows the administrators to be absolved or any responsibility if the children come asking about the money.
The executors were Jane's brother Henry Phillips and her daughter Elizabeth Edwards.
Anyhow hopefully I can now work out how Jane is related to Anne Morcock (nee Jane Reade) who died in 1671. Henry Phillips witnessed both Wills and is referred to in both Wills. I've established that Henry is Jane's brother from her Will and from finding her christening and marriage details. In Anne's Will she refers to Henry as 'my beloved friend Henry Phillips the elder' so I think Anne might either be a sister of Jane's husband (John Reade), a niece or maybe a daughter.
Anyhow time to go back to my notes and see if I can work out how the various Reades are connected.
Thanks again for the tips and help
Matt
